English 5-6
Curriculum Guide
Portland Public Schools
Version 1.0:
September 2010
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
3
Introduction to Curriculum Guide
4
Using this Curriculum Guide
6
Introduction to English 5-6
7
List of Units for English 5-6
11
Introduction to the Units of Study
12
Grade 11 Priority Standards
13
Priority Standards by Unit
15
Possible Year-Long Plans
19
Blank Year-Long Planning Templates
22
Work Sample Requirements and Information
28
Academic Vocabulary for English 5-6
33
Modes of Writing
38
Summary of Understanding by Design
40
Types of Assessments
41
Optional English 5-6 Diagnostic Assessment
42
2
Acknowledgements
Thank you to all of the amazingly talented and generous teachers who participated in the
curriculum writing sessions in June of 2010 that led to the development of the tenth and
eleventh grade curriculum guides:
Bob Anderson, Wilson
Sarah Blount
Bill Boly, Wilson
Richard Brown, Roosevelt
Gene Brunak, Madison
Anne Dierker, Cleveland
Jordan Guetlerner, Lincoln
Mark Halpern, Lincoln
Evan Hansen, Roosevelt
Karen Margolis
AJ Nelson, Lincoln
Bethany Nelson, Marshall
Mary Rodeback, Grant
Gary Sletmoe, Cleveland
Alicia Smith, Marshall
Kristin Wallace, Marshall
Janice Wallenstein, Cleveland
Amy Wright, Marshall Night
Jamie Zartler, Grant
Special thanks to those who assisted with the editing, assembly and organization of the guides:
Alex Gordin, Cleveland
David Hillis, Cleveland
Kelly Gomes, Madison
Barbara Brown, Lincoln
Artie Knight, Rice
Isaac Prahl, student intern
Also, thank you to all of the writers of previous years’ curriculum packets that served as the basis
for much of the work found here. For over ten years, PPS teachers, with the unwavering support
and direction of Linda Christensen, have come together to write and share curriculum. You will
find that so much of their labor remains in active use in this guide and in classrooms around the
district.
3
Introduction to PPS Curriculum Guides (May 2009)
Overview
Middle and high school courses in the core content areas will have curriculum guides teachers
can use as a resource. The guides developed by teams of teachers and revised as needed, will
include all the grade level standards and assessments for the priority standards.
Standards and summative assessments will be consistent across schools, while specific
instructional strategies and supplemental materials may vary. These guides will provide at least
one plan for addressing all standards using district-adopted materials, district-supported
instructional strategies, and district assessments. Strategies for differentiating learning for
students will be included.
Purpose and Rationale
An aligned curriculum benefits students, their families, and our teachers, and provides the basis
to measure student progress across the district.
Students benefit from encountering the same high expectations, are less likely to experience
either gaps or repetition in content and skills, and do better when it is clear what they are
expected to learn and how their progress will be measured. Their families are better able to
support consistent standards and can expect the same curriculum even if they make a move
within the district.
Having a common guide for teachers provides resources (especially for teachers new to the
District), opportunities to plan collaboratively and share exemplary practices, and up-to-date
instructional materials that support struggling and advanced students
The guides provide a foundation for each secondary course. Teachers may supplement the
foundation with other resources and strategies, but may not eliminate standards or assessments.
Development Process
Teams of 4-7 teachers including special education and ESL will work with a curriculum
specialist to design the curriculum guides. They will meet together periodically and will do work
independently. Sessions for review by the team and others will be scheduled throughout the
process. At the end of the development phase, copies of the guide will be available to any teacher
who would like to field test. The developers will field test the entire guide. Those who are field
testing will convene periodically for professional review and review of student work. After the
field test period, all teachers will use the standards and common course assessments.
Teachers will be compensated for group development and review time. Before individual work is
started, the curriculum specialist will submit a budget to the director for approval. Teachers will
4
submit completed curriculum with payment request. Teachers who field test will be compensated
for group review sessions and up to eight hours per month for participation.
Future Vision
This work is the foundation for helpful guides for teachers now and for a powerful future. As we
develop a web-based system to store and share these resources, we imagine these results:
o Teachers will have instantaneous access to all core curriculum materials, classroom
assessments, and student progress reports
o Teachers will be able to collaborate electronically anytime and anywhere, sharing lessons
and contributing insights
o Professional development will be teacher-directed, focused on what they need, with the
opportunity to improve their practice by viewing videos on specific content, exemplary
lessons and effective instruction
o Teachers will save time by having relevant Internet resources all in one place
o Students and teachers will find resources in our public libraries and libraries throughout
our system.
o We will be able to adapt and replace materials and resources with greater ease and
frequency
5
Using this Curriculum Guide
This guide for English 5-6 is intended to be used as a planning tool to assist teachers in
clearly targeting specific grade-level priority standards, and it includes resources for on-going
progress monitoring and assessment of student achievement toward those expectations. It has
been developed in a manner to provide students with multiple opportunities throughout the year
to show their proficiency with the priority standards. It represents one way that a full year of
English 5-6 could be delivered.
This guide, however, need not be used as a lock-step scope-and-sequence for how to teach
this grade level. There is no expectation that all teachers will be teaching the same topic or text
on any particular day. In fact, this guide, developed by classroom teachers, has been designed to
encourage professional flexibility, by providing information and resources so that teachers can
make the most appropriate curricular choices for their students.
Suggestions for how to use this guide for planning your year:
1. Look through the pages that follow about the grade-level focus, core novels, adopted
materials, and commonly taught works.
2. Read through the list of units that are a part of this guide. Notice each unit’s duration,
focus, and culminating assessment.
3. Scan the horizontal charts that identify the priority standards addressed in each of the
units. Consider your own priorities and those of your school and department.
4. Look over the possible year-long plans suggested by the developers of this guide. These
possible plans address, as fully as possible, the majority of the priority standards in a way
that reflects a typical year in this grade level. Notice that some units on these suggested
year-long plans are not yet found in this guide.
5. Sketch out your own possible year-long plan on the blank unit template, which asks you
to consider the duration, focus, and assessments.
6. Go through the blank priority standards horizontal chart with each of your units to
identify the priority standards you will most likely address in that unit. Look out for gaps
and too much repetition of priority standards.
7. Locate the resources found within and outside this guide that you will need to address the
topics and priority standards you have identified.
6
Introduction to English 5-6
In 2006, over forty Language Arts teachers from across the district came together in a series of
meetings in an effort to define and distinguish each of the four years of English in Portland Public
Schools. Their recommendations were shared with our colleagues and were refined further. The
result is the following consensus document that lays out, in broad strokes, the themes and main
texts of English 5-6.
Course Description
Junior language arts students read and interpret varied literature of the United States.
All junior English classes prepare students for post-secondary study. Students explore
what U.S. literature means in the context of a multicultural society, studying
canonical pieces as well as new and rediscovered voices. Students read
literature (e.g., dramas, essays, novels, poetry, nonfiction, and short stories) and
produce writing as vehicles to explore social, historical, economic, political, and
artistic issues.
Essential Questions





What is the American experience?
What is the role of the individual within a society?
What does the phrase “The American Dream” mean?
Is it a dream or is it a reality?
What are the inequities that exist within our society? Why do they persist?
Themes
•
•
•
•
The Immigrant Experience and the American Dream
Money and Morality
Race and Social Justice
Cultural Identity in America
Commonly Assigned Projects
•
•
•
•
•
Personal Reflection on Social Justice Issue
Thematic Multi-Genre Project
American Experience Essay
Thematic Analysis Essay
Timed Writing Essay
7
Core Works List
GRADE ELEVEN
Title
Previously
Developed Guide
Found in this
Guide
The Crucible
Death of a Salesman
Fast Food Nation
Fences
40 Model Essays
The Great Gatsby
Kindred
Lone Ranger And Tonto
Fistfight In Heaven (Smoke
Signals – Film And Screenplay)
A Raisin In The Sun
The Scarlet Letter
Their Eyes Were Watching God
When The Emperor Was Divine
*
+
Parental Opt Out
Letter Suggested
*
+
*
*
*
P
+
+
+
*
Class sets for all Core Works are available for delivery through the multimedia library.
Commonly Taught Works in English 5-6
TITLE
AUTHOR
The Adventures of Huck Finn
African American Literature
*Always Running: La Vida Loca
Animal Dreams
The Autobiography of Malcolm X
The Autobio. of Miss Jane Pittman
The Awakening
Billy Budd
The Bluest Eye
The Caine Mutiny
China Boy
The Color Purple
*The Crucible
Death of a Salesman
Ethan Frome
A Farewell to Manzanar
*Fast Food Nation
*Fences
Fools Crow
40 Model Essays
For Whom the Bell Tolls
The Glass Menagerie
Twain
Anthology
Rodriquez
Kingsolver
(Haley)
Gaines
Chopin
Melville
Morrison
Wouk
Lee
Walker
Miller
Miller
Wharton
Houston
Schlosser
Wilson
Welch
various
Hemingway
Williams
8
DRP
54
51
60
49
59
68
54
54
45
59
59
LEXILE
990L
830L
790L
1120L
710L
960L
1450L
920L
910L
880L
670L
1160L
1040L
1240L
870L
53
840L
TITLE
AUTHOR
The Grapes of Wrath
Steinbeck
*The Grass Dancer
Power
Fitzgerald
*The Great Gatsby
Hiroshima
Hersey
House Made of Dawn
Momaday
In Country
Mason
*Into the Wild
Krakauer
The Joy Luck Club
Tan
The Jungle
Sinclair
Butler
*Kindred
Krik? Krac!
Danticat
Alexie
*The Lone Ranger & Tonto Fistfight…
Love Medicine
Erdrich
Maggie: A Girl of the Streets
Crane
Mama Day
Naylor
*Mona in the Promised Land
Jen
My Antonia
Cather
Narrative of the Life of F. Douglass
Douglass
Native Son
Wright
No-No Boy
Okada
The Old Man and the Sea
Hemingway
O Pioneers!
Cather
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Kesey
The Portable Poe
Poe
Hansberry
*A Raisin in the Sun
The Red Badge of Courage
Crane
Hawthorne
*The Scarlet Letter
The Sky Fisherman
Lesley
*Smoke Signals (film)
Eyre
Song of Solomon
Morrison
Hurston
*Their Eyes Were Watching God
The Things They Carried
O’Brien
Thousand Pieces of Gold
McCunn
Three Plays
Wilder
Tooth & Nail: Novel Approach to SAT
Elster & Elliot
Tortilla Flat
Steinbeck
Walden
Thoreau
Otsuka
*When the Emperor was Divine
A Yellow Raft in Blue Water
Dorris
Titles in bold are Core Works. *titles have PPS curriculum available.
9
DRP
50
54
61
64
56
51
60
53
59
46
51
57
55
57
62
54
LEXILE
680L
890L
1070L
1190L
970L
730L
1270L
930L
1170L
580L
880L
830L
780L
930L
50
56
56
900L
1080L
700L
900L
940L
930L
1110L
59
67
900L
1340L
54
54
55
53
870L
1080L
880L
940L
860L
53
62
51
1420L
810L
980L
English 5-6 Adopted Materials
In 2007, the PPS School Board approved the following texts for adoption and purchase for the
English 3-4 course. These texts are in addition to the Core Works listed on a previous
page.
Holt Rinehart Winston (2007), Elements of Literature, 5th Course
In addition to a teachers’ edition, this includes the following ancillary Holt materials: The
Reader, The Adapted Reader, Daily Language Activities, Leveled Library, two volumes of
Assessments, Visual Connections, Fine Art Transparencies, Reading Solutions, as well as the
Holt One-Stop Planner and a collection audio stories on CD.
Great Source (2007) Write Source 11
In addition to a teachers’ edition, this includes the following ancillary materials: Skills Book,
Daily Language Workouts, Assessments, and a CD-ROM.
*If you do not have access to these adopted resources, please first contact your librarian or book
clerk, and then contact the Textbook office.
Additional Resources:
While the following curriculum packets have not yet been revised to be included in this
curriculum guide, they have been proven to be extraordinarily useful over the years and
appropriate for most tenth grade classrooms. If you do not have access to these or any of the other
curriculum packets, please contact the high school Language Arts TOSA.
Always Running
Fast Food Nation
The Grass Dancer
The Great Gatsby
Kindred
Mona in the Promised Land
When the Emperor was Devine
Immigration
Language/Globalization
Political Advocacy
Prison Writing
Reading Poverty
Stereotypes: Race in Film
10
Units in English 5-6 Curriculum Guide
The curriculum guide consists of the following units listed in alphabetical order:
Unit
Duration
American Dream
4 weeks
Fences*
5 weeks
Focus
Culminating
Assessment
Variety of literary modes exploring
elements of the U.S. culture and
Interview and
literature; analysis of tone and using
presentation
synthesis skills
Drama; explores racism and family
Character/critical
dynamics; character and thematic
analysis
analysis
Fiction; personal voice and
elements of narrative writing
The Great Gatsby*
7 weeks
Hillsboro Story
5 weeks
Drama of desegregation of a high
school; narrative elements and
Hispanic Literature
4 weeks
Short stories, poetry and artwork;
Reading Anthology
themes of immigration, identity, and
Presentation
freedom
Into the Wild
8 weeks
Nonfiction text; romanticism and
transcendentalism; synthesis of
multiple sources
Journalism
4 weeks
Media and Culture
4 weeks
Raisin in the Sun*
6 weeks
Scarlet Letter
7 weeks
Personal Narrative
Personal Narrative
Synthesis Essay
Nonfiction writing for multiple
audiences and purposes in multiple
A magazine
modes
Nonfiction text exploring the
media’s role in influencing how we Persuasive/
think and learn; evaluate argument comparative essay
and credibility
Drama of family and race issues;
elements of drama and playwriting
Playwriting of a
scene
Fiction; thematic analysis; research
Research-based
skills; personal connections
literary analysis
*Revisions of previously developed materials.
11
Introduction to Units of Study
This curriculum guide is made up of units written, compiled, and revised by
teachers from around the district. The majority of the units were written during the
summer of 2010, though some are revisions of units that had been written earlier and are
in widespread use in schools across the district.
The most significant aspect of the units in this guide is that they have attempted to
focus, as closely as possible, on the priority standards for the particular grade level and to
give students multiple opportunities to demonstrate their proficiency. There are suggested
pathways through a year of this grade level based upon the priority standards in each unit,
but you will find several planning tools and blank templates to allow you to develop your
year.
Each unit in the curriculum guide includes:
1. An Introduction to the unit, usually written as a brief narrative by the authors about
the unit’s purposes, unique features, and so on.
2. The Unit Template with the components of the Understanding by Design model.
3. The Learning Plan: list of lessons and activities with priority standards and page
numbers.
4. A list of the Academic Vocabulary used prominently in the unit (literary terms,
academic language, aspects of the course, etc.).
5. A lesson that introduces students to Essential Questions in the unit and includes
directions to the teacher to keep returning to the Essential Questions.
6. A Pre-Assessment of the main priority standards of the unit with a student and
teacher reflection opportunity. It also has a rubric that uses the priority standards
found in the culminating assessment.
7. The Lessons of the Learning Plan that scaffold toward the culminating assessment.
At least one of the activities is designed as a tiered lesson to try to meet all students’
needs.
8. The Culminating Assessment with a rubric that refers to the priority standards that
have been addressed throughout the unit.
9. A Unit Reflection: lesson or activity that asks students to look back on the unit and
the essential questions/priority standards.
10. A Resources page.
12
Grade Eleven Priority Standards (DRAFT)
In 2006, the group of Language Arts teachers from around the district who met to discuss
the distinguishing features of the four grade-level English courses recognized that the
state and district-approved standards are not too practical for assisting grade-level
articulation because they are essentially identical in grades 9 through 12. Additionally,
the sheer volume and depth of the standards make them difficult to incorporate in the
classroom in any practical way.
Therefore, that group began developing what it called “Power Standards” and the work
continued in 2008-09 with teachers and TOSAs from grades 6-12 and district
Instructional Facilitators offering feedback on what is truly essential at each grade level,
with specific focus on eligible content for the 10th grade state-wide assessment. This draft
document serves as the foundation for the units that were developed for this curriculum
guide and will continue be revised based on feedback throughout the years.
These priority standards are not expected to be the only focus of the curriculum; in fact,
the main PPS standards document should be used to assist you in your overall planning,
but the priority standards are those aspects that a teacher can say with some certainty that
his or her students will have multiple opportunities to practice and master throughout the
year. These are in draft form and will need to be under continual revision.
13
Grade 11 Priority Standards: Language Arts
READING
Analyze and evaluate the merit of an argument by examining evidence and by comparing the
11.01
*11.02
*11.03
11.04
11.05
evidence with information available in other sources. (11.6.3)
Analyze an author’s unstated ideas and meanings and analyzing evidence that supports those
unstated ideas. (11.6.4)
Draw conclusions about the author’s purpose, basic beliefs, perspectives, and philosophical
assumptions. (11.7.1)
Evaluate if and how the author uses authoritative sources to establish credibility. (11.7.10)
Evaluate an author’s argument. (11.7.14)
LITERATURE
Demonstrate familiarity with major literary periods, authors, subjects of U.S. literature. (11.8.3)
11.06
*11.07 Use textual evidence to develop/support an interpretation of a work from U.S. literature. (11.9.3)
Use critical lenses to develop an interpretation of a work from U.S. literature. (11.9.10)
11.08
Evaluate how literary devices contribute to the unity/effectiveness of a literary work, such as:
11.09
*11.10
11.11
*11.12
diction, motif, paradox, apostrophe, antithesis, euphemism. (11.10.1)
Analyze how stylistic choices contribute to the impact of a U.S. literary selection: structure,
point of view, word choice, exaggeration. (11.10.5)
Describe and evaluate the author's tone (11.10.9)
Analyze the way in which a work of U.S. literature is related to the themes, issues, political
movements, and events of its historical period. (11.10.17)
WRITING
Writing Traits
11.13
11.13.1 Adjust tone and style as necessary to engage the interest of the reader. (11.12.1)
11.13.2 *Provide clear main ideas, which convey distinctive perspective on subject. (11.12.1)
11.13.3 *Use appropriate organizational structures. (11.12.2)
11.13.4 Vary word choice to make writing interesting and more precise. (11.12.4)
11.13.5 Use varied sentence types to enhance flow and rhythm. (11.12.5)
11.14
11.15
Conventions (11.12.6)
Writing Modes (11.13)
(E=expository, P=persuasive, LA=literary analysis, N=narrative/reflective, R=Research)
11.15.1 *Develop a thesis that takes a knowledgeable position. (P and E)
11.15.2 *Cite sources of information as appropriate. (R)
11.15.3 Address counter-arguments. (P)
11.15.4 Write public documents related to career development /community involvement (E)
11.15.5 Draw from both primary sources and secondary sources (R)
11.15.6 *Draw supported inferences about the effects of a literary work on its audience. (LA)
11.15.7 *Pace the presentation of actions to accommodate changes in time and mood. (N)
11.15.8 *Personal or college essay (N)
SPEAKING/LISTENING/VIEWING
Volunteer contributions and clarify, illustrate or expand on a response. (11.16.5) , (11.16.6)
11.16
*11.17 Identify, analyze, and discuss the purposes of media (11.18.2): information, entertainment,
*11.18
persuasion, interpretation of events, transmission of culture
Analyze persuasive and propaganda techniques used in media (11.18.5):the selection of reported
topics, false and misleading information, stereotypes, glittering generalities
14
Priority Standards by Unit
Grade 11 Priority Standards
Language Arts BY UNIT
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Scarlet Letter
Raisin in Sun
Media/Culture
Journalism
Into the Wild
Hispanic Lit
Hillsboro Story
Great Gatsby
Fences
American Dream
READING
x
x
Analyze and evaluate the merit of an argument by
examining evidence and by comparing the
evidence with information available in other
sources. (11.6.3)
*11.02 Analyze an author’s unstated ideas and meanings and
analyzing evidence that supports those unstated
ideas. (11.6.4)
*11.03 Draw conclusions about the author’s purpose, basic
beliefs, perspectives, and philosophical
assumptions. (11.7.1)
Evaluate
if and how the author uses authoritative sources to
11.04
establish credibility. (11.7.10)
11.05 Evaluate an author’s argument. (11.7.14)
11.01
15
x
x
x
Their Eyes
Scarlet Letter
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Demonstrate familiarity with major literary periods,
authors, subjects of U.S. literature. (11.8.3)
*11.07 Use textual evidence to develop/support an
interpretation of a work from U.S. literature.
(11.9.3)
11.08 Use critical lenses to develop an interpretation of a work
from U.S. literature. (11.9.10)
11.09 Evaluate how literary devices contribute to the
unity/effectiveness of a literary work, such as:
diction, motif, paradox, apostrophe, antithesis,
euphemism. (11.10.1)
Analyze
how stylistic choices contribute to the impact of
*11.10
a U.S. literary selection: structure, point of view,
word choice, exaggeration. (11.10.5)
11.11 Describe and evaluate the author's tone (11.10.9)
*11.12 Analyze the way in which a work of U.S. literature is related to
the themes, issues, political movements, and events of its
historical period. (11.10.17)
11.06
x
x
x
x
Raisin in Sun
Media/Culture
Journalism
Into the Wild
x
x
x
Hispanic Lit
Hillsboro Story
Great Gatsby
Fences
American Dream
LITERATURE
x
16
Scarlet Letter
Raisin in Sun
Media/Culture
Journalism
Into the Wild
Hispanic Lit
Hillsboro Story
Great Gatsby
Fences
American Dream
WRITING
11.13
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
11.14
11.15
Writing Traits
11.13.1 Adjust tone and style as necessary to engage the interest
of the reader. (11.12.1)
11.13.2 *Provide clear main ideas, which convey distinctive
perspective on subject. (11.12.1)
11.13.3 *Use appropriate organizational structures (11.12.2)
11.13.4 Vary word choice to make writing interesting and more
precise. (11.12.4)
11.13.5 Use varied sentence types to enhance flow and rhythm.
(11.12.5)
Conventions (11.12.6)
Writing Modes (11.13)(E=expository, P=persuasive, LA=literary
analysis, N=narrative/reflective, R=Research)
x
x
x
x
11.15.1
x
11.15.2
11.15.3
11.15.4
x
11.15.5
x
11.15.6
Develop a thesis that takes a knowledgeable position.
(P/E)
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
17
Cite sources of information as appropriate. (R)
Address counter-arguments. (P)
Write public documents related to career development
/community involvement (E)
Draw from both primary sources and secondary sources
(R)
Draw supported inferences about the effects of a literary
work on its audience. (LA)
Scarlet Letter
Media/Culture
Journalism
Into the Wild
Hispanic Lit
Hillsboro Story
Great Gatsby
Fences
American Dream
Raisin in Sun
11.15.7
x
x
11.15.8
x
Pace the presentation of actions to accommodate changes
in time and mood. (N)
Personal or college essay (N)
Journalism
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Scarlet Letter
Into the Wild
x
Raisin in Sun
Hispanic Lit
x
Media/Culture
Hillsboro Story
x
Great Gatsby
Fences
American Dream
SPEAKING/LISTENING/VIEWING
Volunteer contributions and clarify, illustrate or expand on a
response. (11.16.5) , (11.16.6)
*11.17 Identify, analyze, and discuss the purposes of media (11.18.2):
information, entertainment, persuasion, interpretation of events,
transmission of culture
*11.18 Analyze persuasive and propaganda techniques used in media
(11.18.5):the selection of reported topics, false and misleading
information, stereotypes, glittering generalities
11.16
18
Possible Year-long Unit Plan #1
Third
Second
First
Q
Unit
Duration
Focus
Culminating
Assessment
11th Grade Holt
Selections*
4 weeks
Pre-Assessment
Community
Building
Personal narrative and
poetry
ALA Banned
Text*
5 weeks
Novel selection
College Essay of
application, timed
writings
Into the Wild
8 weeks
Raisin in the Sun
6 weeks
The American
Dream
4 weeks
4 weeks
Fourth
Hispanic
Literature
Media and
Culture
4 weeks
Nonfiction text;
romanticism and
transcendentalism;
synthesis of
multiple sources
Drama of family
and race issues;
elements of drama
and playwriting
Variety of literary
modes exploring
elements of the
U.S. culture and
literature; analysis
of tone and using
synthesis skills
Short stories,
poetry and
artwork; themes of
immigration,
identity, and
freedom
Nonfiction text
exploring the
media’s role in
influencing how
we think and learn;
evaluate argument
and credibility
*Units not found in this curriculum guide
19
Synthesis Essay
Playwriting of a scene
Interview and
presentation
Reading Anthology
Presentation
Persuasive/
comparative essay
Includes viewing and
study of the film,
Brazil.
Possible Year-long Unit Plan #2
Unit
Duration
American
Dream
4 weeks
Fences
5 weeks
Into the
Wild
8 weeks
The Great
Gatsby
7 weeks
Media and
Culture
4 weeks
Journalism
4 weeks
Death of a
Salesman*
4 weeks
Fourth
Third
Second
First
Q
Focus
Variety of literary modes
exploring elements of the
U.S. culture and literature;
analysis of tone and using
synthesis skills
Drama; explores racism
and family dynamics;
character and thematic
analysis
Nonfiction text;
romanticism and
transcendentalism;
synthesis of multiple
sources
Fiction; personal voice
and elements of narrative
writing
Nonfiction text exploring
the media’s role in
influencing how we think
and learn; evaluate
argument and credibility
Nonfiction writing for
multiple audiences and
purposes in multiple
modes
Frame the year with the
American Dream
*Units not found in this curriculum guide
20
Culminating
Assessment
Interview and
presentation
Character/critical
analysis
Synthesis Essay
Personal Narrative
Persuasive/
comparative essay
A magazine
Timed Essay Question
Possible Year-long Unit Plan #3
Q
Unit
4 weeks
First
American
Dream
Duration
Fourth
Third
Second
Scarlet
Letter
Into the
Wild
7 weeks
8 weeks
Raisin in the
6 weeks
Sun*
Hispanic
Literature
4 weeks
A Place to
Stand
4 weeks
Independent
Book
Choice
5 weeks
Focus
Variety of literary modes
exploring elements of the
U.S. culture and literature;
analysis of tone and using
synthesis skills
Fiction; thematic analysis;
research skills; personal
connections
Nonfiction text;
romanticism and
transcendentalism;
synthesis of multiple
sources
Drama of family and race
issues; elements of drama
and playwriting
Short stories, poetry and
artwork; themes of
immigration, identity, and
freedom
Memoir
Reemphasis on literary
terms
*Units not found in this curriculum guide
21
Culminating
Assessment
Interview and
presentation
Research-based
literary analysis
Vocabulary Map
Timed Essay Question
Synthesis Essay
Playwriting of a scene
Reading Anthology
Presentation
Stories compose their
own memoirs.
Literary Brochure
Blank Template for Year-long Unit Planning
Unit
Duration
Fourth
Third
Second
First
Q
*Units not found in this curriculum guide
22
Focus
Culminating
Assessment
Year-long Writing Planner
Major
Texts/Themes
Writing
Genre
Materials
Used
Craft
Lessons
Conventions
(based on genre)
First
Quarter
Second
Quarter
Third
Quarter
Fourth
Quarter
Example:
First
Quarter
Major
Texts/Themes
Writing
Genre
Identity,
Resistance, Voice,
Power of Story
Personal
Essay for
College
or Scholarship
Essay
Materials
Used
Student
created
Personal
Journey Map
Elements of
P.E.
Student
Samples
Siddhartha
23
Craft
Lessons
Conventions
Controlling the
Prompt
Circular
Pattern:
Introductions
Conclusions
Anecdotes
Figurative
Language
Punctuation with
dialogue
Blank Priority Standards Planning Template
Grade 11 Priority Standards
Language Arts BY UNIT
READING
Analyze and evaluate the merit of an argument by
examining evidence and by comparing the
evidence with information available in other
sources. (11.6.3)
*11.02 Analyze an author’s unstated ideas and meanings and
analyzing evidence that supports those unstated
ideas. (11.6.4)
*11.03 Draw conclusions about the author’s purpose, basic
beliefs, perspectives, and philosophical
assumptions. (11.7.1)
11.04 Evaluate if and how the author uses authoritative sources to
establish credibility. (11.7.10)
11.05 Evaluate an author’s argument. (11.7.14)
11.01
LITERATURE
24
Demonstrate familiarity with major literary periods,
authors, subjects of U.S. literature. (11.8.3)
*11.07 Use textual evidence to develop/support an interpretation
of a work from U.S. literature. (11.9.3)
11.08 Use critical lenses to develop an interpretation of a work
from U.S. literature. (11.9.10)
11.09 Evaluate how literary devices contribute to the
unity/effectiveness of a literary work, such as:
diction, motif, paradox, apostrophe, antithesis,
euphemism. (11.10.1)
*11.10 Analyze how stylistic choices contribute to the impact of
a U.S. literary selection: structure, point of view,
word choice, exaggeration. (11.10.5)
11.11 Describe and evaluate the author's tone (11.10.9)
*11.12 Analyze the way in which a work of U.S. literature is related to
the themes, issues, political movements, and events of its
historical period. (11.10.17)
11.06
25
WRITING
11.13
11.14
11.15
Writing Traits
11.13.1 Adjust tone and style as necessary to engage the interest of
the reader. (11.12.1)
11.13.2 *Provide clear main ideas, which convey distinctive
perspective on subject. (11.12.1)
11.13.3 *Use appropriate organizational structures (11.12.2)
11.13.4 Vary word choice to make writing interesting and more
precise. (11.12.4)
11.13.5 Use varied sentence types to enhance flow and rhythm.
(11.12.5)
Conventions (11.12.6)
Writing Modes (11.13)(E=expository, P=persuasive, LA=literary
analysis, N=narrative/reflective, R=Research)
11.15.1
11.15.2
11.15.3
11.15.4
11.15.5
11.15.6
11.15.7
11.15.8
26
Develop a thesis that takes a knowledgeable position. (P/E)
Cite sources of information as appropriate. (R)
Address counter-arguments. (P)
Write public documents related to career development
/community involvement (E)
Draw from both primary sources and secondary sources (R)
Draw supported inferences about the effects of a literary
work on its audience. (LA)
Pace the presentation of actions to accommodate changes in
time and mood. (N)
Personal or college essay (N)
SPEAKING/LISTENING/VIEWING
Volunteer contributions and clarify, illustrate or expand on a
response. (11.16.5) , (11.16.6)
*11.17 Identify, analyze, and discuss the purposes of media (11.18.2):
information, entertainment, persuasion, interpretation of events,
transmission of culture
*11.18 Analyze persuasive and propaganda techniques used in media
(11.18.5):the selection of reported topics, false and misleading
information, stereotypes, glittering generalities
11.16
27
Work Sample Requirement Information
Work Samples will be required to be delivered, scored, and recorded for all students for two separate, but related purposes:
 Local Performance Assessments
 Assessments of Essential Skills
What are Local Performance Assessments?
All students – at some point during high school -- must have an opportunity to complete a Work Sample for the following:
 Writing (any mode)
 Speaking (any mode)
 Math (any type)
 Science Inquiry
These work samples must be administered and scored using the state scoring guide and under the conditions required by the state, but
students do not have to meet the state achievement standards.
How are Work Samples related to the Assessment of Essential Skills?
For graduation, all students will need to demonstrate their proficiency in the Essential Skills of reading (beginning with the class of
2012), writing (beginning with the class of 2013), mathematics (beginning with the class of 2014), and speaking (timeline is
undetermined). The primary method for demonstrating these Essential Skills is through passing scores on the OAKS. If students are
not able to achieve passing scores on OAKS, they can demonstrate their proficiency in the Essential Skills by completing Work
Samples in the categories below:
Reading (2012)
Writing (2013)
Math (2014)
Students must receive a 4 or higher on each trait
for TWO Reading Work Samples:
 One Informational sample
 One literary sample
Students must receive a 4 or higher on each trait
for THREE Writing Work Samples:
 One expository
 One persuasive
 One narrative
Students must receive a 4 or higher on each trait
for TWO Math Work Samples. Choose from:
 Geometry
 Algebraic relationships
 Statistics/probability
28
Note that passing scores on Work Samples for the Local Performance Assessments can also be used for Assessments of Essential Skills.
In what courses will students be required to complete Work Samples?
Reading
English 1-2
English 3-4
Writing
Writing WS
Narrative
Biology
Chemistry
Health 1-2
Modern World History
Speaking
Science Inquiry
Reading WS
Literary
English 5-6
English 7-8
Algebra
Geometry
Bridges
Advanced Algebra
FPC
Math
Algebraic
Relationships WS
Geometry WS
Reading WS
Informational (Gr. 9)
Reading WS
Informational (Gr. 9)
Science Inquiry WS
(Gr. 10)
Science Inquiry WS
(Gr. 10)
Writing WS
Expository
Writing WS
Persuasive
Speaking Persuasive
WS
US History
Government/Economics
Notes:
1. Courses with identified Work Sample obligations will require samples to be assessed and recorded for all students.
2. Courses without identified Work Sample obligations will require relevant Work Samples for those students who have not met the Essential Skills
Assessments (OAKS) or have not completed the Local Performance Assessments.
3. Course guides for all core classes will contain materials for multiple opportunities for relevant Work Samples. See chart below.
29
4. Because this chart only identifies the minimum requirements students need for graduation, school leadership teams may want to require additional Work
Sample opportunities for students to demonstrate their proficiencies with these essential skills
30
General Work Sample Conditions:
All teachers will want to use these conditions for Work Sample completion. Any student
who earns a passing score under these conditions will be able to use that Work Sample as
evidence of meeting Essential Skills.
1. Time Allowances Work Samples are not meant to be timed. Students should be
given ample time to demonstrate his or her skills, and some students may require
significantly more time than others. Most work samples will take more than one
session for students to complete.
2. Supervision To ensure that a work sample is a student’s own independent work,
ODE has set some guidelines regarding the degree of supervision required while
the student completes the work sample. For those work samples requiring direct
supervision, the entire work sample must be completed in a closely supervised
school setting and students may not have access to outside resources. For those
work samples requiring research districts may allow students to complete parts of
the work sample outside of class. If teachers choose to offer this option, the
student must provide additional evidence to verify that the final product is the
student’s own independent work. Examples include, but are not limited to notes,
outlines, data collections, attached sources of information, and lists of works
cited. These are required for work samples used to meet the Essential Skills
requirement.
3. Revision and Feedback: When a work sample is close to meeting the
achievement standard, it is appropriate to allow students to revise their work.
Work samples that nearly meet may be returned to the student along with the
official scoring guide and optional ODE scoring form. Teachers may use these
forms to indicate what students should work on by checking off particular
phrases. Teachers may also use the official scoring guide to circle or highlight
areas that need attention. Except for the use of these forms, no teacher or
peer feedback is permitted for work samples applied toward the Essential
Skills requirement. Teachers may not discuss the student’s work with them,
make any written, or oral comments or point out any specific errors in the work
sample itself. Students may not complete revisions outside of the classroom.
31
Writing Work Samples: Curriculum Connections
The culminating assessments for the following units could be completed as a Work
Sample if the conditions described above are followed:
Grade 11
Mode
Narrative
Unit
Topic
The Great Gatsby
Write a personal essay about a topic
explored in the novel
The Hillsboro Story
Write a reflective essay about time in
your life
Journalism
Write a personal reflection on an
issue
Imaginative
Raisin in the Sun
Write a short scene that demonstrates
knowledge of dramatic elements
Research
Scarlet Letter
Write a piece that incorporates
research into a literary analysis
Into the Wild
Write a literary analysis that
synthesizes multiple sources
American Dream
Conduct and summarize an interview
with a subject
Into the Wild
Write a literary analysis that
synthesizes multiple sources
Fences
Write a literary analysis on a theme in
the play
Scarlet Letter
Write a piece that incorporates
research into a literary analysis
Hispanic Literature
Create an anthology of literature and
art
Expository
32
Reading Work Samples: Curriculum Connections
The Reading Work Samples listed below can serve two purposes. Administered under
Work Sample conditions, they can serve as an Essential Skills Requirement in Reading
for graduation purposes if the need arises and for district reporting. Ideally, however,
they could also be used to enhance the grade level units by providing background
information or by exploring a similar theme or topic. If successfully embedded within the
unit, a Reading Work Sample need not feels as an add-on to the curriculum.
GRADE 11
Title
Type
Summary of Text
A Time of
Gifts
Informational
Gatsby’s
Green Light
Beckons a
New Set of
Strivers
Informational
A columnist describes small acts
of kindness in the face of a
terrorist attack.
A classic novel still speaks to
students about the power of a
dream.
Possible Unit and
Topic Connection
 American Dream
 Hillsboro Story
 Journalism
 American Dream
 The Great Gatsby
 Fences
 Raisin in the Sun
The Feather
Pillow
Literary
A husband is mystified by his
wife’s sudden illness.


A Slide Down
Mt Adams
Informational
A climber recalls her childhood
challenges and how they shaped
her character as an adult.



Scarlet Letter
Hispanic
Literature
Into the Wild
Journalism
American Dream
All work samples listed above appear in the separate packet called
“Reading Work Samples 2010.”
33
Academic Vocabulary
Robert Marzano, in Building Academic Vocabulary, says that “people’s knowledge of
any topic is encapsulated in the terms they know that are relevant to the topic” (2) and
that students who have a broader background knowledge in a subject perform better.
Neither of these statements is particularly groundbreaking or surprising to most
classroom teachers. But what Marzano and others argue for is that we need to explicitly
teach the terminology of our discipline rather than assume that our students have already
learned it or will pick it up in the context of our classrooms. He concludes that “one of
the most crucial services that teachers can provide, particularly for students who do not
come from academically advantaged backgrounds, is systemic instruction in important
academic terms” (3).
In his text referred to above, Marzano offers a list of over a hundred terms from
“adjective clause” to “word origin” for high school Language Arts classes. But instead of
merely copying or compiling a list of such terms, the writers and editors who worked on
this curriculum guide went about the process a bit differently. After the writers completed
writing their units, they went back and asked themselves, “What is the implicit and
explicit vocabulary that students would need to know in order to be successful in this
unit?” So, the following list is not designed to be a checklist of terms that you need to
“cover” over the course of the year, but rather, are the terms that grade-level teachers
identified are an integral part of their curriculum and of which students need to be aware.
Because these terms are those that are normally only implied during instruction, when we
falsely assume that students already know them, we do need to be more explicit about
our teaching of these terms. Suggestions for teaching academic vocabulary are:
1. Frayer Model: in which students work to define a terms, along with its examples
and non-examples.
2. Concept Circles: in which students try to define relationships between words and
concepts.
3. Concept Ladders: in which students focus on the function and parts of the terms.
Probably the most effective method for teaching Academic Vocabulary is to keep a
Word Wall of the terms found in a particular unit posted prominently in the classroom
and referred to often during instruction.
34
Frayer Model
Directions:
Complete the chart to show what you know
about_________________. Write as much as you can.
Definition
Information
Examples
Non-Examples
35
Concept Circles
Describe the meaning and relationships between and among the words in the sections of the
concept circles.
choice
technology
censorship
support
strategies
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
genres
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
__
confidence recognition
36
Concept Ladder
Concept ladders can be used when you want the students to focus on one particular
word/concept rather than on a set of words.
As written by Jean Gillet and Charles
Temple in Understanding Reading Problems: Assessment and Instruction: "...it is useful
to think of the meaning of one word in relation to the meanings of others. To
semanticists, meanings come not by themselves but in family or hierarchial relationships.
A duck can be thought of not just as a white or yellow creature with a beak and feathers
but as a kind of bird. Moreover, it is useful to know that there are varieties of ducks:
mallards, teals, wood ducks, mergansers. Ducks are seen in stages, too. A little fuzzy
yellow-beaked thing grows up to be a brown-and-green adult duck... Albert Upton
(1973), has suggested a set of questions that people should ask when they are striving for
exactness in meaning:  What is it a kind of / what are the kinds of it?
 What is it a part of / what are the parts of it?
 What is it a stage of / what are the stages of it?
 What is it a product or a result or / what are the products or results of it?
These four questions can be adapted to yield much information about any meaning or
word under consideration. Depending on whether the item under scrutiny is a
class of things (that is, ducks in general) or a particular thing (that mallard over
there with the twisted beak), one side of the question or the other will be useful
but not always both."
From: http://4sbccfaculty.sbcc.edu/lessons/success/vocabulary/vocab_R.htm
37
Academic Vocabulary English 5-6
Thesis
Foreshadowing
Narrator
Imagery
Parody
Allusion
Hyperbole
Anaphara
RAFT
Correlate
Reflection
Evaluate
Primary and secondary sources
Reliable sources
Media
Medium
Metaphor
Discourse
Sentence structure
Diction
Details
Warrant
Argument
Persuasion
Claim
Rebuttal
Refutation
Theme
Vignette
Monologue
Scene
Blocking
Dialogue
Tone
Perspective
Point of View
Narrative Elements
Voice
Fiction
Nonfiction
Protagonist
Epigram
Context clues
Authorial intent
Paraphrase
Figurative language
Textual Evidence
Close reading
Analysis
Interpretation
Connotation
Embedded quote
Critical lens
Synthesis
38
Writing Modes
There are many different forms – or modes – that student writing can take. The
following definitions, which are adapted from the Oregon Department of Education, are
not the only definitions of these modes, nor should student writing necessarily take any
one of these forms exclusively; good writing often blends multiple modes. The purpose
of this section is only to have a common language about the four most frequent modes of
student writing: narrative, expository, persuasive, and imaginative.
The Narrative Mode
Definition: Narrative writing recounts a personal experience or tells a story based on
a real event or on an imagined event. All details come together in an
integrated way to create some central theme or impression and, in the case
of fiction, is created to entertain the reader. Narrative writing is usually
characterized by the following:
 use of first or third-person narrator;
 plot, characters, setting;
 dialogue;
 showing, not telling;
 events organized in time-order sequence (although flashbacks and
other organizational patterns are also used).
Forms: Narrative writing appears in poetry, short stories, novels, personal essays,
tall tales, and folk tales, to name just a few. It also takes a particular form
in scripts and plays. A writer might use narrative writing to make a point
in persuasive essay or to give an example in expository writing. Whatever
the form, its purpose is to tell.
The Expository Mode
Definition: Expository writing gives information, explains something, clarifies a
process or defines a concept. Though objective and not dependent on
emotion, expository writing may be lively, engaging, and reflective of the
writer's underlying commitment to the topic. Expository writing is
characterized by the following:
 development of a main idea;
 support of the main idea using examples, details, and/or facts;
 presentation of logically organized information;
 commitment to the topic.
Forms: Expository writing appears in lab reports, letters, newsletters, definitions,
guidebooks, catalogues, newspaper articles, magazine articles, how-to
writing, pamphlets, comparison/contrast essays, cause-effect essays,
problem-solution essays, reports, research papers, literary analyses, to
name just a few. Whatever the form, its purpose is to inform, explain,
clarify, define, or instruct.
38
The Persuasive Mode
Definition: Persuasive writing attempts to convince the reader that a point of view is
valid or persuade the reader to take a specific action. Successful persuasive
writing is based on a topic that is limited in scope (readily definable),
debatable, and meaningful or important to both the writer and intended
audience. Persuasive writing is characterized by the following:
 topic or issue stated;
 position of writer clearly stated;
 argument supported by reasons, examples and/or facts.
Forms: Persuasive writing appears in letters to the editor, editorials,
advertisements, advice columns, award nominations, pamphlets, petitions,
and opinion writing, to name just a few. Whatever the form, its purpose is
to persuade
The Imaginative Mode
Definition: Imaginative writing invents a situation, perspective or story based on the
writer's imagination. The writer may create a scene, situation or character,
may predict what might happen under hypothetical circumstances, or use
his/her creativity to solve a hypothetical problem. The writer may use
his/her knowledge of the world to bring a special flair or flavor to the
writing, but is not bound by the constraints of reality. Imaginative writing
may contain elements of fantasy. The key question, however, is not how
fantastic it is, but rather how inventive is it?
 Frequently allows writer to select topic of interest
 Demonstrates high degree of creativity of the writer
 Can require the reader to believe or accept the "unusual"
 Requires good use of description to hold the reader's attention
 Includes forms of poetry or drama
Forms: Imaginative writing appears in short stories, plays, film scripts, poetry, to
name just a few.
39
Understanding by Design
The model that the curriculum writers used to develop the units that make up the bulk of
this curriculum guide is Understanding by Design by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe.
The central question of their text, and the work of this guide, is: “How do we make it
more likely – by our design – that more students really understand what they are asked
to learn?” (4). As writers involved in this curriculum guide, we have only skimmed the
surface of the Understanding by Design model, but there are a few key terms that we
tried to keep in the forefront of our minds:
1. Big Idea: is a “concept, theme, or issue that gives meaning and connection to the
discrete facts and skills” (5). These are the ideas that offer students the value of
their learning and helps us to prioritize what is most important in our discipline.
2. Desired results: these are the content and performance standards as identified by
our “priority standards” and are the expected outcomes of the curriculum.
3. Assessment: these are the ways that we identify whether (and how well) the
desired results are being achieved. This guide makes frequent use of “formative
assessment,” as a way of measuring ongoing progress. “Assessment” refers to any
method through which we collect evidence, and includes such classroom activities
as observation, discussion, tasks, and projects. “Assessment” is not the same as
“evaluation,” which tends to be summative in nature.
So, before we began writing, we developed a three-stage planning template proposed by
Wiggins and McTighe for each unit that guided the rest of our work by truly beginning
with the end in mind. In summary, the three stages of the template are:
1. Stage 1 – Desired Outcomes: this starts with the priority standards address: the
essential questions of the unit, what students will know and what they will be able
to do by the end of the unit.
2. Stage 2 – Assessment Evidence: how will we know if our desired outcomes have
been met? This section of the template includes a brief description of the
Culminating Assessment of the unit as well as a list of other sources of evidence.
3. Stage 3 – The Learning Plan: how will we move students through the unit leading
them to the desired outcomes. We wrote this section as a “Pathway” through the
unit, with page numbers and priority standards, to help you to determine how best
to plan your delivery.
One other essential feature that found at the very beginning of every unit is a PreAssessment. This activity will help you to determine the current level of performance of
your students in relation to the identified priority standards. Armed with this information,
you will be able to best determine the most appropriate path for your students.
40
Types of Assessments
Most educators identify three main types of assessments that are designed for different
purposes and are used in different ways to inform instruction.
Diagnostic: these are intended to determine students’ current knowledge and skill levels
and are often done at the beginning of a unit of study. These types of assessments are
used to help teachers plan appropriate lessons and cooperative groups. A written
diagnostic assessment in a math class preparing to study operations with fractions might
ask students to write about what they already think they know about the concept. A
teacher looking at the results of this type of assessment would know where s/he should
spend more time preparing background or scaffolding lessons.
Formative: these types of assessments are thought of as “assessments FOR learning
instead of assessments OF learning.” In other words, both teachers and students should
look at formative assessments as an opportunity to identify and reflect on what skills and
knowledge have been gained and where improvement is still necessary. Focusing the
“where am I now/where do I want to be/how do I get there?” series of questions is a way
of understanding formative assessment. Students produce evidence of their learning or
lack of understanding, and the teacher supports them in moving to the next level of
understanding. A formative writing assessment in a health class might ask students to
create a Public Service Announcement about the dangers of food-borne illnesses. When a
teacher examines the results of this type of assessment, s/he will be able to target
individual instruction for those who did not demonstrate their knowledge of food safety
and help them students revise their thinking and perhaps give the project another try.
Students, too, should have an opportunity to examine this formative assessment to reflect
on their own learning of food safety and set goals for improvement. Formative
assessments are given with the intent of providing specific feedback for improvement,
and an opportunity for students to reflect on their learning.
Summative: these are “final outcome” assessments normally given to describe a
student’s skill and/or knowledge at any point in time, and often given at the end of an
entire course of study. They are designed to measure a student’s overall mastery of an
identified set of criteria. These are not designed to provide students with specific
feedback for improvement, but are, rather, a “snapshot” of a student’s achievement.
Teachers generally use summative assessments as one form of program evaluation to
reflect on course syllabus, priority standards, and classroom materials. The statewide
Direct Writing Assessment (DWA) is an example of a summative writing assessment.
41
Optional English 5-6 Diagnostic Assessment
You may want to take a class period to give students a chance to take this diagnostic
assessment, generated by the Holt Exam View Pro, early in the year to give you a quick
sense of where your students are with specific reading and analysis skills. It is fully
editable, so you can add, delete, or change questions.
42
Grade Eleven Diagnostic
Multiple Choice
Identify the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
Reading and Literary Analysis
DIRECTIONS: Read the passage below, and answer the following questions.
SAMPLE
For years, scientists have been trying to learn why dinosaurs vanished from the earth
some 65 million years ago. Two of the best-known theories for their extinction are the
asteroid theory and the volcano theory. The asteroid theory suggests that a gigantic
asteroid or comet hit the earth. The explosion from the impact was similar to that of a
nuclear bomb and caused immediate catastrophic damage. Dust and debris from the
impact clogged the skies and blocked out the sun, killing plants, a main source of food
for the dinosaurs. The volcano theory suggests that massive volcanic explosions
occurred all over the earth. These eruptions may have created the same deadly
conditions described in the asteroid theory.
1.
The word catastrophic means —
A.
gigantic
B.
insignificant
C.
disastrous
D.
historic
Correct Answer: C
2.
Which would be the best source for finding research information about dinosaur
extinction?
A.
Science journals
B.
News magazines
C.
Daily newspapers
D.
Dinosaur movies
Correct Answer: A
43
DIRECTIONS: Read the selection below, and answer the following questions.
from The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
by William Shakespeare
Characters
Flavius
Marullus
Carpenter
Cobbler
a tribune (official appointed to administer the law)
a tribune
(a shoemaker)
ACT 1, Scene 1 A street in Rome.
Enter FLAVIUS, MARULLUS, and certain COMMONERS over the stage.
5
Flavius.
Hence! Home, you idle creatures, get you home!
Is this a holiday? What, know you not,
Being mechanical, ° you ought not walk
Upon a laboring day without the sign
Of your profession?° Speak, what trade art thou?
Carpenter. Why, sir, a carpenter.
Marullus.
Where is thy leather apron and thy rule?
What dost thou with thy best apparel on?
You, sir, what trade are you?
10
Cobbler. Truly, sir, in respect of a fine workman, ° I am but, as you
would say, a cobbler. °
Marullus.
But what trade art thou? Answer me directly.
Cobbler. A trade, sir, that, I hope, I may use with a safe conscience,
which is indeed, sir, a mender of bad soles.
15
Flavius.
What trade, thou knave? Thou naughty° knave, what trade?
Cobbler. Nay, I beseech you, sir, be not out with me: yet, if you be out,
sir, I can mend you.
44
Marullus.
What mean’st thou by that? Mend me, thou saucy fellow?
Cobbler. Why, sir, cobble you.
20
Flavius.
Thou art a cobbler, art thou?
25
Cobbler. Truly, sir, all that I live by is with the awl; ° I meddle with no
tradesman’s matters, nor women’s matters; but withal,° I am indeed,
sir, a surgeon to old shoes: when they are in great danger, I recover
them. As proper men as ever trod upon neat’s leather° have gone upon
my handiwork.
Flavius.
But wherefore art not in thy shop today?
Why dost thou lead these men about the streets?
30
Cobbler. Truly, sir, to wear out their shoes, to get myself into more
work. But indeed, sir, we make holiday to see Caesar and to rejoice in
his triumph.
Marullus.
Wherefore rejoice? What conquest brings he home?
What tributaries° follow him to Rome,
To grace in captive bonds his chariot wheels?
You blocks, you stones, you worse than senseless things!
35
O you hard hearts, you cruel men of Rome,
Knew you not Pompey?° Many a time and oft
Have you climbed up to walls and battlements,
To tow’rs and windows, yea, to chimney tops,
Your infants in your arms, and there have sat
40
The livelong day, with patient expectation,
To see great Pompey pass the streets of Rome.
And when you saw his chariot but appear,
Have you not made an universal shout,
That Tiber trembled underneath her banks
45
To hear the replication° of your sounds
Made in her concave shores?°
And do you now put on your best attire?
45
50
55
And do you now cull out a holiday?
And do you now strew flowers in his way
That comes in triumph over Pompey’s blood?
Be gone!
Run to your houses, fall upon your knees
Pray to the gods to intermit° the plague
That needs must light on this ingratitude.
Flavius.
Go, go, good countrymen, and, for this fault,
Assemble all the poor men of your sort;
Draw them to Tiber banks and weep your tears
Into the channel, till the lowest stream
Do kiss the most exalted shores of all.
[Exeunt all the COMMONERS.]
60
See, whe’r their basest mettle° be not moved;
They vanish tongue-tied in their guiltiness.
Go you down that way towards the Capitol;
This way will I. Disrobe the images,°
If you do find them decked with ceremonies.
65
Marullus.
May we do so?
You know it is the feast of Lupercal.°
70
Flavius.
It is no matter; let no images
Be hung with Caesar’s trophies. I’ll about
And drive away the vulgar° from the streets;
So do you too, where you perceive them thick.
These growing feathers plucked from Caesar’s wing
Will make him fly an ordinary pitch,°
Who else would soar above the view of men
And keep us all in servile fearfulness.
[Exeunt.]
3.
5.
10.
11.
15.
mechanical: working class.
sign of your profession: your work clothes and tools.
in respect of a fine workman: in comparison with a skilled laborer.
cobbler: In Shakespeare’s day the word meant both “shoemaker” and “bungler.”
naughty: worthless.
46
21.
22.
24.
32.
36.
45.
46.
53.
60.
63.
66.
69.
72.
____
____
____
____
____
____
____
____
awl: sharp, pointed tool for making holes in wood or leather.
withal: nevertheless.
neat’s leather: leather from cattle.
tributaries: captives (captive enemies who have to pay tribute, or tax, to Rome).
Pompey: Roman politician and general who was defeated by Caesar in 48 B.C. and later
murdered.
replication: echo; copy.
concave shores: carved-out banks of the river.
intermit: hold back.
basest mettle: basic substance; their “stuff.”
images: statues.
Lupercal: old Roman fertility festival celebrated on February 15.
vulgar: common people.
an ordinary pitch: at an ordinary height.
1. A conversation between characters onstage, such as the one in lines 1–30, is called —
a. a monologue
c. an aside
b. a soliloquy
d. dialogue
2. Although the play is a tragedy, the cobbler’s witty word play is an element of —
a. monologue
c. soliloquy
b. comedy
d. history
3. The cobbler’s conversation reveals that he is —
a. confident of his abilities
c. embarrassed by his profession
b. easily cowed by authorities
d. a follower, not a leader
4. An appropriate set design for this scene would most likely include a —
a. large arena
c. speaker’s platform
b. furnished room
d. row of shops
5. The scornful treatment by Flavius and Marullus succeeds in —
a. making the commoners angry
b. winning the commoners to their cause
c. driving the commoners from the street
d. persuading the commoners to cheer Pompey
6. This scene foreshadows Caesar’s murder by —
a. showing how the commoners change allegiances
b. employing puns and other witty dialogue
c. establishing that powerful men dislike Caesar
d. describing the commoners’ love of Pompey
7. The metaphor at the end of the scene comparing Caesar to a bird shows how —
a. the commoners love Caesar
c. Caesar acts like a coward
b. Caesar moves gracefully
d. Caesar has grown too powerful
8. Shakespeare’s purpose in writing this opening scene was most likely to —
a. introduce the main characters
b. describe the setting
c. outline the relationship between the common people, the soldiers, and Caesar
d. present the conflicts between Caesar and Brutus
47
DIRECTIONS: Read the selection below, and answer the following questions.
A Dog’s Tale
by Mark Twain
My father was a St. Bernard, my mother was a collie. . . . This is what my mother told
me, I do not know these nice distinctions myself. To me they are only fine large words
meaning nothing.
My mother had a fondness for such; she liked to say them, and see other dogs look
surprised and envious, as wondering how she got so much education. But, indeed, it was
not real education; it was only show: she got the words by listening in the dining-room
and drawing-room when there was company, and by going with the children to Sundayschool and listening there; and whenever she heard a large word she said it over to
herself many times, and so was able to keep it until there was a dogmatic gathering in the
neighborhood, then she would get it off, and surprise and distress them all, from pocketpup to mastiff, which rewarded her for all her trouble.
If there was a stranger he was nearly sure to be suspicious, and when he got his breath
again he would ask her what it meant. And she always told him. He was never expecting
this but thought he would catch her; so when she told him, he was the one that looked
ashamed, whereas he had thought it was going to be she. The others were always waiting
for this, and glad of it and proud of her, for they knew what was going to happen,
because they had had experience.
When she told the meaning of a big word they were all so taken up with admiration that
it never occurred to any dog to doubt if it was the right one; and that was natural,
because, for one thing, she answered up so promptly that it seemed like a dictionary
speaking, and for another thing, where could they find out whether it was right or not?
for she was the only cultivated dog there was.
By and by, when I was older, she brought home the word Unintellectual, one time, and
worked it pretty hard all the week at different gatherings, making much unhappiness and
despondency; and it was at this time that I noticed that during that week she was asked
for the meaning at eight different assemblages, and flashed out a fresh definition every
time, which showed me that she had more presence of mind than culture, though I said
nothing, of course.
She had one word which she always kept on hand, and ready, like a life-preserver, a kind
of emergency word to strap on when she was likely to get washed overboard in a sudden
way—that was the word Synonymous. When she happened to fetch out a long word
which had had its day weeks before and its prepared meanings gone to her dump-pile, if
48
there was a stranger there of course it knocked him groggy for a couple of minutes, then
he would come to, and by that time she would be away down wind on another tack, and
not expecting anything; so when he’d hail and ask her to cash in, I (the only dog on the
inside of her game) could see her canvas flicker a moment—but only just a moment—
then it would belly out taut and full, and she would say, as calm as a summer’s day, “It’s
synonymous with supererogation,” or some godless long reptile of a word like that, and
go placidly about and skim away on the next tack, perfectly comfortable, you know, and
leave that stranger looking profane and embarrassed, and the initiated slatting the floor
with their tails in unison and their faces transfigured with a holy joy.
____
____
____
____
____
9. Using a dog as narrator gives the passage a tone of —
a. objectivity
c. bitterness
b. formality
d. humor
10. What literary device is used in the sentence “She had one word which she always kept on
hand, and ready, like a life-preserver”?
a. simile
c. hyperbole
b. metaphor
d. onomatopoeia
11. “A Dog’s Tale” uses the topic of animal communication in order to —
a. show how dogs really communicate
b. explain how animals learn from humans
c. demonstrate that dogs are smarter than most people
d. poke fun at human behavior
12. Read this sentence from the selection.
“Whenever she heard a large word she said it over to herself many times, and so was
able to keep it until there was a dogmatic gathering in the neighborhood.”
In this sentence the word dogmatic is used as —
a. an insightful simile
c. an illuminating allusion
b. a descriptive metaphor
d. a humorous play on words
13. In the last paragraph the narrator says his mother would “fetch out a long word.” The
connotations of the word fetch remind the reader that the narrator’s mother —
a. is well educated
c. knows lots of big words
b. is a dog
d. likes to show off
The following question is not about this selection. Read and answer the question.
____
14. In Greek mythology the god Pan, who has the legs, horns, and ears of a goat but the face
of a man, inspires great fear in humans. The English word that is derived from the name
Pan is —
a. pang
c. panel
b. panic
d. pancake
49
DIRECTIONS: Read the passage below, and answer the following questions.
Animal Communication
Animal communication is a relatively new field of scientific study. Scientists, from
bioacousticians to zoologists, are now studying how and why animals communicate with
one another.
Animals communicate mainly to identify themselves, to give their location, and to
influence the behavior of another animal or a person. Though most animal
communication is between members of the same species, interspecies communication
does occur.
Most of us think of sounds when we think of animal communication, but animals
communicate in many other ways. In fact, animals use five types of signals or displays:
(1) sound or vibrations; (2) visual clues; (3) chemicals; (4) touch; and (5) electricity.
Sound or Vibration Communication
Many animals use sound to communicate. Sound can spread rapidly, and other animals
can readily tell from which direction it comes. The most common sounds used by
animals are vocalizations, such as the singing of birds, the barking of dogs, and the
squeaking of dolphins. However, there are some animal vocalizations that humans can’t
hear.
Bioacoustics researcher Katy Payne discovered that elephants communicate by
“infrasound,” sound so low in pitch that humans can’t hear it. Extremely low sounds
travel long distances much better than high sounds do. Consequently, elephants can
communicate over distances of up to two miles.
When Dr. Phillip Lobel of the Marine Biology Lab rigged up some underwater
microphones to study the effects of pollution, he was astonished to discover that fish
actually talk, or vocalize.
Some animals also use nonvocal sounds. For example, beavers slap their tails on the
surface of the water to warn of danger, and gorillas beat their chests to send messages to
other gorillas.
Visual Communication
Animals also use “badges,” such as a patch of bright color or a set of horns, for visual
communication. These badges send messages such as the species, the age, or the gender
of the sender. Some species use other visual signs to send messages. To mark their
territory, rabbits build special dung heaps, and bears leave scars on tree trunks.
Honeybees communicate with each other by using movements that resemble dances.
50
Chemical Communication
Many mammals, fishes, and insects use pheromones, a type of chemical, to
communicate. For example, ants secrete pheromones to warn their colony of danger.
Some pheromones warn animals to stay away, and then may even injure other animals.
Other pheromones are intended to attract animals. Some moths use them to attract a
mate.
Touching Communication
Some species use touching patterns to communicate. Birds and monkeys often engage in
mutual grooming to communicate acceptance. Wolves, dogs, and other canines have
mock fights to establish pecking order.
Electric Communication
This type of communication includes various uses of electrical impulses. The electric eel
can emit a strong enough electrical impulse to stun prey. Other types of fish use
relatively weak electrical discharges to gather information. Some fish use electrical
discharges to deter predators.
Researchers have a long way to go before they fully understand how animals
communicate, but one thing seems clear: Animal communication is more complex than
scientists originally thought.
____
____
____
15. The story “A Dog’s Tale” uses the topic of animal communication in a humorous way,
but this article —
a. presents factual information on the topic
b. contrasts dogs with other animals
c. is amused at the way animals communicate
d. focuses on animals’ communication by sound
16. Which type of communication listed in this article did the narrator’s mother use in “A
Dog’s Tale”?
a. Visual
c. Electric
b. Sound
d. Chemical
17. Which question would be relevant for research based on this article?
a. How do elephants care for their young while traveling?
b. What chemicals do spiders use to paralyze their prey?
c. Are birds’ colors portrayed realistically in field guides?
d. When did researchers first learn about elephant communication?
51
____
18. The word in this article that comes from the Greek words meaning “life” and “hearing” is
—
a. infrasound
c. zoologists
b. bioacoustics
d. vocalizations
DIRECTIONS: Read the Web site below, and answer the following questions.
Put All the Pieces Together
With The Puzzler™
Play Games and Have Fun While Increasing Your Vocabulary and Word Skills!
Twice a week a new puzzle will
appear that will challenge your
thinking while increasing your word
knowledge. Whether you are
preparing for any of the national tests
required of college applicants or are
seeking to refresh your skills, our
Puzzler puzzles will develop your
abilities and improve your scores.
Here’s a sample of some of our
helpful Puzzlers:
• Definitely Definitions
• Snappy Synonyms
• Word Play
• At the Root of the Matter
• Don’t Ignore the Idioms
• Crossing the Curriculum
• Of Mythic Proportions
REGISTER NOW!
Set up your personal Puzzler
registration. — There is no
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Check out these links to our sponsors
and look at all the additional great
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• Scholar Dollars — Let us help you
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• Look It Up! — America’s No. 1
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Try Out Today’s Puzzle
A Plethora of Produce
Finding literary devices among the
lettuce and the lentils!
52
____
____
____
____
____
____
19. What is the first step to take before using The Puzzler Web site?
a. Get permission from a teacher.
c. Pay a fee to use the Web site.
b. Register for the Web site.
d. Take a vocabulary test.
20. The company that produces The Puzzler defends its claim to quality by —
a. stating that its puzzles are created by teachers
b. inviting readers to visit its sponsors
c. listing a sample of its puzzles’ titles
d. criticizing competing Web sites
21. Alliteration is used in this Web page to —
a. make the meaning clear
c. catch the reader’s attention
b. highlight important ideas
d. organize information
22. One could imagine the narrator’s mother in “A Dog’s Tale” consulting this Web site
because it —
a. uses different puzzles
c. is free
b. raises test scores
d. increases vocabulary
23. Which question would be relevant for research based on this Web page?
a. How should a Web site be designed?
b. Can you get paid for creating puzzles?
c. What national tests are required of college applicants?
d. Do word puzzles improve vocabulary test scores?
24. What would be the correct way to list this Web page in a bibliography?
a. “The Puzzler,” Wordskill Associates. 8 Aug. 2000. 24 Sept. 2003.
http://www.wordskillassoc.com/puzzler/homepage.html
b. Wordskill Associates, “The Puzzler,” Internet Web page, August 8, 2000.
c. Wordskill Assoc. http://www.wordskillassoc.com/puzzler/homepage.html “The
Puzzler.” 8 Aug. 2000. 24 September 2003
d. Associates, Wordskill, The Puzzler, August 8, 2000.
DIRECTIONS: Read the selection below, and answer the following questions.
Using the Office Phone System
Placing Calls
Internal calls: Lift the handset, and dial the desired four-digit extension number.
Local calls: Lift the handset, and dial “9” plus the outside number.
Long distance: Lift the handset, and dial “9” plus “1” plus the area code plus the
number.
Answering Calls
Lift the handset or press the “Speaker” key, and you will be automatically connected to
the caller. To answer Line 2, press the button next to the flashing arrow (if you already
53
have a call on Line 1, be sure to put that caller on hold first by pressing the “Hold” key).
Transferring Calls
To activate: With a call in progress, press “Transfer” from the menu display, dial the
desired extension number, and press “Connect.”
To cancel: If you wish to get the caller back without completing the transfer, press
“Good-bye” and the flashing line key.
Three-Way Conference Calls
____
____
____
____
____
____
1.
With a call in progress, press “Conf.”
2.
3.
Dial the next party (internal or external), and wait for an answer.
Announce the conference, and press “Connect” from your menu display to
connect all parties.
25. How are the directions organized under the subheading “Placing Calls”?
a. In chronological order
c. By the type of call
b. Step by step
d. By cost of the call
26. Boldface headings are used in the directions mostly to
a. highlight instructions for different phone functions
b. create visual interest for the reader
c. make the straightforward text interesting
d. show the order in which steps should be completed
27. Under the heading “Three-Way Conference Calls,” how do the directions help readers
perform the steps in the proper order?
a. The steps are listed in alphabetical order.
b. The steps are listed from easiest to hardest.
c. The steps are listed in numerical order.
d. The steps are listed in order of importance.
28. These instructions would most appropriately be listed in a bibliography for a report on —
a. workplace policies
c. communicating with your managers
b. use of office equipment
d. getting a first job
29. If you receive a call on Line 2 while you’re talking with someone on Line 1, what should
you do before pressing the button next to the “flashing” arrow?
a. Press “Transfer” from the menu
c. Press “Good-bye.”
display.
b. Press the “Speaker” key.
d. Put the Line 1 caller on hold.
30. When transferring a call, what button should you press after dialing the desired
extension?
a. Connect
c. Conf
b. Transfer
d. The flashing Line key
54
Vocabulary
DIRECTIONS: Choose the word or words that mean the same, or about the same, as
the underlined word. Then, mark the space for the answer you have chosen.
SAMPLE
Consoling is another word for —
A.
applying
B.
promising
C.
amusing
D.
comforting
Correct Answer: D
____
____
____
____
____
____
____
____
____
____
31. Something that is garbled is —
a. peaked
c. supported
b. confused
d. balanced
32. Someone who is inquisitive is —
a. guilty
c. curious
b. humble
d. quiet
33. Something that is imperial is —
a. generous
c. constant
b. foreign
d. majestic
34. Something that is innocuous is —
a. harmless
c. important
b. favorable
d. quaint
35. Someone who is induced to do something is —
a. required
c. persuaded
b. employed
d. discouraged
36. Jeopardy means about the same thing as —
a. pleasure
c. survival
b. danger
d. anger
37. Something that is squandered is —
a. wasted
c. increased
b. chosen
d. discussed
38. A cataclysm is a —
a. monster
c. volcano
b. mountain
d. disaster
39. Something done valiantly is done —
a. easily
c. bravely
b. haltingly
d. narrowly
40. Someone who is aghast is —
a. delighted
c. calmed
b. horrified
d. unified
55
Grade 11 Diagnostic Answer Section
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
D (speech)
B (comedy and farce)
A (characterization)
D (scene design and staging a play)
C (monitoring your reading or comprehension)
C (time and sequence)
D (figurative language)
C (determining the writer's purpose or intent)
D (point of view) (tone)
A (figurative language)
D (drawing conclusions)
D (context clues)
B (denotation and connotation)
B (derivation/etymology/word origins)
A (monitoring your reading or comprehension)
B (monitoring your reading or comprehension)
D (making predictions)
B (derivation/etymology/word origins)
B (monitoring your reading or comprehension)
A (monitoring your reading or comprehension)
C (sound devices)
D (point of view)
D (generating research questions)
A (citing sources)
C (sequence of information)
A (text structure)
C (sequence of information)
B (Works Cited list)
D (monitoring your reading or comprehension)
A (monitoring your reading or comprehension)
B (synonyms)
C (synonyms)
D (synonyms)
A (synonyms)
C (synonyms)
B (synonyms)
A (synonyms)
D (synonyms)
C (synonyms)
B (synonyms)
56