4th grade author's claim worksheets

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Fourth grade author's claim worksheets pair a real argument piece with questions that find its skeleton: what the author wants you to believe, which sentence backs it up, and which line is an opinion rather than a fact.

Free printable PDF worksheet, aligned to Common Core RI.4.8.

Each click picks one of the 13 passages written for this grade. Every sheet comes with its answer key. You don't need to sign up.

The kind of passages you'll get

Read the passage. Then circle the letter of the best answer for each question.

One Instrument, Every Kid

Every child should get the chance to learn a musical instrument through school, and the word doing the work in that sentence is 'chance': not forced recitals, not private lessons only some can buy, but a school-owned instrument in any kid's hands who wants one.…

  1. What is the author's claim? every kid should get the chance to learn an instrument at school · all kids should be required to join band and play in recitals · private lessons are better than any music taught at school · schools should buy fewer instruments to save money

    Answer: every kid should get the chance to learn an instrument at school

  2. Why does the author call an instrument 'honest'? improvement cannot be crammed or faked, only practiced · instruments are expensive and cost families a lot · music has written rules and symbols that every player must follow · recitals reveal which kids have real talent

Each print picks one of the 13 passages written for this grade, and its questions come with it. With 13 to pick from, a second print can land on one you've used, so check the title before you hand it out.

What's on a 4th grade sheet

4th grade sheets draw from 13 passages, 266 to 310 words long. All 13 are on 5th grade sheets too, along with 13 more.

Some of the titles: Let Kids Run the Stove, The Case for Recess First, Board Game Night Is Worth Saving, Museums Should Open Their Doors to Kids for Free, Give the Playground Some Shade, Keep Reading Aloud to Big Kids.

Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key on the last page.

How to teach this

Play the doubter. After your child names the claim, doubt it out loud and make them answer you from the passage. Evidence they can point to counts; evidence they remember vaguely does not, which is the whole lesson in one game.

Watch for: The claim is not always the first sentence, but it is always the sentence the whole piece works for. The test: which statement would the author defend if you argued back? Kids treat every sentence in a persuasive piece as fact. Argument writing mixes facts with opinions on purpose, and telling them apart inside the SAME piece is the skill.

Common questions about 4th grade author's claim

What is the difference between a claim and a topic?
The topic is what the piece is about; the claim is what the author wants you to believe about it. 'School lunches' is a topic. 'Lunch should come after recess' is a claim.
Why do these passages include opinions on purpose?
Because real persuasive writing mixes facts and opinions, and readers must tell them apart inside one piece. One question on every sheet checks exactly that.

Related worksheets

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Want a different passage? Print again. Each print picks one of the 13.

Aligned to Common Core RI.4.8. Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 241, updated October 2026.

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