Announcements

English Language Arts

Welcome to the 2019-20 academic year.  Each of the three middle school grade levels are working through vocabulary and grammar in addition to the following units of study:

8^th Grade

The Pearl 

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Identify character development in non fiction
• Identify and analyze figurative Language including allusion
• Utilize annotation techniques to analyze the book

The Outsiders

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Analyze difference and similarities between a book and movie, then evaluate their effectiveness.
• identify and connect theme. Cite examples of where the theme is fulfilled
• develop college and work readiness by creating a resume and writing business letters
• Use themes in music to connect with themes in a book

Speech

Students will evaluate reasons why public speaking is an important skill:

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Identify the use of rhetoric in a speech.
• Identify and utilize effective physical speaking characteristics
• Write a persuasive speech addressing the prompt they have selected.

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7^th

Al Capone Does My Shirts

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Identify key plot events that cause change in a character
• Cite textual evidence that support inferences
• Describe how setting impacts plot and character development
• Compare and contrast how an the author uses history to create a fictitious story.

Hatchet and My Life in Dog Years

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Identify key plot events that cause change in a character
• Cite textual evidence that support inferences
• Describe how setting impacts plot and character development
• Analyze how a writer’s personal experiences impacts his/her development of characters in a fictitious format.

Poetry

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Identify and define the elements of poetry such as stanza, line, meter, etc.
• identify the characteristics of different types of poetry
• Create original works using the format of odes, narratives and concrete poetry

Debate

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• conduct research on a topic to identify key issues related to the topic
• predict, analyze and rebut arguments on both sides of an issue
• argue effectively for the assigned issue in front of the class
• work collaboratively with a partner to present agreed upon arguments.

The Giver

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Read text closely and make logical inferences citing textual evidence
• Determine theme, writer’s tone and purpose, and how setting determines plot
• Using euphemisms in the text, analyze how word choice impacts meaning and ton

6^th Grade

The Phantom Tollbooth

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Identify impact of setting on theme and character development
• identify and explain authors use of pun and idiom
• Analyze the structure of the test and how the author uses the idea of quest to fulfill the theme

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Identify the impact of historical events on the main character
• Analyze the events that lead to the coming of age process of the protagonist

Newscasts

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• write informative text using multiple sources
• research, synthesize and retell current events

Heroes, Ancient and Modern: Adventures of Odysseus

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• Identify archetypal traits of heroes in literature
• efficiently and effectively summarize events in a story
• compare and contrast thematic concepts in world mythologies

Wonder

At the end of this unit students will be able to:

• choose kind
• analyze the structure of a book from various points of view
• compare and contrast the movie with the text