English 8

Description

Using a motif of Innovation, Imagination, and Invention, students in the Middle School Language Arts III course will acquire the reading, writing, language, and speaking/listening skills necessary for success in college, career, and beyond. Students will become critical readers and thinkers as they delve into fiction and informational texts within the course. They will also learn to effectively write narrative, informational, and argumentative pieces and present their ideas clearly and cohesively. 

Major Topics and Concepts

Semester 1

Reading Comprehension / Informational and Expository Writing / Narrative Writing
 

Text connections
Identifying theme
Moving a story forward
How theme develops
Comparing and contrasting mediums
Using context clues
Thesaurus and dictionary skills
Implicit and explicit meaning
Finding the central idea
Writing an effective summary
Assess internet sources
Writer’s voice
Reading informational texts
Researching and organizing information
Avoiding plagiarism/citing sources
Writing an introduction 
Connecting  and supporting ideas
Syntax and voice
Writing a conclusion 
Revising writing
Using formal language in writing
Recognizing point of view
Identifying the narrator
Planning narrative writing
Beginning a narrative
Writing dialogue
Writing the body of a narrative
Using commas
Temporal  transitions
Identifying and using verbals

Semester 2
 
Reading Comprehension / Argumentative Writing / Fiction Analysis
 

Central idea in nonfiction text
Structure and development of nonfiction texts
Compare and contrast text
Spelling
Compare different mediums
Modern  fiction draws on stories / myths
Greek and Latin Word roots
Figure of speech: verbal irony / puns
Figurative/connotative meanings
Analogies and allusions
Dialogue propels action
Points of view in a story creates suspense /dramatic irony
Compare structure of texts
Verb form  / verb moods
Presenting information
Revising written work
Oral discussions / rules of collegial discussions / adapt speech
Argumentation analysis
Restrictive / parenthetical elements
Support claims
Delineate an argument
Trace and evaluate argument
Distinguishing valid / invalid claims
Draw evidence from informational text
Write argumentation introduction , claims and support, conclusion