ACCESS

“Power Standards”

Language Arts-Grade 3

ESLR-Attain basic literacy skills by communicating
effectively in reading, writing and speaking
Strand / Narrative Texts
(Literature/Recreational) / Expository Texts
(Informational/Textual/Functional)

Reading

Word Analysis, Fluency, and Vocabulary Development /

Decoding and Word Recognition

  • Know and use complex word structures when decoding
  • Read with fluency (sounds like natural speech)

Vocabulary Development

  • Use knowledge of antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs
  • Begin to understand word analogies as classifications of words
  • Use knowledge of prefixes, suffixes, and word roots
  • Identify multiple meaning words; use context for meaning of unknown word

Comprehension and Analysis /
  • Draw conclusions, make predictions and hypotheses about text
  • Identify sequence of events
  • Distinguish common forms of literature
  • Identify the speaker or narrator
  • Understand myths, folktales, and legends
/
  • Use structural devices to find information in grade level textbooks
  • Identify main idea and supporting details
  • Follow multiple-step written instructions
  • Read ads, tables and other functional materials

Writing

Strategies /

Organizational/Penmanship and Research

  • Create a single paragraph with topic sentence and supporting detail
  • Write legibly in cursive
  • Identify extraneous sentences, topic sentence and supporting detail
  • Understand use of reference materials: dictionary, newspaper, encyclopedia

Applications /
  • Write narratives with a context for the action and a detailed plot.
/
  • Write descriptions that use concrete detail to support a unified idea
  • Write letters, thank-you notes, invitations

Conventions /

Sentence Structure and Grammar

  • Use complete and correct sentences when writing
  • Edit for awkward construction, fragments, and run-ons
  • Identify correct usage: verb tense, pronoun case, subject-verb agreement
  • Identify the past, present and future verb tenses of words

Punctuation and Capitalization

  • Identify correct punctuation of sentences and quotations
  • Commas in dates, locations, items in a series, apostrophe with contraction
  • Identify correct capitalization: letter parts, first word in a quotation, works of art, titles of people, proper nouns
  • Geographical names, holidays, historical periods, and special events

Spelling

  • Alphabetical order to the third letter of a word
  • Spell frequently used words correctly

Listening and Speaking
Strategies and Applications /
  • Ask questions for clarification
  • Paraphrase information shared orally by others
  • Organize ideas chronologically, and provide a beginning, middle and end
  • Enhance oral presentations through the use of props, graphs, etc.
  • Read poetry aloud with appropriate intonation and vocal patterns

ACCESS

“Power Standards”

Language Arts-Grade 4

ESLR-Attain basic literacy skills by communicating
effectively in reading, writing and speaking
Strand / Narrative Texts
(Literature/Recreational) / Expository Texts
(Informational/Textual/Functional)

Reading

Comprehension /
  • Compare and contrast tales from different cultures, and develop theories to account for similar tales
  • Use knowledge of plot to determine cause for a character’s actions
  • Draw conclusions, make and confirm predictions using text clues
  • Identify the “moral of the story” in myths and fables
  • Recognizes similes, metaphors, and personification
  • Identify author’s purpose/attitude
/
  • Identifies structural characteristics of textbook materials
  • Compare/contrast
  • Theme
  • Cause and effect
  • Identify correct use of various reference materials
  • Identify fact vs. opinion
  • Understand format and content of materials found in everyday life
  • Compare information on the same topic from several different articles

Fluency / Independent “Wide” Reading, with new vocabulary
  • Narrative and expository prose: every day!

Vocabulary Development /
  • Use knowledge of synonyms, antonyms and homophones
  • Identify affixes and root words
  • Use context to determine meaning of a known word with multiple meanings
  • Use context to determine meaning of an unknown word
  • Identify meaning through understanding of Greek and Latin word roots

Writing

Strategies and Applications /
Organization and focus
  • Identify/write paragraphs with topic sentence, supporting detail

Genre

Biography: relate ideas and observations with setting and detail
Response to Literature: show understanding of the work
Persuasive Composition: state a clear position and give simple evidence /

Organization and focus

Write reports and summaries using
  • Chronological order
  • Cause and effect

Genre

Analytical Essay/Research Report: frame a central question and include facts and details, properly cited references
Letters: write personal letters using a conventional style
Conventions /

Sentence Structure and Grammar

  • Know simple, compound, complex sentence structures, and how to combine short sentences
  • Edit for awkward construction, fragments, and run-ons
  • Identify subject-verb agreement, part tense, pronoun case, comparative adjectives

Punctuation and Capitalization

  • Use of apostrophe, comma with conjunction, items in a series, abbreviations, dialogue
  • First word in a quote, letter parts, proper nouns, title of people, works of art
Spelling: Identify misspellings of words in the context of sentences:
  • Consonant and vowel sounds with various spellings
  • Inflectional endings and affixes
  • No mistakes

Listening/Speaking

/

Summarize and paraphrase information

Give precise directions

Recite poems

ACCESS

“Power Standards”

Language Arts-Grade 5

ESLR-Attain basic literacy skills by communicating
effectively in reading, writing and speaking
Strand / Narrative Texts
(Literature/Recreational) / Expository Texts
(Informational/Textual/Functional)

Reading

Comprehension /
  • Understand elements of plot, conflict, resolution, and theme
  • Contrast characters in a work and the role of contrast in plot/theme
  • Describe function of literary devices: imagery, metaphor
  • Draw conclusions; make predictions and hypotheses based on implicit information
  • Compare literature from different eras and cultures
/ Identify structural characteristics of informational texts:
  • Discern main idea and evidence that supports it, including graphic materials
  • Analyze text organized in sequential or chronological order
  • Distinguish facts, support inferences and opinions in texts
  • Alphabetize to 3rd letter, dictionary skills

Fluency / Independent, “Wide” Reading, with new vocabulary:
  • Narrative and expository prose: every day!

Vocabulary Development /
  • Identify synonyms, antonyms, and homophones, connotation and denotation
  • Use context to determine meaning of a known word with multiple meanings
  • Use context to determine meaning of an unknown word
  • Affixes derived from Greek and Latin

Writing

Strategies and Applications /

Organization and focus

  • Multi-paragraph compositions with point of view

Genre

Biography: plot and sensory detail
Response to Literature: central idea with references to the text
Persuasive: state a clear position and provide relevant evidence /

Organization and focus

  • Identify topic sentences, supporting sentences, extraneous material

Genre

Analytical Essays/Research Reports: develop a topic with simple facts, use
  • Chronological order
  • Cause and effect
  • Fact vs. Opinion
Business Letters: introduce conventional form
Conventions /

Sentence Structure and Grammar

  • Know compound, complex sentence structures, as well as sentence combining
  • Edit for awkward construction, fragments, run-ons, and redundancy
  • Identify correct subject-verb agreement, verb tense, pronoun case, and comparison of adjectives

Punctuation and Capitalization

  • Use of apostrophe, comma with conjunction, items in a series, abbreviations, dialogue, colon with list
  • First word in a quote, letter parts, proper nouns, title of people, works of art

Spelling

  • Identify misspellings of words in the context of sentences:
  • Consonant and vowel sounds with carious spellings
  • Inflectional endings and affixes
  • No mistakes

Listening/Speaking

/
  • Frame a question to direct an investigation
  • Establish a situation or plot, emphasizing sequence
  • Present a topic with supporting detail

ACCESS

“Power Standards”

Language Arts-Grade 6

ESLR-Attain basic literacy skills by communicating
effectively in reading, writing and speaking
Strand / Narrative Texts
(Literature/Recreational) / Expository Texts
(Informational/Textual/Functional)

Reading

Comprehension /
  • Critique credibility of characters
  • Determine tone from word choice
  • Recognize difference between first and third person speaker
  • Identify themes conveyed through plot and characterization
  • Define how tone is conveyed through figurative language
  • Draw conclusions; make predictions and hypotheses based on implicit information
/
  • Identify characteristics of popular media (newspaper, magazines)
  • Determine the adequacy of evidence for a conclusion
  • Create outlines, notes, summaries
  • Connect main ideas from different sources
  • Identify details and sequence in informational texts
  • Know parts of a book, atlas, and telephone directory

Fluency / Independent , “Wide” Reading, with new vocabulary
  • Narrative and expository prose: every day!

Vocabulary Development / Focus on interpreting figurative language:
  • Shades of meaning in word choice
  • Identify synonyms, antonyms, and homophones
  • Use context to determine meaning of a known word with multiple meanings
  • Use context to determine meaning of an unknown word

Writing

Strategies and Applications /

Organization and focus

  • Multi-paragraph, focus on plot
  • Identify topic sentence, supporting sentences, extraneous material

Genre

Biography: establish plot and sensory detail
Response to Literature: develop interpretation from careful reading /

Organization and focus

  • Multi-paragraph, focus on topic

Genre

Write research and persuasive papers
  • Stated thesis or purpose
  • Appropriate structure
  • Persuasive evidence
  • Use of technology for research
Business Letter: use conventional form
Conventions /

Sentence Structure and Grammar

  • Know simple, compound, complex sentence structures
  • Edit for awkward construction, fragments, and run-ons, and redundancy
  • Identify correct subject-verb agreement (with intervening pronoun), past and future tense, pronoun case, comparison of adjectives

Punctuation and Capitalization

  • Use of apostrophe, comma with conjunction, items in a series, quotation marks in dialogue
  • First word in quote, letter parts, proper adjectives, title of people, works of art

Spelling

  • Identify misspellings of words in the context of sentences:
  • Consonant and vowel sounds with various spellings
  • Inflectional endings and affixes
  • No mistakes

Listening/Speaking

/
  • Select a focus and organizational structure
  • Establish a point of view
  • Support opinions with detailed evidence

ACCESS

“Power Standards”

Language Arts-Grade 7

ESLR-Attain basic literacy skills by communicating
effectively in reading, writing and speaking
Strand / Narrative Texts
(Literature/Recreational) / Expository Texts
(Informational/Textual/Functional)

Reading

Comprehension /
  • Explain qualities of different genre
  • Identify examples of irony and incongruity in a text
  • Analyze character traits, motivation
  • Identify recurring themes, especially across cultures
  • Trace development of point of view, and explain effect on theme
  • Identify passages that set tone or mood with metaphor, dialect, symbolism
  • Draw conclusions; make predictions and hypotheses from implicit information
/
  • Understand differences in structure and purpose of various informational media
  • Identify details and sequence in informational and functional materials
  • Locate information from encyclopedia, bibliography, card catalogue, Reader’s Guide, atlas, index, and table of contents
  • Show how ideas in a text would change under different circumstances
  • Identify and trace the development of an author’s argument in persuasive writing

Vocabulary /
  • Identify idioms, analogies, metaphors, and similes in prose and poetry
  • Use knowledge of Greek, Latin, and Anglo-Saxon roots and affixes to figure out the meaning of a new content words
  • Identify synonyms and words with multiple meanings

Writing

Strategies /

Organization and Focus

  • Use a specific structure to achieve balance with effective transitions
  • Complete use of supporting detail
  • Use note taking, outlines and summarizing to develop structure

Research and Technology

  • Identify questions leading to research, and use sanctioned format for bibliography

Evaluation and Revision

  • Identify topic sentences and supporting sentences as well as extraneous material
  • Distinguish between clearly written sentences and sentences that contain errors.

Genre / Biography: mimic various styles of plot and characterization
Responses to Literature: focus on interpretation from close reading / Research Reports including evidence and documentation
Persuasive Compositions with clarity and support
Business Letters: letter of introduction
Conventions /

Sentence Structure and Grammar

  • Edit for awkward construction, fragments, run-ons, misplaced modifiers, and redundancy
  • Identify correct subject-verb agreement (advanced), past perfect tense, pronoun antecedents, pronoun case, adjective/adverb usage
  • Identify all parts of speech and types and structure of sentences

Punctuation and Capitalization

  • Use of apostrophe with possessives, colon with list, comma with appositive, comma in introduction, quotation marks, and semicolon.
Spelling
  • Identify misspellings in the context of sentences:
  • Homophones
  • No mistakes

Listening/Speaking

/
  • Deliver narrative presentations
/
  • Deliver research presentation
  • Analyze techniques of electronic media in persuasion
  • Deliver persuasive presentation

ACCESS

“Power Standards”

Language Arts-Grade 8

ESLR-Attain basic literacy skills by communicating
effectively in reading, writing and speaking
Strand / Narrative Texts
(Literature/Recreational) / Expository Texts
(Informational/Textual/Functional)

Reading

Comprehension /
  • Examine dialogues, monologues, and soliloquies for character traits
  • Identify events that advance a plot
  • Understand “internal conflict”
  • Identify tone or mood in a passage
  • Identify universal themes
  • Analyze a work of literature, showing how it reflects the heritage, traditions, attitudes, and beliefs of its author
  • Draw conclusions; make predictions from implicit information
/
  • Compare and contrast features of consumer materials (warranties, contracts, product information, etc.)
  • Find differences and similarities between texts and summarize both
  • Locate information for thesaurus, Readers Guide, index, atlas, dictionary
  • Elaborate on and extend a main idea with new information or a different perspective
  • Analyze texts with proposition-support model
  • Evaluate the consistency and logic of a text

Vocabulary and Concept Development /
  • Identify idioms, analogies, metaphors, and similes in prose and poetry
  • Use knowledge of Greek, Latin, and Anglo-Saxon roots and affixes to figure out the meaning of a new content words
  • Identify synonyms and words with multiple meanings

Writing

Strategies /

Organization and Focus

  • Write with a controlling impression and a well-supported conclusion
  • Use effective transitions and parallel structures
  • Support a thesis with analogies, quotations, comparisons, etc.

Research and Technology

  • Plan multiple step information searches

Evaluation and Revision

  • Identify topic sentences and supporting sentences as well as extraneous material
  • Distinguish between clearly written sentences and sentences that contain errors.
  • Show how to combine sentences to achieve fluency in writing

Genre / Biography: employ descriptive strategies in relaying a clear incident
Responses to Literature: support judgements with reference to other texts and authors / Research Reports: define a thesis and use a variety of sources of information
Persuasive Compositions: well-defined thesis and detailed evidence in support
Business Letters: present information clearly; follow conventional formats
Conventions /

Sentence Structure and Grammar

  • Edit for awkward construction, fragments, run-ons, misplaced modifiers, and redundancy
  • Identify subject-verb agreement (relative cause, indefinite pronoun), present perfect tense, double negative, pronoun agreement, and adverbs (superlatives)
  • Identify all parts of speech and types and structure of sentences

Punctuation and Capitalization

  • Use of apostrophe with possessives, quotation marks with titles, comma with appositive, comma in introduction, comma with conjunction, semicolon
Spelling
  • Identify misspellings in the context of sentences:
  • Homophones
  • No mistakes

Listening/Speaking

/
  • Deliver narrative presentations using a range of strategies
  • Deliver oral responses to literature
/
  • Recite poems of 4-6 stanzas
  • Deliver research presentation

ACCESS

“Power Standards”

Language Arts-Grade 9-10

ESLR-Attain basic literacy skills by communicating
effectively in reading, writing and speaking
Strand / Narrative Texts
(Literature/Recreational) / Expository Texts
(Informational/Textual/Functional)

Reading

Comprehension / Students read and understand grade-level appropriate material. They analyze the organizational patterns, arguments, and positions advanced. The selections in Recommended Literature, Grades Nine Through Twelve (1990) illustrate the quality and complexity of the materials to be read by students. In addition, by grade twelve, students read two million words annually on their own, including a wide variety of classic and contemporary literature, magazines, newspapers, and online information. In grades nine and ten, students make substantial progress toward this goal / Evaluate the credibility of an author’s argument or defense of a claim by critiquing the relationship between the generalizations and evidence, the comprehensiveness of evidence, and the way in which the author’s intent affects the structure and tone of the text (e.g., in professional journals, editorials, political speeches, primary source material).

Writing

Strategies /

Organization and Focus

  • Write clear, coherent, and focused essays (The writing exhibits students’ awareness of audience and purpose)
  • Identify formal introductions, supporting evidence, and conclusions. (Students progress through the stages of the writing process as needed).

Evaluation and Revision

  • Revise writing to improve the logic and coherence of the organization and controlling perspective, the precision of word choice, and the tone by taking into consideration the audience, purpose, and formality of the context

Genre / Students combine the rhetorical strategies of narration, exposition, a persuasion, and description to produce texts of at least 1,500 words each. Student writing demonstrates a command of standard American English and the research, organizational, and drafting strategies outlined in Writing Standards.
Write expository compositions, including analytical essays and research reports:
  • Marshal evidence in support of a thesis and related claims, including information on all relevant perspectives
  • Convey information and ideas from primary and secondary sources accurately and coherently
  • Make distinctions between the relative value and significance of specific data, facts, and ideas.
  • Anticipate and address readers’ potential misunderstandings, biases, and expectations
  • Use technical terms and notations accurately

Conventions / Students write and speak with a command of standard English conventions
  • Demonstrate an understanding of proper English usage and control of grammar, paragraph and sentence structure, diction, and syntax

Listening/Speaking