Language Arts

jump to 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4-5th, Middle School

Kindergarten

The language arts program focuses on involving students in the interrelated processes of speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Children are immersed daily in a wide variety of literacy experiences to help them develop a love of language and a passion for reading. The literacy experiences center around four main areas of study:

• Literature - Reading strategies and skills are modeled and taught
• Phonemic awareness - Letter/sound associations are taught
• Writing – Appropriate writing skills are modeled and taught
• Oral communication - Listening, speaking, and performance skills are developed

Skills that are introduced and developed in kindergarten encourage the students to:

READING / LITERATURE
• Begin to isolate and identify a single sound and blend sounds into a word.
• Recognize rhyme and develop phonemic awareness through reading and writing activities.
• Begin to recognize high-frequency words and develop a vocabulary related to class studies.
• Begin to use decoding strategies such as picture cues and context clues.

WRITING
• Work to develop proper pencil grip and letter/word spacing.
• Begin to use D’Nealian manuscript handwriting and begin to develop skills to write on lined paper.
• Participate in a variety of writing activities including modeled writing, shared writing, class books and journals.

ORAL COMMUNICATION
• Participate in discussions, sharing experiences, and daily conversations.
• Learn to listen closely and to take turns while staying on topic during conversation.
• Participate in choral speaking and recite short poems, rhymes and songs with repeated patterns.


First Grade

Our language arts program introduces students to a wide variety of reading materials, and encourages them to relate information to their everyday lives. It also incorporates the everyday vocabulary of the students and encourages them to write creative and informative stories. Our integrated program provides opportunities to teach a variety of subjects including math, science, and social studies.

Our language arts program incorporates 3 modules:

• Phonics/Word Families/Spelling: enables students to develop their decoding skills
• Language Experience: helps students to correlate their writing, listening, and speaking skills
• Reading: encourages all students to develop a large sight word vocabulary

Skills that are introduced and developed in first grade encourage the students to:

READING / LITERATURE
• Apply phonetic principles and knowledge of word patterns to read new words.
• Integrate phonetic strategies, meaning clues, and language structures when reading.
• Use context clues and picture clues when reading.
• Read and comprehend a variety of fiction and nonfiction selections.

WRITING
• Print legibly on lined paper using D’Nealian manuscript writing and demonstrate the correct use of lines
and spaces.
• Begin to use complete sentences to write and communicate ideas.
• Use correct spelling for high frequency words and phonetically regular words.

ORAL COMMUNICATION
• Participate in a variety of oral language activities while expanding listening and speaking vocabularies.
• Actively participate in class discussions and speak comfortably in front of a group.
• Follow rules for conversation, including listening carefully and taking turns talking.

Second Grade

The language arts curriculum emphasizes reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Through the use of children’s literature, students develop comprehension, vocabulary, decoding, and phonics skills. Students
discuss reasons for reading and writing and respond to literature orally and in written form. Our program uses a “writers’ workshop” approach to writing, in which students draft, proofread, peer conference, edit with an adult, and publish writing pieces for presentation to their peers. This process develops a sense of the language of writing and speaking, a sense of literary form, and the ability to make supportive generalizations. Students also develop grammar, punctuation, spelling, and dictionary skills through this process. We work to refine D’Nealian manuscript and introduce D’Nealian cursive. Throughout the year, students research math, science, social studies, and music topics using print and electronic
resources as well as personal interviews. Students then make oral presentations with visual aids to their classmates. Participation as an audience member is a vital part of this process.

Skills that are introduced and developed in second grade encourage the students to:

READING / LITERATURE
• Independently read fiction, non-fiction, and poetry using a variety of strategies.
• Make inferences using information from texts.
• Explain the problem, solution, or central idea of a piece of writing.

WRITING
• Organize writing to include beginning, middle, and end.
• Elaborate on central ideas through the use of descriptive details.
• Revise and edit writing for clarity, grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

ORAL COMMUNICATION
• Use clear and specific vocabulary to communicate ideas.
• Participate as a contributor and leader in a group.
• Give appropriate feedback to the speaker.

Third Grade

The language arts curriculum focuses on reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Increased emphasis is placed on interpretive reading and factual writing composition. Students study novel plots, sequence,
character development, climax, resolution, author’s perspective, and style. The reader begins to develop a silent conversation with the author, noting word usage, vocabulary, and sentence and paragraph construction.
Students develop their skills in reading factual material to answer questions, resolve issues, satisfy curiosity, or feed their appetites for a topic of special interest. Writing composition is developed through the study of students’ reading and by looking at examples of various forms of writing. Students then apply what they have learned to creative writing assignments. They practice writing to convey information about topics in pieces ranging from well-constructed sentences and factual paragraphs to research reports using technology and library resources. Oral presentation is an important part of the third grade program. Students share writing pieces, news articles and book reviews, and reports and projects with their peers. Using good speaking skills and actively participating as an audience member are encouraged.

Skills that are introduced and developed in third grade encourage the students to:

READING / LITERATURE
• Describe how the choice of language, setting, and information contributes to the author’s purpose.
• Paraphrase the content of a selection, identifying important ideas and providing details for each important idea.
• Locate information to support opinions, predictions, and conclusions.

WRITING
• Organize writing to include climactic events, problems and solutions, story structure, and story elements.
• Use varied word choice, voice, and sentence variation.
• Write structured paragraphs, including main ideas, detail sentences, and closing sentences.

ORAL COMMUNICATION
• When giving a report, organize ideas sequentially or around major points of information for clarity.
• Use increasingly complex sentence structures in oral communication.
• Use words that reflect a growing range of interests and knowledge.

back to K-3 Curriculum

Grades 4 and 5

The language arts and social studies programs are taught with a humanities approach. The integration of reading, writing, thinking, speaking, and listening is emphasized. The overall goal is to facilitate the development of thoughtful, sensitive, and creative participants in society who possess a wide range of effective communication skills. In the fourth grade, there is increased movement from the concrete to the more abstract as students become more independent and self-directed, while basic skills continue to be emphasized and refined. In response to the developmental needs of fifth graders, activities are increasingly abstract, challenging students to be independent and self-directed. Across the
grades, students gain a sense of themselves as participants in a world of communication, reaching an audience larger than just the teacher and class through publishing, performance, and public speaking opportunities.

Skills that are introduced and developed in fourth and fifth grade encourage the students to:

READING / LITERATURE
• Further develop understanding and usage of vocabulary.
• Read, respond to, and evaluate a variety of literary forms including fiction, non-fiction, and poetry.
• Make inferences, answer questions, and solve problems using information from various textual sources.
• Identify and use reading comprehension strategies as well as prior knowledge to understand various texts.

WRITING
• Write for a variety of purposes (e.g., to persuade or to describe) and in a variety of forms (e.g., essays or poems).
• Select the style of writing that is appropriate for the specific audience and purpose of the piece.
• Edit and proofread writing for clarity, grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
• Use the steps of the writing process (pre-writing, drafting, editing, and publishing) to successfully convey a central idea.

ORAL COMMUNICATION
• Contribute meaningfully to group discussions.
• Develop oral presentation skills: eye contact, appropriate volume and rate of speech, enunciation, and good posture.
• Ask questions and paraphrase information to check for understanding and further discussion.

LINGUISTIC INQUIRY
• Distinguish between prescriptive and descriptive grammar.
• Formulate and refine hypotheses to account for common linguistic phenomena.
• Develop an appreciation for language diversity.

back to 4-5 Curriculum

Grades 6, 7, and 8

The language arts program is an integration of language skills and literature. At this level a premium is placed on exposure to a variety of types of literature and different modes of writing. Students regularly use journals and writers’ workshop to cultivate pre-writing, writing, and post-writing (editing) skills. They have a degree of choice to harness their own
passions and interests with projects and independent reading. Literature and writing assignments are often quite challenging, but all students receive academic support and personal encouragement to work to the best of their ability. Students write persuasive essays and respond to literature in book and play reviews, as well as classroom discussions. Books, periodicals, literary magazines, videos, music, art, performance, computer technology, guest speakers, and attendance at plays provide a rich matrix for learning.

Skills that are developed in Middle School encourage the students to:

READING / LITERATURE
• Read long and short works of historical and contemporary fiction, expository and persuasive non-fiction, drama, memoir, and
poetry.
• Read works of many periods and cultures. These include plays by Shakespeare, as well as authors such as Dickens,
Emecheta, Shaw, and Baldwin, and areas such as African, Chinese, and African-American literature.
• Analyze the styles, techniques, and purposes of many writers; learn literary terms that facilitate discussion (e.g., exposition,
climax, resolution, characterization, setting, irony, symbolism, and metaphor).
• Employ critical reading strategies such as drawing inferences and using context clues.
• Clearly articulate personal responses to literature.

WRITING
• Write poetry, critical responses to reading, narratives, short persuasive and expository essays.
• Use skills of observation, questioning, definition, patterning, induction, deduction, creativity, and imagination in writing.
• Plan, draft, edit, revise, and publish written work.
• Study the structure of the English language, including parts of speech, phrases, clauses, and types of sentences.
• Use conventions of English punctuation, spelling, and format.
• Employ varied sentence structures and lengths for rhetorical effect.
• Study vocabulary through Wordly Wise, class discussion, and reading.
• Consciously choose specific and vivid language in writing activities, particularly focusing on active verbs.
• Work to include elaboration and complexity in supporting ideas.
• Write informal and formal essays of varying lengths (memoirs, reviews, analytical and persuasive pieces, exposition,
comparison-and-contrast), and fiction, speeches, plays, and poetry.
• Write unified, coherent works, demonstrating a clear point of view.
• Take appropriate and useful notes in own words.
• Learn to use notes and quotations in reports and essays.
• Use bibliography and citation formats when applicable.

ORAL COMMUNICATION
• Participate in a variety of dramatic experiences including class and school presentations, role-playing, and simulation.
• Participate in group discussions, listening attentively and courteously, and sharing a point of view clearly and confidently.
• Speak in public, using appropriate eye contact, posture, vocal variety, volume, and persona for the purpose and audience.
• Interpret literature aloud with clarity and fluency.
• Commit to memory and perform poetry and dramatic dialog.
• Learn interview skills, both as questioner and subject.

back to Middle School Curriculum