LANGUAGE ARTS GRADE 7

Transcription

1 CONNECTICUT STATE CONTENT STANDARD 1: Reading and Responding: Students read, comprehend, and respond in individual, literal, critical, and evaluative ways to literary, informational, and persuasive texts in both print and multimedia formats. Enduring Understanding: We understand what we read by using a variety of strategies and skills. Essential Question: How do students develop as readers? A. Performance Expectations: Students use appropriate strategies before, during, and after reading in order to construct meaning. 1. Generate literal, inferential, interpretive, and evaluative questions before, during, and after reading fiction and poetry selections. (CMT, CAPT) 2. Organize prior knowledge about a topic in useful ways (e.g., preview, question, reread, record). 3. Vary reading rate and method according to the complexity of the material and the purpose for reading. 4. Monitor own reading comprehension and self-correct. 5. Predict outcomes and actions in non-fiction and fiction selections, based on context clues and personal experiences, and evaluate the accuracy of those predictions. (CMT, CAPT) 6. Relate the themes of fiction and poetry selections to personal life. (CMT, CAPT) 7. Make generalizations based on information in nonfiction selections and personal experience. (CMT, CAPT) 8. Draw logical conclusions from nonfiction, fiction, drama and poetry selections and support them with evidence from the text and from personal experiences. (CMT, CAPT) 9. Infer information in the text and provide evidence from the text to support inferences. (CMT, CAPT) 10. Summarize and paraphrase the text of fiction, nonfiction, drama, and poetry. (CMT, CAPT) 11. Use study strategies to learn and recall important information from texts (e.g., preview, question, reread, record). 1. Choose the best graphic aid for a given purpose when interpreting fiction, nonfiction and poetry selections. (CMT) 2. Paraphrase excerpts or quotations from nonfiction selections. 3. Evaluate and improve personal test-taking strategies. B. Performance Expectation: Students interpret, analyze, and evaluate text in order to extend understanding and appreciation. 1. Read fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and plays appropriate to independent reading level. 2. Read and respond to a variety of nonfiction selections (e.g., textbooks, magazine and newspaper articles, technical writing, persuasive writing, personal narratives, procedures, directions, biographies). (CMT/CAPT) 3. Identify and analyze significant elements (e.g. plot, theme, characterization, point of view) of classic and contemporary literature. (CMT, CAPT) Revised: July

2 4. Identify and analyze the feelings, traits, and motives of characters and their relationships with other characters in fiction and plays, including the conflicts among characters and the impact of culture on characters motives. (CAPT) 5. Analyze the changing and unchanging relationships among several major and/or minor characters in fiction selections. (CMT, CAPT) 6. Define and identify flashback and foreshadowing as a literary device. (CMT, CAPT) 7. Evaluate the credibility of the character development and the plot development in fiction selections. (CMT) 8. Evaluate the effectiveness of the point of view (i.e., first person, second person, third person limited, or third person omniscient). 9. Offer an alternative perspective to the author s own perspective in fiction selections. (CAPT) 10. Distinguish between fact and opinion in nonfiction selections. (CMT, CAPT) 11. Analyze texts for typical patterns used in nonfiction selections (e.g., cause and effect, comparison and contrast, problem and solution). (CMT, CAPT) 12. Identify propaganda techniques that are used in advertisements, speeches, editorials, and other nonfiction materials: bandwagon, name calling, testimonial, repetition, faulty cause and effect, plain folks, flag waving, snob appeal, glittering generalities, transfer, and innuendo. (CMT) 13. Analyze persuasive techniques used in nonfiction selections. 14. Analyze news stories and an opinion column in a newspaper to identify the writer s point of view and to judge the organization and clarity of the writing. (CMT) 15. Analyze the author s purpose (e.g., to entertain, to express, to inform) and describe how the author s perspective affects that purpose in fiction, poetry, and dramatic selections. (CMT, CAPT) 16. Compare and contrast the literary genres (e.g., myths, short stories, poetry, novels). 17. Judge the overall quality and aesthetic attributes of fiction, nonfiction and poetry selections based on standards discussed in a group (e.g., based on the effectiveness of the plot, point of view, characterization, theme, author s writing style). (CMT, CAPT) 1. Analyze how the rhyme scheme and/or rhythm contribute to the effectiveness of lyric and narrative poems. 2. Recognize that [sic] indicates a mistake made by the original speaker or writer in quoted material (e.g., as in a newspaper story). 3. Explain how costumes, sets, props, and lighting contribute to the effectiveness of plays. C. Performance Expectation: Students select and apply strategies to facilitate word recognition and develop vocabulary in order to comprehend text 1. Use phonetic, contextual, syntactic, and structural analysis strategies to decode and to understand the meaning of unfamiliar words. 2. Identify and interpret vocabulary words and phrases in context that are critical to the meaning of fiction, nonfiction and poetry selections. (CMT, CAPT) 3. Identify words in context and discuss how the connotation differs from the denotation. 4. Identify synonyms (e.g., frankness and candor, confine and imprison, strenuous and vigorous) and antonyms (e.g., wavering and straightforward, contemporary and ancient, frigid and tropical) for grade-level words in context. 5. Determine the meaning of words with the prefixes ante, co/col/com, contra, counter, and fore and spell the words correctly. (CMT) Revised: July

3 6. Determine the meaning of words with the suffixes al, ant/ent, itis, and ive and spell the words correctly. (CMT) 7. Use suffixes to change words to different parts of speech and spell the words correctly: adjectives (e.g., ful, ish, ous, ic), nouns (e.g., ship, ment, tion, hood), and verbs (e.g., ize, fy). (CMT) 8. Use new vocabulary words when speaking and writing (e.g., from the texts read from other subject fields). 1. Complete analogies when words have the relationship of source to product/result (e.g., sun is to heat as hen is to egg); when words have the relationship of degree (e.g., gray is to black as cool is to cold); when words have the relationship of object to transporter (e.g., electricity is to wire as automobile is to highway). 2. Describe how and why the English language changed during the 20th century (e.g., unacceptable usage becoming acceptable, new words being added, spellings of words being changed). D. Performance Expectation: Students communicate with others to create interpretations of written, oral, and visual text. 1. Compare and contrast own perception of a speaker s message with the perceptions of peers. 2. Evaluate the comprehensiveness and credibility of information presented by a speaker, including the speaker s use of fact and opinion and persuasive techniques. 3. Extend another discussion group member s contribution through elaboration. 1. Analyze oral interpretations of lyric poems, narrative poems, and scenes from plays for the affect on the listener, including selections from classic and contemporary works. 2. Listen critically to television and radio newscasts and editorials to separate fact from opinion and to judge their content, credibility, and delivery. Revised: July

4 CONNECTICUT STATE CONTENT STANDARD 2: Exploring and Responding to Literature: Students read and respond to classical and contemporary texts from many cultures and literary period. Enduring Understanding: Literature enriches our lives. Essential Question: How does literature make our lives more meaningful? A. Performance Expectation: Students recognize how literary devices and conventions engage the reader. 1. Distinguish among the various types of external and internal conflicts found in novels and short stories: person vs. person, person vs. self, person vs. society, person vs. nature, and person vs. the supernatural (CMT, CAPT) 2. Analyze cause-and-effect relationships in fiction selections and narrative poems. (CMT, CAPT) 3. Describe the setting (time and place) of fiction and poetry selections and explains how the setting contributes to the plot or theme. (CAPT) 4. Identify ways in which the author informs the reader about a character (e.g., through the character s physical description, the character s own words, the words of the author about the character, the reactions of other characters) in fiction selections. 5. Identify the mood (or moods) of fiction and poetry selections and explains how the mood contributes to the overall effect of the selections. (CMT) 6. Identify, analyze, and interpret figurative language in fiction and poetry selections, including alliteration, onomatopoeia, simile, metaphor, personification, and hyperbole. (CMT, CAPT) 7. Recognize symbolism as a literary device in fiction and poetry selections and identify what given symbols represent (e.g., the pearl in Steinbeck s Pearl). (CMT, CAPT) 8. Analyze cause-and-effect relationships in nonfiction selections. (CAPT) 9. Describe the writing styles used by authors of nonfiction selections and recognize what the style contributes to the overall effect of the selections. (CAPT) 10. Articulate reasons behind various interpretations of nonfiction, fiction, poetry and drama selections. (CAPT) 11. Evaluate the effectiveness of propaganda techniques and other persuasive techniques in nonfiction selections. (CAPT) 1. Analyze inferential techniques used by authors in nonfiction selections. 2. Analyze significant elements of classic and contemporary plays, including viewing live, filmed, or videotaped performances. 3. Interpret the stage directions given in plays. 4. Explain how costumes, sets, props, and lighting contribute to the effectiveness of plays. B. Performance Expectation: Students explore multiple responses to literature Revised: July

5 1. Write personal responses to literary texts. (CMT, CAPT) 2. Incorporate personal experiences, literature, and other sources of ideas (e.g., current events) in own writing. 3. Articulate reasons behind various interpretations of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and drama selections. (CAPT) 4. Write thoughtful judgments about the literary quality of a text and support those judgments with evidence from the text and from personal experience. (CMT, CAPT) 1. Explain why newspaper and magazine articles and radio and television news stories are not always entirely accurate. 2. Compare and contrast news stories, editorials, reviews and opinion columns on the same topic. C. Performance Expectation: Students recognize and appreciate that contemporary and classical literature has shaped human thought. 1. Analyze the themes and identify details that support the themes of fiction and poetry selections. (CAPT) 2. Discuss conflicts between cultures and between generations in fiction selections. (CAPT) D. Performance Expectation: Students recognize that readers and authors are influenced by individual, social, cultural, and historical contexts 1. Discuss the impact of the historical period, culture, and personal experiences of various authors on the fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and/or plays they wrote. (CMT, CAPT) 2. Offer an alternative perspective to the author s own perspective in nonfiction selections. (CAPT 3. Compare and contrast the representations of other cultures in fiction, poetry, and drama selections (e.g., customs, themes, characters experiences). (CMT, CAPT) Revised: July

6 CONTENT STANDARD 3: Communicating with Others: Students produce written, oral, and visual texts to express, develop, and substantiate ideas and experiences. Enduring Understanding: Effective communication requires a variety of strategies and skills. Essential Question: How do we write, speak, and present our ideas and experiences effectively? A. Performance Expectation: Students use descriptive, narrative, expository, persuasive, and poetic modes. 1. Write persuasive pieces to sway the reader to the writer s viewpoint, explaining ideas clearly and convincingly, using a coherent organization, and maintaining a sustained persuasive tone. (CMT) 2. Write persuasive pieces to the editor of a local newspaper or to a state or local official, using proper business letter form, capitalization, and punctuation. 3. Deliver a planned persuasive oral presentation. 4. Write expository pieces to inform, using a style appropriate to the purpose, a coherent organization, and details or examples or description as a means of elaboration. 5. Write news articles and editorials on topics of individual choice, with a lead (first paragraph) that answers the five w s (who, what, when, where, and why) and including the results of an interview. 6. Write a rhymed or unrhymed poem, using figurative language. 1. Write narrative pieces to tell stories using rich details, varied word choice, and a logical order. 2. Write descriptive pieces to portray features and qualities of persons, places, or things. 3. Deliver a short extemporaneous talk. 4. Participate in an informal debate, with two opposing sides. 5. Present dramatic interpretations of experiences, stories, poems, or plays, using natural speech rhythms. Performance Expectation: Students prepare, publish, and/or present work appropriate to audience, purpose, and task. 1. Use a variety of prewriting techniques to generate and record ideas (e.g., brainstorming, outlining, constructing graphic organizers, keeping notes on ideas). 2. Determine the purpose and topic of own writing and select a form, organizational pattern, point of view, and style (formal vs. informal) that are appropriate for the purpose and audience. (CMT, CAPT) 3. Remain focused on the topic from the beginning to the end of each piece of writing. (CMT, CAPT) 4. Evaluate and improve the opening sentences (e.g., using a quotation, an anecdote) and concluding sentences (e.g., using a hook back to the introduction, a provocative thought) in a piece of writing. (CMT, CAPT) 5. Use the most effective sequencing of sentences in a paragraph and paragraphs in an essay (e.g., chronological order, order of importance, spatial order). (CMT, CAPT) 6. Use precise transitional words, phrases, and ideas to connect sentences and paragraphs in a piece of writing. (CMT, CAPT) 7. Use figurative language effectively in fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Revised: July

7 8. Use details, examples, reasons, references to the text, and description to elaborate and support the central ideas in writing. (CMT, CAPT) 9. Incorporate voice in writing. 10. Participate constructively in discussions and analyses of own writing and that of others at various stages in the writing process. 11. Revise drafts to ensure originality and variation in sentence structure and complexity as well as to make vocabulary more vivid and specific, including the use and most effective placement of modifiers. (CMT, CAPT) 12. Add, delete, and rearrange information in first drafts and subsequent drafts to address the purpose more directly, the topic more fully, and the audience more effectively. (CMT, CAPT) 13. Determine the most effectively expressed revision of a group of sentences in need of combining. (CMT) 14. Publish selected pieces of own writing for various purposes and audiences. 15. Evaluate each published piece (e.g., how well the writing achieves its purpose, how identifiable the voice is, how suitable the form is for the audience). (CMT) 16. Clarify personal understanding of an oral presentation by asking thoughtful and appropriate questions and summarizing major ideas and supporting evidence. 1. Read aloud fluently, distinctly, and expressively, using natural speech rhythms. 2. Analyze and evaluate the effectiveness and clarity of a speaker. 3. Differentiate between block style and alternating style as used in comparison/contrast pieces. 4. Sustain a coherent argument in a formal presentation. Revised: July

8 CONNECTICUT STATE CONTENT STANDARD 4: English Language Conventions: Students apply the conventions of Standard English in oral and written communication. Enduring Understanding: The conventions of Standard English allow us to speak and write appropriately. Essential Question: How do we use the English Language appropriately to speak and write? A. Performance Expectation: Students use knowledge of their language and culture to improve competency in English by applying the conventions of English to their own writing and speaking. 1. Use vocabulary to indicate shades of meaning, (connotation vs. denotation of a word). (CMT) 1. Identify words and expressions in fiction selections (e.g., classic fiction written long ago) and poetry that are not currently used in everyday language. 2. Differentiate between sentences written in the active voice (e.g., Dan won the election) and the passive voice (e.g., The election was won by Dan). 3. Judge whether a sentence is more effective when stated in the active voice or in the passive voice. B. Performance Expectation: Students speak and write using standard language structures and diction appropriate to audience and task. 1. Speak persuasively in group activities or in oral presentations, supporting ideas with evidence, elaboration, and examples. 2. Use correct grammar when speaking and writing in formal situations (e.g., discussions in class). 3. Choose vocabulary carefully, adapting it to the audience, purpose, and occasion. 4. Use criteria for judging both content and the delivery of oral presentations and participation in a group discussion. 1. Vary vocal pitch, tone, volume, and rate as appropriate in group discussions and oral presentations. C. Performance Expectation: Students use Standard English for composing and revising written texts. 1. Proofread final drafts for effective use of language; conventional usage and syntax; appropriate transitions; conventional punctuation, capitalization, and spelling; and legible handwriting. (CMT, CAPT) Revised: July

9 2. Use resources whenever needed during revisions of writing (e.g., available technology, dictionary, thesaurus, style manual). 3. Maintain noun pronoun and subject verb agreement (including when there is a phrase between the subject and verb) in writing. (CMT, CAPT) 4. Maintain consistent verb tense in writing. 5. Make verbs and pronouns agree with collective nouns in sentences (e.g., The crowd roars in anticipation rather than the crowd rise to their feet one by one). 6. Use relative pronouns and interrogative pronouns appropriately in sentences: who, whose, that, whom, what, which, whoever, whomever, and whatever. (CMT, CAPT) 7. Spell a wide range of grade-level words, including commonly misspelled words, in writing. (CMT) 8. Apply the rules of capitalization and punctuation appropriately. 9. Punctuate the salutation and closing of a business letter (e.g., Dear Ms. Young: and Sincerely,). 10. Use a comma after a series of introductory prepositional phrases (e.g., Under the spreading trees in the forest, animals chased each other playfully); to set off nonrestrictive appositives (e.g., Jon Ross, the famous architect, designed my house); to separate adjectives modifying the same word (e.g., The warm, yellow sunlight sparkled on the waves). (CAPT) 11. Use a colon following a complete sentence to introduce a list and to introduce a long quotation. (CAPT) 1. Use an apostrophe to indicate missing letters or numbers (e.g., comin home, Class of 99). 2. Underline or italicize the titles of works of art, long musical compositions, record albums, and the names of ships and airplanes. 3. Make compound hyphenated words plural (e.g., fathers-in-law) and possessive (e.g., father-in-law s, fathers-in-law s). 4. Use grade-level homographs (e.g., complex, tear, drone, waffle) and homophones (e.g., aid aide, altar alter, bough bow, complement compliment, council counsel, idle idol, straight strait, vain vane vein) in sentences and spells them correctly. (CMT) 5. Differentiate between the appropriate uses of who and whom in sentences. 6. Use pronouns correctly as direct objects or objects of prepositions in sentences. Revised: July