Students will use the skills and strategies of the reading process to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate what they have read. Readers apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on prior experience, interactions with others, knowledge of word meaning and knowledge of other texts, word identification strategies, and understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
ELEMENTARY GRADES Pre-K-2
1. Seek out and enjoy experiences with books and other print materials.
2. Demonstrate an understanding that reading is a way to gain information about the world.
3. Make and confirm predictions about what will be found in a text.
4. Recognize and use rereading as an aid to developing fluency and to understanding appropriate material.
5. Figure out unknown words using a variety of strategies including rereading, context clues, and knowledge of word structures and letter-sound relationships.
6. Recognize and use clues within the text (sentence structure, word meanings), rereading, and other strategies as aids in developing fluency and comprehension.
7. Ask questions and give other responses after listening to presentations by the teacher or classmates.
ELEMENTARY GRADES 3-4
1. Determine the meaning of unknown words by using a dictionary, glossary, or other reference sources.
2. Adjust reading speed to suit purpose and difficulty of the material.
3. Recognize when a text is primarily intended to persuade.
4. Select texts for enjoyment.
5. Read a variety of narrative and informational texts independently and fluently.
Students will use reading, listening, and viewing strategies to experience, understand, and appreciate literature and culture. Literary texts that are rich in quality, add to the understanding of history and various cultures and build an appreciation of the many dimensions (e.g., philosophical, ethical, aesthetic) of human experience.
ELEMENTARY GRADES Pre-K-2
1. Understand the basic plot of simple stories.
2. Draw logical conclusions about what will happen next or how things might have turned out differently in a story.
3. Identify differences and similarities in story elements (e.g., plot, setting, characters, conflict resolution) in works from various cultures.
4. Distinguish between fiction and nonfiction.
ELEMENTARY GRADES 3-4
1. Demonstrate awareness of the culture and geography pertinent to the texts they read.
2. Use literary pieces to better understand and appreciate the actions of others.
3. Respond to speakers in a variety of ways (e.g., listening attentively, responding politely).
4. Share responses to quality literature with peers, citing reasons and making comparisons to other reading, or viewing, or to life experiences.
5. Identify important characters in quality works containing several characters.
6. Make and justify conclusions about the motives of characters and the consequences of their actions.
7. Identify and explain how characters and situations found in various materials are like people or events in their own lives of in other works.
8. Understand how dialogue relates and contributes to a story or text.
9. Recognize basic elements of plot and recount events, ideas, and important details from material read, heard, or viewed.
10. Apply effective strategies to the reading and interpretation of fiction (e.g., fantasies, fables, myths, mysteries, realistic and historical fiction, adventures, and humorous tales) that is appropriately complex in terms of character, plot, theme, and dialogue and appropriately sophisticated in style, point of view, and use of literary devices.
11. Apply effective strategies to the reading and use of nonfiction (e.g., reference sources, articles, histories, biographies, autobiographies, diaries, and letters) using texts with an appropriate complexity of content and sophistication of style.
12. Demonstrate understanding of enduring themes of literature (e.g., themes of coming of age, love and duty, heroism, and appearance versus reality).
Students will demonstrate an understanding of how words and images communicate. Language and images enable people to get things done, to take charge of their lives, to express opinions and feelings, to experience emotions, and to function as productive citizens. Students will consider such things as the relationship between thought and language, the ways people use language and other symbol systems to communicate, the history and structure of English, and the similarities and differences in the ways various social, occupational, and cultural groups use language.
ELEMENTARY GRADES Pre-K-2
1. Distinguish between and make observations about formal and informal uses of English.
2. Recognize characteristic sounds and rhythms of language, including the relationship between sounds and letters.
3. Make valid observations about the use of words and visual symbols.
ELEMENTARY GRADES 3-4
1. Identify and evaluate how language use varies according to personal situations and settings (e.g., school, home, and community).
2. Identify the social context of conversations and its effect on how language is used.
3. Identify the use of nonverbal cues in conversations.
4. Make observations about the use of language and graphic symbols encountered in various real-life situations.
5. Investigate the languages of other cultures and compare/contrast them to English.
6. Make observations about specific uses and idioms of language.
Students will apply reading, listening, and viewing strategies to informational texts across all areas of curriculum. When reading, listening, and viewing critically, students will ask pertinent questions, recognize assumptions and implications, and evaluate information and ideas. In a world that surrounds them with information, they have to be able to connect with this information and make sense of it.
ELEMENTARY GRADES Pre-K-2
1. Understand the main idea of simple expository information.
ELEMENTARY GRADES 3-4
1. Use information contained in chapter and section headings, topic sentences, and summary sentences to construct there in ideas.
2. Use various informational parts of a text (e.g., index, table of contents, glossary, appendices).
3. Read for a variety of purposes (e.g., to answer specific questions, to form an opinion, to skim for information).
4. Summarize informational texts (e.g., identify the main idea or concept and the supporting detail).
5. Recognize when a text is primarily intended to instruct or to persuade.
6. Understand common technical terms used in instructional and informational texts.
7. Recognize when and how new information in a text connects to prior knowledge.
Students will demonstrate the ability to use the skills and strategies of the writing process. Effective communication can improve the work of writers and speakers. Students will use a wide range of strategies to address different audiences for a variety of purposes. Students will write or speak for reflective, creative and informational purposes.
ELEMENTARY GRADES Pre-K-2
1. Tell about experiences and discoveries, both orally and in writing.
2. Respond to stories orally and in writing.
3. Respond to remarks or statements orally and in writing.
ELEMENTARY GRADES 3-4
1. Identify strengths and weaknesses in their own writing and seek effective help from others.
2. Improve their finished product by revising content from draft to final piece.
3. Use planning, drafting, and revising to produce, on-demand, a well-developed, organized piece that demonstrates effective language use, voice, and command of mechanics.
4. Report orally and summarize personal discoveries they have made as a result of reading and viewing.
5. Give accurate directions.
6. Summarize central concepts from oral presentations.
Students will write and speak correctly, using conventions of standard written and spoken English. Knowledge of language structure and conventions (e.g., spelling, punctuation, level of formality) is used to create, critique, discuss, and present print and nonprint texts.
ELEMENTARY GRADES Pre-K-2
1. Edit their own written work for standard English spelling and usage, as evidenced by pieces that show and contain:
· complete sentences.
· initial understanding of the use of pronouns and adjectives.
· evidence of correct spelling of frequently used words.
· few significant errors in the capitalization of proper nouns and of the words that begin sentences.
· few significant errors in the use of end stop punctuation (e.g., periods, question marks).
2. Use oral language appropriate to the level of formality required.
ELEMENTARY GRADES 3-4
1. Edit written work for standard English spelling and usage, evidenced by pieces that show and contain:
few significant errors in the use of pronouns and adjectives.
attention to the proper use of adverbial forms and conjunctions.
few significant errors in the spelling of frequently-used words.
no significant errors in the capitalization of words that begin sentences and few significant errors in the capitalization of proper nouns and titles.
no significant errors in the use of ending punctuation marks and an understanding of how to use commas.
2. Use the level of language formality required in a variety of speaking situations.
Students will use stylistic and rhetorical aspects of writing and speaking to explore ideas, to present lines of thought, to represent and reflect on human experience, and to communicate feelings, knowledge, and opinions. Spoken, written, and non-verbal visual language (e.g., facial expressions, styles of clothing) accomplish many purposes (e.g., enjoyment, learning, persuasion, and the exchange of information). Writing and speaking for various purposes and for different audiences requires rhetorical skill and stylistic competence.
ELEMENTARY GRADES Pre-K-2
1. Dictate or write stories or essays which convey basic ideas, have sequences that make sense, and show evidence of a beginning, middle, and ending.
ELEMENTARY GRADES 3-4
1. Write pieces and make remarks that begin to use descriptive language that clarifies, enhances, and develops ideas.
2. Write stories (or other pieces) that show a definite beginning (introduction), middle (body), and ending (conclusion).
3. Write essays and make remarks that clearly state or suggest a central idea and provide supporting detail.
4. Write pieces that show awareness of a variety of intended audiences and identifiable purposes.
5. Explain the various purposes of spoken communications.
6. Explain how speakers use physical gestures and eye contact and use this knowledge in their own presentations.
7. Use a variety of media and technological resources to make creative and expository oral presentations.
Students will work, write, and speak effectively in connection with research in all content areas. Research involves generating ideas and posing questions. It includes gathering, evaluating, and synthesizing data from a variety of sources (e.g., print, nonprint, and electronic texts, examination of artifacts, interviews with people). Researching and reporting use a variety of informational and technological resources to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.
ELEMENTARY GRADES Pre-K-2
1. Develop a search strategy which uses appropriate and available resources.
2. Formulate questions to ask when gathering information.
3. Record and share information gathered.
ELEMENTARY GRADES 3-4
1. Ask and seek answers to questions.
2. Use print and non-print resources (e.g., encyclopedias, dictionaries, people, indexes) to gather information on research topics.
3. Present information obtained from research in a way that combines various forms of information (e.g., maps, charts, photos).
4. Distinguish between facts encountered in documents, narratives, and other sources and the generalizations or interpretations a person draws concerning those facts.
5. Demonstrate initial understanding of how to cite sources.