Home / Writing / Answer With Evidence: Restate, Answer, Quote and Explain
Writing lesson · Responding to reading
Answer With Evidence: Restate, Answer, Quote and Explain
Answer a question about a passage in a short paragraph: restate the question, give your answer, quote the exact words that prove it, then explain the proof.
The idea
Your teacher asks, "How do you know?" and you answer, "Because it says so in the text." That is a start, but a strong written answer goes one step further. It shows exactly where the text says so, and it explains why that part proves your answer. This kind of answer is called an answer with text evidence.
Here is a short invented passage that we will use in this lesson. The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. The Maple Street Library and its pantry are made up for practice.
A good answer has four parts, which some classrooms remember as RACE. R is Restate: turn the question into the start of your answer, so a reader who has not seen the question still understands. A is Answer: say your answer clearly. C is Cite: give the exact words from the text that prove it. E is Explain: say how those words prove your answer.
To cite, use a lead-in such as The passage says, or According to the text, then copy the words exactly inside quotation marks. Choose only the part that proves your point, not the whole paragraph. If you change even one word, it is no longer a quotation.
Explaining is the part many writers skip. A quotation alone does not do the thinking for you. Add a sentence that starts with This shows that or This proves that and connect the quotation to your answer.
Sometimes the text does not give the answer. Then the honest answer is that the passage does not say. You can add a guess if you label it as a guess, but you must not pretend the text said it. Finally, keep your opinion out. Evidence answers use what the text says, not what you think or feel about it.
See the difference
A first attempt
People take it. I think the pantry is great because food is good and it is the best.
People get food from the Maple Street pantry by taking what they need from its shelves. The passage says, "anyone can take what they need, no questions asked." This shows that people do not have to prove anything or answer questions first. They can simply walk up and take food.
Why this works: The question was "How do people get food from the Maple Street pantry?" The weak answer never restates the question, gives a vague answer (it), has no evidence from the text and adds an opinion. The strong answer restates the question, answers it, quotes exact words with a lead-in and quotation marks, and then explains what the quotation proves. The passage is invented for practice.
Worked examples
Example 1 · Restate the question
Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Question: How often do volunteers check the shelves?
- Turn the question into the start of a sentence: "Volunteers check the shelves ..."
- Finish it with the answer from the text: every Saturday.
- Now a reader who has not seen the question still understands your answer.
Volunteers check the pantry shelves every Saturday.
Example 2 · Choose the evidence that proves it
Question: What do neighbours leave on the shelves? Which part of the passage proves the answer?
- Look for the sentence that talks about what neighbours leave.
- The first sentence only names the pantry, and the third is about volunteers. They do not answer the question.
- Copy only the words that answer it. You do not need the rest of the sentence.
"Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves."
Example 3 · Add a lead-in and quotation marks
Add the evidence "Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them." to an answer about how often volunteers check the shelves.
- Start with a lead-in: The passage says,
- Put the exact words inside quotation marks. Do not change any word.
- End the sentence with the period inside the quotation marks.
The passage says, "Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them."
Example 4 · Put it all together
Question: Did the pantry give out more items in October or in September? Write a full answer.
- Restate and answer: the pantry gave out more items in October than in September.
- Cite: The passage says, "In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September."
- Explain: twice as many means the number doubled, so about 150 items went out in September.
The pantry gave out more items in October than in September. The passage says, "In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September." This shows that the number doubled, so the pantry gave out about 150 items in September.
Example 5 · When the text does not say
Question: Why did the pantry give out twice as many items in October?
- Reread the passage. It gives the numbers but no reason.
- Say so honestly: the passage does not tell us why.
- If you want to guess, label it clearly as a guess and do not use quotation marks.
The passage does not say why the number doubled. I can only say that it went from about 150 items in September to about 300 in October. (A guess: more neighbours may have heard about it, but the passage does not tell us.)
Common mistakes
Why this fails: A reader may not have the question. Turn the question into your first sentence so your answer stands on its own.
Why this fails: An opinion cannot be checked in the text. Evidence is something the passage actually says.
Why this fails: Quotation marks promise exact words. If you change a word, rewrite it in your own words without quotation marks or copy it exactly.
Why this fails: Choose only the sentence or part that proves your answer. A long quotation hides the point.
Why this fails: The reader should not have to guess why you chose it. Add a sentence that starts with This shows that.
Why this fails: If the passage does not say, write that it does not say. A guess must be labelled as a guess.
Foundation
Foundation practice
Restate, choose evidence and punctuate a quotation.
1. Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Question: Who can take items from the pantry? Which is the best first sentence of an answer?
- Yes.
- Anyone can take items from the pantry.
- The pantry is nice because it helps people.
- The passage is about a library.
2. Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Question: What do neighbours leave on the shelves? Which part of the passage is the best evidence?
- The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door.
- Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them.
- In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September.
- Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves.
3. Which sentence uses a lead-in and quotation marks correctly?
- The passage says Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them.
- The passage says, "Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them."
- The passage says, "Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them".
- "The passage says," Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them.
4. Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Which sentence is evidence from the passage and not an opinion?
- I think the pantry is a wonderful idea.
- Everyone in the neighbourhood should donate.
- It must be hard work for the volunteers.
- Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them.
Practice
Practice practice
Build the four parts of an answer and check quotations.
5. Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Question: How often do volunteers check the shelves? Which is the best written answer?
- Every Saturday.
- Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them.
- I think volunteers check the shelves a lot because they are kind.
- Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday. The passage says, "Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them." This shows that the pantry is looked after once a week.
6. Question: Did the pantry give out more items in October than in September? The quotation is: "In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September." Which sentence best explains the evidence?
- This shows that the pantry gave out double the items in October, so about 150 items went out in September.
- This is the sentence from the passage.
- This shows that October is a better month than September.
- I like this sentence because it has numbers in it.
7. Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Question: What do volunteers do every Saturday? Write the first sentence of your answer (restate the question and answer it).
8. Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Question: How many items did the pantry give out in October? Write a full answer: restate, answer, quote and explain.
9. Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Which quotation matches the passage exactly?
- "anybody can take what they need, no questions asked"
- "anyone can take what they want, no questions asked"
- "anyone can take what they need, no questions asked"
- "anyone can take what they need and no questions are asked"
Think
Think practice
Check answers, fix weak ones and notice when the text is silent.
10. Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Question: Why did neighbours start the pantry? Which answer is the most honest?
- The passage says, "Neighbours started the pantry because they were worried about hunger."
- The passage does not say why the pantry started. It only says what the pantry offers and who looks after it.
- Neighbours started the pantry because everyone loves the library.
- The pantry started in September because that was the first month.
11. Question: Who checks the shelves? Improve this answer: "Volunteers. It says so in the text."
12. Maya answers "How do neighbours help the pantry?" by copying all four sentences of the passage as her evidence. What should she change?
13. A student writes: "Volunteers refill the shelves every day. The passage says, 'Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them.'" What is wrong?
- Nothing is wrong. The quotation is exact.
- The quotation has a comma that should be a period.
- The answer says every day, but the evidence says every Saturday, so the answer does not match the evidence.
Challenge
Challenge practice
Write longer answers and explain why each part matters.
14. Passage (invented): The Maple Street Library has a small food pantry beside its front door. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves, and anyone can take what they need, no questions asked. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them. In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September. Question: How do people help keep the pantry stocked? Write a four-sentence answer: restate, answer, quote exact words, explain.
15. Use the checklist to review your answer to the previous question. Which part of RACE is usually the hardest for you, and what could you add?
16. Why is it not enough to put a perfect quotation in your answer and stop there?
Your turn to write
Choose a short Daily Read lesson, such as a short story or a science reading. Read it twice. Write a question about it, such as "How does the main character solve the problem?" or "What is one important fact the writer gives?" Then write a four- or five-sentence answer: restate the question, give your answer, quote exact words from the text with a lead-in and quotation marks, and explain how the quotation proves your answer. Reread the text to check that every word inside your quotation marks matches.
Helpful sentence starters
- The main character solves the problem by ...
- One important fact the writer gives is that ...
- The text says, "..."
- According to the passage, "..."
- This shows that ...
- This proves that ...
Write in a notebook or a document. The model and checklist are available without signing in.
Check and improve
- My first sentence restates the question and gives my answer.
- I used a lead-in such as The passage says, before my evidence.
- The words inside my quotation marks match the text exactly.
- I chose only the part of the text that proves my answer.
- I explained how the quotation proves my answer, using This shows that or similar words.
- I did not add my opinion or any facts the text did not give.
This checklist is for parent-and-child self-review. No automatic writing score is assigned.
Answer key
- 1. Anyone can take items from the pantry.
It turns the question into the start of the answer and gives the answer. Yes depends on the question to make sense, the third choice is an opinion and does not answer who, and the last choice says what the passage is about but not who can take items. - 2. Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves.
Only this sentence says what neighbours leave: cans, pasta and rice. The first sentence names the pantry, the volunteers sentence is about checking shelves, and the October sentence is about how many items went out. - 3. The passage says, "Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them."
The lead-in is followed by a comma, the exact words sit inside the quotation marks and the period goes inside. The first choice has no quotation marks, the third puts the period outside, and the last puts the lead-in inside the quotation marks. - 4. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them.
That sentence is in the passage word for word, so a reader can check it. The other choices are opinions or guesses: what the writer thinks, what people should do or how hard the work might be. - 5. Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday. The passage says, "Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them." This shows that the pantry is looked after once a week.
It restates the question, answers it, quotes exact words and explains what they show. Every Saturday is a fragment with no evidence, the second choice copies the text without a lead-in or quotation marks, and the third is an opinion that does not give a time. - 6. This shows that the pantry gave out double the items in October, so about 150 items went out in September.
It connects the words twice as many to the question and works out what they mean. The second choice only repeats that it is a quotation, the third claims something the passage never says, and the last is a personal reaction. - 7. Example: Every Saturday, volunteers check the pantry shelves and refill them.
The sentence uses the words of the question (volunteers, every Saturday) and gives the answer from the passage. Other wordings are fine if they are accurate. - 8. Example: The pantry gave out about 300 items in October. The passage says, "In October, the pantry gave out about 300 items, which was twice as many as in September." This shows that the number was about 300 and that it doubled from the month before.
A full answer has a restated answer, an exact quotation with a lead-in and quotation marks, and a sentence that explains the proof. Check that every word inside the quotation marks matches the passage. - 9. "anyone can take what they need, no questions asked"
Only this choice matches every word. The others change one or more words: anybody, want or and no questions are asked. Quotation marks promise exact words, so even a small change is a mistake. - 10. The passage does not say why the pantry started. It only says what the pantry offers and who looks after it.
The passage gives no reason. The first choice invents a quotation, the third makes up a reason, and the last mixes up the first month named in the passage with a start date. - 11. Example: Volunteers check the shelves. The passage says, "Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them." This shows that people from the neighbourhood look after the pantry.
The weak answer does not restate the question and says it is in the text without showing where. A better answer quotes the exact words and explains them. - 12. She should choose only the part that proves her answer, such as "Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves," and then explain it.
Evidence works when it is short and matches the answer. Copying everything makes the reader do the work of finding the proof. - 13. The answer says every day, but the evidence says every Saturday, so the answer does not match the evidence.
An exact quotation is not enough. The evidence has to prove the answer, and every Saturday is once a week, not every day. The punctuation inside the quotation is not the problem. - 14. Example: People help keep the pantry stocked by leaving food and by refilling the shelves. The passage says, "Neighbours leave cans, pasta and rice on the shelves." Another sentence says, "Volunteers check the shelves every Saturday and refill them." Together these show that neighbours give the food and volunteers make sure the shelves do not stay empty.
Two pieces of evidence can answer a question that has two parts. Each quotation needs a lead-in and exact words, and the last sentence explains how they fit together. The wording of your own answer will differ. - 15. Example: The Explain part is hardest. I could start the sentence with This shows that and say what the quotation proves.
This is a self-review question, not an automatic score. Pick the part you skipped or found hardest and name one way to improve it. - 16. The reader still has to guess why the quotation matters. The explaining sentence connects the quotation to the question and shows that you understand it.
Evidence plus explanation shows thinking. A quotation alone only shows that you can copy.