Corvian

Community

School

Language Arts

8th Grade Language Arts

At Corvian Community School, we will establish an integrated model where social studies and language arts teachers plan cohesive units that integrate the standards. Our classrooms will be highly integrated with book clubs, research papers, word study, various projects, and opportunities to build a community of readers, writers, speakers and listeners. Students will learn, apply, and synthesize the language arts curriculum goals through the study of world cultures, historical events, and the local and global community. We are committed to involvement in the community, establishing global connections, and gaining respect and understanding for diversity within cultures and communities. Through our cohesive approach to learning we will produce well-rounded students who appreciate and recognize historical perspectives and therefore are able to begin establishing their own individual identity. Students will also experience further curricular integration through grade-level global themes. We will adhere closely to the standards set forth at the national and state level.

Theme for the Year: Connections

Essential Questions:
How can we connect the themes and issues of the past to help us understand our present?
How do we connect with others around us to have a positive impact on our world?
How has technology impacted the interconnectedness of humanity and politics?

In 8th grade, the students will build on the 6th grade theme of Perspective and 7th grade theme of Change, and begin to explore how the modern world is interconnected in terms of humanity, politics, geography and culture.

The Language Arts curriculum will focus on exploring multiple genres of reading and writing, understanding the purpose behind different genres, and beginning to use multiple genres to refine their understanding of critical analysis and argument. They will develop research skills and understand author’s purpose and bias in informational text. The students will also read historical fiction and discuss the connections between history and fictional perspectives of historical events. Students will have opportunities to create multi-genre projects, develop skills in public speaking, and refine their writing skills as they explore topics that correspond to themes in the Social Studies curriculum such as foundations of society and government, and conflict and challenges in society.

Overlying Questions:

How do writers use both fiction and nonfiction texts to reflect the current culture?
How can we use our writing to respond to issues on culture and society?
How can we better understand the interconnectedness of our world through literature?
What does it mean to use inquiry to guide our research?

Major Focus:

Primary/Secondary Sources: text structure, characteristics of informational texts
Research skills: Generating inquiry questions, note taking, summarizing, determining important information, bias, plagiarism, citing sources
Literary Analysis of Narrative Texts and Poetry: author’s craft and style, literary elements, connections between narrative and history, imagery
Argument/Persuasive Writing: social context of argument, evaluating accuracy of claims, understand Ethos, Pathos, Logos in argument
Public Speaking: style and construct of speech versus essay, mood and style, symbolism and imagery
Vocabulary: Greek and Latin roots, prefixes and suffixes, using vocabulary in context, connotation and denotation
Conventions: spelling, grammar and format for specific purposes, subjects and audiences.