LANGUAGE ARTS
GRADE 8 ENGLISH CURRICULUM

READING

Word Recognition and Word Study

Students Will:

Explain and use word structure as well as sentence structure to aid in understanding meanings of words in print and oral form.

Use structural, syntactic (word order) and semantic (word meaning) analysis to decode meaning in context including figure of speech to infer history of the English language.

Master words that are easy to misuse and misspell as assigned and featured in journal writing.

Acquire strategies to use new words in their writing through use of personal thesaurus in narrative, informational, and research report writing as well as through the study of literary and professional models.

Vocabulary

Students Will:

Determine the meaning of words and phrases including expository terms, word roots, and word families.

Expand personal vocabulary through repeated and on- going practice of journal writing and peer evaluation as well as study of literary and professional models.

Informational Text

Students Will:

Analyze the structure, elements, features, style, and purpose of informational genre including persuasive essays, newspaper writings, and research report.

Analyze organizational patterns including chronological sequence, compare/contrast and problem/solution.

Understand how publishers and authors use text features including color coding, graphics, headings, subheadings, and details to enhance the understanding of central ideas.

Comprehension

Students Will:

Connect personal knowledge, experiences, and understanding of the world to themes and perspectives in text through oral and written responses in journal and writing workshop.

Retell through concise summarization key ideas of informational text and student oral presentations.

Metacognition

Students Will:

Self-monitor comprehension when reading informational text or literary models by automatically applying strategies such as rereading, summarizing, and /or questioning.

Critical Standards

Students Will:

Evaluate the appropriateness of shared, individual and expert standards based on purpose, context, and audience in order to asses their writing and the writing of others.

Reading Attitude

Students Will:

Be enthusiastic about reading for information and do substantial reading and writing on their own.

WRITING

Genre

Students Will:

Perform as a member of the writing community through the use of writing workshop in writing narrative pieces such as autobiographical incident, persuasive essay, eyewitness report, problem-solution essay, and comparison-contrast essay while employing appropriate conventions and literary devices.

Write a research report using Modern Language Association conventions and a wide variety of resources that includes proper organizational patterns.

Formulate research questions using multiple resources, perspectives, and arguments/counter-arguments to develop a thesis statement that culminates in a final presented project persuading the reader to the writer’s point of view.

Discern between fact and opinion when researching support details in support of thesis statement.

Discern between a credible source of information and a non- credible source of information in evaluating sources.

Locate sources efficiently and knowledgeably in a local public library setting through the use of book stacks, computer catalog, indexes, reference materials, periodicals, audiovisual, and databases.

Take and integrate notes from sources using a systematic approach that employs use of summarization, paraphrasing and quotes.

Develop and write a formal topic outline in assisting of the writing process for a well-organized research paper.

Document information through the use of MLA guidelines.

Prepare a Works Cited list through use of MLA guidelines.

Process

Students Will:

Set a purpose, consider audience, and replicate authors’ styles and patterns when writing a narrative or informational piece. Apply a variety of pre-writing strategies including use of a variety of graphic organizers for both narrative and informational writing.

Draft focused and clear ideas while experimenting with a variety of ways to order information.

Revise drafts including their own and peers for coherence and consistency in word choice, voice, and sentence fluency.

Proofread and edit writing one’s own writing or that of a peer using conventional proofreading symbols and appropriate grade-level checklists.

Organize pre-writing thoughts swiftly and decode writing prompts through timed on-demand journal writing assignments.

Personal Style

Students Will:

Exhibit personal style and voice to enhance the written message In both narrative (personification) and informational writing (strong opinion, credible support).

Grammar and Usage

Students Will:

Use (in the context of writing) a variety of grammatical structures correctly in compositions including infinitives, gerunds, and participial phrases.

Take a look at language from their own point of view, at how it fits into their own world and why it is important.

Apply a variety of sentence structures from the simple to the compound-complex in narrative and informational writing.

Self-monitor and correct errors as it relates to fragments, run- ons, subject-verb agreement, pronoun reference, pronoun case, verb forms and tenses and missing or misplaced commas.

Spelling

Students Will:

Use (in the context of writing) correct spelling conventions and know available resources to assist in this matter while knowing how to use those resources and the importance thereof.

Handwriting

Students Will:

Write neatly and legibly in longhand for written assignments that do not require word processing or are in-class assignments.

Writing Attitude

Students Will:

Demonstrate enthusiasm about writing and the on-going process of bettering their own writing.

SPEAKING

Conventions

Students Will:

Adjust their use of language to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes by using enunciation to emphasize key ideas and concepts when presenting.

Speak effectively using body language including gestures, posture, facial expressions, tone of voice, and pace of speaking to enhance meaning and influence interpretation in a persuasive speech.

Transition the written research report to an oral report through the use of notes, dress, timing, introduction, closing, and presentation aids with the purpose of persuading and informing a formal audience.

Speak clearly and confidently to an audience while knowing the topic matter so well that “reading to” the audience is entirely avoided.

Discourse

Students Will:

Engage in meaningful class discussion to socially construct meaning in partnerships, groups, or all class discussions.

LISTENING AND VIEWING

Conventions

Students Will:

Analyze main idea, significant details, fact and opinion, bias, propaganda, argumentation, or support when listening to or viewing a variety of speeches and presentations.

Listen with a purpose while demonstrating appropriate social skills of audience behaviors (eye contact, attentiveness); critically examine the verbal and non-verbal strategies during speeches and presentations.

Response

Students Will:

Paraphrase a speaker’s main ideas, purpose, and point of view, and ask relevant questions about the content, delivery, and purpose of the presentation.

Evaluate the credibility of a speaker or piece of information by determining whether the speaker or writer may have hidden agendas or otherwise be biased such as in political ads.