English Department Standards
1. The student will be
able to use the language arts to comprehend, interpret, and critique
imaginative texts in every medium, drawing on personal experiences and
knowledge to understand the text recognizing the social, historical, and
cultural features of the text.
2. The student will be
able to apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate,
and appreciate texts. They draw on prior experience, their interactions with
other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning of other texts,
their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual
features (e.g. sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context,
graphics).
3. The student will be
able to adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g.
conversation, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of
audiences for different purposes.
4. The student will be
able to apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g.
spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to
create, critique, and discuss print and non-print text.
5. The student will be
able to plan, revise, edit, and publish clear and effective writing.
6. The student will be
able to conduct research and inquiry on self-selected or assigned topics,
issues or problems and use an appropriate form to communicate their findings.
7. The student will be
able to recognize and interpret various uses and adaptations of language in
social, cultural, regional, and professional situations, and learn to be
flexible and responsive in their use of English.
8. The student will be
able to use a variety of technological and informational resources (e.g.
libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize
information and to create and communicate knowledge.
The
student will be able to use the language arts to comprehend, interpret, and
critique imaginative texts in every medium, drawing on personal experiences and
knowledge to understand the text recognizing the social, historical, and
cultural features of the text.
Level Pre - Kindergarten
1. Begins
to show an interest in reading-related activities, such as looking at books,
talking about books, and recalling details using pictures.
2.
Begins
to retell stories.
3.
Starts
to make predictions using pictures of stories read aloud.
4.
Begins
to ask and answer questions about text read aloud.
Level I Kindergarten
- Second Grade
1.
Demonstrates
an interest and ability to use a variety of strategies to derive meaning from
texts by looking at books and pictures.
2.
Reads
independently for pleasure, to gain information and derive questions and
answers from the text.
3.
Demonstrates
the ability to make connections between texts read aloud or independently,
while applying his or her prior knowledge.
4.
Demonstrates
the ability to identify the title, author, and illustrator of a text.
5.
Demonstrates
the ability to make predictions and conclusions, summarize main ideas, and
determine cause and effect.
Level II Third -
Fifth Grade
1.
Uses
a variety of strategies and word recognition skills, including re-reading,
finding context clues, applying their knowledge of letter-sound relationships,
and analyzing word structures.
2.
Deduces
the meaning of unfamiliar words in the context of a passage by examining known
words, phrases, and structures.
3.
Comprehends
reading by using strategies, such as activating prior knowledge establishing
purposes, self-correcting, self-monitoring, re-reading, making predictions, finding
context clues, developing visual images, applying knowledge of text structures,
and adjusting reading rate according to purpose and difficulty.
4.
Identifies
a purpose for reading, such as gaining information, learning about a viewpoint,
and appreciating literature.
Level III Sixth -
Eighth Grade
1.
Identifies
the defining features and structure of literary texts (e.g. conflict,
representation of character, point of view).
2.
Analyzes
the effect of characters, plot, setting, language, topic, style, purpose, and
point of view on the overall impact of literature.
3.
Draws
on a broad base of knowledge about the genres of literature, such as the
structure and conventions of essays, epics, fables, myths, plays, poems, short stories,
and novels, when interpreting the meaning of a literary work.
4.
Develops
criteria to evaluate literary merit and explains critical opinions about a
text, either informally in conversation or formally in a well-organized speech
or essay.
5.
Provides
interpretive responses, orally and in writing, to literary and non-literary
texts representing the diversity of American cultural heritage and cultures of
the world.
6.
Identifies
common historical, social, and cultural themes and issues in literary works and
selected passages.
7.
Draws
on a broad base of knowledge about the themes, ideas, and insights found in
classical literature while reading, interpreting, and reflecting on
contemporary texts.
8.
Evaluates
the themes and main ideas of a work, considering its audience and purpose.
Level IV Ninth -
Twelfth Grade
1.
Explains
the structure of selected classical and contemporary works of literature, in
whole and in part, from various cultures and historical periods, and illustrates
ways in which authors use syntax, imagery, figures of speech, allusions,
symbols, irony, and other devices in the context of history, culture, and
style.
2.
Draws on a broad base of knowledge about the
universal themes of literature such as initiation, love and duty, heroism,
illusion and reality, salvation, death and rebirth, and explains how these
themes are developed in a particular work of literature.
3.
Investigates
and reports methods in which a writer has influenced or been influenced by
historical, social, and cultural issues or events.
4.
Develops,
explains, and defends interpretations of complex literary works.
5.
Explains
how details of language, setting, plot, character, conflict, point of view and
voice in a work of literature combine to produce a dominant tone, effect, or
theme.
6.
Develops
and applies criteria to evaluate the literary merit of unfamiliar works.
7.
Examines,
explains, and evaluates, orally and in writing, various perspectives concerning
individual, community, national, and world issues reflected in literary and
nonliterary texts.
8.
Develops
and articulates, orally and in writing, defensible points of view on
individual, community, national, and world issues reflected in literary and
nonliterary texts.
9.
Identifies
the devices an author uses to influence readers and critique the effectiveness
of their use.
10.
Identifies
philosophical assumptions and basic beliefs underlying selected texts.
The student will be able to apply a
wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate
texts. They draw on prior experience, their interactions with other readers and
writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word
identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g.
sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
Level Pre - Kindergarten
1.
Identifies
characters in stories read aloud.
2.
Recognizes
that words are made up of letters and letters make sounds.
Level
I Kindergarten- Second Grade
1.
Demonstrates
the ability to identify and describe characters, setting, and plot in a
literary work.
2.
Demonstrates
the ability to differentiate between fiction and non-fiction.
3.
Identifies
the narrator’s point of view in a story.
4.
Identifies
problems and solutions in a work of fiction ornon-fiction.
5.
Summarizes
the theme of a particular text.
6.
Identifies
common prefixes such as un-, re-, bi-, mis-, dis-, and suffixes such as –er, -est, -ful to determine the
meaning of words.
7.
Identifies
elements of style such as word choice and sentence structure (syntax).
8.
Demonstrates
the ability to read and recognize compound words, contractions, synonyms,
antonyms, and homonyms.
9.
Demonstrates
the ability to identify letter/sounds in words.
10.
Demonstrates
the ability to understand how print is organized and read, using concepts about
print.
11.
Demonstrates
the ability to recognize and name all upper and lower case letters of the
alphabet.
12.
Demonstrates
the ability to alphabetize words by the first and second letter.
Level II Third -
Fifth Grades
1.
Summarizes
ideas drawn from stories, identifying cause and effect relationships,
interpreting events and ideas, and connecting different works to each other and
to real-life experiences.
2.
Uses
a variety of reading texts including fairy tales, fables, and narratives from world
cultures to understand plots, make predictions, and relate to prior knowledge
and experiences.
3.
Recognizes
and recalls elements and details of story structure such as sequence of events,
characters, plot and setting, in order to reflect on meaning.
4.
Extends
the literal meaning of a text by making inferences and evaluates the
significance and validity of texts in light of prior knowledge and experience.
Level III Sixth -
Eighth Grade
1.
Uses
knowledge of sentence and word structure, word origins, visual images, and
context clues to understand unfamiliar words and clarify passages of text.
2.
Uses
knowledge of visual features of texts (e.g. headings, bold face print), and
structures of texts (e.g. chronology, cause-and-effect) as aids to comprehension.
3.
Establishes
purposeful reading and writing habits by using texts to find information, gain
understanding of diverse viewpoints, make decisions, and enjoy the experience
of reading.
4.
Selects,
summarizes, paraphrases, analyzes, and evaluates,
orally and in writing, passages of texts chosen for specific purposes.
5.
Interprets
and uses technical resources (e.g. charts, tables, travel schedules, timelines,
manuals).
6.
Compares,
contrasts, and evaluates the relative accuracy and usefulness of information
from different sources.
7.
Identifies
and explains information, main ideas, and organization found in a variety of
information passages.
8.
Distinguishes
between the facts found in documents, narratives, charts, maps, tables and
other sources and the generalizations and interpretations that are drawn from
them.
Level IV Ninth - Twelfth
Grade
1.
Applies
sophisticated word meaning and word analysis strategies (e.g. knowledge of
roots, cognates, suffixes, and prefixes) to understand unfamiliar words.
2.
Gathers
information to help achieve understanding when the meaning of a text is
unclear.
3.
Applies
knowledge of expository structures, such as the deductive or inductive
development of an argument, to the comprehension and evaluation of texts.
4.
Identifies
propaganda techniques and faulty reasoning in texts.
5.
Explains
and evaluates the influence of format on the readability and meaning of a text.
6.
Distinguishes
between fact and opinion in non-fiction texts.
7.
Considers
the context of a work when determining the meaning of abbreviations and
acronyms as well as the technical, idiomatic, and figurative meanings of terms.
8.
Applies
tests of logic and reasoning to informational and persuasive texts.
9.
Analyzes
and synthesizes the concepts and details encountered in informational texts
(e.g. reports, technical manuals, historical papers, government documents).
10.
Draws
on and integrates information from multiple sources when acquiring knowledge
and developing a position on a topic of interest.
11.
Evaluates
the reliability and authenticity of information conveyed in a text, using
criteria, based on knowledge of the author, topic, and context and analysis of
logic, evidence, propaganda, and language.
The student will be able to adjust
their use of spoken, written and visual language (e.g. conversation, style,
vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences for
different purposes.
Level Pre
- Kindergarten
1.
Recognizes
environmental print (e.g. street signs).
2.
Understands
how print is organized and read, using concepts about print.
3.
Recognizes
rhyming words.
4.
Participates
in the oral speaking of short poems, rhymes, songs, and stories with repeated
patterns.
5.
Uses
oral language for a variety of purposes.
Level I Kindergarten
- Second Grade
1.
Demonstrates
the ability to identify base words and their inflectional endings.
2.
Recognizes
and uses common idioms.
3.
Recognizes
simple analogies.
4.
Demonstrates
the ability to use sentence structure (syntax) and context to determine the
meaning of unfamiliar words.
Level II Third -
Fifth Grade
1.
Writes
in a variety of situations (e.g. timed and un-timed, at school, at home) and
adopts strategies, such as revision and the use of reference materials, to the
situation.
2.
Writes
for a variety of readers (e.g. peers, teachers, other
adults), adapting content, style, and structure to audience and situation.
3.
Employs
principles of agreement related to number, gender, and case.
Level III Sixth -
Eighth Grade
1.
Analyzes
idioms, analogies, metaphors, and similes to infer the literal and figurative
meanings of phrases.
2.
Understands
important points in the history of English language and uses common word
origins to determine the historical influences on English word meaning.
3.
Uses
word meanings within the appropriate context and is able to verify those
meanings by definition, restatement, example, comparison, or contrast.
Level IV Ninth -
Twelfth Grade
1.
Develops
and delivers a speech that conveys information and ideas in a logical fashion
for a selected audience, using language that clarifies and reinforces meaning.
2.
Constructs
and presents a coherent argument, summarizing then refuting opposing positions;
citing persuasive evidence.
3.
Participates
effectively in question-and-answer sessions following presentations.
4.
Summarizes
narrative and numerical information accurately and logically in presentations.
5.
Demonstrates
confidence and poise during presentations, interacting effectively with the
audience; selecting language and gestures mindful of their effect.
6.
Demonstrates
the ability to debate an issue from either side.
7.
Interprets
literary works orally, citing textual data in support of assertions.
8.
Synthesizes
and presents results of research projects, accurately summarizing and
illustrating the main ideas, using appropriate technological aids, and offering
support for the findings.
9.
Speaks
fluently with varied inflection, effective eye contact, and enunciating clearly
at an appropriate rate and volume.
10.
Observes
the appropriate etiquette when expressing thanks and receiving praise.
The student will be able to apply
knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g. spelling,
punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create,
critique, and discuss print and non-print text.
Level
Pre - Kindergarten
1.
Participates
in creative dramatics.
Level I Kindergarten
- Second Grade
1.
Demonstrates
the ability to participate in the oral speaking of short poems, rhymes, songs,
and stories with repeated patterns.
2.
Identifies
and uses devices of figurative language (e.g. similes, metaphors).
3.
Demonstrates
the ability to participate in creative dramatics.
4.
Demonstrates
the ability to use oral language for a variety of purposes.
5.
Demonstrates
the ability to take one and two step oral directions.
6.
Demonstrates
the ability to re-tell stories and events in logical order.
7.
Identifies
the characteristics of genres (e.g. fiction, poetry, drama, informational texts).
Level II Third -
Fifth Grade
1.
Understands
and uses parts of speech effectively (e.g. nouns, pronouns, adjectives).
2.
Uses
adverbials effectively, including words and phrases.
3.
Uses
their knowledge of roots, prefixes, and suffixes to interpret and covey the
meaning of words.
4.
Identifies
common figures of speech and uses them appropriately.
Level III Sixth -
Eighth Grade
1.
Understands
the function of words, phrases, and clauses in a sentence and uses them
effectively (e.g. coordinate and subordinate conjunctions, relative pronouns,
comparative adjectives).
2.
Uses
correct tenses to indicate the relative order of events.
3.
Understands
and employs principles of agreement (e.g. subject-verb, pronoun-noun, preposition-pronoun).
4.
Punctuates
compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences correctly.
5.
Employs
the conventions of capitalization.
6.
Spells
frequently used words correctly and uses effective strategies for spelling
unfamiliar words.
Level IV Ninth -
Twelfth Grade
1.
Examines
the origin, history, denotation, connotation, and usage of English words and
phrases by consulting dictionaries, thesauruses, handbooks, and other sources
of information about the language.
2.
Evaluates
the effects of different types of language (e.g. literary and technical, formal
and informal) in communications designed to narrate, inform, explain, persuade,
and entertain.
3.
Compares
form, meaning, and value of different symbol systems (e.g. alphabets, signs,
symbols) and of expressions commonly used in another language.
4.
Understands
the form and function of words, phrases, and clauses, (e.g. inter-related clauses)
in complex sentences, and uses them effectively.
5.
Uses
correct tenses, including conditionals, to indicate the relative order and
relationship of events.
6.
Employs
principles of agreement (e.g. subject-verb, pronoun-noun, preposition pronoun).
7.
Punctuates
compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences correctly, including
appropriate use of dialogue, citations, colons, hyphens, dashes, ellipses, and
italics.
8.
Employs
the conventions of capitalization.