What is Supporting an Answer with Text?

S2-SA2-0095

Grade Level:

Class 4

NLP, Law, History, Social Sciences, Literature, Journalism, Communication

Definition

What is it?

Supporting an answer with text means using exact words or phrases from a given passage to prove your answer is correct. It's like finding evidence in a story to show why you think something happened.

Simple Example

Quick Example

Imagine your friend says, 'The cricket match was very exciting!' You ask, 'How do you know?' Your friend replies, 'The newspaper said, 'The last over had everyone on the edge of their seats!'' Here, the newspaper line is the text supporting your friend's answer.

Worked Example

Step-by-Step

Read the paragraph: 'Rohan loved going to the market with his father. He especially liked the colourful fruit stalls and the loud calls of the vendors. His favourite treat was the fresh jalebis his father would buy for him from the sweet shop near the exit.'

QUESTION: What was Rohan's favourite treat?

---
STEP 1: Read the question carefully: 'What was Rohan's favourite treat?'

---
STEP 2: Scan the paragraph for keywords related to 'favourite treat' or 'liked most'.

---
STEP 3: Find the sentence that talks about Rohan's favourite treat: 'His favourite treat was the fresh jalebis his father would buy for him from the sweet shop near the exit.'

---
STEP 4: Formulate your answer, then add the supporting text.

---
ANSWER: Rohan's favourite treat was fresh jalebis. The text states, 'His favourite treat was the fresh jalebis his father would buy for him from the sweet shop near the exit.'

Why It Matters

Learning to support answers with text is crucial for understanding what you read and for expressing your ideas clearly. It's a key skill for lawyers who use laws to argue cases, journalists who use facts to write news, and even scientists who use data to prove theories.

Common Mistakes

MISTAKE: Making up an answer without looking at the text. | CORRECTION: Always refer back to the passage to find the information you need.

MISTAKE: Giving a general answer without quoting specific words. | CORRECTION: Use exact words or phrases from the text, often putting them in quotation marks.

MISTAKE: Quoting too much text that isn't relevant. | CORRECTION: Select only the most important and specific part of the text that directly supports your answer.

Practice Questions

Try It Yourself

Read: 'The auto-rickshaw driver knew all the shortcuts. He could get you from Lajpat Nagar to Connaught Place in under 20 minutes, even during peak traffic.'

QUESTION: How fast could the auto-rickshaw driver get from Lajpat Nagar to Connaught Place? | ANSWER: The auto-rickshaw driver could get from Lajpat Nagar to Connaught Place in under 20 minutes. The text says, 'He could get you from Lajpat Nagar to Connaught Place in under 20 minutes.'

Read: 'Many students enjoy learning about history. However, science experiments, especially those involving chemicals, were always the most popular activity in Class 6.'

QUESTION: What was the most popular activity in Class 6? | ANSWER: The most popular activity in Class 6 was science experiments. The text states, 'science experiments, especially those involving chemicals, were always the most popular activity in Class 6.'

Read: 'The new mobile phone plan offered unlimited calls and 2GB of data per day. It cost Rs. 399 for 28 days. Many customers switched to this plan because of its great value, especially for those who use a lot of data.'

QUESTION: Why did customers switch to the new mobile phone plan? What was its main feature? | ANSWER: Customers switched to the new mobile phone plan because of its great value, especially for those who use a lot of data. Its main feature was unlimited calls and 2GB of data per day. The text says, 'Many customers switched to this plan because of its great value, especially for those who use a lot of data' and 'The new mobile phone plan offered unlimited calls and 2GB of data per day.'

MCQ

Quick Quiz

Which of the following is the BEST way to support an answer with text?

Making a guess based on what you read.

Writing your own opinion about the text.

Copying a sentence directly from the text that proves your answer.

Summarizing the entire paragraph in your own words.

The Correct Answer Is:

Option C is correct because supporting an answer with text means using exact words or phrases as evidence. Options A, B, and D do not provide direct textual proof.

Real World Connection

In the Real World

When you read news on a website or app like 'The Times of India' or 'NDTV', and a reporter writes about an event, they often quote people or official documents. This is them supporting their news story with text, so you know the information is reliable.

Key Vocabulary

Key Terms

SUPPORT: To provide evidence or proof for something. | TEXTUAL EVIDENCE: Specific words or phrases from a text used to prove an idea. | QUOTATION: Exact words taken from a text, usually enclosed in quotation marks. | PASSAGE: A section or part of a written work.

What's Next

What to Learn Next

Now that you know how to support answers with text, you can move on to 'Making Inferences'. This skill builds on finding evidence, helping you understand what a text implies even when it doesn't say it directly.