Language
Language
Language
REVISED
Language
2006
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 3
The Importance of Literacy, Language, and the Language Curriculum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Principles Underlying the Language Curriculum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Roles and Responsibilities in Language Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
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22 23 24 26 28 29 30 30 31 31
OVERVIEW OF GRADES 1 TO 3
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OVERVIEW OF GRADES 4 TO 6
77
121
GLOSSARY
151
INTRODUCTION
This document replaces The Ontario Curriculum, Grade 1 8: Language, 1997. Beginning in September 2006, all language programs for Grades 1 to 8 will be based on the expectations outlined in this document.
Literacy development lies at the heart of the Grade 1 8 language curriculum. Literacy learning is a communal project and the teaching of literacy skills is embedded across the curriculum; however, it is the language curriculum that is dedicated to instruction in the areas of knowledge and skills listening and speaking, reading, writing, and viewing and representing on which literacy is based. Language development is central to students intellectual, social, and emotional growth, and must be seen as a key element of the curriculum. When students learn to use language in the elementary grades, they do more than master the basic skills. They learn to value the power of language and to use it responsibly. They learn to express feelings and opinions and, as they mature, to support their opinions with sound arguments and research. They become aware of the many purposes for which language is used and the diverse forms it can take to appropriately serve particular purposes and audiences. They learn to use the formal language appropriate for debates and essays, the narrative language of stories, the figurative language of poetry, the technical language of instructions and manuals. They develop an awareness of how language is used in different formal and informal situations. In sum, they come to appreciate language both as an important medium for communicating ideas and information and as a source of enjoyment. Language is the basis for thinking, communicating, and learning. Students need language skills in order to comprehend ideas and information, to interact socially, to inquire into areas
of interest and study, and to express themselves clearly and demonstrate their learning. Learning to communicate with clarity and precision, orally, in writing, and through a variety of media, will help students to thrive in the world beyond school. Language is a fundamental element of identity and culture. As students read and reflect on a rich variety of literary, informational, and media texts,1 they develop a deeper understanding of themselves and others and of the world around them. If they see themselves and others in the texts they read and the oral and media works they engage in, they are able to feel that the works are genuinely for and about them and they come to appreciate the nature and value of a diverse, multicultural society. They also develop the ability to understand and critically interpret a range of texts and to recognize that a text conveys one particular perspective among many. Language skills are developed across the curriculum and, cumulatively, through the grades. Students use and develop important language skills as they read and think about topics, themes, and issues in various subject areas. Language facility helps students to learn in all subject areas, and using language for a broad range of purposes increases both their ability to communicate with precision and their understanding of how language works. Students develop flexibility and proficiency in their understanding and use of language over time. As they move through the grades, they are required to use language with ever greater accuracy and fluency in an ever-expanding range of situations. They are also expected to assume responsibility for their own learning and to apply their language skills in more challenging and complex ways.
make meaningful connections between themselves, what they encounter in texts, and the world around them; think critically; understand that all texts advance a particular point of view that must be recognized, questioned, assessed, and evaluated; appreciate the cultural impact and aesthetic power of texts; use language to interact and connect with individuals and communities, for personal growth, and for active participation as world citizens. This curriculum organizes the knowledge and skills that students need to become literate in four strands, or broad areas of learning Oral Communication, Reading, Writing, and
1. The word text is used in this document in its broadest sense, as a means of communication that uses words, graphics, sounds, and/or images, in print, oral, visual, or electronic form, to present information and ideas to an audience.
Media Literacy. These areas of learning are closely interrelated, and the knowledge and skills described in the four strands are interdependent and complementary. Teachers are expected to plan activities that blend expectations from the four strands in order to provide students with the kinds of experiences that promote meaningful learning and that help students recognize how literacy skills in the four areas reinforce and strengthen one another. The study of language and the acquisition of literacy skills are not restricted to the language program, and this curriculum promotes the integration of the study of language with the study of other subjects. Examples are used throughout this document that illustrate ways in which teachers can achieve this goal in the classroom. The language curriculum is also based on the understanding that students learn best when they can identify themselves and their own experience in the material they read and study at school. Students in Ontario come from a wide variety of backgrounds, each with his or her own set of perspectives, strengths, and needs. Instructional strategies and resources that recognize and reflect the diversity in the classroom and that suit individual strengths and needs are therefore critical to student success. Reading activities should expose students to materials that reflect the diversity of Canadian and world cultures, including those of Aboriginal peoples. Students need to become familiar with the works of recognized writers from their own and earlier eras. By reading a wide range of materials and being challenged by what they read, students become receptive to new and widely varying ideas and perspectives and develop their ability to think independently and critically. It is also important to give students opportunities to choose what they read and what they write about, in order to encourage the development of their own interests and pursuits. In recent years, research has shown that effective readers and writers unconsciously use a range of skills and strategies as they read and write, and that these strategies and skills can be identified and taught to enable all students to become effective communicators. The language curriculum focuses on comprehension strategies for listening, viewing, and reading; on the most effective reading and writing processes; on skills and techniques for effective oral and written communication and for the creation of effective media texts; and on the language conventions needed for clear and coherent communication. In addition, it emphasizes the use of higher-level thinking skills, including critical literacy skills, to enable students not only to understand, appreciate, and evaluate what they read and view at a deeper level, but also to help them become reflective, critical, and independent learners and, eventually, responsible citizens. In implementing this curriculum, teachers can help students particularly students in Grades 7 and 8 to see that language skills are lifelong learning skills that will enable them to better understand themselves and others, unlock their potential as human beings, find fulfilling careers, and become responsible world citizens.
INTRODUCTION
Parents
Studies show that students perform better in school when their parents2 are involved in their education. Parents who are familiar with the curriculum expectations know what is being taught in each grade and what their child is expected to learn. This information allows parents to understand how their child is progressing in school and to work with teachers to improve their childs learning. Effective ways in which parents can support students learning include: attending parentteacher interviews, participating in parent workshops and school council activities (including becoming a school council member), and encouraging students to complete their assignments at home. In addition to supporting regular school activities, parents may wish to encourage their sons and daughters to take an active interest in using language for meaningful purposes as a regular part of their activities outside school. They might encourage their children to read every day; talk and play together at home; take out a library membership; join a book club, a computer club, a camera club, or a community group; participate in an online pen pal program; or subscribe to an age-appropriate magazine.
Teachers
Teaching is key to student success. Teachers are responsible for developing appropriate instructional strategies to help students achieve the curriculum expectations, and appropriate methods for assessing and evaluating student learning. They bring enthusiasm and varied teaching and assessment approaches to the classroom, addressing individual students needs and ensuring sound learning opportunities for every student.
Using a variety of instructional, assessment, and evaluation strategies, teachers provide numerous opportunities for students to develop the skills and knowledge in reading, writing, listening, speaking, viewing, and representing that will enable them to make meaningful connections between what they already know and what they need to know. They provide students with frequent opportunities to practise and apply new learning and, through regular and varied assessment, give them the specific feedback they need in order to further develop and refine their skills. By assigning tasks that promote the development of higher-order thinking skills, teachers enable students to become thoughtful and effective communicators. In addition, teachers encourage students to think out loud about their own language processes, and support them in developing the language and techniques they need to assess their own learning. Opportunities to relate knowledge and skills in language learning to wider contexts, both across the curriculum and in the world beyond the school, motivate students to learn and to become lifelong learners.
Principals
The principal works in partnership with teachers and parents to ensure that each student
has access to the best possible educational experience. The principal is also a community builder who creates an environment that is welcoming to all, and who ensures that all members of the school community are kept well informed. To support student learning, principals ensure that the Ontario curriculum is being properly implemented in all classrooms through the use of a variety of instructional approaches, and that appropriate resources are made available for teachers and students. To enhance teaching and student learning in all subjects, including language, principals promote learning teams and work with teachers to facilitate teacher participation in professional development activities. Principals are also responsible for ensuring that every student who has an Individual Education Plan (IEP) is receiving the modifications and/or accommodations described in his or her plan in other words, for ensuring that the IEP is properly developed, implemented, and monitored.
Community Partners
Community partners can be an important resource in students language development. They can provide support for students with literacy needs, both in the classroom and as living models of how the curriculum relates to life beyond school. Such modelling and mentoring can enrich not only the educational experience of students but also the life of the community. Schools and school boards can play a role by coordinating efforts with community partners. They can involve community volunteers in supporting language instruction and in promoting a focus on literacy in and outside the school. Community partners can be included in literacy events held in the school, and school boards can collaborate with leaders of existing community-based literacy programs for youth, including programs offered in public libraries and community centres.
INTRODUCTION
the requirements outlined in the expectations are implemented in the classroom, they must, wherever possible, be inclusive and reflect the diversity of the student population and the population of the province.
Oral Communication
Oral communication skills are fundamental to the development of literacy and essential for thinking and learning. Through talk, students not only communicate information but also explore and come to understand ideas and concepts; identify and solve problems; organize their experience and knowledge; and express and clarify their thoughts, feelings, and opinions. Listening and speaking skills are essential for social interaction at home, at school, and in the community. To develop their oral communication skills, students need numerous opportunities to listen and to talk about a range of subjects, including personal interests, school work, and current affairs. The language program should provide opportunities for students to engage in various oral activities in connection with expectations in all the strands, such as brainstorming to identify what they know about the topic of a new text they are about to read, discussing strategies for solving a problem in a writing assignment, presenting and defending ideas or debating issues, and offering critiques of work produced by their peers. In order for all students to benefit from the opportunities provided for listening and speaking, differences in the norms and conventions associated with oral communication in different cultures must be taken into account. Although children normally start to develop oral language skills before they learn to read and write, the development of reading and writing skills can enhance their ability to use and understand oral language clearly, accurately, and critically. The Oral Communication strand has three overall expectations, as follows: Students will: 1. listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes; 2. use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes;
THE PROGRAM IN LANGUAGE EDUCATION
3. reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations. This strand focuses on the identification and development of the skills and strategies effective listeners and speakers use to understand and interact with others. It also emphasizes the use of higher-order thinking skills to stimulate students interest and engage them in their own learning.
Reading
The Ontario curriculum focuses on developing the knowledge and skills that will enable students to become effective readers. An effective reader is one who not only grasps the ideas communicated in a text but is able to apply them in new contexts. To do this, the reader must be able to think clearly, creatively, and critically about the ideas and information encountered in texts in order to understand, analyse, and absorb them and to recognize their relevance in other contexts. Students can develop the skills necessary to become effective readers by applying a range of comprehension strategies as they read and by reading a wide variety of texts. It is also important that they read a range of materials that illustrate the many uses of writing. By reading widely, students will develop a richer vocabulary and become more attuned to the conventions of written language. Reading various kinds of texts in all areas of the curriculum will also help students to discover what interests them most and to pursue and develop their interests and abilities. As students develop their reading skills, it is important that they have many opportunities to read for a variety of purposes. A well-balanced reading program will provide students with opportunities to read for the pleasure of discovering interesting information as well as for the pleasure of self-discovery, for self-enrichment, and for the sheer fun of it. Such reading activities are particularly important in the elementary grades, when attitudes towards reading and reading habits are first being formed. Reading experiences that invite students to discover new worlds and new experiences and to develop their imaginative powers will go a long way towards convincing them that reading can be a rich source of pleasure and knowledge. Such experiences are likely to lead to a love of reading, which is among the most valuable resources students can take with them into adult life. Reading is a complex process that involves the application of many strategies before, during, and after reading. For example, before reading, students might prepare by identifying the purpose of the reading activity and by activating their prior knowledge about the topic of the text. Teachers help build the necessary background knowledge for students whose life experiences may not have provided them with the information they need to understand the text. During reading, students may use cueing systems that is, clues from context or from their understanding of language structures and/or letter-sound relationships to help them solve unfamiliar words, and comprehension strategies to help them make meaning of the text. Comprehension strategies include predicting, visualizing, questioning, drawing inferences, identifying main ideas, summarizing, and monitoring and revising comprehension. After reading, students may analyse, synthesize, make connections, evaluate, and use other critical and creative thinking skills to achieve a deeper understanding of the material they have read. It is important to note that although the specific expectations for each grade may focus on particular strategies that emphasize grade-appropriate skills, they do not impose a restriction on the range of strategies students will apply in that grade. Teachers must use their professional judgement in deciding which comprehension strategies to model and teach, based on the identified learning
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needs of the students in their classrooms and on the nature of the particular texts students are reading. To become fluent, independent readers, students need to read frequently and develop the skills used in reading for a variety of different purposes to follow directions, to get advice, to locate information, for enjoyment, for practice, to build vocabulary, to satisfy curiosity, for research, or for personal interest. The purpose for reading will be determined by the teacher in some cases and by the student in others. The reading program should include a wide variety of literary, informational, and graphic texts for example, picture books and novels; poetry; myths, fables, and folk tales; textbooks and books on topics in science, history, mathematics, geography, and other subjects; biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, and journals; plays and radio, film, or television scripts; encyclopaedia entries; graphs, charts, and diagrams in textbooks or magazine articles; recipes, instructions, and manuals; graphic novels, comic books, cartoons, and baseball cards; newspaper articles and editorials; and essays and reports. Teachers routinely use materials that reflect the diversity of Canadian and world cultures, including the cultures of Aboriginal peoples, and make those resources available to students. Within each grade and from one grade to another, students should be assigned texts of increasing complexity as they develop their reading skills, and should also have many opportunities to select their own reading materials. Frequent exposure to good writing will inspire students to work towards high standards in their own writing and will help them develop an appreciation for the power and beauty of the written word. The Reading strand has four overall expectations, as follows: Students will: 1. read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning; 2. recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning; 3. use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently; 4. reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading. This strand helps students learn to read with understanding, to read critically, to become familiar with various text forms and their characteristic elements, and to recognize the function and effects of various text features and stylistic devices. It helps students understand that reading is a process of constructing meaning and equips them with the strategies that good readers use to understand and appreciate what they read.
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Writing
Writing provides students with powerful opportunities to learn about themselves and their connections to the world. Through writing, students organize their thoughts, remember important information, solve problems, reflect on a widening range of perspectives, and learn how to communicate effectively for specific purposes and audiences. They find their voice and have opportunities to explore other voices. By putting their thoughts into words and supporting the words with visual images in a range of media, students acquire knowledge and deepen their understanding of the content in all school subjects. Writing also helps students to better understand their own thoughts and feelings and the events in their lives.
Literacy for Learning: The Report of the Expert Panel on Literacy in Grades 4 to 6 in Ontario, 2004, p. 79
Writing is a complex process that involves a range of skills and tasks. Students need to become disciplined thinkers in order to communicate their ideas clearly and effectively. Conversely, they need numerous opportunities to write, as the process of writing enables them to clarify their thinking and sort out and express their thoughts and feelings. As they learn to select and organize their ideas, they must also keep in mind the purpose for which they are writing and the audience they are addressing. To communicate clearly and effectively, they need to learn to use standard written forms and language conventions. However, learning to write as clearly, correctly, and precisely as possible is only part of the goal of writing instruction for students. Students should be given the kinds of assignments that provide opportunities to produce writing that is interesting and original and that reflects their capacity for independent critical thought. Writing activities that students see as meaningful and that challenge them to think creatively about topics and concerns of interest to them will lead to a fuller and more lasting command of the essential skills of writing. Writing competence develops hand in hand with skills in other areas of language, especially reading. In many ways, the development of writing and reading skills is reciprocal. As students read a variety of inclusive texts, they build and develop a command of their vocabulary, and learn to vary and adapt their sentence structure, organizational approach, and voice to suit their purpose for writing. To become good writers who are able to communicate ideas with ease and clarity, students need frequent opportunities to write for various purposes and audiences and to master the skills involved in the various tasks associated with the writing process. The more students read and write, the more likely they will be to develop an essential understanding of the power of the written word.
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 18 | Language
The Writing strand has four overall expectations, as follows; Students will: 1. generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience; 2. draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience; 3. use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively; 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.
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The overall expectations focus on the elements of effective writing (ideas/content, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, language conventions, and presentation) and on the stages of the recursive writing process (planning for writing, drafting, revising, editing and proofreading, and publishing). The specific expectations identify writing forms and language conventions that are appropriate for instruction in the given grade. The forms and conventions identified are not, however, the only ones that may be taught in that grade, nor are they exclusive to that grade. Teachers will continue to make professional decisions about which writing forms and language conventions they will cover in every grade, based on the identified learning needs of the students in their classrooms.
Media Literacy
Media literacy is the result of study of the art and messaging of various forms of media texts. Media texts can be understood to include any work, object, or event that communicates meaning to an audience. Most media texts use words, graphics, sounds, and/or images, in print, oral, visual, or electronic form, to communicate information and ideas to their audience. Whereas traditional literacy may be seen to focus primarily on the understanding of the word, media literacy focuses on the construction of meaning through the combination of several media languages images, sounds, graphics, and words. Media literacy explores the impact and influence of mass media and popular culture by examining texts such as films, songs, video games, action figures, advertisements, CD covers, clothing, billboards, television shows, magazines, newspapers, photographs, and websites.3 These texts abound in our electronic information age, and the messages they convey, both overt and implied, can have a significant influence on students lives. For this reason, critical thinking as it applies to media products and messages assumes a special significance. Understanding how media texts are constructed and why they are produced enables students to respond to them intelligently and responsibly. Students must be able to differentiate between fact and opinion; evaluate the credibility of sources; recognize bias; be attuned to discriminatory portrayals of individuals and groups, including women and minorities; and question depictions of violence and crime. Students repertoire of communication skills should include the ability to critically interpret the messages they receive through the various media and to use these media to communicate their own ideas effectively as well. Skills related to high-tech media such as the Internet, film, and television are particularly important because of the power and pervasive influence these media wield in our lives and in society. Becoming conversant with these and other media can greatly expand the range of information sources available to students, their expressive and communicative capabilities, and their career opportunities. To develop their media literacy skills, students should have opportunities to view, analyse, and discuss a wide variety of media texts and relate them to their own experience. They should also have opportunities to use available technologies to create media texts of different types (e.g., computer graphics, cartoons, graphic designs and layouts, radio plays, short videos, web pages).
3. Teachers should make students aware that images, print materials, music, or video clips used in connection with tasks and assignments may be subject to copyright, and the appropriate releases should be obtained prior to use. This applies to items downloaded from the Internet as well.
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The Media Literacy strand has four overall expectations, as follows; Students will: 1. demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts; 2. identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning; 3. create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques; 4. reflect on and identify their strengths, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts. This strand focuses on helping students develop the skills required to understand, create, and critically interpret media texts. It examines how images (both moving and still), sound, and words are used, independently and in combination, to create meaning. It explores the use and significance of particular conventions and techniques in the media and considers the roles of the viewer and the producer in constructing meaning in media texts. Students apply the knowledge and skills gained through analysis of media texts as they create their own texts. The specific expectations identify media forms and conventions that are appropriate for instruction in the given grade. These are not, however, the only forms and conventions that students may explore in that grade, nor are they exclusive to that grade. Teachers will continue to use their professional judgement to decide on the forms and conventions to examine in every grade, based on the identified learning needs of the students in their classrooms.
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are fair to all students; accommodate students with special education needs, consistent with the strategies outlined in their Individual Education Plan; accommodate the needs of students who are learning the language of instruction; ensure that each student is given clear directions for improvement; promote students ability to assess their own learning and to set specific goals; include the use of samples of students work that provide evidence of their achievement; are communicated clearly to students and parents at the beginning of the school year and at other appropriate points throughout the school year. All curriculum expectations must be accounted for in instruction, but evaluation focuses on students achievement of the overall expectations. A students achievement of the overall expectations is evaluated on the basis of his or her achievement of related specific expectations. The overall expectations are broad in nature, and the specific expectations define the particular content or scope of the knowledge and skills referred to in the overall expectations. Teachers will use their professional judgement to determine which specific expectations should be used to evaluate achievement of the overall expectations, and which ones will be covered in instruction and assessment (e.g., through direct observation) but not necessarily evaluated. The characteristics given in the achievement chart (pages 2021) for level 3 represent the provincial standard for achievement of the expectations. A complete picture of achievement at level 3 in language can be constructed by reading from top to bottom in the shaded column of the achievement chart, headed Level 3. Parents of students achieving at level 3 can be confident that their children will be prepared for work in the next grade. Level 1 identifies achievement that falls much below the provincial standard, while still reflecting a passing grade. Level 2 identifies achievement that approaches the standard. Level 4 identifies achievement that surpasses the standard. It should be noted that achievement at level 4 does not mean that the student has achieved expectations beyond those specified for a particular grade. It indicates that the student has achieved all or almost all of the expectations for that grade, and that he or she demonstrates the ability to use the knowledge and skills specified for that grade in more sophisticated ways than a student achieving at level 3.
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 18 | Language
The Ministry of Education has provided teachers with materials that will assist them in improving their assessment methods and strategies and, hence, their assessment of student achievement. These materials include samples of student work (exemplars) that illustrate achievement at each of the four levels. (Adaptations can be made in the exemplar documents to align them with the revised curriculum.)
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Criteria
Within each category in the achievement chart, criteria are provided, which are subsets of the knowledge and skills that define each category. The criteria for each category are listed below:
Knowledge and Understanding knowledge of content (e.g., forms of text; strategies associated with reading, writing, speaking, and listening; elements of style; terminology; conventions)
understanding of content (e.g., concepts; ideas; opinions; relationships among facts, ideas, concepts, themes)
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Thinking use of planning skills (e.g., generating ideas, gathering information, focusing research, organizing information)
use of processing skills (e.g., making inferences, interpreting, analysing, detecting bias, synthesizing, evaluating, forming conclusions) use of critical/creative thinking processes (e.g., reading process, writing process, oral discourse, research, critical/creative analysis, critical literacy, metacognition, invention)
Communication expression and organization of ideas and information (e.g., clear expression, logical organization) in oral, visual, and written forms, including media forms
communication for different audiences and purposes (e.g., use of appropriate style, voice, point of view, tone) in oral, visual, and written forms, including media forms use of conventions (e.g., grammar, spelling, punctuation, usage), vocabulary, and terminology of the discipline in oral, visual, and written forms, including media forms
Application application of knowledge and skills (e.g., concepts, strategies, processes) in familiar contexts
transfer of knowledge and skills (e.g., concepts, strategies, processes) to new contexts making connections within and between various contexts (e.g., between the text and personal knowledge or experience, other texts, and the world outside the school; between disciplines)
Descriptors
A descriptor indicates the characteristic of the students performance, with respect to a particular criterion, on which assessment or evaluation is focused. In the achievement chart, effectiveness is the descriptor used for each criterion in the Thinking, Communication, and Application categories. What constitutes effectiveness in any given performance task will vary with the particular criterion being considered. Assessment of effectiveness may therefore focus on a quality such as appropriateness, clarity, accuracy, precision, logic, relevance, significance, fluency, flexibility, depth, or breadth, as appropriate for the particular criterion. For example, in the Thinking category, assessment of effectiveness might focus on the degree of relevance or depth apparent in an analysis; in the Communication category, on clarity of expression or logical organization of information and ideas; or in the Application category, on appropriateness or breadth in the making of connections. Similarly, in the Knowledge and Understanding category, assessment of knowledge might focus on accuracy, and assessment of understanding might focus on the depth of an explanation. Descriptors help teachers to focus their assessment and evaluation on specific knowledge and skills for each category and criterion, and help students to better understand exactly what is being assessed and evaluated.
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Qualifiers
A specific qualifier is used to define each of the four levels of achievement that is, limited for level 1, some for level 2, considerable for level 3, and a high degree or thorough for level 4. A qualifier is used along with a descriptor to produce a description of performance at a particular level. For example, the description of a students performance at level 3 with respect to the first criterion in the Thinking category would be: The student uses planning skills with considerable effectiveness. The descriptions of the levels of achievement given in the chart should be used to identify the level at which the student has achieved the expectations. Students should be provided with numerous and varied opportunities to demonstrate the full extent of their achievement of the curriculum expectations, across all four categories of knowledge and skills.
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Thinking The use of critical and creative thinking skills and/or processes
The student: Use of planning skills (e.g., generating ideas, gathering information, focusing research, organizing information) Use of processing skills (e.g., making inferences, interpreting, analysing, detecting bias, synthesizing, evaluating, forming conclusions) Use of critical/creative thinking processes (e.g., reading process, writing process, oral discourse, research, critical/creative analysis, critical literacy, metacognition, invention) uses planning skills with limited effectiveness uses planning skills with some effectiveness uses planning skills with considerable effectiveness uses planning skills with a high degree of effectiveness
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Categories
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
uses conventions, vocabulary, and terminology of the discipline with limited effectiveness
uses conventions, vocabulary, and terminology of the discipline with some effectiveness
uses conventions, vocabulary, and terminology of the discipline with considerable effectiveness
Application The use of knowledge and skills to make connections within and between various contexts
The student: Application of knowledge and skills (e.g., concepts, strategies, processes) in familiar contexts applies knowledge and skills in familiar contexts with limited effectiveness applies knowledge and skills in familiar contexts with some effectiveness applies knowledge and skills in familiar contexts with considerable effectiveness transfers knowledge and skills to new contexts with considerable effectiveness makes connections within and between various contexts with considerable effectiveness applies knowledge and skills in familiar contexts with a high degree of effectiveness transfers knowledge and skills to new contexts with a high degree of effectiveness makes connections within and between various contexts with a high degree of effectiveness
Transfer of knowledge and skills (e.g., concepts, strategies, processes) to new contexts
transfers knowledge and skills to new contexts with limited effectiveness makes connections within and between various contexts with limited effectiveness
transfers knowledge and skills to new contexts with some effectiveness makes connections within and between various contexts with some effectiveness
Making connections within and between various contexts (e.g., between the text and personal knowledge or experience, other texts, and the world outside the school; between disciplines)
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INSTRUCTIONAL APPROACHES
High-quality instruction is a key to student success in mastering language skills. It is based on the belief that all students can be successful language learners. Teachers who provide quality instruction respect students strengths and identify their learning needs, using assessment information to plan instruction. They clarify the purpose for learning, help students activate prior knowledge, scaffold instruction, and differentiate instruction for individual students and small groups according to need. Teachers explicitly teach and model learning strategies and encourage students to talk through their thinking and
learning processes. They also provide many opportunities for students to practise and apply their developing knowledge and skills. Effective teaching approaches involve students in the use of higher-level thinking skills and encourage them to look beyond the literal meaning of texts and to think about fairness, equity, social justice, and citizenship in a global society. Motivating students and instilling positive habits of mind, such as a willingness and determination to persist, to think and communicate with clarity and precision, to take responsible risks, and to question and pose problems, are integral parts of high-quality language instruction. Teaching approaches should be informed by the findings of current research into best practices in literacy instruction, as described in the Expert Panel reports on literacy instruction in Ontario (see the list of resources on the preceding page). Instruction should include a balance of direct, explicit instruction; teacher modelling; shared and guided instruction; and opportunities for students to rehearse, practise, and apply skills and strategies and make choices. Whenever possible, students should be given opportunities to experience reading and writing, listening and speaking, and viewing and representing as interconnected processes requiring a set of skills and strategies that cannot be separated and that build on and reinforce one another. Students can monitor this interconnectedness by asking themselves questions such as How does my skill as a reader make me a better writer?, How does my skill as a writer make me a more effective speaker?, and How does my ability to listen critically help me as a writer?.
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One example would be a unit linking expectations from the science and technology curriculum and the language curriculum. Every strand in each of Grades 1 to 8 in the science and technology curriculum has a set of specific expectations under the heading Developing Skills of Inquiry, Design, and Communication. These expectations mirror many of the expectations in the Oral Communication, Writing, and Media Literacy strands in the language document. The science and technology expectations focus on tasks such as using appropriate vocabulary, designing graphic texts, and communicating results through oral and written descriptions. There is, therefore, a good fit between the expectations in the two disciplines, affording an opportunity for developing integrated units. Expectations from the arts curriculum can also be linked with language expectations to create integrated units. The arts curriculum provides students with rich opportunities to engage in auditory, visual, and kinaesthetic experiences that would also support learning required in expectations in all four strands of the language curriculum. For example, roleplaying, a key component of the Drama and Dance curriculum, can be used to enhance students understanding as they learn to communicate their thoughts, feelings, and ideas; identify and present a variety of points of view; or explore new interpretations of texts. Similarly, students can create drawings or devise dramatic scenes as they rehearse, evaluate, and revise ideas before writing. Conversely, students can use language to respond critically and creatively to music or works of art.
is premised on the belief that all students can succeed; incorporates evidence-based best practices for effective instruction; involves a support team for the classroom teacher that includes the principal, other teachers, and professional resources (families and community agencies should be active contributors); incorporates universal design; involves differentiated instruction. In any given classroom, students may demonstrate a wide range of learning styles and needs. Teachers plan programs that recognize this diversity and give students tasks that respect their particular abilities so that all students can derive the greatest benefits possible from the teaching and learning process. The use of flexible groupings for instruction
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and the provision of ongoing assessment are important elements of programs that accommodate a diversity of learning needs. In planning language programs for students with special education needs, teachers should begin by examining both the curriculum expectations for the appropriate grade level and the needs of the individual student to determine which of the following options is appropriate for the student: no accommodations 4 or modifications; or accommodations only; or modified expectations, with the possibility of accommodations. If the student requires either accommodations or modified expectations, or both, the relevant information, as described in the following paragraphs, must be recorded in his or her Individual Education Plan (IEP). For a detailed discussion of the ministrys requirements for IEPs, see Individual Education Plans: Standards for Development, Program Planning, and Implementation, 2000 (referred to hereafter as IEP Standards, 2000 ). More detailed information about planning programs for exceptional students can be found in The Individual Education Plan (IEP): A Resource Guide, 2004 (referred to hereafter as the IEP Resource Guide, 2004). (Both documents are available at www.edu.gov.on.ca.)
4. Accommodations refers to individualized teaching and assessment strategies, human supports, and/ or individualized equipment.
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develop knowledge and skills in all four strands of the language curriculum. Modified expectations must represent specific, realistic, observable, and measurable achievements and must describe specific knowledge and/or skills that the student can demonstrate independently, given the appropriate assessment accommodations. They should be expressed in such a way that the student and parents can understand exactly what the student is expected to know or be able to do, on the basis of which his or her performance will be evaluated and a grade or mark recorded on the Provincial Report Card. The grade level of the learning expectations must be identified in the students IEP. The students learning expectations must be reviewed in relation to the students progress at least once every reporting period, and must be updated as necessary (IEP Standards, 2000, page 11). If a student requires modified expectations in language, assessment and evaluation of his or her achievement will be based on the learning expectations identified in the IEP and on the achievement levels outlined in this document. On the Provincial Report Card, the IEP box must be checked for any subject in which the student requires modified expectations, and the appropriate statement from the Guide to the Provincial Report Card, Grades 1 8, 1998 (page 8) must be inserted. The teachers comments should include relevant information on the students demonstrated learning of the modified expectations, as well as next steps for the students learning in the subject.
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for language and literacy development in English. It is also important for teachers to find opportunities to bring students languages into the classroom, using parents and community members as a resource. During their first few years in Ontario schools, English language learners may receive support through one of two distinct programs from teachers who specialize in meeting their language-learning needs: English As a Second Language (ESL) programs are for students born in Canada or newcomers whose first language is a language other than English, or is a variety of English significantly different from that used for instruction in Ontario schools. English Literacy Development (ELD) programs are primarily for newcomers whose first language is a language other than English, or is a variety of English significantly different from that used for instruction in Ontario schools, and who arrive with significant gaps in their education. These children generally come from countries where access to education is limited or where there are limited opportunities to develop language and literacy skills in any language. Some Aboriginal students from remote communities in Ontario may also have had limited opportunities for formal schooling, and they also may benefit from ELD instruction. In planning programs for children with linguistic backgrounds other than English, teachers need to recognize the importance of the orientation process, understanding that every learner needs to adjust to the new social environment and language in a unique way and at an individual pace. For example, children who are in an early stage of English-language acquisition may go through a silent period during which they closely observe the interactions and physical surroundings of their new learning environment. They may use body language rather than speech or they may use their first language until they have gained enough proficiency in English to feel confident of their interpretations and responses. Students thrive in a safe, supportive, and welcoming environment that nurtures their self-confidence while they are receiving focused literacy instruction. When they are ready to participate, in paired, small-group, or whole-class activities, some students will begin by using a single word or phrase to communicate a thought, while others will speak quite fluently. With exposure to the English language in a supportive learning environment, most young children will develop oral fluency quite quickly, making connections between concepts and skills acquired in their first language and similar concepts and skills presented in English. However, oral fluency is not a good indicator of a students knowledge of vocabulary or sentence structure, reading comprehension, or other aspects of language proficiency that play an important role in literacy development and academic success. Research has shown that it takes five to seven years for most English language learners to catch up to their English-speaking peers in their ability to use English for academic purposes. Moreover, the older the children are when they arrive, the greater the language knowledge and skills that they have to catch up on, and the more direct support they require from their teachers. Responsibility for students English-language development is shared by the classroom teacher, the ESL/ELD teacher (where available), and other school staff. Volunteers and peers may also be helpful in supporting English language learners in the language
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classroom. Teachers must adapt the instructional program in order to facilitate the success of these students in their classrooms. Appropriate adaptations include: modification of some or all of the subject expectations so that they are challenging but attainable for the learner at his or her present level of English proficiency, given the necessary support from the teacher; use of a variety of instructional strategies (e.g., extensive use of visual cues, graphic organizers, scaffolding; previewing of textbooks, pre-teaching of key vocabulary; peer tutoring; strategic use of students first languages); use of a variety of learning resources (e.g., visual material, simplified text, bilingual dictionaries, and materials that reflect cultural diversity); use of assessment accommodations (e.g., granting of extra time; use of oral interviews, demonstrations or visual representations, or tasks requiring completion of graphic organizers or cloze sentences instead of essay questions and other assessment tasks that depend heavily on proficiency in English). While the degree of program adaptation required will decrease over time, students who are no longer receiving ESL or ELD support may still need some program adaptations to be successful. If a students program has been adapted, a checkmark must be placed in the ESL/ELD box on the students report card. If the student requires modified expectations, the appropriate statement from the Guide to the Provincial Report Card, Grades 1 8, 1998 (page 8) must be inserted. For further information on supporting English-language learners, refer to The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 18: English As a Second Language and English Literacy Development A Resource Guide, 2001 and the resource guide Many Roots, Many Voices: Supporting English Language Learners in Every Classroom (Ministry of Education, 2005).
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fairytales, and legends from a variety of cultures may be explored. In later years, stories, novels, informational texts, and media works relating to the immigrant experience provide rich thematic material for study. Storybooks, novels, magazine and newspaper articles, television programs, and films all provide opportunities for students to explore issues of culture and diverse identities. Resources should also be chosen on the basis of their appeal for both girls and boys in the classroom. Recent research has shown that many boys are interested in informational materials, such as manuals and graphic texts, as opposed to works of literature, which are often more appealing to girls. Both sexes read Internet materials, such as website articles, e-mail, and chat messages, outside the classroom. Me Read? No Way! A Practical Guide to Improving Boys Literacy Skills (available on the Ministry of Education website) provides a number of useful literacy strategies that focus on engaging boys in reading and writing. They also represent practices that enhance the learning environment for both girls and boys. Critical thinking skills include the ability to identify perspectives, values, and issues; detect bias; and read for implicit as well as explicit meaning. In the context of antidiscrimination, critical literacy involves asking questions and challenging the status quo, and leads students to look at issues of power and justice in society. The language program empowers students by enabling them to express themselves and to speak out about issues that strongly affect them. In the language program, students develop the ability to detect negative bias and stereotypes in literary texts and informational materials; they also learn to use inclusive and non-discriminatory language in both oral and written work. In addition, in the context of the language program, both students and teachers should become aware of aspects of intercultural communication for example, by exploring how different cultures interpret the use of eye contact and body language in conversation and during presentations.
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OVERVIEW OF GRADES 1 TO 3
The expectations for Grades 1 to 3 focus on the foundational knowledge and skills that students need in order to establish a strong basis for language development. These include students oral language, prior knowledge and experience, understanding of concepts about print, phonemic awareness, understanding of letter-sound relationships, vocabulary knowledge, semantic and syntactic awareness, higher-order thinking skills, and capacity for metacognition. Most of what primary students know about language comes from listening and speaking with others, being read to by adults, and interacting with media texts such as advertisements, television programs, video games, songs, photographs, and films. The expectations for language build upon the prior knowledge and experience that students bring to Ontario classrooms from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Because this base of knowledge, experience, and skills varies from student to student, it is important for instruction to be differentiated to meet the needs of individuals and small groups of students. Students listen and speak for different purposes, both formal and informal. They develop an understanding of appropriate listening and speaking behaviours and identify strategies they can use to understand what they hear and clearly communicate what they want to say. With support and direction from the teacher, primary students use oral language to talk about their learning as readers and writers and as viewers and producers of oral, print, and media texts. The expectations in oral communication provide a bridge to the interconnected knowledge, skills, and strategies that primary students will use to read, write, view, and represent. Real, purposeful talk is not only an essential component of the language curriculum; it needs to be threaded throughout every day and across the curriculum. In all four strands, teachers explicitly teach and model the use of the knowledge, skills, and strategies most relevant to the particular strand. Explicit teaching and modelling help primary students to identify the skills and strategies they need in order to become proficient language users and move towards achievement of the expectations. Initially, students engage in rehearsal through shared and guided practice; eventually, they demonstrate independently their achievement of the learning expectations through multiple, diverse learning opportunities and activities. Appropriate instructional texts are central to students development of the knowledge, skills, and strategies embedded in the expectations across the language strands. Oral, print, and media texts that are designed to support and challenge students at their individual level of language development will enhance the benefits of appropriately scaffolded instruction. It is important to ensure that, in addition to the materials provided for
instruction, students are able to choose from a wide range of texts that are engaging and relevant to their personal interests as readers, writers, and viewers. All texts chosen for instruction should be worthy of study, and promote antidiscriminatory education. Grade 1 students should have access to oral, print, and media texts with familiar topics and structures. Oral texts such as songs, poems, teacher read-alouds or simple readers theatre, large- and small-group discussions, and one-on-one conversations; print texts such as environmental print, simple fiction and non-fiction, picture books, and books in their first language; and media texts such as a soundtrack for a story, posters or signs, photographs or collages, cartoons, movies, and television shows provide a variety of sources to motivate and engage diverse groups of students. To facilitate the development of early reading and writing behaviours and concepts, print texts for guided instruction and independent reading will initially need to have many high-frequency words, illustrations that provide direct support for meaning and word solving, and language structures that are simple and natural. Eventually, Grade 1 students will encounter texts of greater length with somewhat more challenging ideas and vocabulary, somewhat more literary language, and low to moderate support from the illustrations. Modelled, shared, interactive, and guided learning experiences provide Grade 1 students with direction and support in producing oral, written, and media texts for a few different purposes. Through these experiences and their growing familiarity with texts such as simple recounts, stories, procedures, and environmental print they develop an understanding of the vocabulary and structure of a few oral text forms; of sound/symbol relationships, letter formation, and language structure; and of the communicative possibilities of images and sounds. Students also benefit from daily opportunities for independent practice in applying their speaking, writing, and media production knowledge and skills for personally meaningful purposes. Through these supported and independent experiences students learn to construct words and sentences and to combine words, images, and sounds to express personal thoughts and feelings and communicate ideas and information in a number of oral, written, and media forms. Grade 2 students should have access to oral, print, and media texts that provide opportunities to extend their life experiences by exploring less familiar topics. Oral texts such as poems, teacher read-alouds on new topics, readers theatre, presentations or talks by guest speakers, large- and small-group discussions, and one-on-one conversations; print texts such as stories, folk tales or fairy tales from other cultures, picture books, early chapter or series books, non-fiction books on topics of personal interest, nature or science magazines, and books from home; and media texts such as digital images, recorded music, soundtracks, television commercials, and films provide a variety of sources to motivate and engage diverse groups of students. Print texts for guided instruction and independent reading should include an expanded vocabulary, more difficult ideas and language structures, and illustrations that extend the text and support interpretation. Grade 2 students need to be able to sustain their interest in and make meaning from longer texts, such as longer picture books and chapter books that include chapter titles, a few illustrations, somewhat more sophisticated plots, and multiple characters and events. Modelled, shared, interactive, and guided learning experiences provide Grade 2 students with direction and support in creating oral, written, and media texts. They also benefit from daily opportunities for independent practice in applying their speaking, writing, and media production skills for personally meaningful purposes and audiences. Grade 2 students
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OVERVIEW OF GRADES 1 TO 3
speak more confidently and fluently, and their expanded oral vocabulary helps them choose effective words for their written and media texts. Their developing ability to use familiar spelling patterns and combine or sequence sentences helps them refine their ability to write words, sentences, and simple paragraphs. Their experience with a broader range of texts such as friendly letters, stories, factual recounts, folk tales, directions, posters, plays, films, and television shows enables them to use a greater variety of forms to express thoughts and feelings and communicate ideas and information. Grade 3 students should have access to oral, print, and media texts that require more background knowledge, that allow them to explore new ideas and information and more complex and technical topics, and that may require more interpretation and inference. Oral texts such as plays, presentations, large- and small-group discussions, peer conferences, and oral story telling; print texts such as adventure stories, chapter books, fables, instructions, letters, and longer picture books; and media texts such as magazines, video clips, comic strips, maps, storyboards, and photographs provide a variety of sources to motivate and engage diverse groups of students. Appropriate print texts for guided instruction and independent reading would include vocabulary that is specific to content; more symbolic or abstract themes; complex sentences with many multisyllabic and technical words; and a variety of organizational features such as tables of contents, glossaries, indexes, diagrams, and chapter titles. Grade 3 readers will need to develop the ability to retain and recall information to support comprehension of the text over several days. Modelled, shared, and guided learning experiences and daily opportunities for independent practice provide Grade 3 students with the scaffolding they need to develop independence in creating oral, written, and media texts. Grade 3 students use their speaking skills to communicate increasingly complex ideas and information in both formal and informal contexts. As writers, they understand the stages of the writing process and use this process independently to produce finished pieces of writing. With help from peer and teacher conferences, they practise generating ideas; composing draft texts; and revising, editing, and publishing their writing. Students experiences with a broad range of oral, print, and media texts such as oral reports, personal and factual recounts, descriptive and explanatory paragraphs, a letter expressing a personal opinion, familiar stories or fables seen from a new perspective, a script for a play, or a brochure enable them to select appropriate forms and extend their ability to express thoughts and feelings and communicate ideas and information fluently and effectively for purposes they see as meaningful.
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 18 | Language
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GRADE 1
GRADE 1
1. 2. 3.
listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes; use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes; reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Listening to Understand
By the end of Grade 1, students will: about what known words might be related to the topic; ask questions to check understanding during and after listening; create mental pictures while listening to a readaloud and draw or talk about what they visualized; retell the important information presented in a class discussion or a think-pair-share activity)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 use stated and implied information and
ideas in oral texts, initially with support and direction, to make simple inferences and reasonable predictions (e.g., attend to the words being spoken and also use personal experience and the speakers intonation and facial expression to understand what is being said) Teacher prompt: The boy said, You broke my airplane! What helps you understand how he might be feeling? What do you think he might do next?
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2. Speaking to Communicate
By the end of Grade 1, students will:
GRADE 1
Presentation Strategies 1.9 begin to identify some of the presentation strategies used in oral texts and explain how they influence the audience (e.g., the use of differences in tone and pitch for different characters in a story; the use of props to engage the audience) Teacher prompts: How did the speaker use his/her voice to make you like/not like a character? Why do you think the speaker used the puppets when he was speaking?
Appropriate Language 2.4 choose appropriate words to communicate their meaning accurately and engage the interest of their audience (e.g., choose words relevant to the topic from the full range of their vocabulary, including new words used regularly in the classroom; use descriptive adjectives to clarify and add interest to a narrative; use inclusive language that conveys respect for all people)
Vocal Skills and Strategies 2.5 begin to identify some vocal effects,
including tone, pace, pitch, and volume, and use them appropriately to help communicate their meaning (e.g., increase volume to emphasize important points or to communicate to a large audience)
ORAL COMMUNICATION
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GRADE 1
if you understood what you heard? What could you do if you didnt understand what you heard? What do you think about before you begin to talk? When you are talking, how can you tell if the audience understands? What could you do to help the audience understand what you are saying?
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GRADE 1 | READING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 1, students will:
GRADE 1
1. 2. 3. 4.
read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning; recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning; use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently; reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Reading for Meaning
By the end of Grade 1, students will: Teacher prompt: What do you think is the most important thing to remember so far about this text/topic? Why do you think it is important?
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 use stated and implied information and
ideas in texts, initially with support and direction, to make simple inferences and reasonable predictions about them Teacher prompt: The text tells us that the girl broke her brothers toy airplane. Think about what you know about the boy so far. Predict what might happen next. Is there information in the illustration that can help you make your prediction?
Extending Understanding 1.6 extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge and experience, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them (e.g., identify personally significant events in
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READING
stories, such as losing a tooth or getting a pet; relate information in a text to previous experiences, other familiar texts, movies, or trips) Teacher prompts: What does this text remind you of in your life? Now that we have researched [topic X], what have we learned? Does this book remind you of a story that you have been told?
texts such as a simple All About____ book (e.g., labels, headings, pictures)
Text Patterns 2.2 recognize simple organizational patterns in texts of different types and explain, initially with support and direction, how the patterns help readers understand the texts (e.g., signal words such as first, second, then, finally help to identify time order or sequence)
GRADE 1
Analysing Texts 1.7 identify the main idea and a few elements
of texts, initially with support and direction (e.g., narrative: characters, setting, problem/solution; information text: introductory statement, facts, photographs)
Text Features 2.3 identify some text features (e.g., illustrations, symbols, photographs, title, page number, table of contents) and explain how they help readers understand texts Teacher prompts: How does the title help you understand what you are going to be reading? How does an illustration or photograph help you understand what you are reading?
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.8 express personal thoughts and feelings
about what has been read (e.g., through role playing, drama, visual arts, music, discussion; by developing a plan to act on issues raised in the text) Teacher prompts: How does the ending of this story make you feel? Do you think there are recycling ideas in the text that we could use in our classroom? Show me how you were feeling when What would you say if you were?
Teacher prompts: Who is talking in this story? Would the story be different if someone else were talking? What is the author telling us about this topic?
Reading Unfamiliar Words 3.2 predict the meaning of and solve unfamiliar words using different types of cues, including: semantic (meaning) cues (e.g., familiar words, phrases, sentences, and visuals that activate existing knowledge of oral and written language);
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syntactic (language structure) cues (e.g., predictable word order, predictable language patterns, punctuation); graphophonic (phonological and graphic) cues (e.g., blending and segmenting of individual sounds in words; visual features of words such as shape and orientation; sound-letter relationships for initial, final, and medial sounds; onset and rime; common spelling patterns; words within words) Teacher prompt (for cross-checking of cues): It looks right and sounds right, but does it make sense?
make sense to you? When you come to a word you dont know, what do you do? What strategies help you the most when you are reading?
GRADE 1
Reading Fluently 3.3 read appropriate, familiar texts at a sufficient rate and with sufficient expression to convey the sense of the text to the reader (e.g., make oral reading of a role in a simple readers theatre script sound like natural speech)
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READING
GRADE 1 | WRITING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 1, students will:
GRADE 1
1. 2. 3. 4.
generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience; draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience; use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively; 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.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Developing and Organizing Content
By the end of Grade 1, students will: observations; from various texts, including teacher read-alouds, mentor texts, and shared-, guided-, and independentreading texts)
Organizing Ideas 1.5 identify and order main ideas and supporting details, initially with support and direction, using simple graphic organizers (e.g., a story ladder, sequence chart) and simple organizational patterns (e.g., time order: first, then, next, finally; order of importance; beginning, middle, and end)
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GRADE 1
Spelling Familiar Words 3.1 spell some high-frequency words correctly (e.g., words from their oral vocabulary, the class word wall, and shared-, guided-, and independent-reading texts)
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WRITING
GRADE 1
Publishing 3.7 use some appropriate elements of effective presentation in the finished product, such as print, different fonts, graphics, and layout (e.g., use drawings, photographs, or simple labels to clarify text; print legibly; leave spaces between words)
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GRADE 1
1. 2. 3. 4.
demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts; identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning; create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques; reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Understanding Media Texts
By the end of Grade 1, students will:
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.3 express personal thoughts and feelings
about some simple media works (e.g., state whether they like or dislike a character in a cartoon, song, or movie; draw a picture of the character in a song) Teacher prompt: What do you like/not like about the story told in this movie? What was your favourite part? How did it make you feel? Did the characters in this cartoon use violence to solve problems? Was the violence funny? Is this a good way to solve problems?
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Purpose and Audience 3.1 identify the topic, purpose, and audience for media texts they plan to create (e.g., a media text to explain the importance of hand-washing to a Kindergarten class, or to tell the story of a class trip to parents or visitors) Teacher prompt: How can we use photographs to tell the story of our trip? What could we use in addition to the photographs to help visitors understand what we did on our trip?
GRADE 1
Form 2.1 identify some of the elements and characteristics of a few simple media forms (e.g., cartoon: colour, music, animation; picture book: cover, printed words, pictures) Teacher prompt: How are books different from cartoons? How are they the same?
Producing Media Texts 3.4 produce some short media texts for specific purposes and audiences, using a few simple media forms and appropriate conventions and techniques (e.g., a tape-recorded soundtrack for a story a sequence of pictures and/or photographs that tells a story a sign or poster for their classroom or the school a selection of images downloaded from the Internet to accompany a science project a collage of items a story character might enjoy or own an enactment of a scene about a character from a favourite movie)
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GRADE 1
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MEDIA LITERACY
GRADE 2
GRADE 2
1. 2. 3.
listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes; use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes; reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Listening to Understand
By the end of Grade 2, students will:
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify several listening comprehension strategies and use them before, during, and after listening in order to understand and clarify the meaning of oral texts (e.g., listen for key words and phrases that signal important ideas; retell an oral text to a partner after a presentation; ask appropriate questions in order to make predictions about an oral text)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 use stated and implied information and
ideas in oral texts to make simple inferences and reasonable predictions, and support the inferences with evidence from the text Teacher prompt: You predicted _______. What clues from the oral text did you use to figure that out?
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* Talking sticks were originally used by some First Nations peoples to ensure impartial and fair council meetings, but their use is becoming popular again in talking and sentencing circles. A person speaks only when holding the talking stick, while the rest of the group listens silently.
with peers; to ask questions or explore solutions to problems in small-group and paired activities; to give directions to a partner in a shared activity; to explain to a small group the method used to solve a problem; to share ideas or information in large and small groups)
GRADE 2
Clarity and Coherence 2.3 communicate ideas, opinions, and information orally in a clear, coherent manner using simple but appropriate organizational patterns (e.g., give an oral account of a current event using the five Ws to organize the information; restate the main facts from a simple informational text in correct sequence)
Vocal Skills and Strategies 2.5 identify some vocal effects, including
tone, pace, pitch, and volume, and use them appropriately, and with sensitivity towards cultural differences, to help communicate their meaning (e.g., adjust volume to suit the purpose for speaking and the size and type of audience)
Presentation Strategies 1.9 identify some of the presentation strategies used in oral texts and explain how they influence the audience (e.g., the use of facial expressions helps the listener understand what is being said) Teacher prompts: How does looking at the expression on a speakers face help you to understand what is being said? Does the look on the speakers face in some way change the meaning of the actual words being spoken?
Non-Verbal Cues 2.6 identify some non-verbal cues, including facial expression, gestures, and eye contact, and use them in oral communications, appropriately and with sensitivity towards cultural differences, to help convey their meaning
ORAL COMMUNICATION
2. Speaking to Communicate
By the end of Grade 2, students will:
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GRADE 2
direction, a few strategies they found helpful before, during, and after listening and speaking Teacher prompts: What questions can you ask yourself while listening to be sure that you understand what you hear? What can you do after listening to check that you have understood? How do you get ready to speak? While you are speaking, how do you check whether you are keeping the attention of your audience?
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GRADE 2 | READING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 2, students will:
GRADE 2
1. 2. 3. 4.
read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning; recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning; use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently; reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Reading for Meaning
By the end of Grade 2, students will:
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 use stated and implied information and
ideas in texts to make simple inferences and reasonable predictions about them Teacher prompts: How did Carmens actions help us to know how she was feeling in the story? The text describes what articles of clothing the character is wearing. How does that information help us predict what the weather conditions might be?
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Analysing Texts 1.7 identify the main idea and some additional elements of texts (e.g., narrative: characters, setting, problem, solution, events/episodes, resolution; procedure: goal, materials, method) Teacher prompts: What main idea do these two stories share? What elements did the author include to make the recipe interesting and still easy to follow?
Text Patterns 2.2 recognize simple organizational patterns in texts of different types, and explain, initially with support and direction, how the patterns help readers understand the texts (e.g., numbered steps help the reader follow a procedure or set of instructions correctly)
GRADE 2
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.8 express personal thoughts and feelings
about what has been read (e.g., by using visual art or music to communicate their reaction) Teacher prompts: Why do you think what happened to the character was fair/not fair? How might you express your feelings about what happened to this character?
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graphophonic (phonological and graphic) cues (e.g., letter clusters within words; onset and rime; common spelling patterns; words within words; visual features of words such as shape or size) Teacher prompt (for cross-checking of cues): The word does have the same beginning sound (bright and brought) but does it make sense in this sentence?
whether you understand what you are reading? What do you do if you dont understand? When you come to a word or phrase you dont know, what strategies do you use to solve it? How do you check to see if you were right?
GRADE 2
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READING
GRADE 2 | WRITING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 2, students will:
GRADE 2
1. 2. 3. 4.
generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience; draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience; use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively; 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.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Developing and Organizing Content
By the end of Grade 2, students will:
Organizing Ideas 1.5 identify and order main ideas and supporting details, using graphic organizers (e.g., a story grammar: characters, setting, problem, solution; a sequential chart: first, then, next, finally) and organizational patterns (e.g., problemsolution, chronological order)
using a variety of strategies and resources (e.g., formulate and ask questions such as the five Ws [who, what, when, where, why] to identify personal experiences, prior knowledge, and information needs; brainstorm ideas with a partner)
Review 1.6 determine whether the ideas and information they have gathered are suitable for the purpose, and gather new material if necessary (e.g., use a graphic organizer to explain their material to a classmate and ask for feedback to identify gaps)
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investigation; a recipe describing the procedure for cooking a favourite food; directions for playing a game; a paragraph describing the physical characteristics of an animal; an original story or an extension of a familiar story, modelled on stories read; their own variation on a patterned poem; an advertisement for a toy)
ideas; replacing general words with concrete, specific words/phrases) Teacher prompt: What linking words could you use to connect two ideas? What words could you add to create a more vivid picture for the reader?
GRADE 2
Spelling Familiar Words 3.1 spell many high-frequency words correctly (e.g., words from their oral vocabulary, anchor charts, the class word wall, and shared-, guided-, and independentreading texts)
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WRITING
GRADE 2
Publishing 3.7 use some appropriate elements of effective presentation in the finished product, including print, different fonts, graphics, and layout (e.g., use legible printing, spacing, margins, varied print size, and colour for emphasis; include a simple labelled diagram in a report; supply a caption for a photograph or illustration)
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GRADE 2
1. 2. 3. 4.
demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts; identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning; create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques; reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Understanding Media Texts
By the end of Grade 2, students will: Teacher prompt: What is this advertisement telling us? Do you believe its messages? What do the heroes and villains look like in the cartoons you watch? What does this suggest?
Purpose and Audience 1.1 identify the purpose and intended audience of some simple media texts (e.g., this television commercial is designed to sell breakfast cereal to parents or soft drinks to children or teens; this picture book of nature stories is aimed at children who are interested in animals) Teacher prompts: Who would enjoy this? Who would learn from this?
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.3 express personal thoughts and feelings
about simple media works and explain their responses (e.g., explain why a particular DVD/video or licensed character toy or game is more or less appealing to them than another, similar product) Teacher prompt: Tell me three things that make this game more fun to play than that one. Do you think both girls and boys would like both of these games?
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MEDIA LITERACY
Purpose and Audience 3.1 identify the topic, purpose, and audience
for media texts they plan to create (e.g., an advertisement to interest both boys and girls in buying an action toy)
GRADE 2
Teacher prompt: Who is telling this story? How would the story be different if another character were telling the story?
Form 2.1 identify some of the elements and characteristics of selected media forms (e.g., a television commercial uses speech, sound effects, and moving images to sell a product or service; a print advertisement uses words and pictures to sell a product or service; in a television news broadcast, an anchor and reporters report information about events that have actually happened, and use film or video clips from real locations around the world to illustrate those events)
Producing Media Texts 3.4 produce media texts for specific purposes
and audiences, using a few simple media forms and appropriate conventions and techniques (e.g., an advertisement for a healthy snack food a board game based on the plot and characters of a favourite book or television show a sequence of pictures and/or photographs telling the story of a class event or celebration a story illustrated with diagrams and digital images a weather report with illustrations and captions a selection of background music and sound effects to accompany a picture book that will be read aloud to the class a role play of an interview between a reporter and a fictional character in a movie)
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GRADE 2
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MEDIA LITERACY
GRADE 3
GRADE 3
1. 2. 3.
listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes; use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes; reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Listening to Understand
By the end of Grade 3, students will:
Purpose 1.1 identify purposes for listening in a variety of situations, formal and informal, and set personal goals related to listening tasks (e.g., to explore ideas in a book club discussion; to understand and empathize with a favourite character in a play; to express an opinion or offer advice to a partner during a peer conference)
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of listening comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after listening in order to understand and clarify the meaning of oral texts (e.g., list the important ideas in a poem or story read in class; ask questions to monitor understanding of an oral text; visualize and sketch to clarify understanding of an oral text)
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themes from different cultures; connect messages in oral texts to social issues of relevance to the class)
a small group how to play a new game; to present to the class an item or event of personal interest; to share ideas or information in order to contribute to understanding in large or small groups)
GRADE 3
Presentation Strategies 1.9 identify some of the presentation strategies used in oral texts and explain how they influence the audience (e.g., intonation, eye contact) Teacher prompts: Do you think the speaker used intonation and eye contact in an appropriate and effective way? How did they influence your response? What other strategies might be effective in engaging or influencing the audience?
Vocal Skills and Strategies 2.5 identify some vocal effects, including
tone, pace, pitch, and volume, and use them appropriately, and with sensitivity towards cultural differences, to help communicate their meaning (e.g., pause in appropriate places long enough to allow others to respond during dialogue with peers or in small groups)
2. Speaking to Communicate
By the end of Grade 3, students will:
Non-Verbal Cues 2.6 identify some non-verbal cues, including facial expression, gestures, and eye contact, and use them in oral communications, appropriately and with sensitivity towards cultural differences, to help convey their meaning
ORAL COMMUNICATION
Purpose 2.1 identify a variety of purposes for speaking (e.g., to entertain an audience; to establish positive personal and learning relationships with peers; to ask questions or explore solutions to problems in smallgroup and paired activities; to explain to
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GRADE 3
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GRADE 3 | READING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 3, students will:
GRADE 3
1. 2. 3. 4.
read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning; recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning; use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently; reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Reading for Meaning
By the end of Grade 3, students will: early settlers; use pictures to confirm understanding of printed text)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 make inferences about texts using stated
and implied ideas from the texts as evidence Teacher prompts: Using information from the story opening, what can you infer about the outcome of the game? How do you think the other characters will react to the actions of the main character? Why do you think early settlers chose wood to build their homes? Is there any evidence in the text to explain this?
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of reading comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after reading to understand texts (e.g., activate prior knowledge through brainstorming and/or developing mind maps; ask questions to focus reading and clarify understanding; use visualization to clarify details about such things as homes and clothing of
Extending Understanding 1.6 extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge and experience, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them Teacher prompts: How are homes in this book the same as or different from homes today? Do you know of other
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READING
reasons why trees are important besides the reasons mentioned in the book?
GRADE 3
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.8 express personal opinions about ideas
presented in texts (e.g., identify traits they admire in the characters; comment on actions taken by characters) Teacher prompts: Do any of the characters in this story remind you of someone you know? What do you think about the way this story ends?
Elements of Style 2.4 identify some elements of style, including voice, word choice, and different types of sentences, and explain how they help readers understand texts (e.g., different sentence types make the text more interesting for the reader and help the author express different kinds of ideas questions express or stimulate curiosity; exclamations convey emotions such as surprise or excitement)
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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., onset and rime; syllables; similarities between words with common spelling patterns and unknown words; words within words) Teacher prompt (for cross-checking of cues): Does the word sound right and make sense given your understanding of the text?
understanding what you are reading? How do you know if you are on the right track? When you come to a word or phrase you dont understand, how do you solve it? How do you figure out what information is important to remember? What do you do when you get confused during reading?
GRADE 3
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READING
GRADE 3 | WRITING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 3, students will:
GRADE 3
1. 2. 3. 4.
generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience; draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience; use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively; 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.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Developing and Organizing Content
By the end of Grade 3, students will:
Classifying Ideas 1.4 sort ideas and information for their writing in a variety of ways (e.g., by using graphs, charts, webs, outlines, or lists)
Organizing Ideas 1.5 identify and order main ideas and supporting details into units that could be used to develop a short, simple paragraph, using graphic organizers (e.g., a story grammar, a T-chart, a paragraph frame) and organizational patterns (e.g., comparison, chronological order)
Teacher prompts: What is your writing about? Why are you writing? Whom are you writing for?
Review 1.6 determine whether the ideas and information they have gathered are relevant and adequate for the purpose, and gather new material if necessary (e.g., discuss the content with a peer or reading buddy; review material using a story map or web)
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GRADE 3
Voice 2.2 establish a personal voice in their writing, with a focus on using concrete words and images to convey their attitude or feeling towards the subject or audience (e.g., words used literally or figuratively to communicate intensity of feeling: a shiver of excitement; hot anger)
Word Choice 2.3 use words and phrases that will help
convey their meaning as specifically as possible (e.g., comparative adjectives such as smaller, smallest; adverbs)
Spelling Familiar Words 3.1 spell familiar words correctly (e.g., words
from their oral vocabulary, anchor charts, the class word wall, and shared-, guided-, and independent-reading texts)
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WRITING
cluster words by visual similarities; follow rules for changing base words when adding common endings: hope/hoping, slam/slammed; use memory aids such as visualization)
GRADE 3
Publishing 3.7 use some appropriate elements of effective presentation in the finished product, including print, script, different fonts, graphics, and layout (e.g., use legible printing and some cursive writing; use different font sizes and colours on a poster to attract attention; use proper paragraph form including spacing and margins; supply captions for photographs)
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GRADE 3
1. 2. 3. 4.
demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts; identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning; create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques; reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Understanding Media Texts
By the end of Grade 3, students will:
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.3 express personal opinions about ideas
presented in media texts (e.g., respond to the messages in a public service announcement about recycling; explain why the Internet safety rules outlined in a school pamphlet are important) Teacher prompt: Do you agree or disagree with the message that we all have a responsibility to reduce, reuse, and recycle? Why? Why do parents worry about Internet safety? What online rules should you know?
Purpose and Audience 1.1 identify the purpose and intended audience of some media texts (e.g., this magazine is aimed at children/teens/adults; these boxes for DVDs/videos are aimed at the parents of very young children) Teacher prompt: Who is this intended for? Who else would like it? Who would not like it? Why, or why not?
Making Inferences/Interpreting Messages 1.2 use overt and implied messages to draw
inferences and make meaning in simple media texts (e.g., overt message of toys, clothing, or games associated with movies, television shows, or books: This product is closely connected to the characters you admire in your favourite book; implied message: If you own this product, you will be more closely connected to your favourite book and more like the characters you admire) Teacher prompts: What things do you have that are related to a TV show, a movie, or a book? What do they mean to you? Are the roles of girls and boys similar or different in the television shows that you watch?
Point of View 1.5 identify whose point of view is presented or reflected in a media text and suggest how the text might change if a different point of view were used (e.g., a poster advertising the zoo aimed at younger children might emphasize baby
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MEDIA LITERACY
animals, whereas one aimed at adults or older children might emphasize unusual or dangerous animals) Teacher prompt: Who is the intended audience for this poster? How do you know? Whose perspective is reflected? Whose perspective is not reflected?
Purpose and Audience 3.1 identify the topic, purpose, and audience
for media texts they plan to create (e.g., a collage of images conveying the mood of a poem to help classmates understand the poem) Teacher prompts: How will understanding the mood help us understand the poems meaning? Which of the images in the collage help us understand the poem better?
GRADE 3
used in some familiar media forms and explain how they help convey meaning (e.g., DVDs/videos use dialogue, music, and sound effects to help explain the visual images; picture books use illustrations, layout, and different kinds of print to help explain and dramatize the printed words) Teacher prompt: Watch a section of this DVD without the sound. Watch again with sound. How does the soundtrack help convey the message?
Producing Media Texts 3.4 produce media texts for specific purposes
and audiences, using a few simple media forms and appropriate conventions and techniques (e.g., a series of video stills or photographs about a topic of their choice to display to the class a simple slide show for a multimedia presentation to a younger class a tape-recorded interview with a classmate about a favourite show, toy, or game
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a comic strip for publication in a class newsletter a skit, including sound effects, based on a photograph a compilation of images from magazines, newspapers, or the Internet that convey the mood of a poem or song an illustrated pamphlet about a unit of study a storyboard for the climactic scene in a short story a scrapbook of images from newspapers, magazines, posters, the Internet, and so on, illustrating camera shots from different angles and distances)
skills differently or the same way the next time you view a similar work?
GRADE 3
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MEDIA LITERACY
OVERVIEW OF GRADES 4 TO 6
The expectations for Grades 4 to 6 focus on students ability to use their knowledge and skills in listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing, and representing to understand, critically analyse, and communicate a broad range of information and ideas from and about their multicultural, multimedia environment. Junior students language knowledge comes from their life experiences and prior knowledge and from the foundational language knowledge and skills acquired in the primary school years. The expectations in the junior years build upon this foundation. Because the base of knowledge, experience, and skills varies from student to student, it is important for instruction to be differentiated to meet the needs of individuals and small groups of students. Language instruction in the junior years is designed to engage students in meaningful interactions with a wide variety of texts. They look beyond the literal meaning of texts and observe what is present and what is missing, in order to analyse and evaluate an authors intent. Junior students learn to identify and explore multiple perspectives, question the messages in texts, and look at issues related to fairness, equity, and social justice. They analyse the structure and elements of a variety of text forms, and create a variety of oral, print, and media texts in order to communicate their own ideas and opinions for a variety of purposes and audiences. Junior students develop their abilities to monitor their own learning and select appropriate strategies that will help them to make sense of and create increasingly complex and/or challenging texts for personally relevant purposes. They consciously use the knowledge, skills, and strategies from one strand to support their learning in the other three strands. They reflect on and talk about the strategies that have helped them construct meaning and communicate successfully in all strands and identify steps they can take to improve. Real, purposeful talk is not only an essential component of the language curriculum; it needs to be threaded throughout every day and across the curriculum to promote the transfer of language knowledge, skills, and strategies to learning across the curriculum. In all four strands, teachers explicitly teach and model the use of the knowledge, skills, and strategies most relevant to the particular strand. Explicit teaching and modelling help students to identify the skills and strategies they need in order to become proficient language users and move towards achievement of the expectations. Initially, students engage in rehearsal through shared, guided, and independent practice; eventually, they demonstrate independently their achievement of the learning expectations through multiple, diverse learning opportunities and activities.
Appropriate instructional texts are central to students development of the knowledge, skills, and strategies embedded in the expectations across the language strands. Oral, print, and media texts that are designed to support and challenge students at their individual level of language development will enhance the benefits of appropriately scaffolded instruction. It is important to ensure that, in addition to the materials provided for instruction, students are able to choose from a wide range of texts that are engaging and relevant to their personal experiences and interests as readers, writers, and viewers. All texts chosen for instruction should be worthy of study, and promote antidiscriminatory education. Junior students should have access to culturally diverse oral, print, and media texts that allow them to explore more complex topics or issues related to fairness, equity, and social justice, more subtle or abstract themes, and particular genres; that use a variety of organizational patterns and features; and that require inference and analysis. Oral texts such as dramatic presentations, oral reports, think-alouds, commentaries, poetry readings, speeches, monologues, and song lyrics; print texts such as short stories, series books, biographies, chapter books, non-fiction books, sports magazines, graphic novels, diaries, poetry, myths, and legends; and media texts such as movie trailers, graphic designs for various products, newspaper or magazine articles, video games, comic books, flyers, posters, websites, and e-mails provide a variety of sources to motivate and engage diverse groups of students. The level of challenge represented by a specific text will vary from reader to reader because individual students bring their own unique experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds to a text. To facilitate junior students ability to use the appropriate skills and strategies to construct meaning from and analyse increasingly complex and/or challenging texts, print texts for shared or guided instruction and independent reading should have a range of levels of difficulty with respect to organizational patterns, language structures, themes, vocabulary, and length; and a range of features such as hooks for interest, dialogue, illustrations, book or chapter leads, and tables of contents. Modelled, shared, and guided learning experiences provide the instructional support junior students need to communicate increasingly complex ideas and information using a greater variety of oral, written, and media forms. Students knowledge of many different text forms including personal recounts, reports, formal and persuasive letters, summaries, explanations, reviews, fables, legends, fantasies, brochures, advertisements, and websites enable them to select and use appropriate forms, language patterns, words, conventions, and stylistic elements to communicate effectively for a variety of purposes and audiences.
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GRADE 4
GRADE 4
1. 2. 3.
listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes; use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes; reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Listening to Understand
By the end of Grade 4, students will: meaning of oral texts (e.g., make notes to summarize what has been heard; use graphic organizers, diagrams, or sketches to record information or ideas presented orally; prepare for a visit to the theatre by activating prior knowledge of the structure of a play and discussing the subject of the play with peers)
Purpose 1.1 identify purposes for listening in a variety of situations, formal and informal, and set goals related to specific listening tasks (e.g., to summarize the theme of a small-group drama presentation; to record important details about an upcoming event announced on the radio; to clarify suggestions for improvements in a peer writing conference)
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of listening comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after listening in order to understand and clarify the
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articles, movies, stories, or television shows; ask questions about relevant stated and implied details; relate the ideas of other speakers in a dialogue group to their own experiences; use role play and drama to connect the themes and emotions depicted in an oral text to real-life situations)
on an event or oral text for the class; to clarify and organize thinking in order to contribute to understanding in large and small groups)
Analysing Texts 1.7 analyse oral texts and explain how specific elements in them contribute to meaning (e.g., ideas and information, body language, tone of voice) Teacher prompt: How did the speakers body language and tone of voice contribute to the meaning?
GRADE 4
Clarity and Coherence 2.3 communicate in a clear, coherent manner, presenting ideas, opinions, and information in a readily understandable form (e.g., respond in an appropriate order to multi-part, higher-level questions in a student-teacher conference or a group discussion; explain the results of research in an oral presentation, including a statement of the research focus, the procedures followed, and the conclusions reached; use an organizational pattern such as chronological order or cause and effect to present ideas in a dialogue or discussion)
2. Speaking to Communicate
By the end of Grade 4, students will:
Vocal Skills and Strategies 2.5 identify some vocal effects, including
tone, pace, pitch, volume, and a range of sound effects, and use them appropriately and with sensitivity towards cultural differences to help communicate their meaning (e.g., adjust the pace of speaking for effect and to hold the listeners attention)
Purpose 2.1 identify a variety of purposes for speaking (e.g., to entertain a wider school audience; to establish positive personal and learning relationships with peers; to ask questions or explore solutions to problems in small-group and paired activities; to solicit opinions and react to information and ideas in a discussion or dialogue group; to explain to another person how something works; to summarize and comment
ORAL COMMUNICATION
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towards cultural differences, to help convey their meaning (e.g., use body language, such as moving closer, leaning forward, nodding or shaking their head for emphasis, to connect with their audience)
you dont understand, what steps do you take to clear up your confusion? How do you identify the things that you do well as a speaker and what you would like to improve upon?
GRADE 4
(e.g., CDs or DVDs, computer-generated graphic organizers, concrete materials, artefacts) to support or enhance oral presentations (e.g., use pictures or samples of different kites to illustrate a talk on how to build a kite)
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GRADE 4 | READING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 4, students will:
GRADE 4
1. 2. 3. 4.
read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning; recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning; use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently; reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Reading for Meaning
By the end of Grade 4, students will: visualization to clarify details about such things as the sights, sounds, and smells in a medieval castle; make and confirm predictions based on evidence from the text; synthesize ideas during reading to generate a new understanding of a text)
Variety of Texts 1.1 read a variety of texts from diverse cultures, including literary texts (e.g., myths, plays, short stories, chapter books, letters, diaries, poetry), graphic texts (e.g., graphic novels, diagrams, brochures, graphs and graphic organizers, charts and tables, maps), and informational texts (e.g., textbooks, non-fiction books on a range of topics, print and online newspaper and magazine articles or reviews, print and online encyclopedias and atlases, electronic texts such as e-mails or zines)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 make inferences about texts using stated
and implied ideas from the texts as evidence Teacher prompts: What does the graphic show that the text doesnt tell you? If you just saw the picture without the speech bubble/text box, what would you think? What does the author want you to realize when she says?
Extending Understanding 1.6 extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them Teacher prompts: Are there personal connections that you can make to the events in the text? How are other books by this author similar to the one
READING
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of reading comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after reading to understand texts (e.g., activate prior knowledge through brainstorming; ask questions to focus or clarify reading; use
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we are reading? Which other books/ movies/articles/online texts share a similar topic/theme/point of view?
GRADE 4
weekly entries provide context), graphic texts such as a brochure (e.g., headings, subheadings, text boxes, photographs, lists, and maps clarify and highlight important material), and informational texts such as an encyclopedia (e.g., table of contents, glossary, index, headings, and subheadings help the reader use key words to locate information)
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.8 express opinions about the ideas and
information in texts and cite evidence from the text to support their opinions Teacher prompts: Do you agree with the decisions made by the main character in the story? What is your opinion of this newspaper article? What evidence in the text supports your opinion?
Text Forms 2.1 explain how the particular characteristics of various text forms help communicate meaning, with a focus on literary texts such as a diary or journal (e.g., first-person record of events, thoughts, and feelings, usually in prose, gives a personal perspective on events; dated daily or
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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 such as those for regular and irregular plurals, possessives, and contractions; punctuation); graphophonic (phonological and graphic) cues (e.g., familiar words within larger words: highlight, enlighten; recognizable sequences of letters within long words: spacious, conscious, delicious)
identify the important ideas while you are reading? What helps you read between the lines? How do you know if you are not understanding? What fix-up strategies work effectively for you?
GRADE 4
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READING
GRADE 4 | WRITING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 4, students will:
GRADE 4
GRADE 4
1. 2. 3. 4.
generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience; draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience; use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively; 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.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Developing and Organizing Content
By the end of Grade 4, students will:
Purpose and Audience 1.1 identify the topic, purpose, and audience for a variety of writing forms (e.g., a cinquain or shape poem modelled on the structures and style of poems read, to contribute to a student poetry anthology for the school library; a set of directions to complete a science experiment on pulleys and gears, for a class presentation; a timeline of significant events in the writers life, to accompany a biography for a class collection)
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 18 | Language
Teacher prompts: How will you identify your topic? What is the purpose of your writing? What formwill best suit the purpose? Who will your audience be?
Organizing Ideas 1.5 identify and order main ideas and supporting details and group them into units that could be used to develop a summary, using a variety of graphic organizers (e.g., a Venn diagram, a paragraph frame) and organizational patterns (e.g., generalization with supporting information, cause and effect)
Review 1.6 determine whether the ideas and information they have gathered are relevant
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and adequate for the purpose, and do more research if necessary (e.g., discuss material with a peer or adult using a KWHLW organizer: What do I know? What do I want to learn? How will I find out? What have I learned? What do I still want to know?; compare their material to the content of similar texts)
GRADE 4
Voice 2.2 establish a personal voice in their writing, with a focus on using words and stylistic elements that convey a specific mood such as amusement (e.g., use simple irony to poke fun at themselves: Lucky me. I got to do the dishes.)
Spelling Familiar Words 3.1 spell familiar words correctly (e.g., words
from their oral vocabulary, anchor charts, and shared-, guided-, and independentreading texts; words used regularly in instruction across the curriculum)
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graphics, and layout (e.g., use legible printing and some cursive writing; use a variety of font sizes and colours to distinguish headings and subheadings from the body of the text; supply detailed labels for diagrams in a report; include graphs such as a bar graph or a pie graph)
GRADE 4
Publishing 3.7 use some appropriate elements of effective presentation in the finished product, including print, script, different fonts,
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GRADE 4
1. 2. 3. 4.
demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts; identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning; create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques; reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Understanding Media Texts
By the end of Grade 4, students will: influence you more the overt messages or the implied messages? On television, what characteristics are shared by positive role models?
Purpose and Audience 1.1 identify the purpose and audience for a
variety of media texts (e.g., this print advertisement is designed to interest children in taking karate lessons; this website is designed to provide information to fans about a favourite singer; this CD cover is designed to attract classical music fans/pop fans/rap fans) Teacher prompt: Why do you think this text was created? What age, gender, cultural group is it aimed at? How do you know?
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.3 express opinions about ideas, issues,
and/ experiences presented in media or texts, and give evidence from the texts to support their opinions (e.g.,I think this documentary about lions is one-sided because it only shows them as predators; defend an opinion about whether or not a sitcom or video game reflects reality) Teacher prompts: Which elements of this sitcom (or video game) seemed realistic and believable to you? Why? Did anything seem exaggerated? Do the characters in the program accurately represent the diversity of society? Explain.
Making Inferences/Interpreting Messages 1.2 use overt and implied messages to draw
inferences and construct meaning in media texts (e.g., overt message on packaging for a video game: In this adventure game, characters take big risks and perform amazing deeds; implied message: If you buy this game, you can share in the excitement and be more like the daring characters) Teacher prompts: What messages on the packaging make you think you would like to play this game? What do the images on the package make you think about? Which do you think
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MEDIA LITERACY
Point of View 1.5 identify whose point of view is presented or reflected in a media text, citing supporting evidence from the text, and suggest how the text might change if a different point of view were used (e.g., explain how the point of view reflected in an advertisement is conveyed and describe how the advertisement might change to reflect the point of view of a different audience; describe how a TV show might change if it were told from the point of view of a different character) Teacher prompts: What kinds of images would you use in this advertisement for a childrens breakfast cereal if you wanted parents to buy the cereal? From whose point of view is your favourite television show presented?
GRADE 4
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Producing Media Texts 3.4 produce media texts for specific purposes
and audiences, using a few simple media forms and appropriate conventions and techniques (e.g., an album of camera shots showing the different angles and distances and commenting on their uses a poem, announcement, or flyer produced electronically by combining word-processed text with pictures and/or photographs a mock television commercial for a favourite cereal, toy, or book a newspaper article that includes a photograph and headline a board game related to a unit of study from a curriculum subject area such as science or health a picture book to accompany a unit of study for a younger grade a storyboard identifying the sound effects, images, and dialogue to be used in filming a scene from a novel)
GRADE 4
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MEDIA LITERACY
GRADE 5
GRADE 5
1. 2. 3.
listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes; use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes; reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Listening to Understand
By the end of Grade 5, students will: in order to understand and clarify the meaning of oral texts (e.g., ask questions about facts, inferences, and value judgements to focus and clarify understanding of the themes in an oral text; summarize and synthesize ideas to deepen understanding of an oral text; use self-questioning and predict questions that might be asked to monitor understanding while listening)
Purpose 1.1 identify a range of purposes for listening in a variety of situations, formal and informal, and set goals related to specific listening tasks (e.g., to understand learning strategies modelled by the teacher during think-alouds; to develop a response to a commentary on an issue; to share information and ideas about a topic with peers during conversations, discussions, and meetings; to become familiar with and appreciate the sounds of different types of poetry)
appropriate listening behaviour by adapting active listening strategies to suit a range of situations, including work in groups (e.g., ask questions to clarify understanding before responding; affirm and build on the ideas of others; summarize and respond constructively to ideas expressed by others; use brief vocal prompts to signal agreement or interest during conversations: Yes; Say that again, please; Tell me more)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 make inferences about oral texts using
stated and implied ideas in the texts as evidence (e.g., ask questions to generate inferences about an oral text: What would happen if? I wonder what was meant by?)
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of listening comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after listening
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an oral presentation to that of books, articles, movies, television shows, or videos on the same topic; discuss issues related to the topic of an oral text; use role play and drama to explore ideas, emotions, or issues presented in oral texts)
data; to entertain; to interact in social situations; to contribute meaningfully and work constructively in groups)
GRADE 5
Presentation Strategies 1.9 identify a range of presentation strategies used in oral texts and analyse their effect on the audience (e.g., the use of emotive language, one-sided arguments, or exaggerated claims) Teacher prompt: Why do you think the speaker repeats that phrase so often?
Vocal Skills and Strategies 2.5 identify some vocal effects, including
tone, pace, pitch, volume, and a variety of sound effects, and use them appropriately and with sensitivity towards cultural differences to help communicate their meaning (e.g., use a formal or informal tone as required by the context)
2. Speaking to Communicate
By the end of Grade 5, students will:
Purpose 2.1 identify a variety of purposes for speaking (e.g., to justify opinions and thinking in discussion and dialogue groups; to ask questions or explore solutions to problems in small groups; to share information or ideas about a topic with a group; to share
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GRADE 5
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GRADE 5 | READING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 5, students will:
GRADE 5
1. 2. 3. 4.
read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning; recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning; use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently; reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Reading for Meaning
By the end of Grade 5, students will: reading to understand texts (e.g., activate prior knowledge through asking questions about or discussing a topic; develop mind maps to explore ideas; ask questions to focus reading; use visualization to clarify details of a character, scene, or concept in a text; make predictions about a text based on reasoning and related reading; reread to confirm or clarify meaning)
Variety of Texts 1.1 read a variety of texts from diverse cultures, including literary texts (e.g., short stories, poetry, myths, culturally focused legends, plays, biographies, novels), graphic texts (e.g., graphic novels, hobby or sports magazines, advertisements, logos, atlases, graphic organizers, charts and tables), and informational texts (e.g., editorials, reports, biographies, textbooks and other non-fiction materials, print and online articles, personal electronic and online texts such as e-mails)
Purpose 1.2 identify a variety of purposes for reading and choose reading materials appropriate for those purposes (e.g., an online or print encyclopedia article for background information, dictionaries to clarify word meanings, biographies for information about authors or historical figures, print and online newspapers/magazines for information on current issues, e-mail and text messages from friends)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 use stated and implied ideas in texts to
make inferences and construct meaning Teacher prompts: What do you think will happen based on what the author has told you so far? What is the author suggesting between the lines?
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of reading comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after
Extending Understanding 1.6 extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them
READING
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Teacher prompts: How does your experience of a similar situation help you understand this characters choices? How does what you are reading now compare to what you have already read on this topic?
GRADE 5
communicate meaning, with a focus on literary texts such as short stories (e.g., how character, setting, and plot illustrate the theme), graphic texts such as a logo (e.g., how the elements work together to convey a message), and informational texts such as a movie review (e.g., how the lead is used to signal whether the review is positive or negative)
Text Patterns 2.2 identify a variety of organizational patterns in a range of texts and explain how they help readers understand the texts (e.g., comparison in a report; time order in a biography; cause and effect in an explanation)
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.8 make judgements and draw conclusions
about the ideas and information in texts and cite stated or implied evidence from the text to support their views (e.g., sort and classify information from a text to see what conclusions it supports or suggests; create a profile of a character based on stated or implied information in the text) Teacher prompt: Do you think this characters actions accurately reveal his thoughts? What evidence from the text supports your conclusion?
Elements of Style 2.4 identify various elements of style including word choice and the use of similes, personification, comparative adjectives, and sentences of different types, lengths, and structures and explain how they help communicate meaning (e.g., a series of short sentences can help communicate a sense of finality: He didnt. He couldnt. He wouldnt. The matter was settled. It was time to move on.)
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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, visual cues that indicate irregular plurals)
find the information you needed from the biography? How do you know when you are not understanding during reading? What fix-up strategies do you use when a passage is hard to understand?
GRADE 5
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READING
GRADE 5 | WRITING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 5, students will:
GRADE 5
1. 2. 3. 4.
generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience; draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience; use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively; 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.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Developing and Organizing Content
By the end of Grade 5, students will:
Organizing Ideas 1.5 identify and order main ideas and supporting details and group them into units that could be used to develop several linked paragraphs, using a variety of strategies (e.g., making jot notes; following a writing framework) and organizational patterns (e.g., chronological order, comparison, cause and effect)
Purpose and Audience 1.1 identify the topic, purpose, and audience
for a variety of writing forms (e.g., a poem or song on a social issue for performance by the class; a formal letter to the teacher outlining their opinion on eliminating soft drinks from the school vending machine; an article explaining the water cycle and including a flow chart, for an online student encyclopedia)
Review 1.6 determine whether the ideas and information they have gathered are relevant, appropriate, and adequate for the purpose, and do more research if necessary (e.g., review material with a partner using a mind map or timeline)
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book, movie, or video game; a myth using themes identified in reading; a pamphlet on a socially relevant topic they have studied this year)
of text that need to be reordered; add or substitute words and phrases, including vocabulary from other subjects and figurative language such as similes and personification, to achieve particular effects; adjust sentence length and complexity to suit the audience and purpose; check that language is inclusive and non-discriminatory) Teacher prompt: Are your sentences too long and complicated/too short and simple/too much the same to appeal to your intended audience?
GRADE 5
Spelling Familiar Words 3.1 spell familiar words correctly (e.g., words
from their oral vocabulary, anchor charts, and shared-, guided-, and independentreading texts; words used regularly in instruction across the curriculum)
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WRITING
print dictionaries; use a variety of thematic dictionaries such as a bilingual dictionary or a crossword dictionary; use a thesaurus to find alternative words)
GRADE 5
communicate their intended meaning, with a focus on the use of: a comma before and or but in compound sentences to join principal clauses; quotation marks for direct speech; and the placement of commas, question marks, and exclamation marks inside quotation marks in direct speech
Grammar 3.5 use parts of speech correctly to communicate their intended meaning clearly, with a focus on the use of: common, proper, and abstract nouns (e.g., courage, hope); collective nouns (e.g., flock of birds); adjectives, including comparative adjectives (e.g., bigger, more expensive); the helping verb have; adverbs modifying verbs (e.g., when, where, how); comparative adverbs (e.g., faster, slower)
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GRADE 5
1. 2. 3. 4.
demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts; identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning; create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques; reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Understanding Media Texts
By the end of Grade 5, students will: think this T-shirt sends a message about the person wearing it?
Purpose and Audience 1.1 identify the purpose and audience for
a variety of media texts (e.g., this sitcom is designed to appeal to teenagers; this comic book is designed to appeal to younger girls; this CD-ROM contains information for people interested in sharks) Teacher prompt: Who is this work intended/not intended for? What evidence in the work tells you that?
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.3 express opinions about ideas, issues,
and/or experiences presented in media texts, and give evidence from the texts to support their opinions (e.g., explain why they think the coverage of an event by one media news source is more interesting and/or more reliable than the coverage of the same event by another source; defend an opinion about whether a media text that excludes groups such as girls or racial or ethnocultural minorities is sending a harmful message)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Messages 1.2 use overt and implied messages to draw
inferences and construct meaning in media texts (e.g., overt message in an advertisement showing the products user surrounded by friends: This product is so good that you and your friends will all like it; implied messages: Using this product will make you popular; not using it may make you an outsider; popularity is based on having the right things) Teacher prompt: What are the overt and implied messages conveyed by this T-shirt, which displays the logo of a popular rock band? Is the implied message more powerful than the overt message? Why, or why not? Do you
MEDIA LITERACY
Point of View 1.5 identify whose point of view is presented or reflected in a media text, ask questions to identify missing or alternative points of view, and, where appropriate,
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suggest how a more balanced view might be represented (e.g., this documentary about various athletes does not include athletes who have physical disabilities; another character could be included to represent their experience) Teacher prompt: Whose point of view is missing in this media text? How could the text be changed to include that point of view?
of columnists to signal that they are expressing a personal opinion) Teacher prompts: In what ways are the layouts of these two newspapers similar? In what ways are they different? Can you suggest reasons for the similarities and differences? How many sections are there in this newspaper? What sorts of advertisements appear in the different sections? Can you explain why they differ?
GRADE 5
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Metacognition 4.1 identify, with some support and direction, what strategies they found most helpful in making sense of and creating media texts, and explain how these and other strategies can help them improve as media viewers/listeners/producers Teacher prompt: Reflect on the media product(s) you have created. What did you learn from the process? How will that influence your next effort?
GRADE 5
Interconnected Skills 4.2 explain, with some support and direction, how their skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing help them to make sense of and produce media texts Teacher prompts: How are reading, viewing, and listening similar? How can your strengths in one area help you in another? How can listening to a music soundtrack help you understand the feelings of a character? How are talking, writing, and creating media texts similar? How do strengths in one area help you in another? How can writing skills help you in producing media texts?
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MEDIA LITERACY
GRADE 6
GRADE 6
1. 2. 3.
listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes; use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes; reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Listening to Understand
By the end of Grade 6, students will: understanding; visualize different elements of an oral text; use note-taking strategies to record important ideas, key words, questions, and predictions)
Purpose 1.1 identify a range of purposes for listening in a variety of situations, formal and informal, and set goals related to specific listening tasks (e.g., to identify the perspective in an oral presentation; to identify the strategies and devices used to enhance the impact of a speech; to describe stated and implied ideas in the lyrics of a song)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 interpret oral texts by using stated and
implied ideas from the texts Teacher prompts: What messages did you get from the speakers tone of voice/body language/facial expressions? How does paying attention to a speakers body language help you interpret what is being said?
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of listening comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after listening in order to understand and clarify the meaning of increasingly complex oral texts (e.g., use self-questioning to monitor
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GRADE 6
Presentation Strategies 1.9 identify a variety of presentation strategies used in oral texts and analyse their effect on the audience (e.g., the unexpected use of humour or of changes in pace) Teacher prompt: Why do you think the speaker paused for so long at that point in the story?
Vocal Skills and Strategies 2.5 identify a range of vocal effects, including tone, pace, pitch, volume, and a variety of sound effects, and use them appropriately and with sensitivity towards cultural differences to help communicate their meaning (e.g., create different-sounding voices for the characters in a dramatization of a story)
2. Speaking to Communicate
By the end of Grade 6, students will:
Purpose 2.1 identify a variety of purposes for speaking and explain how the purpose and intended audience influence the choice of form (e.g., to clarify thinking through dialogue; to explore different points of view through drama and role playing; to present information to a group)
Interactive Strategies 2.2 demonstrate an increasingly sophisticated understanding of appropriate speaking behaviour in a variety of situations, including paired sharing, dialogue, and small- and large-group discussions (e.g., acknowledge different points of view; paraphrase to clarify meaning; adjust the level of formality to suit the audience and purpose for speaking)
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ORAL COMMUNICATION
GRADE 6
teacher and peers, what strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after listening and speaking and what steps they can take to improve their oral communication skills Teacher prompts: What strategies do you use to help you understand and follow a discussion among several people? What strategies do you use to recall important information after listening? What factors do you consider when deciding whether to use an informal or a formal approach when speaking?
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GRADE 6 | READING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 6, students will:
GRADE 6
1. 2. 3. 4.
read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning; recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning; use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently; reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Reading for Meaning
By the end of Grade 6, students will: topic through brainstorming and developing concept maps; use visualization and comparisons with images from other media to clarify details of characters, scenes, or concepts in a text; make predictions about a text based on knowledge of similar texts; reread or read on to confirm or clarify understanding)
Demonstrating Understanding 1.4 demonstrate understanding of increasingly complex texts by summarizing and explaining important ideas and citing relevant supporting details (e.g., general idea and related facts in chapters, reports, tables and charts, concept maps, online and print magazine articles, editorials, brochures or pamphlets, websites; main theme and important details in short stories, poems, plays, legends)
Purpose 1.2 identify a variety of purposes for reading and choose reading materials appropriate for those purposes (e.g., online and print sources to compare different approaches to the same topic; webquest texts for information on a historical topic; graphic organizers, charts, and tables for specific information; a novel or a nonfiction book on a favourite topic for personal enjoyment)
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 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
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Extending Understanding 1.6 extend understanding of texts by connecting, comparing, and contrasting the ideas in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them Teacher prompt: How does the authors treatment of this topic compare with treatments of the topic in other sources?
GRADE 6
characters tells the reader not to interpret the story literally), graphic texts such as an advertisement (e.g., colour and layout are used to emphasize the appeal and importance of the product), and informational texts such as an editorial (e.g., the formal, logical structure of thesis, development, and summary/conclusion helps create an authoritative impression)
Text Patterns 2.2 identify a variety of organizational patterns in a range of texts and explain how they help readers understand the texts (e.g., order of importance in a persuasive letter or news report, a grid and coordinates in a map, columns and rows in a table, time order in a biography)
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.8 make judgements and draw conclusions
about ideas in texts and cite stated or implied evidence from the text to support their views Teacher prompts: What conclusions can you draw from the events or information presented in the text? Has the author chosen the most convincing facts to support his or her opinion?
Teacher prompts: Who would be most likely to share this point of view? Who would not? How would you revise the text to appeal to a different or a wider audience? Why do you think stereotypes are used in certain texts?
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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., words within larger words, syllables within longer words, similarities between words with known spelling patterns and unknown words)
understand what you are reading? How do you know if you need to reread a section of a text? What else can you do if reading on or rereading does not clarify the meaning? In what way do you use your readers notebook to help you as a reader?
GRADE 6
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READING
GRADE 6 | WRITING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 6, students will:
GRADE 6
1. 2. 3. 4.
generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience; draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience; use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively; 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.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Developing and Organizing Content
By the end of Grade 6, students will: sources used and information gathered in a form that makes it easy to understand and retrieve)
Purpose and Audience 1.1 identify the topic, purpose, and audience for a variety of writing forms (e.g., an original poem, with an invented structure or based on a model such as a haiku, about a topic of personal interest, to share with the class; a persuasive letter asking the school principal to look at a specific issue from a new point of view; a description of the procedure for constructing a three-dimensional model, to share with Grade 3 students; a script on a topic of current interest for a mock television broadcast for a general audience)
Organizing Ideas 1.5 identify and order main ideas and supporting details and group them into units that could be used to develop a structured, multi-paragraph piece of writing, using a variety of strategies (e.g., making outlines, writing notes, filling in a ranking grid) and organizational patterns (e.g., order of importance)
Review 1.6 determine whether the ideas and information they have gathered are relevant, appropriate, and adequate for the purpose, and do more research if necessary (e.g., review information critically with a friend using a concept map, checklist, or flowchart)
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GRADE 6
Word Choice 2.3 use some vivid and/or figurative language and innovative expressions to enhance interest (e.g., strong verbs; concrete, specific nouns; unusual adjectives; unexpected word order) Teacher prompt: Identify three language choices you have made and explain the effect they will have on a reader.
Spelling Familiar Words 3.1 spell familiar words correctly (e.g., words
from their oral vocabulary, anchor charts, and shared-, guided-, and independentreading texts; words used regularly in instruction across the curriculum)
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WRITING
legible printing and cursive writing; include photographs or magazine pictures and a map in a travel brochure; include an index to help the reader find specific information in a report; supply a table of contents)
GRADE 6
Punctuation 3.4 use punctuation appropriately to communicate their intended meaning in longer and more complex sentences, with a focus on the use of: commas to separate words in a list or after an introductory word or phrase; quotation marks in dialogue; and some uses of the colon, semi-colon, and brackets
Grammar 3.5 use parts of speech correctly to communicate their meaning clearly, with a focus on the use of: personal subject and object pronouns (e.g., I, me) indefinite pronouns (e.g., someone, nobody); conjunctions; subordinate clauses; adverb phrases; and present, past, and future verb tenses
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GRADE 6
1. 2. 3. 4.
demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts; identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning; create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques; reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Understanding Media Texts
By the end of Grade 6, students will:
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.3 evaluate the effectiveness of the presentation and treatment of ideas, information, themes, opinions, issues, and/or experiences in media texts (e.g., evaluate the coverage of the same news item in a newspaper article, a segment of a news program, a website, and/or a blog; evaluate the effectiveness with which themes are developed, supported, and illustrated in a movie or music video) Teacher prompt: Youve told me that you think this advertisement is very effective, but that the other one is weak. Explain what accounts for the success or failure of each.
Making Inferences/Interpreting Messages 1.2 interpret media texts, using overt and
implied messages as evidence for their interpretations (e.g., explain why the advertisements used in a particular magazine are appropriate for that magazine, identifying the messages that would appeal to the magazines audience; explain how advertisements for healthy food and those for fast food differ) Teacher prompt: Is there a connection between the articles and the advertisements used in a magazine?
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MEDIA LITERACY
residence? An investment brochure? An action-oriented video game? A fashion magazine? A television science special? A quiz show? Action figures? Explain your answers.
GRADE 6
ed in a media text, identify missing or alternative points of view, and, where appropriate, determine whether the chosen view achieves a particular goal (e.g., identify biases in two different media texts that focus on the same topic or event; evaluate the portrayal of Aboriginal people in the media) Teacher prompts: What bias or stereotypes can you detect in this advertisement? Can you think of reasons why this view of the subject is used? What does this advertisement achieve? Are there different portrayals of Aboriginal people in the media? How are they different? Why are they different? Which ones are most accurate?
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media text they plan to create, and explain how they will use the conventions and techniques to help communicate their message (e.g., a scene for a television drama adapted from a novel or play: the camera can focus on one character, object, or gesture at a time, allowing different kinds of emphasis; camera angles and distances can vary to create different effects and perspectives; scenes can be edited to change the pace of the action; background music can be used to enhance the mood) Teacher prompt: How do the conventions and techniques of this form make it easier or harder to communicate certain ideas?
GRADE 6
Producing Media Texts 3.4 produce a variety of media texts for specific purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques (e.g., a review of a television program, film, piece of art, or artistic performance that includes commentary on the effects created through the use of various conventions and techniques a mock television broadcast of an announcement about a school-related issue a soundtrack to accompany the reading of a section of a graphic novel or comic book a computer-generated cover design, including special fonts, to enhance a published piece of writing a multimedia presentation to inform younger students about how to use a website to research a topic related to a unit of study a pamphlet outlining the researched or imagined biography of a writer a travelogue illustrating the journey of an early Canadian explorer, including contacts with First Nations peoples a storyboard indicating the images to be used in a scene for a television drama adapted from a novel or play a movie poster to advertise a movie based on a narrative they have studied)
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MEDIA LITERACY
students in the intermediate division continue to engage in rehearsal through shared and guided practice, the goal of instruction is to move them to a greater level of independence as language users. Students require multiple, diverse opportunities to practise independently and demonstrate their achievement of the learning expectations. Appropriate instructional texts are central to students development of the language knowledge, skills, and strategies embedded in the expectations across all strands. Oral, print, and media texts that are designed to support and challenge students at their individual level of language development will enhance the benefits of appropriately scaffolded instruction. It is important to ensure that, in addition to the materials provided for instruction, students have access to a wide range of texts that are engaging and relevant to their personal experiences and interests as readers, writers, and viewers. All texts chosen for instruction should be worthy of study, and promote antidiscriminatory education. The level of challenge represented by a specific text will vary from reader to reader because individual students bring their own unique experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds to a text. It is important, therefore, for intermediate students to have access to a range of texts that vary in length and form and that include a variety of types of themes, plots, ideas and information, organizational patterns, and features of text. The range of texts should be sufficiently wide that readers at all levels will need to use a variety of strategies to understand and analyse vocabulary, plot, or theme. All students, especially young adolescents, need to see themselves in the texts they encounter. They need to be able to choose independently to read, listen to, or interact with texts that have personal relevance in their day-to-day lives, including texts that deal with issues related to fairness, equity, and social justice. Intermediate students should have access to a broad range of relevant texts: oral texts such as speeches, debates, presentations, radio advertisements or dramas, song lyrics, raps, and sound bites; print texts such as memoirs, autobiographies, historical fiction, science fiction, realistic fiction, satire, essays, reviews, editorials, letters to the editor, and books in their own first language; and media texts such as magazines, online zines, websites, blogs, public-service announcements, comedy shows, video games, and newspapers. As writers/producers of oral, print, and media texts, intermediate students use their language knowledge, skills, and strategies as tools for finding information, exploring ideas, expressing opinions, and taking positions across the curriculum. They apply their knowledge of different text forms such as debates, speeches, persuasive letters, memoirs, realistic fiction, magazine articles, letters to the editor, maps, scripts, surveys, or graphs in a wide range of learning contexts. While modelled, shared, and guided learning experiences continue to provide instructional support for intermediate students as they consolidate their essential skills and processes, the focus of instruction is on helping them develop the ability to independently choose and use appropriate forms, structures, vocabulary, conventions, and stylistic elements to communicate ideas and information effectively for diverse purposes and audiences.
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GRADE 7
GRADE 7
1. 2. 3.
listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes; use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes; reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Listening to Understand
By the end of Grade 7, students will: oral texts such as debates, interviews, speeches, monologues, lectures, and plays to make predictions and identify important ideas while listening; ask questions for clarification or further information; visualize scenes suggested by evocative or descriptive language in a text; use notetaking strategies to keep track of or summarize important points made by a speaker)
Purpose 1.1 identify a range of purposes for listening in a variety of situations, formal and informal, and set goals appropriate for specific listening tasks (e.g., to analyse the arguments on both sides of a class debate; to create a character sketch based on a sound clip from a film or an audiotape of an interview; to synthesize ideas in a literature circle)
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of listening comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after listening in order to understand and clarify the meaning of increasingly complex or challenging oral texts (e.g., use background knowledge about the structure of
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insights; to other texts, including print and visual texts; and to the world around them (e.g., activate prior knowledge in order to assess the credibility of a speakers assertions; assess the validity of other speakers ideas in relation to their own and modify their own ideas if appropriate; compare the information or ideas in an oral text to those in another text on the same topic)
GRADE 7
Point of View 1.8 explain the connection between a speakers tone and the point of view or perspective presented in oral texts (e.g., the reason why a speaker might employ humour to present a serious theme) Teacher prompts: How does the use of humour in this text influence the audience? Why do you think the speaker uses sarcasm? Is it effective? Why, or why not?
2. Speaking to Communicate
By the end of Grade 7, students will:
Vocal Skills and Strategies 2.5 identify a range of vocal effects, including
tone, pace, pitch, volume, and a variety of sound effects, and use them appropriately and with sensitivity towards cultural differences to communicate their meaning (e.g., use pauses and changes of pace to highlight the introduction of each new point in a speech to the student body)
Purpose 2.1 identify a range of purposes for speaking and explain how the purpose and intended audience might influence the choice of speaking strategies (e.g., to present conclusions about a research project through dramatization, a role play, or a monologue; to interest classmates in a social issue through a debate; to solve problems or investigate issues and ideas through a group brainstorming session)
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Interconnected Skills 3.2 identify how their skills as viewers, representers, readers, and writers help them improve their oral communication skills Teacher prompt: How does reading about an issue help you participate in a discussion about it?
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GRADE 7 | READING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 7, students will:
GRADE 7
1. 2. 3. 4.
read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning; recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning; use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently; reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Reading for Meaning
By the end of Grade 7, students will: 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)
Variety of Texts 1.1 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)
Demonstrating Understanding 1.4 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)
READING
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of reading comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after
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GRADE 7
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.8 evaluate the effectiveness of both simple
and complex texts based on evidence from the texts Teacher prompt: Did the authors argument convince you? What impressed you the most the facts themselves or the way they were presented?
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GRADE 7
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READING
GRADE 7 | WRITING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 7, students will:
GRADE 7
1. 2. 3. 4.
generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience; draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience; use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively; 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.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Developing and Organizing Content
By the end of Grade 7, students will:
Purpose and Audience 1.1 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)
Organizing Ideas 1.5 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)
Review 1.6 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)
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Teacher prompt: How could you let your audience know you have thought about other points of view?
GRADE 7
Spelling Familiar Words 3.1 spell familiar words correctly (e.g., words
from their oral vocabulary, anchor charts, and shared-, guided-, and independentreading texts; words used regularly in instruction across the curriculum)
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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)
GRADE 7
Punctuation 3.4 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
Grammar 3.5 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)
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GRADE 7
1. 2. 3. 4.
demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts; identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning; create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques; reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Understanding Media Texts
By the end of Grade 7, students will: Teacher prompts: What are the differences in the way these sources cover this event? What do the differences tell you about each news source? What standards of beauty are projected in movies and advertisements? How do these standards affect students?
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.3 evaluate the effectiveness of the presentation and treatment of ideas, information, themes, opinions, issues, and/ or experiences in media texts (e.g., explain why the editorial/photo essay in this e-zine did or did not convince you of its position; debate whether violence in televised professional sporting events adds to or detracts from their appeal) Teacher prompts: How was this theme developed as the movie unfolded? Did the use of suspense enhance the effectiveness of the message? Did this video game deliver the excitement that was promised in the advertisement? What made it succeed/fail? Do the sports you see on television affect your decision about participating in particular sports?
Making Inferences/Interpreting Messages 1.2 interpret increasingly complex or difficult media texts, using overt and implied messages as evidence for their interpretations (e.g., identify the editorial positions of two different newspapers by comparing the selection of stories and the composition of elements [photos, images, text] on their front pages; identify the themes in a contemporary action movie or comedy and explain how these themes contribute to the popularity of the film; explain how standards of beauty are established in advertising)
MEDIA LITERACY
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of media texts (e.g., messages in chat rooms, television broadcasts of international news stories, music, documentaries, clothing)
and compass orientation), are used in combination to make maps meaningful. Describe the interrelationship of instrumentals, lyrics, and vocals in a favourite song.
GRADE 7
ent media texts reflect different points of view (e.g., compare pictures of the same character and/or event in media texts aimed at different audiences and identify the different perspectives represented) Teacher prompt: What differences can you identify in the way the character is represented in the different texts? Which representation seems most/ least fair? Why? What explanation can you suggest for the differences in the representations?
Purpose and Audience 3.1 explain why they have chosen the topic
for a media text they plan to create (e.g., a class newspaper or pamphlet to inform parents about the achievements and activities of students in the class), and identify challenges they may face in engaging and/ influencing their audience or Teacher prompt: Parents are very busy people. What in your pamphlet will succeed in capturing their attention?
Form 2.1 explain how individual elements of various media forms combine to create, reinforce, and/ enhance meaning or Teacher prompt: Explain how different elements of maps, such as colour (used to show different topographical features) and legends (used to show scale
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GRADE 7
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MEDIA LITERACY
GRADE 8
GRADE 8
1. 2. 3.
listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes; use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes; reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Listening to Understand
By the end of Grade 8, students will: to make predictions and identify important ideas while listening; ask questions for clarification or further information; use a range of note-taking strategies to keep track of or summarize important points; use self-questioning to monitor understanding of what is being said)
Purpose 1.1 identify a range of purposes for listening in a variety of situations, formal and informal, and set goals appropriate to specific listening tasks (e.g., to evaluate the effectiveness of the arguments on both sides of a class debate on an environmental, social, or global issue; to respond to feedback in peer conferences and student/teacher conferences)
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of listening comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after listening in order to understand and clarify the meaning of increasingly complex and challenging oral texts (e.g., use background knowledge about the structure of oral texts such as debates, interviews, speeches, monologues, lectures, and plays
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in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights; to other texts, including print and visual texts; and to the world around them (e.g., respond in role as a character from an oral text while being interviewed by another student; discuss similarities and differences between oral and print texts on the same topic, focusing on specific elements such as the accuracy and relevance of information; debate the wisdom of the choices made by a historical personage depicted in an oral biography, based on ideas about what their own choices might have been)
2. Speaking to Communicate
By the end of Grade 8, students will:
Purpose 2.1 identify a range of purposes for speaking in a variety of situations, both straightforward and more complex, and explain how the purpose and intended audience might influence the choice of speaking strategies (e.g., to introduce a speaker; to support the resolution in a debate; to dramatize a favourite poem; to explain a complex procedure to an individual or group; to work towards the solution to a problem with a partner)
GRADE 8
Analysing Texts 1.7 analyse a variety of complex or challenging oral texts in order to identify the strategies that have been used to inform, persuade, or entertain, and evaluate the effectiveness of those strategies (e.g., compare the tone and the ideas emphasized in speeches about non-smoking regulations by a tobacco company representative and a person with asthma and suggest how each approach would influence an audience)
Clarity and Coherence 2.3 communicate in a clear, coherent manner, using a structure and style appropriate to the purpose, the subject matter, and the intended audience (e.g., combine logic with an appeal to emotion in a charity fund-raising speech; use a cause-andeffect structure in a report on the rise of a political movement or the emergence of a contentious Aboriginal issue)
Appropriate Language 2.4 use appropriate words, phrases, and terminology from the full range of their vocabulary, including inclusive and non-discriminatory language, and a range of stylistic devices, to communicate their meaning effectively and engage the interest of their intended audience (e.g., use imagery, figurative language such as similes and analogies, and other stylistic elements such as idioms and onomatopoeia to evoke a particular mood in a dramatic monologue or an appeal for support)
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ORAL COMMUNICATION
Vocal Skills and Strategies 2.5 identify a range of vocal effects, including tone, pace, pitch, volume, and a variety of sound effects, and use them appropriately and with sensitivity towards cultural differences to communicate their meaning (e.g., use changes in pitch to differentiate voices in a storytelling session; use tone and volume to clarify implied messages in a rap poem)
GRADE 8
Interconnected Skills 3.2 identify how their skills as viewers, representers, readers, and writers help them improve their oral communication skills Teacher prompt: How does your experience of creating media texts help you understand oral texts?
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GRADE 8 | READING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 8, students will:
GRADE 8
1. 2. 3. 4.
read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, graphic, and informational texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning; recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning; use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently; reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Reading for Meaning
By the end of Grade 8, students will: or difficult texts (e.g., activate prior knowledge on a topic through dialogue or by developing mind maps; use visualization and comparisons with images in other texts or media to clarify impressions of characters, scenes, or concepts; ask questions to monitor and clarify understanding; identify important ideas; synthesize ideas to broaden understanding)
Variety of Texts 1.1 read a wide variety of increasingly complex or difficult texts from diverse cultures, including literary texts (e.g., short stories, novels, poetry, essays, science fiction, memoirs, scripts, satire), graphic texts (e.g., graphs and graphic organizers, charts and tables, surveys, maps, spreadsheets), and informational texts (e.g., essays, Canadian and global print and online sources, electronic texts, textbooks, dictionaries, thesauri, websites, transcripts)
Comprehension Strategies 1.3 identify a variety of reading comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after reading to understand increasingly complex
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READING
GRADE 8
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.8 evaluate the effectiveness of a text based
on evidence taken from that text Teacher prompts: Were the instructions for doing the experiment clear and easy to follow? Why or why not? Were the authors arguments well supported by credible evidence? Did the arguments make sense? Why, or why not? Identify three uses of imagery in the poem and explain how they help the poet communicate the theme effectively.
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GRADE 8
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READING
GRADE 8 | WRITING
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of Grade 8, students will:
GRADE 8
1. 2. 3. 4.
generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience; draft and revise their writing, using a variety of informational, literary, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience; use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively; 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.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Developing and Organizing Content
By the end of Grade 8, students will:
Purpose and Audience 1.1 identify the topic, purpose, and audience
for more complex writing forms (e.g., a personal memoir about the school experience to share with classmates, family, and friends at graduation; a report on a topic of current interest in the style of a newspaper article, including headlines, for a school or community newspaper; a campaign flyer or brochure to promote a candidate for school government)
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 18 | Language
Review 1.6 determine whether the ideas and information they have gathered are relevant, appropriate, and sufficiently specific for the purpose, and do more planning and research if necessary (e.g., check for depth and breadth of coverage of the topic)
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GRADE 8
Spelling Familiar Words 3.1 spell familiar words correctly (e.g., words
from their oral vocabulary, anchor charts, and shared-, guided-, and independentreading texts; words used regularly in instruction across the curriculum)
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WRITING
Publishing 3.7 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; use an imaginative text layout, drawings, and a table of contents in a class poetry anthology for the school library; use a spreadsheet to display detailed specific information)
GRADE 8
Punctuation 3.4 use punctuation appropriately to communicate their intended meaning in more complex writing forms, including forms specific to different subjects across the curriculum, with a focus on the use of: commas to separate introductory phrases from the main part of a sentence and to separate words, phrases, and clauses in a series; quotation marks to distinguish words being discussed as words and to indicate titles; ellipses () and dashes to indicate sentence breaks, ambiguities, or parenthetical statements
Grammar 3.5 use parts of speech correctly to commuTHE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 18 | Language
nicate their meaning clearly, with a focus on subject/verb agreement and the use of nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, and prepositions
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GRADE 8
1. 2. 3. 4.
demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts; identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning; create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques; reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Understanding Media Texts
By the end of Grade 8, students will: of a historical figure in a movie to his or her treatment in a print biography) Teacher prompts: Did the newspaper and the television news program use the same lead story? Why or why not? Did the different news sources provide different information on the same topic? Did they take a different position? Which historical portrait is more convincing? More accurate? More interesting? Why?
Responding to and Evaluating Texts 1.3 evaluate the effectiveness of the presentation and treatment of ideas, information, themes, opinions, issues, and/ or experiences in media texts (e.g., explain how a series of newspaper stories on a controversial issue captured and maintained their interest; explain the similarities and differences in the treatment of a particular topic or theme in different media texts and evaluate the relative effectiveness of the treatments; as a class, evaluate the medias coverage of a social or environmental issue over a two-week period)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Messages 1.2 interpret increasingly complex or difficult media texts, using overt and implied messages as evidence for their interpretations (e.g., compare the coverage of a lead story in a morning newspaper to the coverage of that story on the evening news; compare the order in which news stories are reported on two different television channels and suggest reasons for the differences; compare the treatment
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MEDIA LITERACY
a member of a particular age/gender/ ethnocultural/socio-economic group might react to a controversial article in a print or online news magazine and give reasons for their prediction) Teacher prompt: Do you think all members of a particular group would react the same way to this issue? Could an older person react the same way as a teenager? Why, or why not?
Form 2.1 explain how individual elements of various media forms combine to create, reinforce, and/ enhance meaning or (e.g., print advertisements use text, images, colour, different fonts, and different camera angles in a seamless combination to create an effect) Teacher prompt: Why do you think each of these elements is included? How are the elements combined to create a coherent message?
GRADE 8
Point of View 1.5 demonstrate understanding that different media texts reflect different points of view and that some texts reflect multiple points of view (e.g., a television broadcast of a sports game presents the views of fans, the announcers, the sponsors, and the television network; different media texts represent people of different age, gender, income level, or ethnocultural background differently, communicating obvious or subtle messages that might indicate bias or stereotyping; different points of view are often presented in a news report of a conflict) Teacher prompts: What different groups are represented in the text? Are the different groups treated differently? If so, how? In this news report about a conflict between two countries, does the reporter appear to favour one side over the other? Give evidence for your view.
Purpose and Audience 3.1 explain why they have chosen the topic
for a media text they plan to create (e.g., a poster advertising a class fund-raising campaign to appeal to local parent groups, businesses, or service organizations), and identify challenges they may face in engaging and/ influencing or their intended audience Teacher prompt: What are the challenges involved in reaching each of these groups? How can you appeal to all of the groups in a single poster? If you were to develop three posters, one for each of them, how would the posters differ?
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magazine advertisements for a particular product, aimed at different age groups among the students in the school an interview with a family member about his or her cultural heritage for publication in a school or community magazine/newspaper a public-service announcement on a current issue that is relevant to their fellow students, such as daily physical activity, literacy, or bullying a storyboard for a video of a favourite song that is not available as a video)
GRADE 8
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MEDIA LITERACY
GLOSSARY
The following definitions and lists of examples are intended to help teachers and parents use this document. It should be noted that the examples provided are suggestions and are not meant to be exhaustive. Aboriginal person. A person who is a descendant of the original inhabitants of North America. The Canadian Constitution (1982) recognizes three primary groups as Aboriginal peoples: Indians, Inuit, and Mtis. achievement levels. Brief descriptions of four different degrees of student achievement of the provincial curriculum expectations for any given grade. Level 3, which is the provincial standard, identifies a high level of achievement of the provincial expectations. Parents of students achieving at level 3 in a particular grade can be confident that their children will be prepared for work at the next grade. Level 1 identifies achievement that falls much below the provincial standard. Level 2 identifies achievement that approaches the standard. Level 4 identifies achievement that surpasses the standard. anchor charts. Charts designed by the class or by the teacher that list steps, procedures, or processes for a particular activity (e.g., the stages of the writing process, procedures for a literature circle) or reference items (e.g., examples of capitalization, parts of speech, reading/thinking strategies). audience. The intended readers, listeners, or viewers for a particular text. blog. A slang term for Web log. An online forum where people share personal journal entries, opinion articles, and/or photographs with others on a regular basis. comprehension. The ability to understand and draw meaning from spoken, written, and visual communications in all media. comprehension strategies. A variety of cognitive and systematic techniques that students use before, during and after listening, reading, and viewing to construct meaning from texts. Examples include: making connections to prior knowledge and experience and to familiar texts; visualizing to clarify or deepen understanding of a text; finding important ideas; questioning; summarizing information; inferring; analysing and synthesizing; skimming text for information or detail; scanning text to determine the purpose of the text or type of material; adjusting reading speed according to the level of difficulty of the text or the kind of reading. concept map. A graphic organizer students can use to explore knowledge and gather and share information and ideas. Features of concept maps may include various shapes and labels, as well as arrows and other links to show relationships between ideas.
concepts of print. Concepts related to the way language is conveyed in print. Print concepts include directionality (Englishlanguage text is read from left to right and from top to bottom), the difference between letters and words (letters are symbols that represent sounds; words are made up of letters; there are spaces between words), the use of capitalization and punctuation, and the common characteristics of books (title, author, front/back). conventions. Accepted practices or rules in the use of language. In the case of written or printed materials, some conventions help convey meaning (e.g., punctuation, typefaces, capital letters) and other conventions aid in the presentation of content (e.g., table of contents, headings, footnotes, charts, captions, lists, pictures, index). See also text features. creative thinking. The process of thinking about ideas or situations in inventive and unusual ways in order to understand them better and respond to them in a new and constructive manner. Students think creatively in all subject areas when they imagine, invent, alter, or improve a concept or product. critical literacy. The capacity for a particular type of critical thinking that involves looking beyond the literal meaning of texts to observe what is present and what is missing, in order to analyse and evaluate the texts complete meaning and the authors intent. Critical literacy goes beyond conventional critical thinking in focusing on issues related to fairness, equity, and social justice. Critically literate students adopt a critical stance, asking what view of the world the text advances and whether they find this view acceptable. critical thinking. The process of thinking about ideas or situations in order to understand them fully, identify their implications, and/or make a judgement
about what is sensible or reasonable to believe or do. Critical-thinking skills used in reading include: examining opinions, questioning ideas, interpreting information, identifying values and issues, detecting bias, detecting implied as well as explicit meanings. Critical-thinking skills used in writing include: questioning, hypothesizing, interpreting, inferring, analysing, comparing, contrasting, evaluating, predicting, reasoning, distinguishing between alternatives, making and supporting judgements, synthesizing, elaborating on ideas, identifying values and issues, detecting bias, detecting implied as well as explicit meanings. cross-checking. The use of different sources of information (e.g., the three cueing systems) to confirm reading accuracy and/or comprehension. cueing systems. Cues or clues that effective readers use in combination to read unfamiliar words, phrases, and sentences and construct meaning from print. Semantic (meaning) cues help readers guess or predict the meaning of words, phrases, or sentences on the basis of context and prior knowledge. Semantic cues may include visuals. Syntactic (structural) cues help readers make sense of text using knowledge of the patterned ways in which words in a language are combined into phrases, clauses, and sentences. Graphophonic (phonological and graphic) cues help readers to decode unknown words using knowledge of letter or sound relationships, word patterns, and words recognized by sight. cues, non-verbal. Aspects of spoken or unspoken communication that convey meaning without the use of words. Examples include: facial expressions, gestures, body language.
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cues, verbal (oral language). Aspects of spoken language that convey meaning. Examples include: types of words (e.g., nouns, verbs, linking words, modifiers); prefixes and suffixes (e.g., indicators of plurals, verb tenses); sound patterns (e.g., rhyme); pauses; pace; tone of voice or intonation; volume; pitch; modulation; inflection. culture. The way in which people live, think, and define themselves as a community. differentiated instruction. An approach to instruction that maximizes each students growth by considering the needs of each student at his or her current stage of development and then offering that student a learning experience that responds to his or her individual needs. diversity. In reference to a society, the variety of groups of people who share a range of commonly recognized physical, cultural, or social characteristics. Categories of groups may be based on various factors or characteristics, such as gender, race, culture, ethnicity, sexual orientation, ability/ disability, age, religion, and socio-economic level. editing. The making of changes to the content, structure, and wording of drafts to improve the organization of ideas, eliminate awkward phrasing, correct grammatical and spelling errors, and generally ensure that the writing is clear, coherent, and correct. elements of text. The characteristic aspects of a particular text form (e.g., story: plot, characters, setting, theme).
elements of writing (composition and style). Essential aspects of written compositions. Examples include: a central theme or topic; the organization of information and ideas; diction (word choice); the use of conventions of spelling, punctuation, grammar, sentence structure, and paragraphing; plot; characterization; atmosphere; point of view; literary (stylistic) devices. expectations. The knowledge and skills that students are expected to develop and to demonstrate in their class work, on tests, and in various other activities on which their achievement is assessed. Overall expectations describe in general terms the knowledge and skills that students are expected to demonstrate by the end of each grade. Specific expectations describe the expected knowledge and skills in greater detail. explicit teaching. Direct, purposeful teaching of specific knowledge, skills, or strategies. In explicit teaching, the teacher: explains what the knowledge, skill, or strategy is, why it is used, and when to use it; models how to use it; guides and coaches students as they practise it (e.g., in shared reading and then in guided reading sessions); and then asks them to demonstrate their learning independently. figurative language. Words or phrases used in a non-literal way to create a desired effect (e.g., metaphors, similes, personification, oxymoron). See also imagery, literary device. fishbone map. A graphic organizer that uses framing questions to show the causal relationships involved in a complex event. Framing questions might include: What are the factors that cause X? How do they relate to one another?
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GLOSSARY
five key concepts of media literacy. For the purposes of this document, the five key concepts of media literacy are: 1. All media are constructions. 2. The media contain beliefs and value messages. 3. Each person interprets messages differently. 4. The media have special interests (commercial, ideological, political). 5. Each medium has its own language, style, form, techniques, conventions, and aesthetics. five (5) Ws. The five basic questions (who, what, where, when, and why?) that provide a framework for recounting personal or factual experiences and retelling stories or events. fix-up strategies. Reading strategies that students can use to repair a breakdown of comprehension (e.g., rereading a passage to clarify meaning; reading ahead; considering how the meaning of the text matches up with prior knowledge). See also reading strategies. flow chart. A visual way of organizing information and ideas to show relationships (e.g., to show the sequence of events in a short story; to describe relationships among characters in a situation comedy). forms of informational texts. Examples include: history book, geography text, report, essay, theatre or concert program, book review, editorial, newspaper or magazine article, television or radio script, letter (personal, business), invitation, manual, public sign, label, biography, autobiography, speech, rsum, personal journal, diary, brochure, reference book, encyclopedia. forms of literary texts. Examples include: story, short story, adventure story, detective story, myth, legend, folk tale, cumulative tale, lyric poem, dramatic poem, ballad, novel, mystery novel, historical novel,
science fiction novel, soliloquy, play, script, storybook, picture book, pattern book, chapter book. forms of media texts. Examples include: advertisement, e-mail, film, video, DVD, clothing, athletic wear, food packaging, action figure, jewellery, newspaper, magazine, brochure, movie trailer, editorial, sculpture, song, dance, news report, sports program, documentary, situation comedy (sitcom), television or radio drama, nature program, interview, travelogue, television commercial, cartoon, web page, CD-ROM dictionary, interactive software, multimedia text, blog, database. forms of oral texts. Examples include: greeting, conversation, question, statement, exclamation, instructions, directions, poem, rhyme, song, rap, story, anecdote, announcement, news broadcast, interview, oral presentation, speech, recitation, debate, report, role play, drama. forms of writing. Examples include: story or other narrative piece, anecdote, commentary, critical review, description, instructions or procedures, recount (personal or informational), transcription of an interview, announcement, argument, position paper, essay, research report, television or radio script, editorial, speech, letter, minutes of a meeting, notes, jottings, poem, song text, dialogue, label, supported opinion, summary, cartoon caption, log, diary, memoir, journal, riddle, script for a commercial, advertisement, list, survey, word web, chart. graphic novel. A story in comic-strip form, published as a book. graphic organizer. A visual framework (e.g., a Venn diagram, a word web, a flow chart) that helps students organize, analyse, synthesize, and assess information and ideas. See also individual types of organizers.
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graphophonics. The study of the relationships between the symbols and sounds of a language and the visual information on the page. graphophonics cues. See cueing systems. higher-order thinking. The process of mentally manipulating and transforming information and ideas in order to solve problems, acquire understanding, and discover new meaning. Higher-order thinking skills include: focusing, information gathering, combining facts and ideas, organizing, analysing, synthesizing, generalizing, integrating, explaining, hypothesizing, interpreting, evaluating, drawing conclusions. homonym. A word that has the same spelling as another word but a different meaning (e.g., ear, meaning the organ of hearing, and ear [of corn], meaning the seed-bearing head of a cereal plant). homophone. A word that has the same sound as another word but a different meaning (e.g., seas and seize). hyperbole. A literary device in which exaggeration is used deliberately for effect or emphasis (e.g., a flood of tears, piles of money). hyperlink. In an electronic document, a cross-reference or link to a web page or another electronic document. A hyperlink is usually a particular word, button, or graphic. When the user clicks on it, the new web page or document is displayed. idiom. A group of words that, through usage, has taken on a special meaning different from the literal meaning (e.g., Keep your shirt on! Or Its raining cats and dogs.). imagery. Descriptions and figures of speech (e.g., metaphors, similes) used by writers to create vivid mental pictures in the mind of the reader. See also figurative language, literary device.
implicit meaning. Ideas and concepts that are present but stated indirectly. inclusive language. Language that is equitable in its reference to people, thereby avoiding stereotypes and discriminatory assumptions (e.g., police officer includes both males and females, whereas policeman refers only to males). See also nondiscriminatory language. inferring. Drawing meaning from or reaching a conclusion using reasoning and evidence from a text, based on what the author states and implies in the text and what the reader brings to the text from his or her prior knowledge and experience. informational text. See forms of informational texts. irony. A statement or situation that has an underlying meaning different from its literal or surface meaning. language pattern. A particular arrangement of words that helps the reader determine meaning by providing a certain level of predictability; for example, inversion of subject and verb in interrogative sentences. listening and speaking skills. Skills that include: determining the purpose of listening; paying attention to the speaker or performer; following directions and instructions; recalling ideas accurately; responding appropriately to thoughts expressed; judging when it is appropriate to speak or ask questions; allowing others a turn to speak; speaking clearly and coherently; asking questions to clarify meaning or to obtain more information; responding with consideration for others feelings; using and interpreting facial expressions, gestures, and body language appropriately. literary (or stylistic) device. A particular pattern of words, a figure of speech, or a technique used in literature to produce a specific effect. Examples include: rhyme,
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parallel structure, analogy, comparison, contrast, irony, foreshadowing, allusion, juxtaposition, simile, metaphor, personification, pun, hyperbole, oxymoron, symbolism. See also figurative language, imagery. literary text. See forms of literary texts. mass media. Means of communication aimed at a very large audience. Examples include: mass-market paperback books, television, movies, newspapers, magazines, the Internet. media. The plural of medium. Means of communication, including audio, visual, audio-visual, print, and electronic means. media conventions and techniques. The means of producing particular effects using voice, images, and sound to support the messages or themes in a text. Examples include the use of: colour, voice-over narration, animation, simulation, variations in camera angles or distance, fading in and out of sounds or images, hot links and navigation buttons on a website, live action, special effects, variations in volume, variations in speed or pace, motion, flashbacks, collages, dialogue, variations in size and type of lettering or size of images, sequencing of sounds and images, symbols, speech, music, background sounds, sound effects, dialects and accents, silence, narration, graphics, logos, props (e.g., costumes, furnishings), aspects of design and layout, credits, details of sponsorship, animation. media literacy. An informed and critical understanding of the nature of the media, the techniques used by them, and the impact of these techniques. Also, the ability to understand and use the mass media in an active, critical way. See also five key concepts of media literacy. media text. A product that is communicated through a medium. See also forms of media texts.
medium. A communication vehicle such as radio, television, or the Internet. The plural is media. mentor texts. Texts that are chosen and used intentionally/explicitly by the teacher to illustrate specific teaching points (e.g., voice, word choice, use of dialogue). metacognition. The process of thinking about ones own thought processes. Metacognitive skills include the ability to monitor ones own learning. mind map. A graphic representation of information that is intended to clarify meaning. In making a mind map, students summarize information from a text and organize it by listing, sorting, or sequencing it, or by linking information and/or ideas. Mind maps help students understand the relative importance of individual points and the way in which these points relate to one another. mnemonics. Techniques for improving or supporting the memory (e.g., memory tricks that are used to help remember the spelling of a difficult word Ice is a noun and so is practice). modelling. A demonstration by the teacher of how to perform a task or use a strategy. Students copy the teacher in order to learn the modelled processes and skills. Modelling may include thinking aloud, to help students become aware of the processes and skills involved. multimedia presentation. A single work that uses more than one medium to present information and/or ideas: for example, an oral report that includes a slide show, diagrams, and a video or audio clip. non-discriminatory language. Language that conveys respect for all people and avoids stereotyping based on gender, race, religion, culture, social class, sexual orientation, ability, or age. See also inclusive language.
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onset. The consonant or consonants that occur before a vowel in a syllable (e.g., the g in gain, the fr in fright). See also rime. onset and rime patterns. The repetition of the same rime, with changing onsets (e.g., cake, rake, make, lake, fake, bake) to create word families. oral language structures. Verbal structures that are used in speaking. Examples include: conventional sentence structures (e.g., interrogative, exclamatory; simple, compound, complex); colloquial structures (e.g., one-word answers, verbless sentences); contractions; colloquial idioms. oral text. See forms of oral texts. organizational patterns of text. Ways in which texts are structured in different forms or genres of writing. Examples include: time order or chronological order (events presented in time sequence); comparison and contrast (an outline of similarities and differences); cause and effect (an outline of events or actions linked to their consequences); generalization (general statements supported by examples); combined/multiple orders (two or more organizational patterns used together: for example, comparison/contrast and cause/effect). overall expectations. See expectations. paraphrase. A restatement of an idea or text in ones own words. phonemic awareness. The ability to hear, identify, and manipulate phonemes (the smallest units of spoken language) in spoken words. phonics. Instruction that teaches children the relationships between the letters (graphemes) of written language and the individual sounds (phonemes) of spoken language.
phonological awareness. The ability to focus on and manipulate units of language, including phonemes and larger spoken units such as syllables and words. Phonological awareness activities can also involve rhymes, onsets, and rimes. See also onset, rime. point of view. The position of the narrator in relation to the story; thus, the vantage point from which events are seen (e.g., the omniscient, the third-person, or the first-person point of view). pragmatics. The study of how people choose what they say or write from the range of possibilities available in the language and the effect of those choices on listeners or readers. Pragmatics involves understanding how the context influences the way sentences convey information (e.g., the speaker/author/producers choice of text form, text features, use of conventions, and presentation style affect how the listener, reader, or viewer will understand the text). print and electronic resources. Information/reference materials in print or electronic media. Examples include: books (fiction and non-fiction), newspapers, magazines, encyclopedias, reports, television programs, videos, CD-ROMs, computer graphics programs, wordprocessing programs, models for writing (e.g., stories or essays by published writers), style guides, databases, dictionaries, thesauri, spell-check programs. prior knowledge. The background experience and knowledge that a student brings to classroom learning. Instruction builds on prior knowledge in order to introduce new learning. Since students come to school with a wide variety of prior knowledge, teachers need to be aware of their students backgrounds in planning lessons.
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proofreading. The careful reading of a final draft of written work to eliminate typographical errors and to correct errors in grammar, usage, spelling, and punctuation. readers notebook. A notebook in which individual students record observations and reflections about texts read and their reading process, as well as related diagrams, definitions, lists (e.g., books read, books to read), explanations, descriptions, predictions, findings, and conclusions. The readers notebook supports students thinking about their reading and is a helpful tool for discussing their reading with the teacher and their peers. readers theatre. An instructional activity in which students: adopt the roles of different characters and of a narrator to read a text; or develop scripts based on familiar texts, practise their parts, and then present their rehearsed reading to others. reading fluency. The ability to read with sufficient ease and accuracy to focus the readers or listeners attention on the meaning and message of a text. Reading fluency involves not only the automatic identification of words but also qualities such as rhythm, intonation, and phrasing at the phrase, sentence, and text levels, as well as anticipation of what comes next in a text. reading strategies. Approaches used before, during, and after reading to figure out unfamiliar words, determine meaning, and increase understanding of a text. Examples include comprehension strategies and word-solving strategies, including the use of cueing systems. Good readers use a combination of word-solving and comprehension strategies, while maintaining a focus on developing and deepening their understanding of a text. revising. The process of making major changes to the content, structure, and
wording of a draft to improve the organization of ideas, eliminate awkward phrasing, correct errors, and generally ensure that the writing is clear, coherent, and correct. See also editing, proofreading, writing process. rhetorical devices and techniques. Elements of style used in speech or writing to achieve special effects, usually in order to persuade, interest, or impress an audience (e.g., rhythm, repetition, rhetorical question, emphasis, balance, dramatic pause). rime. The part of a syllable that contains the vowel and all that follows it (e.g., -one in bone and tone). A rime is smaller than a syllable but larger than a phoneme. See also onset. scaffolding. Instruction that helps students build on their prior knowledge and experiences in order to reach higher levels of learning and proficiency. Teachers provide temporary support until students develop the ability to apply newly learned skills and knowledge independently. schwa. A vowel that is unstressed, toneless and neutral, occurring in unstressed syllables (e.g., a in about or o in synonym). Schwa vowels are often transcribed using the symbol . semantics. The meaning in language, including the meaning of words, phrases, and sentences, alone and in context. semantics cues. See cueing systems. specific expectations. See expectations. stereotype. An image of a particular type of person or thing that has become fixed through being widely held. Stereotypes are usually conventional, formulaic, and oversimplified. e
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story grammar. The structure and elements of narrative text. In Western cultures, story grammars have the following elements: setting (time, place); characters; the introduction of a problem or conflict; events (e.g., the reaction of the central character and his or her attempts to solve the problem); a resolution or conclusion; and a theme. A story map is a graphic organizer that traces the story grammar. storyboard. A sequence of images used to plan a film, video, television program, or drama. strands. The four major areas of language use into which the curriculum for Language is organized: Oral Communication, Reading, Writing, and Media Literacy. strategy bookmark. A bookmark for use by individual students that lists a variety of reading strategies. Often a replica of a larger strategy chart that is posted in the classroom for use by the teacher and students when reading strategies are being explicitly taught, it is used by students to support their independent application of these strategies. student-teacher conference. A teachers planned dialogue with an individual student about his or her learning. Conferences offer teachers opportunities to get to know their students strengths and the challenges they face in relation to specific learning strands or expectations; to monitor their progress; and to plan future instruction based on identified needs and interests. stylistic device. See literary device. summarizing. Stating the main points or facts of a text. synonym. A word that has the same or almost the same meaning as another word (e.g., clean/pure).
syntax. The predictable structure of a language and the ways in which words are combined to form phrases, clauses, and sentences. Syntax includes classes of words (e.g., nouns, verbs, adjectives) and their functions (e.g., subject, object). See also cueing systems. syntax cues. See cueing systems. synthesis. A new whole that is formed when ideas and information are linked, combined, and/ integrated. or text. A means of communication that uses words, graphics, sounds, and/ or images, in print, oral, visual, or electronic form, to present information and ideas to an audience. text features. The physical or design characteristics of a text that clarify and/ or give support to the meaning in the text (e.g., title, headings, subheadings, bold and italic fonts, illustrations). See also conventions. text form. A category or type of text that has certain defining characteristics. The concept of text forms provides a way for readers and writers to think about the purpose of a text and its intended audience. tone. A manner of speaking, writing, or creating that reveals the speakers, authors, or producers attitude towards a subject and/ audience. or trade book. A book that is published and made available, for sale, to the general public and that is not a textbook, professional or academic treatise, reference book, or official publication of an institution or government body. Examples include fiction, poetry, humour, and non-fiction. tree diagram. A graphic organizer that is used to classify a topic into groups and items: for example, when summarizing or planning a report.
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voice. The style or character of a piece of writing conveyed through the authors use of vocabulary, sentence structure, imagery, rhythm, and other elements that contribute to the mood of the piece as a whole. webcast. A broadcast or recording of an event on the World Wide Web. web page. A page of information at a website. It may include text, graphics, and links to other web pages. webquest. An inquiry in which most or all of the information gathered is drawn from the World Wide Web. website. A collective term for all of the web pages at a particular site on the Web. A website can cover one topic or a variety of topics. word pattern. The particular arrangement of the components in a group of words that have elements in common with respect to meaning, syntax, spelling, and/ sound; for example, the formation or of the past tense in a group of verbs by adding the suffix -ed to the verb root. word-solving strategies. Any of a variety of semantic, syntactic, or graphophonic strategies that help students read a word. Examples include: decoding words; using knowledge of the structure or meaning of words to read unfamiliar words; combining knowledge of letter-sound relationships with clues from an illustration to predict the word. word wall. A list of words, grouped alphabetically and prominently displayed in the classroom, that teachers use to help students become familiar with highfrequency words. word web. A graphic presentation of words associated with a subject showing the relationships between or among ideas or information.
writers notebook. A notebook in which individual students record notes, lists, drafts, observations, strategies, information, and ideas to support their writing development. The writers notebook is personal a place where students capture moments and scenes that they want to remember and outline strategies that will help them develop as writers. writing process. The process involved in producing a polished piece of writing. The writing process comprises several stages, each of which focuses on specific tasks. The main stages of the writing process are: planning for writing, drafting, revising, editing, proofreading, and publishing. writing skills. The skills needed to produce clear and effective writing. Writing skills include: organizing and developing ideas logically; identifying the level of language appropriate to the purpose for writing and the audience being addressed; choosing the form of writing appropriate to the purpose for writing; choosing words, phrases, and structures that are both appropriate for the context and effective in conveying ones message; using language structures and patterns correctly; using correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation; attending to style, tone, and point of view; showing awareness of the audience; revising to improve the development and organization of ideas; editing to improve style and to correct errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation. zine. A word, derived from magazine, that denotes an inexpensively produced, selfpublished publication. An e-zine is a zine that is published electronically, especially on the Internet.
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The Ministry of Education wishes to acknowledge the contribution of the many individuals, groups, and organizations that participated in the development and refinement of this curriculum policy document.
Printed on recycled paper ISBN 1-4249-1463-9 (Print) ISBN 1-4249-1464-7 (TXT) ISBN 1-4249-1465-5 (PDF) 05-104 Queens Printer for Ontario, 2006