Grade 7. English language arts curriculum

Reading

1 read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning;
- 1 read a wide variety of increasingly complex or difficult texts from diverse cultures, including literary texts (e.g., short stories, poetry, novels, mysteries, historical fiction, autobiographies, scripts, lyrics), graphic texts (e.g., graphs and graphic organizers, charts and tables, diagrams, surveys, maps), and informational texts (e.g., print and online encyclopedias, manuals, and magazine and newspaper articles; magazines in their first languages, where appropriate; electronic texts, textbooks, and non-fiction materials; a variety of dictionaries, thesauri, and websites)
- 2 identify a variety of purposes for reading and choose reading materials appropriate for those purposes (e.g., an electronic database listing magazines, newspapers, and journals to verify information; a national, local, or community newspaper for coverage of a specific/current issue; scripts and lyrics for enjoyment, recreation, and interest; an online or print encyclopedia article for background information)
- 3 identify a variety of reading comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after reading to understand increasingly complex texts (e.g., activate prior knowledge on a topic through dialogue and discussion; use visualization and comparisons with images from other media to clarify details of characters, scenes, or concepts; ask questions to monitor understanding; summarize sections of text during reading; synthesize ideas to broaden understanding)
- 4 demonstrate understanding of increasingly complex texts by summarizing important ideas and citing a variety of details that support the main idea (e.g., key information in manuals, surveys, graphs, online and print encyclopedias, websites, tables and charts; theme and related ideas in magazine articles, dramatic monologues, television programs)
- 5 develop and explain interpretations of increasingly complex or difficult texts using stated and implied ideas from the texts to support their interpretations
  - Interpret the meaning of allusions (7-O.2)
  - Interpret figures of speech (7-O.4)
- 6 extend understanding of texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts, by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them (e.g., by comparing their own perspective to those of the characters in a historical novel)
- 7 analyse a variety of texts, both simple and complex, and explain how the different elements in them contribute to meaning and influence the reader’s reaction (e.g., narrative: having ordinary characters caught up in an exciting plot makes the story seem more real; debate: the formal, balanced structure encourages the reader to pay equal attention to both sides of the argument)
- 8 evaluate the effectiveness of both simple and complex texts based on evidence from the texts
- 9 identify the point of view presented in texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts; give evidence of any biases they may contain; and suggest other possible perspectives (e.g., determine whether an author’s choice of voices to include seems justified and suggest how the meaning would change if different voices were chosen)
2 recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning;
- 1 analyse a variety of text forms and explain how their particular characteristics help communicate meaning, with a focus on literary texts such as a novel (e.g., the realistic portrayal of imagined characters and actions helps the reader become involved in the story), graphic texts such as a photo essay (e.g., the pictures and captions together communicate much more than they could separately), and informational texts such as a manual (e.g., the use of headings, numbered steps, and illustrations makes the procedures easy to follow)
- 2 analyse increasingly complex texts to identify organizational patterns used in them and explain how the patterns help communicate meaning (e.g., a question-and-answer format in a report or article; groups and subgroups in a table or web)
- 3 identify a variety of text features and explain how they help communicate meaning (e.g., a task bar, hyperlinks, margin notes, “Works Cited” or “References” lists)
- 4 identify various elements of style – including foreshadowing, metaphor, and symbolism – and explain how they help communicate meaning and enhance the effectiveness of texts (e.g., a metaphor creates vivid, striking pictures in the reader’s mind by suggesting an unexpected analogy between one type of object or idea and a different object or idea: a budding poet)
- 3 use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently;
  - 1 automatically read and understand most words in a wide range of reading contexts (e.g., words from grade-level texts; terminology used in discussions and posted on anchor charts; words from shared-, guided-, and independent-reading texts, electronic texts, and resource materials in the curriculum subject areas)
  - 2 predict the meaning of and rapidly solve unfamiliar words using different types of cues, including:
    - semantic (meaning) cues (e.g., prefixes, suffixes, base words, phrases, sentences, and visuals that activate existing knowledge of oral and written language);
    - syntactic (language structure) cues (e.g., word order, language patterns, punctuation);
    - graphophonic (phonological and graphic) cues (e.g., familiar words within larger words, syllables within longer words, similarities between words with known spelling patterns and unknown words)
    - 3 read appropriate texts with expression and confidence, adjusting reading strategies and reading rate to match the form and purpose (e.g., read in role with suitable emphasis and phrasing to dramatize a text for an audience)
  - 4 reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
    - 1 identify a range of strategies they found helpful before, during, and after reading and explain, in conversation with the teacher and/or peers or in a reader’s notebook, how they can use these and other strategies to improve as readers
    - 2 explain, in conversation with the teacher and/or peers or in a reader’s notebook, how their skills in listening, speaking, writing, viewing, and representing help them make sense of what they read

Writing

1 generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience;
- 1 identify the topic, purpose, and audience for more complex writing forms (e.g., a rap poem or jingle, to express a personal view to the class; a report for a community newspaper about a public meeting on an environmental issue affecting local neighbourhoods; an autobiography for a youth magazine, web page, blog, or zine)
  - Which sentence is more formal? (7-N.1)
- 2 generate ideas about more challenging topics and identify those most appropriate for the purpose
- 3 gather information to support ideas for writing, using a variety of strategies and a wide range of print and electronic resources (e.g., use a timeline to organize research tasks; interview people with knowledge of the topic; identify and use appropriate graphic and multimedia resources; record sources used and information gathered in a form that makes it easy to understand and retrieve)
- 4 sort and classify ideas and information for their writing in a variety of ways that allow them to manipulate information and see different combinations and relationships in their data (e.g., by underlining or highlighting key words or phrases; by using a graphic organizer such as a “Plus/Minus/Interesting” chart)
- 5 identify and order main ideas and supporting details and group them into units that could be used to develop a multi-paragraph piece of writing, using a variety of strategies (e.g., making jot notes; grouping according to key words; making charts; drawing webs) and organizational patterns (e.g., combined/ multiple orders such as comparison and cause and effect)
- 6 determine whether the ideas and information they have gathered are relevant, appropriate, and sufficiently specific for the purpose, and do more research if necessary (e.g., check for errors or omissions in information using a T-chart)
2 draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience;
- 1 write complex texts of different lengths using a wide range of forms (e.g., a description of the procedure for growing rice or coffee; an explanation of multiple ways to solve a mathematical problem or investigation; an argument stating the opposing points of view on a community issue, including the response of each side to the points made by the other side, for a class/school debate, or to report on the debate in a newsletter; a fictional narrative about a historical event to dramatize material studied; a mystery story modelled on the structures and conventions of the genre)
- 2 establish a distinctive voice in their writing appropriate to the subject and audience (e.g., use language that communicates their “stance” or point of view on an issue and identify the words and/or phrases that help them achieve this goal)
- 3 regularly use vivid and/or figurative language and innovative expressions in their writing (e.g., a wide variety of adjectives and adverbs; similes, metaphors, and other rhetorical devices such as exaggeration or personification)
- 4 vary sentence structures to give their writing rhythm and pacing by using a variety of connecting and/or introductory words and phrases (e.g., however, for example, therefore, as a result) to help combine short, simple sentences into longer, more complex sentences
- 5 identify their point of view and other possible points of view, evaluate other points of view, and find ways to acknowledge other points of view, if appropriate
- 6 identify elements in their writing that need improvement, selectively using feedback from the teacher and peers, with a focus on voice, diction, and an effective beginning and ending
  - Positive and negative connotation (7-J.4)
  - Which sentence is more formal? (7-N.1)
- 7 make revisions to improve the content, clarity, and interest of their written work, using a variety of strategies (e.g., use margin notes or sticky notes while rereading to record ideas for additions or changes; add or substitute words and phrases, including vocabulary from other subjects; use rhetorical devices such as understatement to achieve particular effects; adjust sentence length, type, and complexity to suit the audience and purpose; use patterns such as repetition of key phrases for emphasis and to engage the attention of the audience)
- 8 produce revised draft pieces of writing to meet identified criteria based on the expectations (e.g., adequate development of information and ideas, logical organization, appropriate use of form and style, appropriate use of conventions)
- 3 use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively;
  - 1 spell familiar words correctly (e.g., words from their oral vocabulary, anchor charts, and shared-, guided-, and independent-reading texts; words used regularly in instruction across the curriculum)
  - 2 spell unfamiliar words using a variety of strategies that involve understanding sound-symbol relationships, word structures, word meanings, and generalizations about spelling (e.g., write words syllable by syllable; sort words by visual patterns; highlight tricky letters or groups of letters; cluster root words and related forms: beauty, beautiful, beautician; apply knowledge of vowel and consonant patterns and rules for forming possessives, contractions, and plurals)
  - 3 confirm spellings and word meanings or word choice using a variety of resources appropriate for the purpose (e.g., locate syllables, stress patterns, inflected forms, multiple meanings, and information about word origins in online and print dictionaries, including thematic dictionaries such as a medical dictionary, bilingual dictionary, or dictionary of idioms; use a thesaurus to explore alternative word choices)
  - 4 use punctuation appropriately to communicate their intended meaning in more complex writing forms, including forms specific to different subject areas, with a focus on the use of: periods after initials, in abbreviations, and in decimal numbers; parentheses; punctuation to indicate intonation, pauses, or gestures
  - 5 use parts of speech correctly to communicate their meaning clearly, with a focus on the use of: relative pronouns (e.g., who, whose, which, that); prepositions, including prepositional phrases; adjectives; conjunctions; adverbs; present, past, and future verb tenses; present and past participles (e.g., I am reading, I have read)
  - 6 proofread and correct their writing using guidelines developed with peers and the teacher (e.g., an editing checklist specific to the writing task)
  - 7 use a wide range of appropriate elements of effective presentation in the finished product, including print, script, different fonts, graphics, and layout (e.g., use legible printing and cursive writing; supply a timeline; supply captions and text boxes to accompany the photographs in a photo essay; use a bulleted or point-form layout in a summary of key points for a debate)
  - 8 produce pieces of published work to meet identified criteria based on the expectations (e.g., adequacy of information and ideas, logic and effectiveness of organization, effective use of form and stylistic elements, appropriate use of conventions, effective presentation)
- 4 reflect on and identify their strengths as writers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful at different stages in the writing process.
  - 1 identify a variety of strategies they used before, during, and after writing, explain which ones were most helpful, and suggest future steps they can take to improve as writers (e.g., use a three-column reflection journal to monitor the writing process: What I did/What I learned/How I can use it)
  - 2 describe how their skills in listening, speaking, reading, viewing, and representing help in their development as writers
  - 3 select pieces of writing that they think reflect their growth and competence as writers and explain the reasons for their choices