L.9-10.6 Acquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression. Unit Essential Questions Why do we study literature? How do we make inferences? What is the significance of time and place in culture? What is theme, and how can it be identified? How can a person’s actions impact how others understand the person’s values? How can understanding why a person makes certain choices allow us to understand our own choices? Why do people see the same situation differently? Why is it important to try to understand how people communicate differently? How is our understanding of culture and society constructed through and by language? How does one infer theme from a work of fiction? Unit Enduring Understandings Students will understand… Literature is an artform that expresses universal issues. When reading, we need to make inferences. Time and place is significant in a work of literature. To fully understand the author’s intent, we must identify and understand theme. A character’s actions can reveal conflict and advance the plot. Understanding characters enhances understanding of plot, theme, and conflict. The choices an author makes with regard to word choice, figurative devices, structure, and point of view impact meaning of a literary work. Artists (writers, painters, photographers, etc.) create a different vision for the same subject matter, and can be inspired by other original works.
analyze the structure of a drama to determine the effectiveness of the choices made by the author in representing the material Be able to use evidence in order to support a claim about the literature Evaluate how characterization affects components of a drama Analyze historical elements and culture influences the content of a drama Analyze how an author draws on source material to develop a drama Determine the meaning of words and phrases used in the text and analyze the word choice Demonstrate a command of Standard English in writing and discussion Respond constructively to advance a discussion and build on the input of others Evaluate another student’s response in discussion by evaluating their rhetoric and evidence Be able to use narrative writing skills to continue or change the ending of a drama or write from a specific character’s point of view 9TH GRADE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS CURRICULUM Evidence of Learning Formative Assessments Conferencing individual/small group Open-ended questions Games Graphic Organizers Kinesthetic assessment Practice Presentations Quizzes Cooperative groups Writer’s Notebook Visual Assessment Learning/response logs Think-pair-share Observations
LANGUAGE – Knowledge of Language L.9-10.3 Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading or listening. Write and edit work so that it conforms to the guidelines in a style manual (e.g., MLA Handbook, Turabian’s Manual for Writers) appropriate for the discipline and writing type. LANGUAGE – Vocabulary Acquisition & Use L.9-10.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grades 9–10 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies. • Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence, paragraph, or text; a word’s position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase. Identify and correctly use patterns of word changes that indicate different meanings or parts of speech (e.g., analyze, analysis, analytical; advocate, advocacy). Consult general and specialized reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries, thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or determine or clarify its precise meaning, its part of speech, or its etymology. Verify the preliminary determination of the meaning of a word or phrase (e.g., by checking the inferred meaning in context or in a dictionary). L.9-10.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings. Interpret figures of speech (e.g., euphemism, oxymoron) in context and analyze their role in the text. Analyze nuances in the meaning of words with similar denotations.
Be able to compare two or more poems and analyze similarities and differences in in structure and content in writing and discussion Respond constructively to advance a discussion and build on the input of others Evaluate another student’s response in discussion by evaluating their rhetoric and evidence 9TH GRADE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS CURRICULUM Evidence of Learning Formative Assessments Conferencing individual/small group Open-ended questions Games Graphic Organizers Kinesthetic assessment Practice Presentations Quizzes Cooperative groups Writer’s Notebook Visual Assessment Learning/response logs Think-pair-share Observations Summative Assessments Final drafts Oral presentations Unit/Novel assessments Interim assessments Computer Adaptive Tests Published works / Portfolios Performance Tasks Ends of Course Assessments SGO’s pre and post assessments State assessment
9TH GRADE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS CURRICULUM Unit Overview Content Area: English Language Arts Unit Title: Narrative Writing Target Course/Grade Level: 9 Unit Summary Narrative writing is designed to prompt a student’s imagination. This form of writing allows a student to apply appropriate narrative and descriptive writing techniques in their written expression. Students will synthesize their thoughts in an effort to master creative expression through the writing process. Primary interdisciplinary connections: Science, Social Studies, Mathematics, Technology, Visual and Performing Arts : Career Ready Practices Career Ready Practices describe the career-ready skills that all educators in all content areas should seek to develop in their students. They are practices that have been linked to increase college, career, and life success. Career Ready Practices should be taught and reinforced in all career exploration and preparation programs with increasingly higher levels of complexity and expectation as a student advances through a program of study. CRP1. Act as a responsible and contributing citizen and employee. CRP2. Apply appropriate academic and technical skills. CRP3. Attend to personal health and financial well-being. CRP4. Communicate clearly and effectively and with reason. CRP5. Consider the environmental, social and economic impacts of decisions. CRP6. Demonstrate creativity and innovation. CRP7. Employ valid and reliable research strategies. CRP8. Utilize critical thinking to make sense of problems and persevere in solving them. CRP9. Model integrity, ethical leadership and effective management. CRP10. Plan education and career paths aligned to personal goals. CRP11. Use technology to enhance productivity. CRP12. Work productively in teams while using cultural global competence
Unit Essential Questions Why is it important to be a reader in order to be a writer? Why is it important to show rather than tell? How is creative writing used as a tool for social consciousness and understanding? How are culture and setting essential to the theme of one’s writing? How can abstract ideas be presented through the structure of writing? How can one explore their own opinions as a result of the theme or moral of a short story? How do the characters in a short story model characters in life? Why is it important to choose words carefully? Unit Enduring Understandings Students will understand that… Writing is a process. Effective use of description and detail can strengthen writing. Descriptive and narrative writing can be used for understanding social consciousness. Themes are built from social consciousness. Abstract ideas can be presented through the rhetorical elements and structure of narrative writing. The moral or theme of the story often reflects universal concerns. Narrative writing can inform. Unit Learning Goals Be able to understand the elements that go into writing a successful narrative and be able to employ those elements in their own writing Be able to write an effective narrative based on a real or imagined event using effective structure and detail Be able to use multiple points of view, employ a distinct form of narration and write a story that presents the sequence of events effectively and smoothly Use literary devices to develop the plot and enrich the narrative Targeted Skills Be able to employ the use of literary devices to develop the narrative Engage and orient the reader by setting out a problem, situation, or observation, establishing one or multiple point(s) of view, and introducing a narrator and/or characters; create a smooth progression of experiences or events. Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, reflection, and multiple plot lines, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters. Use a variety of techniques to sequence events so that they build on one another to create a coherent whole. Use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a vivid picture