A. PROCESS OF READING
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). Students will be able to:
MIDDLE GRADES 5-8
1. Formulate questions to be answered while reading.
2. Reflect on what has been discovered and learned while reading, and formulate additional questions.
3. Identify specific devices an author uses to involve readers.
4. Use specific strategies (e.g., rereading, consultation) to clear up confusing parts of a text.
5. Understand stories and expository texts from the perspective of the social and cultural context in which they were created.
6. Identify accurately both the author's purpose and the author's point of view.
7. Summarize whole texts by selecting and summarizing important and representative passages.
8. Read for a wide variety of purposes (e.g., to gain knowledge, to aid in making decisions, to receive instructions, to follow an argument, to enjoy).
9. Explain orally and defend opinions formed while reading and viewing.
10. Adjust viewing and listening strategies in order to comprehend materials viewed and heard.
11. Generate and evaluate the notes they have taken from course-related reading, listening, and viewing.
B. LITERATURE AND CULTURE
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. Students will be able to:
MIDDLE GRADES 5-8
1. Demonstrate an understanding that people respond to literature in different and individual ways.
2. Identify specific interests and questions and pursue them by identifying pertinent literature and media.
3. Identify the main and subordinate characters in literary works.
4. Explain how the motives of characters or the causes of complex events in texts are similar to and distinct from those in their own experience.
5. Demonstrate an understanding of lengthy, complex dialogues and how they relate to a story.
6. Recognize the use of specific literary devices (e.g., foreshadowing, flashback, different time frames such as the future or the past).
7. Recognize complex elements of plot (e.g., setting, major events, problems, conflicts, resolutions).
8. Apply effective strategies to the reading and interpretation of fiction (e.g., science fiction, myths, mysteries, realistic and historical fiction, poems, adventure stories, and humorous tales), using texts that are appropriately complex in terms of character, plot, theme, structure and dialogue, and appropriately sophisticated in style, point of view, and use of literary devices.
9. Apply effective strategies to the reading and use of moderately long nonfiction texts (e.g., reference sources, articles, editorials, histories, biographies, autobiographies, diaries, letters, and commentaries) which have an appropriate complexity of content and sophistication of style.
10. Demonstrate an understanding of the defining features and structure of literary texts encountered at this level.
11. Read literature and view films which illustrate distinct cultures in various types of works and formulate and defend opinions gathered from the experience.
12. Identify the universality of themes and examine the connections among various expressive forms (e.g., films, fiction, drama) by drawing on their broad base of prior knowledge.
13. Demonstrate understanding of enduring themes of literature by differentiating between main ideas and themes after they study story elements.
C. LANGUAGE AND IMAGES
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. Students will be able to:
MIDDLE GRADES 5-8
1. Form conclusions regarding formal, informal, and other varieties of language use, based upon experience.
2. Understand factors that commonly affect language change and use.
3. Consult pertinent information sources on language use (e.g., a dictionary, a thesaurus, a handbook on style).
4. Use knowledge of the fundamental parts of speech when writing and speaking.
5. Demonstrate an understanding of the concept of propaganda.
D. INFORMATIONAL TEXTS
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. Students will be able to:
MIDDLE GRADES 5-8
1. Seek appropriate assistance when attempting to comprehend challenging text.
2. Identify useful information-organizing strategies.
3. Identify both the author's purpose and the author's point of view when reading expository information.
4. Identify different ways in which informational texts are organized.
5. Produce and support generalizations acquired from informational text.
6. Describe new knowledge presented in informational texts and how it can be used.
7. Identify common technical terms used in informational texts.
8. Use the various parts of a text (index, table of contents, glossary) to locate specific information.
E. PROCESSES OF WRITING AND SPEAKING
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. Students will be able to:
MIDDLE GRADES 5-8
1. Identify specific personal strategies, strengths, and weaknesses in writing, and use direct feedback from peers and teachers to revise and polish the content of their finished pieces.
2. Use planning, drafting, and revising to produce, on demand, a well-developed, organized piece that demonstrates effective language use, voice, and command of mechanics.
3. Ask questions and apply personal interpretations in class discussion following speeches and oral presentations.
F. STANDARD ENGLISH CONVENTIONS
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. Students will be able to:
MIDDLE GRADES 5-8
1. Edit written work for standard English spelling and usage, evidenced by pieces that show and contain:
no significant errors in the use of nouns, pronouns, and adjectives.
few significant errors in the use of adjective forms (e.g., comparative, superlative), adverbial forms, prepositions, and prepositional phrases.
attention to the proper use of conjunctions.
no significant errors in the spelling of common, frequently used words, and attention to the correct spelling of commonly misspelled words and less common words.
no significant errors in the common conventions of capitalization (e.g., proper nouns, names, titles) and attention to the less common capitalization conventions (e.g., capitalizing the names of nationalities).
no significant errors in the use of ending punctuation marks, few significant errors in the common uses of commas, and attention to the proper use of the colon, semicolon, hyphen, dash, apostrophe, and quotation marks.
attention to the correct use of commonly confused terms (e.g., affect and effect).
attention to the proper use of italics, marginal notes, and footnotes.
2. Demonstrate command of the conventions necessary to make an informal speech or presentation, effectively engaging peers and fielding responses.
G. STYLISTIC AND RHETORICAL ASPECTS OF WRITING AND SPEAKING
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. Students will be able to:
MIDDLE GRADES 5-8
1. Write stories with an identifiable beginning, middle, and ending.
2. Write stories that include major events, develop settings, and deal with problems and solutions.
3. Write pieces and deliver oral presentations that use structures appropriate to audience and purpose.
4. Write essays and deliver oral presentations which identify a clear topic and reliably support that topic.
H. RESEARCH-RELATED WRITING AND SPEAKING