Language Arts Essential Skills

Essential skills are the MINIMUM that we expect ALL students to attain by the end of their respective grades in language arts. The values we should be looking for in the essential skills are: Endurance (they have value beyond this year), Leverage (They have value beyond this class), and Readiness (they will need this for school next year). The essential skills should be what we are teaching and assessing. We will go beyond these in our classrooms.

8th Grade

Students will be able to analyze the theme in a work of literature and how it is affected by the other elements of a story.
Students will be able to analyze the structure of ANY text and how it plays a role in developing the main ideas and themes.
Students will be able to determine the author’s purpose in ALL types of reading.
Students will be able to interpret and compare various figures of speech including irony, idioms, metaphors, and similes.
Students will be able to effectively produce argumentative, narrative and informative writing that include various organization techniques, strong use of tone, and logical reasoning.
Students will be able to cite and integrate strong textual evidence to support analysis and inferences of a text.
Students will be able to analyze information found in various forms of electronic and mass media.
Students will be able to hold collaborative discussions that build on each others’ ideas and opinions.

7th Grade

Students will be able identify and analyze theme in a work of literature.
Students will be able to identify the key elements of a story.
Students will be able to analyze the use of point of view of different characters in a work of literature.
Students will be able to draw inferences to demonstrate understanding of a story.
Students will be able to identify the claim and central ideas in a work of non-fiction.
Students will be able to recognize author bias when evaluating a claim in a work of non-fiction.
Students will be able to provide textual evidence to support their analysis of ALL types of reading.
Students will be able to recognize and understand various styles of figurative language used in ALL types of reading (simile, metaphor, personification).
Students will be able to effectively produce argumentative, narrative and informative writing that include a clear introduction, body, and conclusion.
Students will be able to write a detailed and well-supported paragraph in response to various prompts/questions.
Students will be able to deliver an oral presentation that includes an introduction, body, and conclusion.

Composition
Students will be able to:

Write sentences without any/few grammatical errors.
Write a cohesive narrative writing that includes the elements of story and incorporate dialogue correctly.
Write an argument that includes a claim, supporting evidence, and concluding statement.
Write an informative essay with a clear topic, organized ideas, and provide a concluding statement.

Text Resizing

Language Arts Essential Skills