Community Consolidated School District 181
English Language Arts Curriculum
Thematic Concepts, Essential Questions,
& Understandings
Grades K-8
Grades 6-8 Overarching Thematic Concept:
CONFLICT
The following are potential essential questions and understandings directly related to conflict that can
be raised and investigated throughout middle school ELA as recurring ideas or “threads”.
1. What is conflict—and where does it “come from” or occur?
• Conflict is struggle between two or more opposing forces (person v. person, person
v. self, person v. nature, person v. society).
• Conflict can be internal or external.
• Conflict is universal. (Everyone experiences conflict.)
• Conflict in literature often reflects conflict in real life.
• Conflict occurs on many levels (personal, professional, societal, national, global).
• Conflict may occur (or recur) in cycles.
2. What’s the role or purpose of conflict (in real life, in literature)? What can conflict
“do”? What’s the power of conflict? What’s the value of conflict?
• Conflict propels or motivates action. (Conflict drives plot.)
• Conflict can unite or divide (a person, a group, society, a nation).
• Conflict can lead to change (in people, in situations, in perspective), positive or
negative.
• Conflict can reinforce or undermine identity.
• Conflict shapes and reveals character.
• Conflict can build or undermine independence/interdependence.
• Conflict can compel conformity or resistance.
3. When and how is conflict resolved (in real life, in literature)? (When is it “over”?)
• Conflict is resolved when a force (or person or people) involved in the “struggle”
succeeds. (Literary version: Conflict is resolved when the protagonist triumphs over
the antagonist—or vice versa.)
• There are multiple ways for conflict to resolve (e.g., fighting, debating, death, birth,
marriage, repentance, forgiveness, etc.).
• Conflict isn’t always resolved. (Not all conflicts are resolved.)
4. What does it “take” to endure (internal or external) conflict?
• Conflict can require physical, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual resolve to
endure.
Seventh Grade
Overarching Yearly Concept: CONFLICT
These thematic concepts guide (but do not restrict) text selection and writing tasks. They help ensure
that students are reading and writing for ideas, not simply for the sake of practicing and developing
skills.
Thematic Concept 1
Independence & Interdependence
Conflict can influence Independence & Interdependence.
1. What is independence (and how is it different from dependence and
Interdependence)?
• Independence is a way of exercising power.
• Interdependence is when all parts are mutually dependent on one another
2. Who or what is independent? Interdependent?
• Everyone is both independent and interdependent in some way.
• Independence and interdependence varies by role and circumstance.
3. What is the effect/result of independence?
• Independence and interdependence can create conflict (positive or negative).
• Independence and interdependence can strengthen or weaken identity (positively or
negatively).
Thematic Concept 2
Relationships
Conflict impacts Relationships.
1. How are people connected?
• People are connected through different kinds of positive or negative relationships.
2. How are relationships formed/created? (How do they "happen"/come to be?)
• Relationships form by choice or by circumstance.
3. How do relationships affect people?
• Relationships can affect identity and choice positively or negatively.
4. When/why do relationships change?
• Time, circumstances, and conflict can change relationships.
• Relationships can create interdependence and/or dependence.
Thematic Concept 3
Society
Conflict shapes Society.
1. What is “society”? What defines it?
• Societies share certain beliefs and values.
2. What's the “ideal” society?
• The "ideal" society meets the needs of all its members.
• The “ideal” society carries out the shared beliefs and values of its members.
3. What makes societies "work" or function?
• Societies are interdependent.
• Conflict can strengthen or weaken society.
• Conflict can force society to re-evaluate assumptions, history, laws, values, and
traditions.
• Conflict can compel change in society by inspiring or compelling individuals to act.
Community Consolidated School District 181
English Language Arts Curriculum
Reading Literature Scope
Grades K-8
Seventh Grade
Reading Literature Scope
Essential Questions & Understandings
1. What is the “power” of literature (a narrative, a story)?
• Literature can define or influence beliefs & values; change perspective; and provoke change.
• Literature has the power to unite or divide.
• Literature has the power to illuminate the past and inform the future.
2. What forms does literature take? What structures does it use? (Does it matter?)
• Literature includes many types of stories and narratives that are written in prose, poetic, or
dramatic form.
• The form and structure of a literary work contribute to its meaning.
• In stories/narratives, the plot provides a structure (i.e., exposition, rising action, climax, falling
action, denouement [resolution]) that guides the reader and frames the conflict.
3. How can literary works be presented/conveyed? Does how a work is conveyed “matter”?
• Written literary works can be presented/conveyed in audio, filmed, staged, or multimedia
versions. (The same work can be presented in multiple versions and/or in multiple approaches to
the same version.)
• Each medium that can be used to convey a literary work employs techniques that are specific to
that medium.
• The format in which the audience/reader experiences a literary work can challenge, reinforce, or
change the reader’s perception of a text.
4. How are the elements of a story/narrative related or connected?
• The elements of a story/narrative interact with and shape one another (e.g., setting shapes
characters and plot).
• Conflict drives plot from exposition to resolution.
5. What do authors (and playwrights and poets) do to engage, enlighten, and inspire reader/audiences?
• Authors develop a theme or central idea over the course of a literary text.
• Authors develop and contrast the points of view of different characters or narrators in a literary
text/story.
• Authors use the conflict –and the reader’s desire to see it resolved—to compel the reader to keep
reading.
• Authors convey meaning and tone by deliberately choosing words and literary devices with
literal and figurative meanings.
6. Where do literary themes, central ideas, and topics “come from”?
• The central ideas, themes, and topics in literature come from the human experience and recur
across literature from different genre and forms.
• A story’s/narrative’s setting (time, place) influence its central ideas and themes.
7. How do readers figure out what is happening in a literary text, and why? How do they get inside
the characters’ and author’s minds?
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Understanding a text well requires that readers read and re-read, seeing the “parts” and “whole” of a
text. (Potential misconception: Readers should read something once and just “get it”.)
Readers closely analyze the interaction between story elements, seeing them and their development as
interdependent and intentional.
Readers base their analysis of text on multiple pieces of explicit and implicit textual evidence.
Readers of historical fiction gain insight (about history and about the author’s perspective or motives)
when they compare the time, place, and characters with historical accounts of the same periods.
Key Knowledge
Literary forms and features
• Targeted prose genre: historical fiction/novels, historical accounts (literary non-fiction)
• Audio, filmed, stages, and multimedia versions of stories, drama, and poems
• Techniques specific to various mediums, such as lighting, sound, color, camera focus &
angles
• Forms and structures used in poetry: sonnet, ballad, ode
• Forms and structures used in drama: soliloquy, monologue, dialogue
Narrative/story elements
• A narrative conveys experience, real or imagined, and takes place in a certain time and
place.
• Setting is the time and place in which a story takes place. Many stories take place in
more than one place. Some stories take place in more than one time or across time.
• Plot is sequence of the actions or events that make up a story/narrative and how they
relate to one another. The five basic parts of plot are exposition, rising action, climax,
falling action, and denouement (resolution).
• The theme of a literary work is a central topic or idea that represents what the story is
essentially about. It is a common thread or idea that is incorporated throughout the
written work. A thematic concept can often be summarized in 1-2 words (e.g.,
independence, identity, friendship). What the author (or characters, or the narrator) is
saying about the theme are thematic statements. Literary works often convey more than
one theme (and thematic concept/thematic statement).
• Conflict is an internal or external struggle or controversy faced by one or more
characters in a literary work that is the motivating force driving the plot. There are four
kinds of conflict: person v. person, person v. self, person v. nature, and person v. society. [Note:
See Thematic Concept document for additional EQs and Understandings related to
conflict]
• Characters are people, things, or beings in a story that interact with the conflict and
move the plot forward through their actions. Characters can be described in terms of
their traits, motives, feelings, and actions.
o Characters can be dynamic or static. Dynamic characters undergo important or
significant changes in the story or as a result of the conflict. Static characters do
not undergo important or significant changes in the story or as a result of the
conflict. They essentially stay the same.
o Characters can be flat or round. Flat characters are usually simple, have a onedimensional personality, undergo no or few changes during a story, and are less
developed than round characters. Round characters are complex, multidimensional, undergo change during a story, and are more fully developed than
flat characters.
• Stories are told from a point of view. First-person point-of-view, one of the characters
tells the story and uses the first-person pronoun “I”. This limits the story to what that
character says, knows about, feels, and observes. In third-person objective (dramatic)
point-of-view, an “omniscient” narrator tells the story (in the third-person) with
knowledge of places, time, and events. They don’t enter the minds of characters—the
reader sees/observes them as in real life or in a play. The characters have a point of
view, but we only know what is they reveals through their words and actions.
• Readers have to discern the author’s perspective, which is related to the theme and
central idea, through the point of view from which the story is told. The narrator and the
author are not synonymous. Narrators are fictional.
Literary devices
• Connotative language is words/phrases that are associated with implied ideas or
qualities. For example, the word snake could be associated with evil or danger. All
words have denotation (literal meanings) and connotation (implied meanings).
• Authors use figurative language to engage readers and convey meaning. Figurative
language creates interesting images with words by using language that has a deeper
meaning than what the words literally say or mean. Key types follow:
o A metaphor is a kind of analogy between two otherwise unlike things on
some point of comparison. There are many kinds of metaphor (simile among
them); often, the term metaphor refers to such a comparison that does not use
“like” or “as”. A simile is a metaphor that uses “like” or “as”.
o An extended metaphor is one that occurs repeatedly over the course over
several sentences, paragraphs, or stanzas. (See Dickenson’s “Hope is the thing
with Feathers”)
o Hyperbole is an extreme exaggeration through figurative language that is
used to make a point through implied comparison. For example, “My
backpack weighed a ton,” or “My bag was so heavy even an elephant
couldn’t carry it.”
• An allusion is a reference in a literary work to a person, place, or thing in history or
another work of literature; often indirect or brief references to well-known characters
or events.
• Mood in a literary work is an atmosphere created through the author’s words that
evokes a certain emotion or feeling from the audience or reader.
• The tone of a literary work is the feeling conveyed by a written or spoken work; the
attitude an author takes toward his or her subject, often through the narrator(s).
• Authors and poets use devices such as alliteration, consonance, and assonance for
style/effect, to convey meaning, engage the reader/audience, or draw attention to
something or someone.
Skill-based terms
The meaning in literary text can expressed explicitly (clearly and/or directly stated)
and implicitly (suggested or implied but not directly stated).
• When a reader analyzes a text, he or she separates it into parts in order to determine
how the pieces work together and/or impact one another.
• When a reader interprets a text, he or she explains how the cited evidence supports a
claim or conclusion about the text.
• When a reader cites the text, he or she makes reference to a detail from the text to
prove a claim.
• When a reader compares and contrasts (stories, characters, mediums, etc.), he/she
uses similarities and differences to drawn a conclusion or make a judgment, usually
about the things being compared.
• A summary of literary text (story, narrative) is a shortened version that includes only
the critical story elements, central idea(s), and relevant details rather than reader’s
personal opinions or judgments. (Note: Summarizing and retelling are not the same
thing.)
• An inference is a conclusion drawn from prior knowledge and evidence or clues
from text.
Essential Skills (Standards)
As applied to grade-level complex text...
1. Cite multiple pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what a text says
explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
2. Determine a theme or central idea of a text.
3. Analyze the development of a theme or central idea of a text over the course of the
text.
4. Provide an objective summary of a text.
5. Identify instances throughout a literary work where the author’s theme or central
idea builds/develops.
6. Analyze how different elements of a story or drama interact with and affect one
another (e.g., how setting shapes the characters or plot).
7. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including
connotative and figurative meanings.
8. Analyze the impact of rhymes and other repetitions of sounds (e.g., alliteration) on a
specific verse or stanza of a poem or section of a story or drama.
9. Identify different forms of and structures in poetry and drama (e.g. soliloquy,
sonnet).
10. Analyze how the form and structure of a poem or drama contributes to its meaning
(e.g. author’s purpose, moral of the story, lesson learned, etc.).
11. Analyze how an author develops and contrasts different points of view between
characters within a text.
12. Compare and contrast what is experienced when a story is read versus accessed in
another format (e.g. video or audio).
13. Analyze the effect of the techniques specific each medium (e.g. lighting sound, color,
or camera focus and angles in a film) on how a story is conveyed/presented.
14. Compare and contrast works of historical fiction and nonfiction from the same time
period.
15. Explain how authors of fiction use or alter history in their literary work.
Community Consolidated School District 181
English Language Arts Curriculum
Reading Informational Text Scope
Grades K-8
Seventh Grade
Reading Informational Text Scope
Essential Questions & Understandings
1. What is the “power” of informational text? What value does it have?
• Informational text builds interest, perspective, and understanding.
• Informational text can weave together multiple types of writing (e.g., narrative, argument,
explanatory) in order to engage and enlighten the reader.
• The true “power” of informational text is in the ideas and how the reader interprets and uses
them.
2. How should readers approach informational text?
• A reader’s reasons for reading an informational text (i.e., his interest, questions) may
complement and/or conflict with the author’s reasons for writing it.
• Readers [should] seek out more than one (and one kind of) informational text on a
topic/subject to determine those that are a good fit for his/her purpose.
3. How do informational texts (on related topics/subjects) compare?
• Authors writing about the same topic/subject may shape the topic differently from one
another, depending on their purpose and perspective. (This might involve emphasizing
difference evidence or advancing different interpretations of the facts.)
4. How does presentation impact the meaning of informational text?
• The same subject can be presented in different [informational] media or formats. The kind of
media or format impacts how a subject is portrayed.
5. How are the parts of an informational text organized/structured and connected?
• The parts (sections) of an informational text are interdependent and contribute to the
meaning of the whole text. (Nothing is there by accident!)
• Informational text is organized around one or more central ideas or claims that the author
develops or supports over the course of the text.
• The individuals, events, and ideas in an informational text are connected to the central claim
or idea.
6. What do authors of informational text do to engage, inform, and influence the reader?
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Authors write informational text from a point of view and with a particular purpose and
audience in mind.
Authors intentionally distinguish their position from other positions in order to provide
clarity about “where” they stand.
Authors choose a structure for organizing and developing their ideas.
Authors convey meaning and tone by deliberately choosing specific words and phrases with
figurative, connotative, and technical meanings.
7. How do readers figure out what the author is (or isn’t) saying and whether it’s reasonable?
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Readers often approach informational text with a specific interest in or question about a
topic, text, issue, or process that influences how they interpret the text.
Readers evaluate whether the argument an author is presenting is logical and well-supported.
Readers draw and defend reasonable conclusions based on what the text explicitly and
implicitly says.
Key Knowledge
Text types, features, & structures
• Types of informational text (Young & Ward, 2012):
Narrative informational text typically communicates accurate information and
has a well-defined beginning, middle, and end; it is written much like a story
and is read from beginning to end.
a. Expository texts explain or define using various text structures, such as
description, cause and effect, comparison and contrast, problem and solution, question
and answer, and temporal sequence.
b. Arguments/argument texts provide evidence with the intent of influencing the
beliefs or actions of the target audience.
c. Procedural texts provide step-by-step guidelines that describe how to complete
a task. They often include a materials-needed section and graphics that
illustrate the process.
Terms/vocabulary related to argument text
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An author’s position is where the author “stands” on a topic, issue, or text, relative
to other positions.
A claim is a specific position on an issue/topic that the writer wants the audience to
accept (claim = position + reasoning + evidence).
A counterclaim is a claim made in opposition to another claim that refutes or
challenges it.
A reason is an author’s explanation for a claim. Reasons are supported by examples,
facts, and ideas. An author’s reasoning is sound when it avoids fallacious or illogical
thinking.
A logical fallacy is an error in logical thinking or reasoning that affects the strength
of argument. (Although, the arguments claims and conclusions could still be true.)
Examples include bandwagon, ad hominem, false dilemma, slippery slope, complex
questions, hasty generalization, straw man, and begging the question. (Note: identifying
fallacy is not a part of the CC standards until high school; however, students often need early
and repeated practice with identifying even the most basic fallacious reasoning in order to
master, avoid, and refute it.)
Evidence is facts/information that can be used to prove or disprove a reason, claim,
or position. Evidence can take many forms (e.g., examples, statistics, data, credible
personal and expert opinions, facts).
o Evidence is relevant when it supports reasons and/or flows logically toward a
claim or position.
o Evidence is credible when it comes from a reputable, dependable, and reliable
source.
o Evidence is sufficient when it’s “enough” to support or illustrate the
reasonableness of a claim.
Ways that arguments can be structured: strongest to weakest reason, weakest to
strongest reason.
Skill-Based Terms/Processes
• The central idea or claim of an informational text “holds” it together and guides or
represents its purpose. The central idea is the main point, process, or subject the author
is trying to explain or prove. The central idea can be represented as a claim, thesis, or
question.
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Authors and readers of informational text have a point of view or perspective that is
shaped by their role/profession/expertise/position, experience, and purpose.
The meaning in informational text can expressed explicitly (clearly and/or directly
stated) and implicitly (suggested or implied but not directly stated).
A summary of an informational text includes only the central idea(s) and relevant
details rather than reader’s personal opinions or judgments.
When readers cite a text they refer directly to what it says (e.g., by quoting,
summarizing, paraphrasing).
An inference is a conclusion drawn from prior knowledge and evidence or clues from
text.
Essential Skills (Standards)
As applied to a range of grade-level complex informational text...
1. Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly
as well as inferences drawn from the text.
2. Determine two or more central ideas in a text.
3. Analyze the development of two or more central ideas over the course of a text.
4. Provide an objective summary of a text.
5. Analyze the interactions between individuals, events, and ideas in a text (e.g., how ideas
influence individuals or events, or how individuals influence ideas or events).
6. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including
figurative, connotative, and technical meanings.
7. Analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone in a text.
8. Analyze the structure an author uses to organize a text, including how the major sections
contribute to the whole and to the development of the ideas.
9. Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text.
10. Analyze how an author distinguishes his or her position from that of others in a text.
11. Compare and contrast a text to an audio, video, or multimedia version of the text,
analyzing each medium’s portrayal of the subject (e.g., how the delivery of a speech
affects the impact of the words).
12. Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text.
13. Assess the soundness of an author’s reasoning (in an argument text).
14. Assess whether evidence is relevant and sufficient to support an author’s claims (in an
argument text).
15. Analyze how two or more authors writing about the same topic shape their presentations
of key information by emphasizing different evidence or advancing different
interpretations of facts.
Community Consolidated School District 181
English Language Arts Curriculum
Narrative Writing Scope
Grades K-8
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Seventh Grade Narrative Writing Scope
Essential Questions & Understandings
1. Why write a narrative?
• Narratives convey or shape perspective, emotions, and relationships.
• Narratives can inform, persuade and/or entertain.
• Narratives can influence how people think, feel, or act.
2. What drives a narrative?
• Narratives are rooted in real and imagined experiences, events, and figures-including those from other narratives.
• Some narratives are driven by a conflict or problem.
3. What forms can narrative writing take?
• Narrative writing can take many forms and be presented in various formats. (It’s not
just print-based fictional stories and personal essays.)
• Narrative writing can integrate other writing types (e.g., argument, info/
explanatory), and other writing types can employ narrative writing.
4. How are the parts of a narrative structured? How do they relate to one another?
• Narratives have interrelated elements and an interdependent structure that varies
with writer’s purpose, audience, narrative form, and narrative format.
• Narratives establish a context and point of view that launch and focus the events and
experiences.
• Narratives have a clear, well-structured event sequence that unfolds naturally and
logically.
• Narrative conclusions follow from and reflect on the events and experiences in the
narrative.
5. How can language convey and shape a narrative?
• Precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language help
capture the action and convey experiences and events in a narrative.
• Transition words, phrases, and clauses convey sequence and signal shifts from one
time frame or setting to another in a narrative.
• Certain narrative techniques (e.g., dialogue, pacing, and description) develop and
shape experiences, events, and/or characters in a narrative.
6. What makes a narrative compelling?
• Compelling narratives “force” the reader to keep reading!
• Compelling narratives use conflict—and the desire to see it resolved—to hook and
hold the reader.
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Key Knowledge
Narrative (as a writing type) and format
• A narrative conveys experience, real or imagined, and is situated in time and place.
• Narrative forms include fictional stories, poems, journal entries, biography, autobiography, memoir,
vignettes, dramatic scenes, journalistic accounts
Narrative elements
• Narratives have structure. Structure is the order in which the events in a narrative are presented.
• Events in a narrative can be structured in chronological order, as a reflection, or in/as flashback.
• All narratives establish context, both in the beginning of the narrative and throughout. Context
is the descriptive background in a story that sheds light on its meaning. Context is larger than
plot. (Context “sits behind” and informs plot.) (From “Creating Context” by Marcia Wood)
• Point of view is the narrator’s position in relation to the story being told (i.e., first person, second
person, third person). The narrator and the author are not synonymous. Narrators are fictional.
(See Griffith, K. Writing Essays About Literature)
• In a narrative, the conclusion resolves the problem/conflict, brings the “action” to a close,
and/or incorporates some reflection on or analysis of the events and experiences that were
conveyed.
• Resolution occurs when story conflicts are revealed, unraveled or addressed, and the main
character/protagonist has a personal or emotional response to them. Resolution is flexible: it
might occur throughout the narrative, shortly after the climax, immediately before the ending, or
once the main character/protagonist has a moment of inspiration.
Narrative techniques
• Dialogue is conversation between two or more people/characters in a narrative. In a (prose)
narrative, dialogue is shown through quotations marks. Compare with monologue and internal
monologue.
• The pacing of a narrative refers to how quickly or slowly the events and actions tell the story (i.e.,
advance the plot).
Narrative language
• Writers of narratives use sensory language in dialogue and description to convey through
narrators and people/characters how things looked, sounded, smelled, felt, or tasted. This can
include figurative language. Figurative language creates interesting images with words by using
language that has a deeper meaning than what the words literally say or mean. Types of
figurative language include metaphor, simile, personification and hyperbole.
• Transitional words, phrases, and clauses/clause connectors like before, next, soon, afterwards,
lastly, eventually, meanwhile, two weeks later, for awhile, at last, at the same time, in the meantime,
consequently, therefore, however, although, so that, because and immediately can help manage the
sequence of events in a narrative.
Story elements (Note: This key knowledge is from the Grade 7 Reading Literature scope. It is included
here for reference as and when they apply to students writing narrative with story elements.)
• Setting is the time and place in which a story takes place. Many stories take place in more than
one place. Some stories take place in more than one time or across time.
• Plot is sequence of the actions or events that make up a story/narrative and how they relate to
one another. The five basic parts of plot are exposition, rising action, climax, falling action,
and denouement (resolution).
• The theme of a literary work is a central topic or idea that represents what the story is essentially
about. It is a common thread or idea that is incorporated throughout the written work. A thematic
concept can often be summarized in 1-2 words (e.g., independence, identity, friendship). What the
author (or characters, or the narrator) is saying about the theme are thematic statements. Literary
works often convey more than one theme (and thematic concept/thematic statement).
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Conflict is an internal or external struggle or controversy faced by one or more characters in a
literary work that is the motivating force driving the plot. There are four kinds of conflict: person
v. person, person v. self, person v. nature, and person v. society. [Note: See Thematic Concept document
for additional EQs and Understandings related to conflict].
Characters are people, things, or beings in a story that interact with the conflict and move the
plot forward through their actions. Characters can be described in terms of their traits, motives,
feelings, and actions.
o Characters can be dynamic or static. Dynamic characters undergo important or
significant changes in the story or as a result of the conflict. Static characters do not
undergo important or significant changes in the story or as a result of the conflict. They
essentially stay the same.
o Characters can be flat or round. Flat characters are usually simple, have a onedimensional personality, undergo no or few changes during a story, and are less
developed than round characters. Round characters are complex, multi-dimensional,
undergo change during a story, and are more fully developed than flat characters.
Stories are told from a point of view. First-person point-of-view, one of the characters tells the
story and uses the first-person pronoun “I”. This limits the story to what that character says,
knows about, feels, and observes. In third-person objective (dramatic) point-of-view, an
“omniscient” narrator tells the story (in the third-person) with knowledge of places, time, and
events. They don’t enter the minds of characters—the reader sees/observes them as in real life or
in a play. The characters have a point of view, but the reader only knows what they reveals
through their words and actions.
Essential Skills (Standards)
1. Select a narrative writing form and format appropriate to purpose and audience.
2. Focus a narrative on a real or imagined experiences or events.
3. Engage and orient the reader to a narrative by establishing a context and point of
view and introducing a narrator and/or characters.
4. Organize an event sequence in a narrative that unfolds naturally and logically.
5. Use narrative techniques such as dialogue, descriptions, and pacing in a narrative to
develop experiences and events, and/or characters.
6. Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to manage the sequence of
events in a narrative.
7. Use concrete words and phrases and sensory details in a narrative to convey
sequence and signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another.
8. Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to
capture the action and convey experiences and events in a narrative.
9. Provide a conclusion to a narrative that follows from and reflects on the narrated
experiences or events.
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Community Consolidated School District 181
English Language Arts Curriculum
Informative/Explanatory Writing Scope
Grades K-8
See also the Reading Informational Text Scope and
Research Scope for related goals
Seventh Grade
Informative/Explanatory Writing Scope
Essential Questions & Understandings
1. What is the “power” of informing and explaining (in writing)?
• Writing that informs and explains has to power to teach and to change (e.g., knowledge,
interest level, perspective).
• Information and explanation can create internal or external conflict.
2. What “fuels” informative/explanatory writing? (Where do the information and explanations
come from?)
• Research, motivation, and firsthand experience fuels informative/explanatory writing.
• Multiple and varied selectively- and intentionally-chosen sources fuel
informative/explanatory writing.
3. How should informative/explanatory writing be structured/organized? (What holds it
together? Keeps it together?)
• A central idea or claim (e.g., thesis) usually “holds together” the ideas, concepts, and
information in an informative/explanatory piece.
• The ideas/concepts in and parts of an informative/explanatory piece are interdependent:
they interact with one another to “unpack” a topic and convey relationships or
connections.
• Writers often use specific strategies to organize the content in informative/explanatory
pieces (e.g., definition, classification, comparison/contrast, cause/effect).
• Writers use transitions to create cohesion and clarify relationships between ideas and
concepts. (Also an Understanding for EQ5 below.)
4. What makes informative/explanatory writing instructive?
• Clarity, relevance and accuracy are critical to instructive informative/ explanatory
writing.
• Instructive informative/explanatory writing recognizes the knowledge and interest level
of the target audience.
• Instructive informative/explanatory writing uses formatting, graphics, and multimedia
(as appropriate) to complement or supplement text.
5. How do writers shape information and explanation?
• Writers are selective about the content they use to inform about and explain a topic and
intentional about how they organize it. (This includes relevant facts, concrete details, quotations,
examples, data, etc.).
• Writers use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to shape what and how
they inform about and explain their topic.
• Writers create or include other visual, oral, and quantitative images and media to shape
and expand their information and explanations.
6. What forms can informative/explanatory writing take?
• Informative/explanatory writing can take many forms and be presented in various
formats, depending on purpose and audience. (It’s not just thesis-driven research papers!)
• Informative/explanatory writing can be conveyed in various styles (more informal to
more formal).
Key Knowledge
Info/Explanatory Writing Types, Forms, and Formats
• Informative/explanatory writing conveys information accurately. It addresses matters such
as types (What are the different types of poetry?) and components (What are the parts of a
motor?); size, function, or behavior (How big is the United States? What is an X-ray used for?
How do penguins find food?); how things work (How does the legislative branch of government
function?); and why things happen (Why do some authors blend genres?). Informational/
explanatory writing serves one or more closely related purposes: to increase readers’ knowledge
of a subject, to help readers better understand a procedure or process, or to provide readers with
an enhanced comprehension of a concept. (CCSS-ELA, Appendix A)
• Forms of informative/explanatory writing include literary analyses, scientific and historical
reports, and summaries.
• When an informative/explanatory text is written in a formal style, it often takes an
“academic” or objective tone, is written in third-person, and conforms to the
conventions, language, tone, and organizational structure called for or preferred by the
applicable style guide. Info/explanatory texts that establish and maintain a formal style
are usually not “personal” or emotional, and they avoid colloquial language,
contractions, and abbreviations.
Info/Explanatory Sources
[For more Key Knowledge related to finding, selecting, and evaluating sources, see Reading Informative
Text scope and Research scope.]
• A source is a person, place, or thing that can provide information. Writers can use one
or more sources to corroborate information/facts. There are many types of sources,
including interviews, observations, experiments, reference materials, technology/media,
and print media. A source (or the information in it) is relevant if it is connected to the
writer’s topic and focus.
• A source’s credibility refers to how “believable” it is—whether it can be “trusted” to provide
accurate information and/or the kind of information it says it provides. Source credibility is
influenced by source type, author/creator background or reputation, publication date, depth
of information, the sources it cites, and its objectivity. In general, government sites/documents,
institutional sites and materials (e.g., universities, agencies, organizations with special areas of
expertise), and reputable news sources are more credible than web forums, blogs, private/individual web
sites, and materials/sites of organizations with a narrow agenda or focus. (But a lot also depends on the
question and purpose!) (From Research scope)
Info/Explanatory Elements
• A topic is the subject of an informative/explanatory piece. The topic might be a person,
place, thing, idea, event, process, or phenomenon.
• A fact is something that can be proven as true. An opinion is what someone thinks,
prefers, or believes about something (e.g., a topic).
• Informative/explanatory texts are “controlled”/focused on/guided by a central idea,
claim, or thesis. (Terms vary, depending on the kind of text being written).
• A definition is an explanation of what a word, idea, or thing means. Often,
informative/explanatory writing provides definitions to clarify what certain domainspecific vocabulary means, in order to “teach” the reader.
• Details are specific pieces of information about the topic or points in an informative/
explanatory piece. Details provide explanations that help the reader better understand
•
•
•
•
the topic. Concrete details are those that make information, concepts, and ideas as
“real”, tangible, or relatable as possible for the reader. This can include extended
examples or descriptions, facts/data, analogies, and direct quotations.
Formatting in informative/explanatory writing refers to how the text is “set-up” or
arranged to aid reader comprehension and enhance presentation. Headings are one kind
of formatting option that breaks the text into parts. Headings can guide the reader
through the information in a text by previewing different sections and reminding the
reader of the focus/aspects of the text. Writers can also explain or illustrate information
in the text through graphics (e.g., charts and tables) and multimedia.
Info/explanatory writing clearly introduces the topic, often by providing a general
observation and focus through a central idea, claim, or thesis that “previews” what is to
follow. This gives the reader “roadmap” for the text and lets him/her decide whether and
how to keep reading. (A general observation might be used to focus the topic and convey an
overall impression of the writer’s perspective on or orientation to the topic, i.e., his/her
purpose for writing about it.)
Info/explanatory writing ends with concluding statement or section that is related to
and supports the information or explanation presented.
Info/explanatory writing uses appropriate transitions to create cohesion, clarify the
relationships among ideas and concepts. Examples include in contrast, especially, while,
by comparison, similarly, another. (Note: Cohesion refers to the flow of ideas through sentences
and paragraphs from one to another. Cohesive writing brings old information and new information
together throughout the piece to enhance and build on the reader’s understanding.)
Organizational strategies in informative/explanatory writing
• When writers use definition as an organizational strategy, they identify a concept, idea, or
term and explain or explore its meaning. This might include literal meaning, implied
meaning, or discipline- or context-specific meaning. For example, a writer who is explaining
what poetry is might provide various “textbook” definitions alongside insights from wellknown poets.
• Writers use classification when they identify and develop categories for explaining distinct
concepts, ideas, or information that connects to a broader topic. For example, a paper on
different kinds of poetry might classify and explain poetry by time period, authorship, theme,
or type.
• Comparison/contrast is a strategy that involves identifying and explaining the similarities
and differences between two or more things (e.g., ideas, concepts, people, events) in order to
make or support claims, generalizations, or conclusions about the relationship between those
things. For example, a writer might use comparison/contrast to organize an analysis of two
poems with similar themes.
• When writers use cause/effect to organize information, they might be relating how
something happened and why, explaining consequences/outcomes, or exploring
relationships or connections. For example, an analysis of Lewis Carroll’s poem
“Jabberwocky” might examine the effect of language in the poem (e.g., Carroll use of
nonsense words) on other aspects of the poem such as tone and rhythm.
Essential Skills (Standards)
1. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts,
and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant
content.
2. Focus and organize a topic for informative/explanatory writing with a central idea,
thesis, or claim.
3. Draw on a variety of relevant sources to write informative/explanatory texts.
4. Begin informative/explanatory writing by introducing the topic clearly, previewing
what is to follow.
5. Organize ideas, concepts, and information, using strategies such as definition,
classification, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect.
6. Include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables) and multimedia in
informative/explanatory writing when useful to aiding comprehension.
7. Develop a topic in informative/explanatory writing with relevant facts, definitions,
concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.
8. Use appropriate transitions to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among
ideas and concepts in informative/explanatory writing.
9. Use precise and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain a topic in
informative/explanatory writing (e.g., when writing about science use “hypothesis”, not
“guess”).
10. Establish and maintain a formal style.
11. End informative/explanatory writing with a concluding statement or section that
follows from and supports the information or explanation presented.
Community Consolidated School District 181
English Language Arts Curriculum
Opinion/Argument Writing Scope
Grades K-8
Seventh Grade Argument Writing Scope
Essential Questions & Understandings
1. Why write (an argument)? Why argue?
• People write to advance and/or defend a position or claim.
• Argument can influence what others feel, think, and do.
• Argument can motivate change.
2. What is an argument?
• An argument is an organized way of presenting claims related to a topic or text using
reasons and evidence.
• Arguments explore differences in perspective.
• Arguments establish and maintain a formal style.
3. What informs/influences an argument?
• Multiple and varied perspectives inform an argument.
• Arguments are shaped by the writer’s purpose, beliefs & values, interests, and
experiences.
• Arguments are crafted with an audience in mind.
4. How should an argument be organized?
• Arguments have a logical and interdependent organizational structure that fits the
writer’s purpose, audience, and format. (There’s not just one way to organize an
argument!)
• Certain techniques (e.g., clauses, conjunctive adverbs) can clarify and strengthen the
relationship between the parts of an argument.
5. What makes an argument strong?
• Strong arguments take an informed position around claims that are supported by
logical reasoning and relevant evidence drawn from multiple accurate and credible
sources.
• Strong arguments create cohesion between the position, claims, reasons, and
evidence.
• Strong arguments anticipate and acknowledge alternate or opposing claims.
• The clarity of an argument affects its strength.
6. What makes an argument persuasive?
• Arguments are persuasive when the audience can tell the writer is knowledgeable
about the topic/subject.
• The most persuasive arguments change or influence the audience in a way that aligns
the writer’s intent. (But an argument can be strong and logical without convincing all or
some of the audience.)
Key Knowledge
Writing types, formats, and structure
• Targeted formats/outlets for opinion writing
• An argument is an organized way of presenting claims related to a topic or text using
reasons and evidence.
• Persuade is another word for “convince”. Persuasion is the act of trying to convince
someone of something. Arguments can be more or less persuasive/convincing.
• The organizational structure of an argument is based on a central claim and supported by
reasons and evidence that are logically grouped.
• A source is anything that provides information that is relevant to a topic, issue, or question.
A writer can verify the accuracy of information from a source by checking multiple sources
on the same subject.
o A primary source is original material or evidence from the time period involved
(e.g., artifacts, diary, interviews, newspaper article, photographs, speeches, works of
art, literature, music, etc.).
o A secondary source is an interpretation or evaluation of a primary source that is
written after the time period (e.g., biographies, editorials, textbooks, most websites,
etc.).
Elements and their Attributes
• A position is a stance on a topic/issue (including one that is connected to a text) that has
multiple, debatable points of view.
• Cohesion is the degree to which the elements of an argument work together. A cohesive argument
brings reasons together support the claim and clarifies the relationship among or between those
arguments.
• A claim is a specific position or stance on an issue/topic that the writer wants the audience to
accept (claim = position + reasoning + evidence).
• A counterclaim/counterargument is a claim made in opposition to another claim that refutes or
challenges it. A writer introduces or uses counterclaims in an argument to “control” the
argument and dispel doubts or concerns about his/her position/stance or claims.
• Writers have strategies for thinking about, noting, and/or addressing in writing opposing points
of view. These can include acknowledgement, rebuttal, and concession.
• A reason is an explanation for an opinion or position. All reasons should be closely and
evidently related to the overall opinion and to one another. Reasons can be grouped in various
logical ways.
• A reason is relevant if it supports or flows logically toward an opinion or position. Not all
possible reasons for an opinion or position are equally important/relevant.
• Evidence is facts/information that can be used to prove or disprove a reason or
opinion/position. Evidence can take many forms (e.g., examples, statistics, data, credible
personal and expert opinions, facts). Evidence is relevant if it supports the opinion/position.
Credible evidence can be verified/proven.
• An effective introduction/hook is one that takes a clear position, clarifies the issue, and provides
necessary background [on the topic/issue/text].
• An effective conclusion/concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the
argument presented and, as appropriate, calls people action or provides a next-step, or answers
the “So what?” question. (Note: It should move beyond summary.)
• Arguments uses specific linking words, transition phrases, and clauses to show reasoning and
relationships and create complex sentences: because, therefore, since, for example, on the other
hand, for instance, in order to, in addition, consequently, specifically, for this reason.
Essential Skills (Standards)
1. Identify a position on a debatable topic, issue, or text.
2. Develop a position/stance on a topic, issue, or text through claim(s), reasons,
and evidence.
3. Distinguish between relevant and irrelevant reasons/evidence.
4. Determine the credibility and accuracy of a source and the information therein
based on given criteria.
5. Use credible facts/data and relevant evidence to support reasons for a
position.
6. Acknowledge alternate or opposing claims (counterclaims).
7. Integrate an appropriate variety of reasons and evidence into an argument
8. Organize reasons and support in argument logically.
9. Use words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify the
relationships among claim(s) and reasons.
10. Select a format, audience, and “outlet” for an argument piece that is
appropriate to the purpose of the piece.
11. Establish and maintain a formal style in writing an argument.
12. Introduce an argument that engages (hooks) the reader, establishes the writer’s
position/claim, and provides necessary context.
13. Conclude an argument in a logical, effective, and satisfying way.
Community Consolidated School District 181
English Language Arts Curriculum
Production & Distribution of Writing Scope
Grades K-8
Organized in grade-level bands (K-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8)
See also Narrative Writing, Opinion/Argument Writing, and
Informational/Explanatory Writing scopes.
Seventh & Eighth Grade
Production & Distribution of Writing Scope
Essential Questions & Understandings
1. How does writing “happen”? Where does it “begin” and “end”?
• Writing is a recursive process with overlapping and interdependent phases and parts that takes
time, practice, purpose, knowledge, and motivation.
• Writing begins and ends with questions and ideas.
2. Who/what is a skilled writer—and how do I become one?
• Skilled writers are also skilled thinkers, observers, and readers. (Thinking, reading, and observing are
catalysts for writing.)
• Skilled writers develop over time. (Skilled writers are made, not born.)
• Skilled writers experiment, re-write, self-evaluate, and persist. (They know there’s always a next-step
for growth and improvement.)
3. Why do writers write, and what do they write about?
• Writers write to convey experience, make an argument, and instruct or explain.
• Writers write about what they and others know or want to know.
• Writers write to uncover or reveal (e.g., relationships/connections, truth, knowledge, conflict,
character, experience, events).
4. How do writers work?
• Writers go through multiple processes in drafting, revising, and distributing their writing. (Writing
isn’t just a one-shot, lock-step process.)
• Writers plan at every phase of their writing process—and adjust those plans when they need to.
• Task, purpose, and audience drive the writer’s work.
• Writers use a range of techniques and tools to manage how they work and think (e.g.,
citing/linking to sources they might or have used).
• Writers often interact or collaborate with others (face to face, online) to help them think about,
develop, and refine their work.
5. What do writers produce?
• Writers can produce different types of writing (e.g. informative, narrative, argument) in various
forms and formats.
• Writers aim to produce clear, coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style
suits their task, purpose, and audience.
• A writer’s work can give readers access to other ideas and information (e.g., through providing
names of or links to sources).
6. How do writers grow?
• Writers grow when “own” their ideas, process, and results. (They don’t blame others or wait for
others to tell them what to do and how to do it.)
• Writers grow through seeking and making decisions about how to use feedback from different
sources throughout the writing process.
• Writers reflect on their work, their approach, and their process to become better writers.
7. What should writers “do” with their writing once it’s “finished”? (Do they have to
share/publish/distribute it?)
• Writers decide whether and how to publish/distribute their work (e.g., self-publish, submit to
others for publication).
• Writers set their own standards for “success,” which often involves assessing whether they
accomplished their goal(s) and influenced their audience.
!
Key Knowledge
Elements/Attributes
• Organization in writing refers to how the piece is “set-up” and/or structured. Different
writing types and forms have different organizational structures. (See writing typespecific scopes at each grade level for examples.)
• Development in writing refers to how ideas, people/characters, events, etc. “unfold”
over a piece of writing. Writers use details, explanations, examples figurative language
and other techniques to develop their writing.
• Clarity in writing is how easy the content and ideas are for the reader to understand. (A
reader must first understand what the writer is saying before he/she can agree with, learn
from, or be entertained or “moved” by it.) Clear writing makes the writer’s thinking
“visible” and comprehensible.
• Coherence in writing is how well the ideas “hang” together and logically flow or
transition from one to the next. Writers often use certain words, transition, and phrases
can make writing more coherent. (See writing type-specific scopes at each grade level for
examples.)
• Style in writing refers to the way writing feels and sounds, as influenced by tone voice,
sentence structure/fluency, word choice, and diction. Style can reveal a writer’s
personality, knowledge of a topic, and his/her purpose or intentions. Styles can be
characterized from more formal to more informal. Style should “match” the writing
type, form, and format, as well as the writer’s purpose and audience.
Production & Distribution
• Writers write for and with a purpose—that is, they have a clear sense of what they are
writing about and what they are trying to accomplish. Different writing types (e.g.,
informative/explanatory, opinion, narrative) can accomplish similar and different, as
well as multiple, purposes. (Note: A writer’s purpose is related to but not synonymous with the
writer’s message or the theme of a writer’s text.)
• Writers write with the hope or intention of one or more audiences reading their finished
piece. Writers should have audience in mind as they begin and work through the process
of writing. Although a piece could have many potential audiences, writers usually have a
desired or target audience in mind.
• Writers choose a writing type, form and format for their writing that is appropriate to
their purpose and their audience.
• The writing process involves multiple phases/parts.
o Planning happens throughout the writing process but is often most closely
associated with the initial stages of preparing to draft a new piece. This
preparation can involves the writer coming up with ideas for what he/she will
write about and why. Writers often (but not always) write in response to a task or
prompting. In planning, a writer might engage in individual or collaborative
brainstorming, research, bulleting/outlining, or other activities.
o Drafting is the process of producing versions of a written work toward the goal
of producing a “final” version. There is no “set” or “magic” number of drafts.
o Rewriting is the process of making significant or substantial changes to a draft
such that the writer is producing new sentences, sections, pages, and/or
chapters—or “starting over” with a new perspective/orientation, new topic, etc.
o
o
o
Revising is the process of rereading drafts and making changes to improve its
content (focus, organization, word choice, sentence structure, etc.). Editing is the
process of rereading a drafts and making changes to improve correct errors in
conventions (capitalization, punctuation, spelling, etc.).
Conferencing/Conferring is the process of meeting (in person, online) with a
peer or a mentor to about a written draft to receive and respond to questions and
suggestions for improvement. Conferencing can happen throughout the writing
process, from planning to publishing.
Distributing/Publishing is the process of formally or informally sharing a
“finished” piece of writing with others. Writing can be distributed/published by
the writer or by others.
The Role of Technology (in Production and Distribution)
• Technology can make producing and distributing writing more efficient. Writers
o Writers can use a variety of digital tools (e.g., online or platform- or programbased), and the Internet itself, in the production and distribution of writing, and
to interact or collaborate with others. Specifically, writers can use these mediums
and tools to research, draft, collaborate, revise/edit, and publish/distribute.
o Technology (including the Internet) allows writers to (1) enhance their own and
the audience’s access to sources, both those directly cited in their writing and
those they consulted or recommend, (2) present relationships between
information and ideas efficiently.
Essential Skills (Standards)
1. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and
style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
2. Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting,
or trying a new approach, with some guidance and support from peers and adults.
3. Focus the development and strengthening of writing on how well purpose and
audience have been addressed.
4. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing.
5. Use technology, including the Internet, to link to and cite sources.
6. Use technology, including the Internet, to interact and collaborate with others,
including linking to and citing sources.
7. Use technology, including the Internet, to present the relationships between
information and ideas efficiently (8th grade only).
8. Demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type three or more pages in
a single sitting.
English Language Arts Curriculum
Language: Conventions
Grades K-8
Based on the Common Core State Standards
!
See also Language: Vocabulary Acquisition & Use and
Reading Foundational Skills scopes for additional goals
related to understanding and applying words.
!
Introduction & Contents
Conventions of Standard English are a prominent component of the
Common Core State Standards in Language. This document takes those
standards at each grade level and provides several useful tools.
1. The “Big Idea” of Standard English. This concept map shows how
Conventions are related to Standard English, what Conventions
includes, what shapes Conventions, and the impact of Conventions on
writing. The map depicts “where” key concepts critical to the study and
application of conventions “stand” relative to one another. Although the
map is intended for teacher background knowledge and study, all or
parts of it can be shared or used with students in adapted format, with
the goal of students being able to fully unpack and explain it themselves
by the end of 12th grade (or sooner, but in less sophisticated ways).
2. Standard English: What Is It? Who Needs It? A Progression of
Essential Questions. Selected CCSS Language standards ask students to
understand and apply their knowledge of standard English in
increasingly sophisticated ways. To fully understand and exercise the
power of the English language in its wide range of forms, from more
formal to more informal, students must grasp why there is a “standard”
form at all. Teachers can address the need for and purposes of standard
English by framing the study of “standard” conventions (e.g., grammar,
punctuation) around these essential questions/inquiries that students
might actually wonder.
3. Progression of Conventions-Related Knowledge & Skills. This chart
organizes the key knowledge and skills at each grade level in the
standards themselves into categories that help teachers see where and
which specific aspects of conventions are targeted. The skills marked
with a asterisk (*) are those that the CCSS notes are “particularly likely to
require continued attention in higher grades as they are applied to increasingly
sophisticated writing and speaking.” The CCSS also reminds teachers that
students advancing through the grades are expected to meet each year’s gradespecific standards and retain or further develop skills and understandings
mastered in the preceding grades.
!
Standard English
is guided by
Conventions
of/in
Grammar
(the rules that govern how words,
clauses and phrases are put
together)
Punctuation
Capitalization
(which or what kinds of words
begin with a capital letter)
(the symbols within, between, before,
and after words that structure and
organize language so that it can be
written/spoken as intended)
Spelling
(writing words using the
correct or widely-accepted
sequence of letters)
as determined or altered by the writer’s or speaker’s
Purpose/Choice
Context
Tone
Style
for
Jessica'Hockett'(2013)
!
Effect
Consistency
Clarity
Precision
Conciseness
Efficiency
Standard English: What Is It? Who Needs It? – A Progression of Essential Questions Jessica A. Hockett (2013)
Kindergarten
!
Grade 1
What does what I say and hear “look like”?
(How do I write the words I hear and say? What
goes on the page)?
Recognize that spoken English can be written
down in a way that everyone can read and
understand. [Implied but not explicitly stated in
CCSS-ELA]
!
Grade 3
What’s the difference between the English that
people hear/say and the English that people
write?
Recognize and observe differences between the
conventions of spoken and written standard
English. (L.3.3.b)!
How do I write what I say and hear? How can I make sure
others can read (and understand) what I write?
Begin to use conventions of standard written English. [Implied
but not explicitly stated in CCSS-ELA]
!
Grade 2
!
What’s the “right” way to write/speak English?
(Is there a “right” way? Says who?)
Compare formal and informal uses of English.
(L.2.3)
!
Grade 4
Grade 5
How “formal” does my English need to be?
When and why does “formal” English matter?
Where/why do we read/hear different “flavors”
of formal and informal English?
Differentiate between contexts that call for formal English
(e.g., presenting ideas) and situations where informal
discourse is appropriate (e.g., small-group discussion).
(L.4.3.c)
Compare and contrast the varieties of English (e.g.,
dialects, registers) used in stories, dramas, or poems.
(L.5.3.b)
Grades 6-12
Grades 9-10
Grades 11-12
What does standard English look like and sound
like? What are the benefits and limitations of a
“standard” English? How “standard” does a
writer’s/speaker’s English need to be?
What choices do writers/speakers have when it comes to
using to standard English? Who or what decides?
Who or what decides what standard English is,
and when and how to use it? To “change” it?
Recognize variations from standard English in their
own and others' writing and speaking, and identify
and use strategies to improve expression in
conventional language.* (L.6.1.e) *To be addressed 612
Use various types of phrases (noun, verb, adjectival, adverbial,
participial, prepositional, absolute) and clauses (independent,
dependent; noun, relative, adverbial) to convey specific meanings
and add variety and interest to writing or presentations. (L.910.1.b)
Write and edit work so that it conforms to the guidelines in a
style manual (e.g., MLA Handbook, Turabian’s Manual for Writers)
appropriate for the discipline and writing type. (L.9-10.3.a)
!
Apply the understanding that [English-language
standard] usage is a matter of convention, can change
over time, and is sometimes contested. (L.11-12.1.a)
Vary syntax for effect, consulting references (e.g.,
Tufte’s Artful Sentences) for guidance as needed; apply
an understanding of syntax to the study of complex
texts when reading. (L.11-12.1.b)
Write and edit work so that it conforms to the
guidelines in a style manual (e.g., MLA Handbook,
Turabian’s Manual for Writers) appropriate for the
discipline and writing type. (L.11-12.3.a)
`
Grade 6
Using
Pronouns
•
•
•
•
•
Using Verbs
•
•
Grade 7
Ensure pronoun-antecedent agreement.*
Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in pronoun
number and person.*
Recognize and correct vague pronouns (i.e., ones with
unclear or ambiguous antecedents).*
Ensure that pronouns are in the proper case (subjective,
objective, possessive).
Use intensive pronouns (e.g., myself, ourselves).
•
•
Ensure subject-verb agreement.*
Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb
tense.*
•
•
•
Grade 8
Ensure pronoun-antecedent agreement.*
Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in pronoun number and
person.*
Recognize and correct vague pronouns (i.e., ones with unclear or
ambiguous antecedents).*
•
•
Ensure subject-verb agreement.*
Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb tense.*
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Constructing
Ideas with
Words,
Phrases,
Clauses, &
Sentences
•
•
•
•
Produce complete sentences, recognizing and correcting
inappropriate fragments and run-ons..*
Vary sentence patterns for meaning, reader/listener
interest, and style.*
Choose language that expresses ideas precisely and
concisely, recognizing and eliminating wordiness and
redundancy.*
•
Maintain consistency in style and tone.*
•
•
•
•
•
•
Capitalization
& Punctuation
•
Use correct capitalization.
•
•
•
Choose punctuation for effect.*
Use punctuation (commas, parentheses, dashes) to set off
nonrestrictive/parenthetical elements.*
Use punctuation to separate items in a series.*
•
•
•
•
•
•
Produce complete sentences, recognizing and correcting inappropriate
fragments and run-ons..*
Vary sentence patterns for meaning, reader/listener interest, and style.*
Choose language that expresses ideas precisely and concisely, recognizing
and eliminating wordiness and redundancy.*
Explain the function of phrases and clauses in general and their
function in specific sentences.
Choose among simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex
sentences to signal differing relationships among ideas.
Place phrases and clauses within a sentence, recognizing and correcting
misplaced and dangling modifiers.*
Maintain consistency in style and tone.*
Use correct capitalization.
Choose punctuation for effect.*
Use punctuation (commas, parentheses, dashes) to set off nonrestrictive/
parenthetical elements.*
Use punctuation to separate items in a series.*
Use a comma to separate coordinate adjectives (e.g., It was a fascinating,
enjoyable movie but not He wore an old[,] green shirt).
•
•
•
•
!
•
•
Spell correctly.
Correctly use frequently confused words (e.g., to,
too, two; there, their).*
•
•
Spell correctly.
Correctly use frequently confused words (e.g., to, too, two; there,
their).*
Ensure subject-verb agreement.*
Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb tense.*
Explain the function of verbals (gerunds, participles, infinitives)
in general and their function in particular sentences.
Form and use verbs in the active and passive voice.
Form and use verbs in the indicative, imperative, interrogative,
conditional, and subjunctive mood.
Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb voice and
mood.* (Starts in grade 8th, continues through grade 12)
Use verbs in the active and passive voice and in the conditional
and subjunctive mood to achieve particular effects (e.g.,
emphasizing the actor or the action; expressing uncertainty or
describing a state contrary to fact).
Produce complete sentences, recognizing and correcting
inappropriate fragments and run-ons..*
Vary sentence patterns for meaning, reader/listener interest, and
style.*
Choose language that expresses ideas precisely and concisely,
recognizing and eliminating wordiness and redundancy.*
Place phrases and clauses within a sentence, recognizing and
correcting misplaced and dangling modifiers.*
•
Maintain consistency in style and tone.*
•
Use correct capitalization.
•
•
•
Choose punctuation for effect.*
Use punctuation to separate items in a series.*
Use punctuation (commas, parentheses, dashes) to set off
nonrestrictive/parenthetical elements.*
Use punctuation (comma, ellipsis, dash) to indicate a pause or
break.
Use an ellipsis to indicate an omission.
•
•
Spelling
Ensure pronoun-antecedent agreement.*
Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in pronoun number and
person.*
Recognize and correct vague pronouns (i.e., ones with unclear or
ambiguous antecedents).*
•
•
Spell correctly.
Correctly use frequently confused words (e.g., to, too, two;
there, their).*
$
$
$
Community Consolidated School District 181
English Language Arts Curriculum
Research to Build & Present Knowledge
Scope
Grades K-8
See also the Reading Informational Text Scope and
Informational/Explanatory Writing Scope for related goals
Note that the Common Core standards and PARCC Content Framework
emphasize engaging students in multiple short, focused research projects
over the course of the year in grades K-8.
Seventh Grade
Research to Build & Present Knowledge Scope
Essential Questions & Understandings
1. What drives/motivates research?
• Research is a cyclical process of steps that begins with a question, inquiry, or problem.
• Research is motivated by personal and “professional” interests and experiences (i.e.,
what they think about and study in their everyday lives and work lives).
• Research is motivated by problems and events in the real world and in specific
disciplines/subjects.
• All research “begins with” previous research.
2. What’s the “power” of research? What value does it have?
• Research promotes inquiry by building, deepening, and expanding knowledge.
• Research initiates and increases interest.
• Research can solve and uncover problems.
3. What makes a research question “workable” (doable, feasible)?
• A workable research question is one that is “doable” within the researcher’s task,
timeframe, and resources.
• A workable research question is focused—and can be re-focused as necessary.
• A workable question has or could lead to multiple facets of inquiry and investigation
(i.e., to additional focused research questions).
• A workable research question interests/motivates the researcher.
4. “Where” are the answers (to research questions)—and how do researchers find and digest
them efficiently?
• Researchers rely on multiple and varied print and digital sources in investigating their
research questions
• Researchers use a variety of search terms and tools to effectively and efficiently identify
potential sources.
• Researchers select and evaluate select sources based on their credibility, accuracy, and
relevance to the researcher’s questions and purpose.
• Researchers distill information/evidence from sources using a variety of strategies, tools,
and techniques.
5. How should the research process be conducted?
• Research should be conducted with integrity.
• The research process calls for developing and following an organized yet flexible plan.
• Researchers “own” (i.e., take responsibility for) the research process—from the questions
to the findings.
6. When and how is research most useful?
• Research is most useful when it is presented in a clear and organized way to appropriate
audiences (e.g., those who might be interested in or be affected by it).
• Research has many possible uses—it can be integrated into different tasks, formats, and
products.
• The most useful formats for reporting research fit the researcher’s focus, purpose, and
audience.
Key Knowledge
Focusing the Research
• A research topic is the subject of the research. Topics have different aspects that can be
explored in multiple ways.
• A research question provides focus and direction for exploring the different aspects of a
research topic. Research questions can begin with or incorporate who, what, where, when ,
why or how. Research questions may change or be re-shaped during the research process, in
response to what the researcher discovers. The process of investigating research questions
often leads to the generation of additional focused research questions—some of which are
related to the investigation at hand and others that call for distinct investigations.
Identifying and Assessing Sources
• A source is a person, place, or thing that can provide information that helps answer research
questions. Sources that are print-based, web-based, or electronic can provide information
through text, illustrations/images, other or media/text features. Researchers can also gather
information firsthand through interviews, experiments, and observations.
• Researchers can use search engines, databases, and search terms to locate sources or
data/information within sources, especially electronic or online. Search engines and
databases vary in how they sort and classify results. Knowledgeable researchers understand
the benefits and limitations of different search engines and how to use them. They
experiment with search terms to discover those that are most effective in generating relevant
results efficiently.
• A source’s credibility refers to how “believable” it is—whether it can be “trusted” to provide
accurate information and/or the kind of information it says it provides. Source credibility is
influenced by source type, author/creator background or reputation, publication date, depth
of information, the sources it cites, and its objectivity. In general, government sites/documents,
institutional sites and materials (e.g., universities, agencies, organizations with special areas of
expertise), and reputable news sources are more credible than web forums, blogs, private/individual web
sites, and materials/sites of organizations with a narrow agenda or focus. (But a lot also depends on the
research question/purpose!)
• Researchers can corroborate sources—and the accuracy of the information they provide—by
comparing sources with one another.
Gathering Information & Evidence
• Researchers gather evidence by taking notes from sources. Taking notes and copying directly
are not the same thing. Researchers don’t just “copy” the data and conclusions of others.
They have to figure out when to directly copy/quote and when to use their own words.
• Note-taking techniques include summary, paraphrase, and direct quotation. A paraphrase is a
restatement of a text or passage in another form or other words, often to clarify meaning. A
summary is a brief statement of the main ideas and supporting details presented in a piece of
writing. Direct quotation involves using the exact words/text of a source and putting those
words in quotation marks (or using a blocked quotation format, as dictated by the style guide
being followed).
• Note-taking strategies include bulleted lists, outlining, and graphic organizers.
• Note-taking tools include charts/tables notebooks, index cards, and computer programs and
apps (e.g., Word/Pages, Evernote, Inspiration).
Gathering Information & Evidence (cont.)
• Evidence is facts/information that can be used to answer a question or support a reason
or conclusion. Researchers can make sense of evidence by sorting or organizing it into
categories or under headings.
• Information and evidence is relevant if it helps the researcher answer his/her question
(it’s connected to the topic and question).
• Analyzing a source involves comparing the information in it with the research question,
and with information in other sources. Researchers interpret information in a source by
analyzing what it says and means, both “on its own” and as related to the ideas in the
text. Gathering information and analyzing/interpreting that information are not the same
thing.
• When researchers integrate information from one or more informational texts, they
“bring it together” for a particular purpose (e.g., answer a question, make comparisons).
• Researchers carefully document what information came from which sources during the
research process. (This makes attribution easier---and reminds the researcher where he/she found
something!)
Attributing Sources/Information
• Attributing a source (or information to a source) involves letting the reader/audience know
where information “came from”, whether the information was gathered firsthand or comes
from a primary or secondary source.
• Researchers cite a source when they refer directly to the source itself and what it says (e.g.,
by quoting, summarizing, paraphrasing, using in-text citations, footnoting). Citations in a
research report or other formal product that incorporates research should consistently follow
a standard format. Citations help guard against plagiarism and lend credibility to the research
(i.e., convince the reader that it was conducted with integrity).
• Plagiarism is failing to properly attribute a source and/or information to a source (e.g., via
in-text citation or quotation marks), resulting in passing off someone else’s work as one’s
own. Plagiarism can be intentional or unintentional.
• Researchers compile a list of the sources (e.g., bibliography, works cited, works consulted,
references) according to a given format and/or style guide (e.g., MLA). This list lets readers
know where the researcher got his/her information and empowers readers to consult the
sources for themselves.
Sharing/Reporting Findings or Results
• Researchers call the direct “answers” to their research questions findings or results,
depending on the kind of research they conducted.
• Research reports can take different forms, use various formats, and include different
elements, depending on purpose and audience. The format and elements of research reports
also vary by discipline (e.g., scientific report, issue-based position paper, academic research
paper). Research can be also be integrated into other written, oral, and visual products that
aren’t formal reports or presentations.
Essential Skills (Standards)
1. Conduct short research projects to answer a research question, drawing on
several sources.
2. State or formulate a (workable) research question.
3. Generate questions related to the inquiry/investigation during the research
process.
4. Generate additional related, focused questions for further research and
investigation.
5. Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources.
6. Use search terms effectively, both to locate sources and to locate information
within sources.
7. Assess the credibility and accuracy of each source used in an investigation.
8. Quote, paraphrase, or summarize the data or conclusions of others while
avoiding plagiarism.
9. Follow a standard format for citation.
10. Provide basic bibliographic information for sources.
11. Analyze, interpret, and reflect on relevant information/evidence gathered
from sources.
12. Report, present, and/or integrate research findings using a format appropriate
to task, purpose, and audience.
Community Consolidated School District 181
English Language Arts Curriculum
Speaking & Listening Scope
Grades K-8
Based on the Common Core State Standards in
English Language Arts
!
Seventh Grade
Speaking & Listening Scope
Essential Questions & Understandings
The Purpose of Speaking and Listening
1. Who needs to [learn how to] speak? Who needs [learn how to] to listen?
• Everyone needs to [learn how to] speak. Everyone needs to [learn how to] listen.
• Speaking and listening are developed—and developable—skills.
2. What’s the power of speaking? Listening?
• Speaking and listening can
o grant access to ideas
o afford opportunities to learn
o resolve conflict
o change or alter perspective
o promote inquiry
o encourage change
• Speaking and listening are intertwined with reading and writing.
3. “Where” and when do speaking and listening “happen” (in what contexts)?
• Speaking and listening happens in many different planned and spontaneous
situations/contexts.
• The kind of speaking and listening people have to do varies by task, purpose, and
situation.
Engaging in Productive Collaborative Discussions
1. What is discussion for and how does it “work”?
• Discussion is a process for testing, examining, constructing, and extending ideas
related to specific topics, texts, and issues.
• Agreed-upon rules, expectations, protocols, and roles create the mechanics of
discussion (i.e., they make it “work”).
• Participation in a discussion can involve speaking, listening, evaluating,
generating, and reflecting. (Participation in discussion doesn’t just happen through
talking.)
2. What “steers” and “fuels” a discussion?
• Discussions are “steered” by comments and questions that seek and value clarity,
depth, relevance, relationships, and understanding.
• Discussions are “fueled” by substantive material (e.g., texts, research),
observations, and ideas related to the discussion focus or goals.
3. What makes a discussion productive?
• Productive discussions are goal-oriented, focused, time-bound, and evidencedriven.
• Productive discussions are collegial—they invite and respect all participants’
contributions.
• Productive discussions probe various perspectives on topics, texts, and issues
intentionally, carefully and thoroughly.
!
•
Productive discussions accomplish or make progress toward goals.. (Ultimately,
the discussion participants are responsible for determining how productive a discussion
was.)
4. Who/what is a collegial discussion participant? What do s/he do? How does s/he
think?
• A collegial discussion participant seeks first to understand and then to be
understood. (But a collegial discussion participant isn’t necessarily someone who agrees
with everyone and everything.)
• A collegial discussion participant shows ownership in all aspects of the
discussion—preparing and planning for it, tracking its progress, engaging in it,
and reflecting on it.
• A collegial discussion participant changes his/her views or perspective when new
ideas or evidence suggests that s/he should.
• A collegial discussion participant makes insightful contributions through relevant
comments, questions, and observations that compel elaboration and focus.
Understanding and Evaluating “Spoken” Information
1. What do close listeners “do” (with what they hear from a source or speaker)?
• Close listeners analyze the central idea and details in information from a
speaker/source and explain how (or whether) it clarifies what they are studying.
• Close listeners listen (and, when possible re-listen) for multiple explicit and
implicit meanings.
• Close listeners evaluate a speaker’s argument for how sound the reasoning is and
whether the speaker’s evidence is relevant and sufficient.
Planning & Delivering Presentations
1.
!
How are compelling presentations organized, designed, and delivered? How are the
content, organization, design, and delivery of a presentation related/connected?
• The content of compelling presentations emphasizes the most salient points in a
focused, coherent manner.
• Multimedia components and visual displays in compelling presentations clarify
claims and findings and emphasize salient points. (They don’t obscure ideas or
emphasize the wrong things.)
• Compelling presenters/speakers adapt their content, emphasis, and language to
context, task and audience.
• A presentation’s content, organization, design, and delivery are interdependent—
they work together to emphasize key ideas and clearly convey a message to an
audience.
Key Knowledge
Engaging in Productive Collaborative Discussions
• A discussion is a focused conversation in which participants talk about and examine
particular topics, questions, or issues, often with the goal of solving a problem, resolving
a bigger question, or building consensus. (Teacher note: This is a more literal definition that
the one provided in the Understandings above. Also, it’s worth noting that term discussion is
derived from roots that mean investigate and examine.) There are many kinds of discussions
that vary by size, format, and formality.
• A participant is someone who willingly engages in a discussion, usually but not always
through speaking and/or listening. Participants might also be referred to as peers,
collaborators, or colleagues. (Note: In real-world settings, people present at a discussion but not
a part of it might be called observers.)
• A person in charge of “running” a discussion might be called a leader, facilitator, or
moderator, depending on discussion type and size. (These terms are related but not
synonymous.)
• Productive and focused discussions usually require participants to prepare for the
discussion by reading, studying, reviewing, writing, or reflecting. This could involve
materials, texts, or resources that are required for everyone and/or things that individual
participants have researched and identified as relevant to the discussion. In any case,
productive discussions are usually rooted in and drawn on substantive evidence from
sources, experiences, and prior knowledge.
• Participants in a discussion can have particular roles that can vary according to the size,
type, and purpose of the discussion. Roles might have specific jobs or responsibilities
within the discussion. They can be more administrative (e.g., timekeeper, progresstracker) or more connected to what participants should focus on, listen for, or say during
the discussion. Participants can design roles themselves or use roles that others
give/assign. (Teacher note: Even the generic roles of “speaker” and “listener” can--and already
do--involve specific expectations and duties that can be explicated and tailored to a specific
discussion type or purpose.)
• Discussions may follow a protocol that is created by leader/facilitator, the participants,
or both. Protocols are guidelines or structures for the organization and flow of a
discussion. A protocol might detail one or more of the following things: norms or other
expectations for participants; how and when the discussion will begin and end; who
should speak when; and what, when, or for how long certain issues, topics, or questions
will be discussed.
• People in a discussion agree to follow rules for collegial discussions. Often, participants
create and uphold the rules together. Examples follow:
o Make yourself available to learn (e.g., no distractions, be open-minded)
o Speak up—and speak for yourself (e.g., contribute by speaking, as
appropriate; use “I” not “we”).
o Balance your individual needs with the needs of the group.
o Honor the goals of the discussion.
o Get it on the table (e.g., no festering thoughts, hallway conversations about
so-and-so).
o Own the process and the results.
o Probe, prove, and connect.
o Assume your role. See Kindergarten-Grade 5 scopes for additional examples
•
!
Questions in a discussion (or in response to text or information presented orally) might
begin with who, what, where, when, why, how, or is/are, or by directly addressing a person
or point. Questions, comments, and details that are relevant in a discussion or
presentation are those that are closely connected to or focused on the topic being
discussed or shared. Participants, audience members, and presenters can use questions
to:
o confirm or clarify understanding (of information, of what someone has said)
o redirect participants to stay on topic
o link participants’ comments to one another
o follow-up on specific comments/questions
o elaborate on others’ remarks
o seek additional information (e.g., further elaboration)
o confirm new information or a change in perspective
• Discussions should come to a close or have closure—not end abruptly or be “cut-off.”
Closure can help people in the conversation feel like it’s finished (at least for the time
being!). Closure can involve summary, preview, explanation, or assignment of a followup task.
• Discussion participants process and reflect on a discussion during and following the
discussion by (a) reviewing the key ideas that were expressed, including information
that was new to the group or new to them individually, (b) demonstrating their
understanding of multiple perspectives through paraphrasing or other techniques, (c)
(when warranted) explaining how they have modified their own views as a result of new
information or someone else’s points/questions.
Comprehending (spoken information, a speaker’s words/message) [Some of the Key Knowledge below
is repeated from the Research and Reading Informational Text scopes.]
• Information, stories, and texts that people “hear” can be presented aloud (live, face toface) and through diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and
orally.
• A speaker’s (or source’s) credibility refers to how “believable” she is—whether she can
be “trusted” to provide accurate information, or make reasonable claims supported by
evidence.
• A speaker’s position is where the speaker “stands” on a topic, issue, or text, relative to
other positions.
• A claim is a specific position on an issue/topic that the speaker wants the audience to
accept (claim = position + reasoning + evidence).
• A reason is a speaker’s explanation for a claim. Reasons are supported by examples,
facts, and ideas. An speaker’s reasoning is sound when it avoids fallacious or illogical
thinking.
• A logical fallacy is an error in logical thinking or reasoning that affects the
strength of argument. (Although, the arguments claims and conclusions could
still be true.) Examples include bandwagon, ad hominem, false dilemma, slippery
slope, complex questions, hasty generalization, straw man, and begging the question.
(Note: identifying fallacy is not a part of the CC standards until high school; however,
students often need early and repeated practice with identifying even the most basic
fallacious reasoning in order to master, avoid, and refute it.)
•
!
Evidence is facts/information that can be used to prove or disprove a reason,
claim, or position. Evidence can take many forms (e.g., examples, statistics, data,
credible personal and expert opinions, facts)
o Evidence is relevant when it supports reasons and/or flows logically
toward a claim or position.
o Evidence is credible when it comes from a reputable, dependable, and
reliable source.
o Evidence is sufficient when it’s “enough” to support or illustrate the
reasonableness of a claim.
• Speakers have a point of view or perspective that is shaped by their role/profession/
expertise / position, experience, and purpose.
• Speakers can express their information/claims explicitly (clearly and/or directly stated)
or implicitly (suggested or implied but not directly stated).
• An inference is a conclusion the listener draws from prior knowledge/experience and
evidence or clues from what the speaker says.
Planning & Delivering Presentations
• Some speaking/listening contexts call for formal English (e.g., presentations), while
others allow for more informal discourse (e.g., small-group discussions). Matching and
adapting one’s language to the situation and task helps ensure successful
communication.
• To present is to formally share ideas, information, and work orally with an audience,
often at particular time that the person presenting knows about ahead of time. A
presentation can use visual displays (e.g., posters, SmartBoard, LCD projector/screen),
be delivered through specific programs (e.g., Keynote, PowerPoint, Prezi), and
incorporate various multimedia components (e.g., sound, graphics, music, images).
Used appropriately, these elements can clarify the presenter’s explanation, message,
claims, and findings, emphasize salient points, and ultimately, increase the audience’s
understanding.
• In effective presentations, the content presents claims and findings clearly; emphasizes salient
points in a focused, coherent manner; and uses pertinent descriptions, facts, details, and examples.
• A presenter’s delivery can strengthen or weaken a presentation. At minimum, presenters
strive for appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.
!
Essential Skills (Standards)
Note: Headings and format modified slightly from CCSS-ELA
Discussing & Collaborating Around Topics & Texts
1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and
teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’
ideas and expressing their own clearly.
• Come to discussions prepared, having read or researched material
under study.
• Explicitly draw on discussion preparation by referring to evidence on
the topic, text, or issue to probe and reflect on ideas under discussion.
• Follow rules for collegial discussions.
• Track progress toward specific goals and deadlines [for or related to
discussions].
• Define individual roles [in discussion], as needed.
• Pose questions that elicit elaboration.
• Respond to others’ questions and comments with relevant observations
and ideas that bring the discussion back on topic as needed.
• Acknowledge new information expressed by others and, when
warranted, modify one’s own views.
Comprehending (spoken information, a speaker’s words/message)
1. Analyze main ideas and supporting details presented in diverse media and formats
(e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) and explain how the ideas clarify a topic, text,
or issue under study.
2. Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, evaluating the soundness of the
reasoning and the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.
Presenting Knowledge & Ideas
1. Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient point in a focused, coherent manner
with pertinent descriptions, facts, details, and examples.
2. Use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation in a
presentation.
3. Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, images, music, sound) and visual
displays in presentations to clarify claims and findings and emphasize salient points.
4. Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal
English when indicated or appropriate. (See grade 7 Language standards 1 and 3 on
page 53 for specific expectations.)
!
Selected Conversation/Discussion Question Stems
Prompting Evidence
•
“Where do you see that in the text?”
•
“What line/section/page is that from (or on)?”
•
“Which part made you think that?”
•
“I hadn’t even thought about it that way. Let me read that part again.”
•
“I didn’t notice that [word/phrase/detail]. Can you show me where that is?”
•
“Can you give an example?”
•
“Do you remember where that is in the text? Can you show me/us?”
•
“How is that related to what we read?”
•
“That’s an interesting insight. How did you figure that out?”
Probing or Connecting to a Peer’s Point or Ideas
•
“[Tim], what did you mean when you said….?
•
“Can we go back to what [Mason] said?”
•
“What I want to say connects to [Harley’s] point about…”
•
“I agree/disagree with what you said [Kelly], because…”
Re-focusing the Discussion (getting it back on track)
•
“How is that related to [our topic]…?”
•
“That might be a tangent. Can we save it for later, after we talk about…?”
•
“According to our plan/directions/purpose, we should be…”
!
English Language Arts Curriculum
Language: Vocabulary Acquisition & Use
Scope
Grades K-8
Based on the Common Core State Standards
!
See also Language: Conventions materials and
Reading Foundational Skills scopes for additional goals
related to understanding and applying words.
!
Seventh Grade
Language: Vocabulary Acquisition & Use Scope
Essential Questions & Understandings
1. What’s the power of words? (How powerful are they?)
•
•
Words have the power to provoke or placate, tear down or build up.
Words empower [ideas, people].
2. What makes words powerful? What gives words power? (Where does the power come
from?)
• Writers, speakers, and readers give words power. (By themselves, words are
powerless.)
• Words have real power in only context. Some words only have power—or specific
kinds of “power”—in specific or limited contexts.
3. How much power does a single word really have? (What’s a word’s worth?)
•
•
One word has the power to influence or change the meaning of a sentence,
paragraph, a page, and even an entire text.
One word has to power to effect or prevent change (in how people feel, think, etc.).
4. Where do words and phrases come from, and why does it matter?
•
•
•
•
Every word and every phrase has a (his)tory/biography.
The history of a word or phrase can illuminate its meaning and provide instruction
about other subjects or topics.
The meanings of some words have evolved/changed over time. (The word’s
denotations and/or connotation isn’t what it used to be.)
Some words and phrases arise from or are developed in particular disciplines or
contexts (e.g., social, political, cultural).
5. What does/could this word/phrases mean (in general and in this context)?
•
•
•
!
Words and phrases have multiple layers (e.g., literal and figurative, connotative/
denotative).
Figurative language (figures of speech) should be interpreted in context. (But some
forms of figurative language, i.e., some figures of speech, are common enough to be
interpreted divorced from a particular context.)
The meaning of words and phrases is often specific to or dependent on a text or
context.
6. What can the relationships between words reveal about what the words mean and
how they are/can be used?
•
The relationships between words can clarify their meaning & distinctions and
illustrate their applications, benefits, and limitations.
7. What’s the difference between the “right” word (choice) and the “almost right”
word (choice)? Between a “good” word (choice) and the “best” word (choice)?
•
•
•
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The difference between the “right” word and the “almost right” word can be a matter
of context, denotation/connotation, or error (e.g., misspelling, malapropism).
A “good” word illustrates, the “best” word illuminates.
A “right” word isn’t always the most effective or “best” word. (A word can be accurate
without being optimal.)
The “right” and “best” word choices are depend on context (e.g., how, where, why,
with whom they are being used).
8. How does someone grow and deepen his/her lexicon? Where do the words and word
knowledge come from?
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A person’s lexicon grows and deepens though wide reading, purposeful writing,
enriching discussion, and thoughtful speaking. (People don’t just rely on memorizing lists
of “new words” to grow and deepen their lexicons!)
Readers and writers can expand and verify their knowledge and understanding of
words and phrases by consulting relevant general and specialized reference materials.
Key Knowledge
Defining Words and Phrases
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Words (and phrases) are used in a context--in texts, in conversations, in writing. Specific to
reading, context can refer to the words around a word, the kind of text in which the word appears,
what “happens” in a text before and after the word is used, and cause/effect relationships or
comparisons in a text. Readers can use and think about context by deliberating the overall
meaning of a sentence or paragraph, as well as a word’s position or function in the sentence.
(Note: Context can provide clues but can’t/won’t always define the word or lead to a correct guess about the
word’s meaning.)
Words are derived from (one or more) roots. A root (word) is a word part that has meaning but
cannot stand alone (e.g., vision - /vis/ is the root word - meaning to see). It’s what’s left of a
word without any affixes. The root(s) of a word help explain what language(s) the word comes
from. If readers/writers know the meaning of the root of an unfamiliar word, they are better able
to figure out the meaning of the word. Many English words have Greek and Latin roots or
affixes. Some Greek/Latin roots and affixes are very common in English (e.g., bel-/-bel
belligerent, bellicose, rebel). (An affix is a group of letters added to the beginning or ending of a
word that changes the meaning of the word.)
Certain print-based or electronic reference materials (e.g., thesauruses, dictionaries, glossaries)
provide information about words and phrases, including meaning, history, pronunciation,
synonyms/antonyms, part(s) of speech, etc. These materials can be more general (e.g., MerriamWebster Online) or more specialized (e.g., etymology dictionaries, idiom guides,
visualtheasaurus.com). The meaning of a word provided in a reference may or may not “agree”
with how the word is used in a particular text, or how a writer/speaker intends to use the word.
Word Relationships and Nuances
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Words have denotative (literal) and connotative (associated or implied) meanings. A word’s
denotations might be thought of as its “dictionary definitions” (although many dictionaries,
especially those online, provide much more information than simple definitions!) A word’s
connotation includes words, phrases, images, or situations that are associated with implied ideas
or qualities of the word. For example, a denotation of startle is “to cause a person or animal to
feel sudden shock or alarm.” Startle connotes a sense of alarm or a temporarily unpleasant
feeling for the person being startled, as in being startled by a loud noise or burglar. Synonyms
amaze, astonish, and stun, all of which different in their connotations from startle and from one
another.
Words that can have similar denotative meanings can be distinguished by their connotative
meanings. For example, stingy, scrimping, economical, un-wasteful, and thrifty are all adjectives
for describing someone who does not want to part with his/her money, but stingy and scrimping
have more negative connotations than do economical, un-wasteful, and thrifty.
Words and phrases can have literal and figurative meanings in context. Literal meanings are the
most “straightforward” and “definitional” in the dictionary sense. It’s what a word or phrases
means it its simplest or strictest reading. Figurative language (or figurative meanings) creates or
uses metaphor or other kinds of comparisons. It is not meant to be taken at face value. (Face value
is figurative language! !) It creates interesting images with words by using language that has a
deeper meaning than what the words literally say or mean.
A figure of speech is a use of words or phrases beyond their literal meaning to more figurative
(non-literal) or metaphorical meanings. In one sense, all figures of speech have an unspoken,
implied “so to speak” attached to them. Examples follow.
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A metaphor is a kind of analogy between two otherwise unlike things on some point of
comparison. There are many kinds of metaphor (simile among them); often, the term
metaphor refers to such a comparison that does not use “like” or “as”. A simile is a
metaphor that uses “like” or “as”.
Hyperbole is an extreme exaggeration through figurative language that is used to make a
point (through implied comparison). For example, “My backpack weighed a ton,” or
“My bag was so heavy even an elephant couldn’t carry it.”
Personification is giving non-living things, inanimate objects, or (sometimes) animals
and plants human characteristics, traits, or qualities. This can include feelings/emotions,
gestures, speech, senses, or desires. When something is personified, it creates an implied
metaphor between that thing and a human being.
An allusion is a reference (in text, speech, film) to a person, place, or thing in history or
another work of literature. Allusions are often indirect or brief references to well-known
characters or events. Three types of allusion are literary (e.g., Anna was a Scrooge who
didn’t share what she had with anyone.), Biblical (e.g., James felt like David meeting Goliath as
he stepped on the playground and saw the bully.), or mythological (e.g., Winning the race would
surely take a sisyphean effort, but Mary was up to the challenge.)
An idiom is a (usually short) turn of phrase that is widely used and well-understood
within a language. English examples include “ups and downs” “against all odds” and
“the apple of my eye.”
Adages and proverbs are simple, pithy sayings that are statements of “truth” or advice.
They are the “punch-lines” of lessons learned through observation and/or experience
and may use metaphor. (Note: The terms are synonyms, however, proverbs are
sometimes more formal in syntax and more closely associated with imparting wisdom
than are adages.)
Many words have antonyms (words that have an opposite meaning) and synonyms (words that
have a similar meaning). Some words have homographs (same spelling, may or may not be
pronounced the same, has a different meaning, e.g., bow/bow). Knowing and understanding the
meanings of and relationship between a word and its antonyms, synonyms, and homographs can
develop a more complete understanding of the word and what it does or does not mean.
Some words are related through the concepts or analogies they represent. This includes words
that represent or imply cause & effect (“catalyst” and “conflict”) part to whole (“component” and
“system”), item/category (“empathy” and “emotion”) relationships.
Acquiring & Using Words and Phrases
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“Tiers”/types of words. Some words and phrases can be learned or “picked up” through
everyday life and conversations. Other words (e.g., “academic” words) are often learned through
texts and conversations with people who use those words themselves. Other words (domainspecific) are mostly learned through texts and experiences specific to a subject or area of study in a
subject (e.g., a study of the human body and how it works). Ideally, readers/writers/speakers seek
out and create opportunities to gain new knowledge of words so that they can use them fluently and
accurately in formal and informal contexts.
Academic and domain-specific words/language give(s) readers/writers/speakers the tools to
communicate more effectively and more efficiently. Academic words and phrases can include
those that signal precise actions, emotions, or states of being (e.g., dignified, stammered, unabashedly).
Also included are words that signal contrast, addition, and other logical relationships (e.g., however,
although, nevertheless, similarly, moreover, in addition), which tend to be especially important in texts
that are providing information/ explanation and in texts that present an argument. Domainspecific words can include those that are basic to a particular topic (e.g., culture, artifact, and society
when discussing ancient civilizations), that are more critical to developing an advanced
understanding of a concept (e.g, ad hominem, bioluminescence, federalism), or that have a different or
specialized connotations and applications when used in a particular discipline (e.g., calibrate,
conventions, standardization).
Essential Skills (Standards)
1. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases
based on grade 7 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies, such as:
Using context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence or paragraph; a word’s
position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
b. Using common, grade-appropriate Greek or Latin affixes and roots as clues to the
meaning of a word (e.g., belligerent, bellicose, rebel).
c. Consulting general and specialized reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries,
thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or determine
or clarify its precise meaning or its part of speech.
d. Verifying the preliminary determination of the meaning of a word or phrase (e.g., by
checking the inferred meaning in context or in a dictionary).
a.
2. Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in
word meanings by:
a. Interpreting figures of speech (e.g., literary, biblical, and mythological allusions) in
context.
b. Using the relationship between particular words (e.g., synonym/antonym, analogy)
to better understand each of the words.
c. Distinguishing among the connotations (associations) of words with similar
denotations (definitions) (e.g., refined, respectful, polite, diplomatic, condescending).
3. Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific
words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase
important to comprehension or expression.
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ELA Documents Sources
"Common Core State Standards Initiative | Home." Common Core State
Standards Initiative | Home. <http://www.corestandards.org/>.
Griffith, Kelley. Writing Essays About Literature. Boston: Cengage Learning,
2013.
Hockett, Dr. Jessica A. Education Consultant, Jessica A. Hockett, Inc. and the
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD)
"The Common Core Professional Learning Series." Illinois State Board of
Education Home Page. <http://www.isbe.state.il.us/common_core/pls/
default.htm>.
Wood, Monica. "Creating Context." Writers Ask Spring 2007
Young, Terrell A., and Ward Barbara A. "Classroom Connections: Informational
Texts and the Common Core." Book Links Sep. 2012