Grade 6 Table of Contents - LPS · 3. Short and multiple research projects as well as longer research projects Could be collection of information rather than a finished product 4

Lincoln Public Schools Curriculum May 2013

Grade 6

Table of Contents Frameworks

Acknowledgements -----------------------------------------------------------------------------F1

LPS Reading Literacy Program ---------------------------------------------------------------F3

Guiding Principles ------------------------------------------------------------------------------F4

Common Core State Standards Diagram -----------------------------------------------------F6

Important Ideas from the Common Core ---------------------------------------------------- F7

Common Core State Standards, 6-8 (selected pages) ---------------------------------------F9

Nebraska State Standards, Grade 6 ----------------------------------------------------------- F23

Common Core State Standards Comparisons ------------------------------------------------F27

Comprehension Skills for Literature and Informational Text -----------------------------------F27

Language Skills for Common Core and Nebraska Standards -----------------------------------F28

NeSA Tables of Specifications Grade 6-------------------------------------------------------F29

Pacing Guides ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------F31

Grade Six Pacing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ F33

Designing Effective Lessons -------------------------------------------------------------------F39

Student Permanent Records --------------------------------------------------------------------F42

K-6 Individual Literacy Record – outside pages ---------------------------------------------F44

Individual Literacy Record – inside pages --------------------------------------------------- F45

K-6 Cumulative Writing Record – pocket folder ----------------------------------------- ---F46


Acknowledgements

We recognize the following individual for their assistance in studying the reading research,

selecting materials that matched the research.

STUDY GROUPS

Bobbie Adams

Pattie Anderson

Laura Bartels

Amy Baxter

Leisa Becker

Lynn Berlie

Lana Bolles

Becky Boyle

Cyndi Brown

Carol Butler

Shawn Carlson

Pam Cassel

Tracy Clements

Jamie Cook (Stock)

Julie Craw

Elizabeth Eddy

Angie Ertz

Tami Filbrandt

Colleen Gill

Denise Golden

Sue Harvey

Theresa Hayes

Betsy Hergenrader

Rhea Hochstein

Pam Inbody

Brandi Jantzen

Becky Johnson

Angela Kleager

Carrie Koebernick

Anne Kubr

Mark Lago

Kim Meyers

Diane Mickey

Angela Miller

Barb Miller

Lou Anne Miller

Molly Moller

Jennie Murphy

Eric Nelson

Gina Nelson

Margaret Odgers

Pat Polly

Chris Raasch

Tish Rezac

Sue Roosman

Connie Schmidt

Cindy Sell

Debra Storz

Lisa Swiatek

Jennifer Thomas

Rebecca Tuttle

Kristy Voigt

Lynn Wallasky

STEERING COMMITTEE

Thank you to the steering committee for leading the study grouts, synthesizing their findings, and

making final recommendations for the reading study.

Carrie Banks

Molly Bates

Cindy Brunken

Deb Burner

DeAnn Currin

Ruth Fristo

Barb Jacobson

Melody Kenney

Joy Lange

Lisa Oltman

Terry Ough

Russ Reckewey

Cindy Schwaninger

Scott Schwartz

Kirsten Smith

Kent Steen

Lori Vossler

Ruth Ann Wylie

F1


Acknowledgements

We recognize the following individual for piloting the Wonders program, giving us ongoing

feedback and making recommendations as guidelines, assessments, and resources were

developed.

Pilot Teachers 2012 – 2013

Shelly Adams

Jill Allen

Angie Barr

Paula Barry

David Beatty

Leisa Becker

Debbie Beran

Jen Birdsall

Elizabeth Bowen

Kim Bowen

Becky Boyle

Lynn Burris

Lynn Chambers

Jamie Cook

Laura Deans

Nicole Donahue

Nancy Dondlinger

Bryan Ebeler

Lance Erickson

Rachel Fellows

Tami Filbrandt

Joanne Frandolig

Linda Haas

Betsy Hergenrader

Jeanie Hock

Sara Hoglund

Dawn Holsten

Susan Horne

Jen Hutchinson

Brandi Jantzen

Sue Johnson

Becky Johnson

Lisa Kapustka

Sandie Knuth

Jeanne Krenk

Deb Kucera

Jody Lindberg

Heidi McInerney

Kim Meyers

Barb Miller

Lauren Mize

Tracy Montgomery

Rhonda Mueller

Eric Nelson

Gina Nelson

Thomas Pargett

Connie Peters

Chelley Peterson

Cami Prochnow

Kime Rathe

Erin Reed

Cindy Sell

Marcee Seng

Megan Simsic

Tanner Soderberg

Jewell Spilker

Nancy Stuckey

Rebecca Tuttle

Risa Udell

Laura Warrick

Melissa Weber-Arnold

Emily Wiebeck

Amy Williams

Jason Wilmot

Tracy Wright

We recognize the literacy teacher leaders for their work in writing the guide and

providing leadership throughout the process.

Carrie Banks Ruth Fristo Angela Kleager

Joy Lange Diane Mickey Lisa Oltman

Terry Ough Lori Vossler

Karen Saunders, Curriculum Specialist for K-6 Reading/Language Arts

F2

Lincoln Public Schools Curriculum F3 May 2013

Lincoln Public Schools Literacy Program 2013–14 Comprehensive, Aligned, Effective, Balanced

LPS Standards

Nebraska linked to Common Core

Reading

□ Foundations

Phonological Awareness

Phonics

Fluency

Vocabulary

□ Literature

Close Reading

Authors Purpose

Access Complex Text

□ Non-fiction

Close Reading

Authors Purpose

Access Complex Text

Writing

□ Process

□ Genre

□ Handwriting

□ Grammar

Speaking and Listening

□ Presentations

□ Collaborative Conversations

□ Listening

Instruction

Research-based, Explicit, Systematic

Materials

□ LPS Reading Program Guides

(Key word: ELA)

□ LPS Writing Program Guides

□ McGraw-Hill Wonders

□ Digital resources

(Key word: Wonders)

□ Leveled Reader Collections

□ Notebooks for Reading, Vocabulary, and

Writing notebooks

□ Materials for special populations:

e.g., Gifted, ELL, SPED, RTI

Best Practices Models

□ Interactive whole group

□ Read aloud, shared reading, close reading

□ Guided reading

□ Collaborative learning

□ Independent reading

Management

□ Established time allotments/pacing

□ Reading & writing workshops

□ Instructional routines

Assessment

Multiple measures that screen, diagnose,

monitor, and evaluate

□ Standard Assessment

ITBS - Grades 3 & 5

NeSA-R - Grades 3, 4, 5, 6

NeSA-W - Grade 4

□ District Common Assessment

K-1 Literacy Assessment

Developmental Reading Assessment

(DRA or DRA2) Grades K-2

Screening Assessment Grades 3-6

Oral reading fluency, retelling, and

comprehension

Wonders Unit Assessments Grades 2-6

□ Diagnostic assessment

□ Formative assessments

□ Classroom checks for understanding

□ Weekly Assessment (varied)

□ Goal setting/self assessment

District Professional Development

Flexible learning experiences and resources for

individual and groups

□ Ongoing support and coaching

Box 38, 402-436-1824

□ Grade level teacher leaders/coaches

□ Foundations classes for new and new to grade

level teachers with classroom demonstration lessons

□ Coaching available to individuals and teams

□ Advanced strategy classes that include

coaching, labs, and demonstrations

□ Online webinars or other online professional

development applications

□ Resources updated online in docushare

□ Liaisons at K-2, 3-5, and 6 to provide

communication


K-6 Reading Language Arts Guiding Principles

Mission Statement

The mission of the K-6 Reading/Language Arts Program in Lincoln Public Schools is to ensure each student reads and listens with understanding as well as responds thoughtfully through writing and speaking. Literacy provides a foundation for personal enrichment, lifelong learning, and responsible citizenship.

In the process of the reading study, we developed guiding statements which led our

decisions and are the foundation of the K-6 Reading/Language Arts Program for the

Lincoln Public Schools. Although many of these principles remain the same as those

adopted a decade ago, they take on new meaning as we meet new challenges.

COMPREHENSIVE LITERACY PROGRAM

Given that reading, writing, listening, and speaking involve complementary skills

and processes and thus should be integrated. . .

Students will be taught, challenged, and supported in reaching their maximum potential

in a program that is comprehensive, effective, aligned, and balanced.

Students will receive instruction grounded in evidence-based effective practices that will

support all learners in experiencing academic growth.

Students need teachers who will plan school experiences that will help students learn

how to read as well as to love to read.

Students will benefit from home school connections that extend the opportunity to read and talk about reading. READING Given that literacy, the ability to read, write, and understand, is the right of every

child. . .

Students will receive reading instruction in the foundation skills and strategies including

phonics, vocabulary development, fluency, and comprehension using an explicit and

systematic approach.

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Students will be taught how to analyze, interpret and understand complex text, digital

information, and images related around central themes.

Students will receive intervention matched to learners’ needs as assessed by a number of

classroom, diagnostic, and formative assessment.

Students will learn to transfer reading skills across content areas and to new situations as

they become competent with print and digital sources.

Students will learn and be motivated by a connection to cultural experience and personal

relevance.

Students will study a balance of literature to know and understand themselves and

informational text to know and understand the world.

Students will have time to choose what they want to read, building confidence in their

ability to read, write, and speak about what they know, what they feel, and who they are.

WRITING Given that every student can learn to express ideas through writing . . . Students will receive direct instruction in the writing process, modeled according to student needs. Students will learn a trait-based framework to assess and revise their writing. Students will write daily across all subject areas, for multiple audiences and purposes. Students will have a print-rich environment that provides a supportive writing community. SPEAKING AND LISTENING Given that oral language provides a foundation for thinking, reading, and writing. . . Students will receive direct instruction in speaking and listening to develop skills essential to sending, receiving, and understanding messages. Students will engage in collaborative conversations to develop thought, connect ideas, and deepen understanding.

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READING

Close reading of complex text

Literature 50% Informational 50% Foundational Skills

(See below)

College and Career Ready Anchor Standards

Common Core State Standards Diagram

WRITING

Range of text types Process Research Range of tasks

SPEAKING & LISTENING

Collaborative Conversations

Comprehension Presentation

LANGUAGE

Grammar, Usage, Punctuation

Knowledge of Language

Vocabulary

Foundational Skills Grades K-5

Concepts about print Phonological Awareness Phonics Word Recognition Fluency

Appendices A: Research behind the standards and glossary of terms B. Text exemplars and sample performance tasks C. Samples of students writing

F6


Important Ideas From Common Core

The following document was developed by the Common Core Study Group during the LPS

reading implementation in 2011.

READING

1. More informational text

Several texts on the same topic

Texts that expand the learning of topics learned in earlier grades

2. Use of multiple texts or sources of information

Compare and contrast several texts on the same topic (as stated above)

Compare and contrast texts from the same genre

Gather information through multiple print and digital formats

Evaluate the quality and accuracy of information gathered through multiple print

and digital formats

3. Text Complexity – broader range of texts

Stories, poems, dramas, technical texts, legal documents and other non-fiction

works

Broad range of cultures and periods

New lexile levels

4. Comprehension expectations

Key words: analyze, interpret, assess, evaluate

Focus on understanding the organizational structure of various texts

Allow students to encounter challenges in text and scaffold them as necessary

without making the task easier

Question rather than explain, maintain text complexity

Focus on identifying and using key details from a text, for example:

Cite specific evidence

Evaluate the argument of the author

Draw on evidence in the text

Establish own point of view different from the author or others

Determine how the author’s purpose effects the story and style of the text

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WRITING

1. Writing as a response to reading 3rd

– 12th

(rich conversations in Kdg -2nd

)

2. Emphasis on clarity when speaking, listening, or writing

Ask and answer questions

Word choice

3. Short and multiple research projects as well as longer research projects

Could be collection of information rather than a finished product

4. Expectation of writing in multiple genres, for multiple purposes, and varied time

frames across the curriculum

5. Write arguments and support claims

6. Use appropriate organization and style of writing appropriate to the task, audience,

and purpose for writing

7. Consider the audience when writing and speaking

OTHER

1. Multiple print and digital sources and tools used to collect and present information

Want students to use up-to-date digital tools appropriately

2. Collaboration with others

Emphasis on talking with others about texts

Researching and presenting information together

3. Communicating ideas with clarity

Use and strengthen conversation skills and language skills

Be aware of and strengthen vocabulary and grammar used

Demonstrate the ability to ask and answer questions

Recount or describe ideas and details

4. Increased rigor of English grammar and mechanics, some skills taught earlier

5. Vocabulary focus on multiple meanings, shades of meanings, non-literal meanings and

relationships to other words

6. Language standards interwoven into all other instruction

F8

Common Core State Standards

for

English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies,

Science, and Technical Subjects

6-12

F9

National Governors Association Center for Best

Practices, Council of Chief State Officers. (2010)

Common Core Standards English Language Arts,

National Governors Association for Best

Practices, Washington, D.C.

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Common Core State StandardS for enGLISH LanGUaGe artS & LIteraCy In HIStory/SoCIaL StUdIeS, SCIenCe, and teCHnICaL SUbjeCtS

College and Career readiness anchor Standards for readingThe grades 6–12 standards on the following pages define what students should understand and be able to do by the end of each grade. They correspond to the College and Career Readiness (CCR) anchor standards below by number. The CCR and grade-specific standards are necessary complements—the former providing broad standards, the latter providing additional specificity—that together define the skills and understandings that all students must demonstrate.

Key Ideas and details

1. Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

2. Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.

3. Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.

Craft and Structure

4. Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.

5. Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.

6. Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

7. Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse formats and media, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.*

8. Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

9. Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.

range of reading and Level of text Complexity

10. Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.

*Please see “Research to Build Knowledge” in Writing and “Comprehension and Collaboration” in Speaking and Listening for additional standards relevant to gathering, assessing, and applying information from print and digital sources.

Note on range and content of student reading

To become college and career ready, students must grapple with works of exceptional craft and thought whose range extends across genres, cultures, and centuries. Such works offer profound insights into the human condition and serve as models for students’ own thinking and writing. Along with high-quality contemporary works, these texts should be chosen from among seminal U.S. documents, the classics of American literature, and the timeless dramas of Shakespeare. Through wide and deep reading of literature and literary nonfiction of steadily increasing sophistication, students gain a reservoir of literary and cultural knowledge, references, and images; the ability to evaluate intricate arguments; and the capacity to surmount the challenges posed by complex texts.

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Grade 6 students: Grade 7 students: Grade 8 students:Key Ideas and details

1. Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

1. Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

1. Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

2. Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.

2. Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text.

2. Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide an objective summary of the text.

3. Describe how a particular story’s or drama’s plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution.

3. Analyze how particular elements of a story or drama interact (e.g., how setting shapes the characters or plot).

3. Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision.

Craft and Structure

4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone.

4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of rhymes and other repetitions of sounds (e.g., alliteration) on a specific verse or stanza of a poem or section of a story or drama.

4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.

5. Analyze how a particular sentence, chapter, scene, or stanza fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the theme, setting, or plot.

5. Analyze how a drama’s or poem’s form or structure (e.g., soliloquy, sonnet) contributes to its meaning.

5. Compare and contrast the structure of two or more texts and analyze how the differing structure of each text contributes to its meaning and style.

6. Explain how an author develops the point of view of the narrator or speaker in a text.

6. Analyze how an author develops and contrasts the points of view of different characters or narrators in a text.

6. Analyze how differences in the points of view of the characters and the audience or reader (e.g., created through the use of dramatic irony) create such effects as suspense or humor.

Reading Standards for Literature 6–12 The following standards offer a focus for instruction each year and help ensure that students gain adequate exposure to a range of texts and tasks. Rigor is also infused through the requirement that students read increasingly complex texts through the grades. Students advancing through the grades are expected to meet each year’s grade-specific standards and retain or further develop skills and understandings mastered in preceding grades.

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Reading Standards for Literature 6–12 Grade 6 students: Grade 7 students: Grade 8 students:


7. Compare and contrast the experience of reading a story, drama, or poem to listening to or viewing an audio, video, or live version of the text, including contrasting what they “see” and “hear” when reading the text to what they perceive when they listen or watch.

7. Compare and contrast a written story, drama, or poem to its audio, filmed, staged, or multimedia version, analyzing the effects of techniques unique to each medium (e.g., lighting, sound, color, or camera focus and angles in a film).

7. Analyze the extent to which a filmed or live production of a story or drama stays faithful to or departs from the text or script, evaluating the choices made by the director or actors.

8. (Not applicable to literature) 8. (Not applicable to literature) 8. (Not applicable to literature)

9. Compare and contrast texts in different forms or genres (e.g., stories and poems; historical novels and fantasy stories) in terms of their approaches to similar themes and topics.

9. Compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a time, place, or character and a historical account of the same period as a means of understanding how authors of fiction use or alter history.

9. Analyze how a modern work of fiction draws on themes, patterns of events, or character types from myths, traditional stories, or religious works such as the Bible, including describing how the material is rendered new.


10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6–8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6–8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, at the high end of grades 6–8 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

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Reading Standards for Informational Text 6–12 Grade 6 students: Grade 7 students: Grade 8 students:

Key Ideas and details

1. Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

1. Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

1. Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

2. Determine a central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.

2. Determine two or more central ideas in a text and analyze their development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text.

2. Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to supporting ideas; provide an objective summary of the text.

3. Analyze in detail how a key individual, event, or idea is introduced, illustrated, and elaborated in a text (e.g., through examples or anecdotes).

3. Analyze the interactions between individuals, events, and ideas in a text (e.g., how ideas influence individuals or events, or how individuals influence ideas or events).

3. Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories).

Craft and Structure

4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings.

4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone.

4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.

5. Analyze how a particular sentence, paragraph, chapter, or section fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the ideas.

5. Analyze the structure an author uses to organize a text, including how the major sections contribute to the whole and to the development of the ideas.

5. Analyze in detail the structure of a specific paragraph in a text, including the role of particular sentences in developing and refining a key concept.

6. Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed in the text.

6. Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author distinguishes his or her position from that of others.

6. Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author acknowledges and responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints.


7. Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue.

7. Compare and contrast a text to an audio, video, or multimedia version of the text, analyzing each medium’s portrayal of the subject (e.g., how the delivery of a speech affects the impact of the words).

7. Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using different mediums (e.g., print or digital text, video, multimedia) to present a particular topic or idea.

8. Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not.

8. Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient to support the claims.

8. Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; recognize when irrelevant evidence is introduced.

9. Compare and contrast one author’s presentation of events with that of another (e.g., a memoir written by and a biography on the same person).

9. Analyze how two or more authors writing about the same topic shape their presentations of key information by emphasizing different evidence or advancing different interpretations of facts.

9. Analyze a case in which two or more texts provide conflicting information on the same topic and identify where the texts disagree on matters of fact or interpretation.


10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 6–8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 6–8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction at the high end of the grades 6–8 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

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Writing Standards 6–12 The following standards for grades 6–12 offer a focus for instruction each year to help ensure that students gain adequate mastery of a range of skills and applications. Each year in their writing, students should demonstrate increasing sophistication in all aspects of language use, from vocabulary and syntax to the development and organization of ideas, and they should address increasingly demanding content and sources. Students advancing through the grades are expected to meet each year’s grade-specific standards and retain or further develop skills and understandings mastered in preceding grades. The expected growth in student writing ability is reflected both in the standards themselves and in the collection of annotated student writing samples in Appendix C.

Grade 6 students: Grade 7 students: Grade 8 students:text types and Purposes

1. Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.a. Introduce claim(s) and organize the reasons

and evidence clearly.b. Support claim(s) with clear reasons and

relevant evidence, using credible sources and demonstrating an understanding of the topic or text.

c. Use words, phrases, and clauses to clarify the relationships among claim(s) and reasons.

d. Establish and maintain a formal style.e. Provide a concluding statement or section

that follows from the argument presented.

1. Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.a. Introduce claim(s), acknowledge alternate or

opposing claims, and organize the reasons and evidence logically.

b. Support claim(s) with logical reasoning and relevant evidence, using accurate, credible sources and demonstrating an understanding of the topic or text.

c. Use words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among claim(s), reasons, and evidence.


that follows from and supports the argument presented.

1. Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.a. Introduce claim(s), acknowledge and

distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims, and organize the reasons and evidence logically.

b. Support claim(s) with logical reasoning and relevant evidence, using accurate, credible sources and demonstrating an understanding of the topic or text.

c. Use words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence.


that follows from and supports the argument presented.

2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.a. Introduce a topic; organize ideas, concepts,

and information, using strategies such as definition, classification, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.

b. Develop the topic with relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.

c. Use appropriate transitions to clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts.

d. Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic.

e. Establish and maintain a formal style.f. Provide a concluding statement or section that

follows from the information or explanation presented.

2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.a. Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what

is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information, using strategies such as definition, classification, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.

b. Develop the topic with relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.

c. Use appropriate transitions to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts.


e. Establish and maintain a formal style.f. Provide a concluding statement or section

that follows from and supports the information or explanation presented.

2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.a. Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what

is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information into broader categories; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.

b. Develop the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.

c. Use appropriate and varied transitions to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts.


e. Establish and maintain a formal style.f. Provide a concluding statement or section that

follows from and supports the information or explanation presented.

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Writing Standards 6–12Grade 6 students: Grade 7 students: Grade 8 students:

text types and Purposes (continued)

3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.a. Engage and orient the reader by establishing

a context and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.

b. Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.

c. Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence and signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another.

d. Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to convey experiences and events.

e. Provide a conclusion that follows from the narrated experiences or events.


a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.

b. Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.

c. Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence and signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another.

d. Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.

e. Provide a conclusion that follows from and reflects on the narrated experiences or events.


a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.

b. Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, and reflection, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.

c. Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence, signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another, and show the relationships among experiences and events.

d. Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.

e. Provide a conclusion that follows from and reflects on the narrated experiences or events.

Production and distribution of Writing

4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.)



5. With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach. (Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1–3 up to and including grade 6 on page 52.)

5. With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on how well purpose and audience have been addressed. (Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1–3 up to and including grade 7 on page 52.)

5. With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on how well purpose and audience have been addressed. (Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1–3 up to and including grade 8 on page 52.)

6. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of three pages in a single sitting.

6. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and link to and cite sources as well as to interact and collaborate with others, including linking to and citing sources.

6. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and present the relationships between information and ideas efficiently as well as to interact and collaborate with others.

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Writing Standards 6–12 Grade 6 students: Grade 7 students: Grade 8 students:

research to Build and Present Knowledge

7. Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources and refocusing the inquiry when appropriate.

7. Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions for further research and investigation.

7. Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question), drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.

8. Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources; assess the credibility of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and providing basic bibliographic information for sources.

8. Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.

8. Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.

9. Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.a. Apply grade 6 Reading standards to literature

(e.g., “Compare and contrast texts in different forms or genres [e.g., stories and poems; historical novels and fantasy stories] in terms of their approaches to similar themes and topics”).

b. Apply grade 6 Reading standards to literary nonfiction (e.g., “Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not”).


(e.g., “Compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a time, place, or character and a historical account of the same period as a means of understanding how authors of fiction use or alter history”).

b. Apply grade 7 Reading standards to literary nonfiction (e.g. “Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient to support the claims”).


(e.g., “Analyze how a modern work of fiction draws on themes, patterns of events, or character types from myths, traditional stories, or religious works such as the Bible, including describing how the material is rendered new”).

b. Apply grade 8 Reading standards to literary nonfiction (e.g., “Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; recognize when irrelevant evidence is introduced”).

range of Writing

10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.



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Speaking and Listening Standards 6–12 The following standards for grades 6–12 offer a focus for instruction in each year to help ensure that students gain adequate mastery of a range of skills and applications. Students advancing through the grades are expected to meet each year’s grade-specific standards and retain or further develop skills and understandings mastered in preceding grades.

Grade 6 students: Grade 7 students: Grade 8 students:Comprehension and Collaboration

1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 6 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.a. Come to discussions prepared, having read or

studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence on the topic, text, or issue to probe and reflect on ideas under discussion.

b. Follow rules for collegial discussions, set specific goals and deadlines, and define individual roles as needed.

c. Pose and respond to specific questions with elaboration and detail by making comments that contribute to the topic, text, or issue under discussion.

d. Review the key ideas expressed and demonstrate understanding of multiple perspectives through reflection and paraphrasing.

1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.a. Come to discussions prepared, having read

or researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence on the topic, text, or issue to probe and reflect on ideas under discussion.

b. Follow rules for collegial discussions, track progress toward specific goals and deadlines, and define individual roles as needed.

c. Pose questions that elicit elaboration and respond to others’ questions and comments with relevant observations and ideas that bring the discussion back on topic as needed.

d. Acknowledge new information expressed by others and, when warranted, modify their own views.

1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 8 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.a. Come to discussions prepared, having read

or researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence on the topic, text, or issue to probe and reflect on ideas under discussion.

b. Follow rules for collegial discussions and decision-making, track progress toward specific goals and deadlines, and define individual roles as needed.

c. Pose questions that connect the ideas of several speakers and respond to others’ questions and comments with relevant evidence, observations, and ideas.

d. Acknowledge new information expressed by others, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views in light of the evidence presented.

2. Interpret information presented in diverse media and formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) and explain how it contributes to a topic, text, or issue under study.

2. Analyze the main ideas and supporting details presented in diverse media and formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) and explain how the ideas clarify a topic, text, or issue under study.

2. Analyze the purpose of information presented in diverse media and formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) and evaluate the motives (e.g., social, commercial, political) behind its presentation.

3. Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not.

3. Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, evaluating the soundness of the reasoning and the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

3. Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, evaluating the soundness of the reasoning and relevance and sufficiency of the evidence and identifying when irrelevant evidence is introduced.

Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas

4. Present claims and findings, sequencing ideas logically and using pertinent descriptions, facts, and details to accentuate main ideas or themes; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

4. Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with pertinent descriptions, facts, details, and examples; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

4. Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with relevant evidence, sound valid reasoning, and well-chosen details; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

5. Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, images, music, sound) and visual displays in presentations to clarify information.

5. Include multimedia components and visual displays in presentations to clarify claims and findings and emphasize salient points.

5. Integrate multimedia and visual displays into presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and evidence, and add interest.

6. Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. (See grade 6 Language standards 1 and 3 on page 52 for specific expectations.)



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Language Standards 6–12 The following standards for grades 6–12 offer a focus for instruction each year to help ensure that students gain adequate mastery of a range of skills and applications. Students advancing through the grades are expected to meet each year’s grade-specific standards and retain or further develop skills and understandings mastered in preceding grades. Beginning in grade 3, skills and understandings that are particularly likely to require continued attention in higher grades as they are applied to increasingly sophisticated writing and speaking are marked with an asterisk (*). See the table on page 56 for a complete listing and Appendix A for an example of how these skills develop in sophistication.

Grade 6 students: Grade 7 students: Grade 8 students:Conventions of Standard english

1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.a. Ensure that pronouns are in the proper case

(subjective, objective, possessive).b. Use intensive pronouns (e.g., myself,

ourselves).c. Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in

pronoun number and person.*d. Recognize and correct vague pronouns

(i.e., ones with unclear or ambiguous antecedents).*

e. Recognize variations from standard English in their own and others’ writing and speaking, and identify and use strategies to improve expression in conventional language.*

1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.a. Explain the function of phrases and clauses

in general and their function in specific sentences.

b. Choose among simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences to signal differing relationships among ideas.

c. Place phrases and clauses within a sentence, recognizing and correcting misplaced and dangling modifiers.*

1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.a. Explain the function of verbals (gerunds,

participles, infinitives) in general and their function in particular sentences.

b. Form and use verbs in the active and passive voice.

c. Form and use verbs in the indicative, imperative, interrogative, conditional, and subjunctive mood.

d. Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb voice and mood.*

2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.a. Use punctuation (commas, parentheses,

dashes) to set off nonrestrictive/parenthetical elements.*

b. Spell correctly.

2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.a. Use a comma to separate coordinate

adjectives (e.g., It was a fascinating, enjoyable movie but not He wore an old[,] green shirt).

b. Spell correctly.

2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.a. Use punctuation (comma, ellipsis, dash) to

indicate a pause or break.b. Use an ellipsis to indicate an omission.c. Spell correctly.

Knowledge of Language

3. Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.a. Vary sentence patterns for meaning, reader/

listener interest, and style.*b. Maintain consistency in style and tone.*

3. Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.a. Choose language that expresses ideas

precisely and concisely, recognizing and eliminating wordiness and redundancy.*

3. Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.a. Use verbs in the active and passive voice and

in the conditional and subjunctive mood to achieve particular effects (e.g., emphasizing the actor or the action; expressing uncertainty or describing a state contrary to fact).

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Language Standards 6–12 Grade 6 students: Grade 7 students: Grade 8 students:

Vocabulary acquisition and Use

4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 6 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.a. Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a

sentence or paragraph; a word’s position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.

b. Use common, grade-appropriate Greek or Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word (e.g., audience, auditory, audible).

c. Consult reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries, thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or determine or clarify its precise meaning or its part of speech.

d. Verify the preliminary determination of the meaning of a word or phrase (e.g., by checking the inferred meaning in context or in a dictionary).

4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 7 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.a. Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a


b. Use common, grade-appropriate Greek or Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word (e.g., belligerent, bellicose, rebel).

c. Consult general and specialized reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries, thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or determine or clarify its precise meaning or its part of speech.


4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words or phrases based on grade 8 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.a. Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a


b. Use common, grade-appropriate Greek or Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word (e.g., precede, recede, secede).

c. Consult general and specialized reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries, thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or determine or clarify its precise meaning or its part of speech.


5. Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.a. Interpret figures of speech (e.g.,

personification) in context.b. Use the relationship between particular words

(e.g., cause/effect, part/whole, item/category) to better understand each of the words.

c. Distinguish among the connotations (associations) of words with similar denotations (definitions) (e.g., stingy, scrimping, economical, unwasteful, thrifty).

5. Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.a. Interpret figures of speech (e.g., literary,

biblical, and mythological allusions) in context.b. Use the relationship between particular words

(e.g., synonym/antonym, analogy) to better understand each of the words.

c. Distinguish among the connotations (associations) of words with similar denotations (definitions) (e.g., refined, respectful, polite, diplomatic, condescending).

5. Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.a. Interpret figures of speech (e.g. verbal irony,

puns) in context.b. Use the relationship between particular words

to better understand each of the words.c. Distinguish among the connotations

(associations) of words with similar denotations (definitions) (e.g., bullheaded, willful, firm, persistent, resolute).

6. Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.



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Language Progressive Skills, by GradeThe following skills, marked with an asterisk (*) in Language standards 1–3, are particularly likely to require continued attention in higher grades as they are applied to increasingly sophisticated writing and speaking.

StandardGrade(s)

3 4 5 6 7 8 9–10 11–12

L.3.1f. Ensure subject-verb and pronoun-antecedent agreement.

L.3.3a. Choose words and phrases for effect.

L.4.1f. Produce complete sentences, recognizing and correcting inappropriate fragments and run-ons.

L.4.1g. Correctly use frequently confused words (e.g., to/too/two; there/their).

L.4.3a. Choose words and phrases to convey ideas precisely.*

L.4.3b. Choose punctuation for effect.

L.5.1d. Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb tense.

L.5.2a. Use punctuation to separate items in a series.†

L.6.1c. Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in pronoun number and person.

L.6.1d. Recognize and correct vague pronouns (i.e., ones with unclear or ambiguous antecedents).

L.6.1e. Recognize variations from standard English in their own and others’ writing and speaking, and identify and use strategies to improve expression in conventional language.

L.6.2a. Use punctuation (commas, parentheses, dashes) to set off nonrestrictive/parenthetical elements.

L.6.3a. Vary sentence patterns for meaning, reader/listener interest, and style.‡

L.6.3b. Maintain consistency in style and tone.

L.7.1c. Place phrases and clauses within a sentence, recognizing and correcting misplaced and dangling modifiers.

L.7.3a. Choose language that expresses ideas precisely and concisely, recognizing and eliminating wordiness and redundancy.

L.8.1d. Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb voice and mood.

L.9–10.1a. Use parallel structure.

* Subsumed by L.7.3a† Subsumed by L.9–10.1a‡ Subsumed by L.11–12.3a

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Standard 10: Range, Quality, and Complexity of Student Reading 6–12

Measuring Text Complexity: Three Factors

Qualitative evaluation of the text: Levels of meaning, structure, language conventionality and clarity, and knowledge demands

Quantitative evaluation of the text: Readability measures and other scores of text com-plexity

Matching reader to text and task: Reader variables (such as motivation, knowledge, and experiences) and task variables (such as purpose and the complexity generated by the task assigned and the questions posed)

note: More detailed information on text complexity and how it is measured is contained in Appendix A.

Range of Text Types for 6–12Students in grades 6–12 apply the Reading standards to the following range of text types, with texts selected from a broad range of cultures and periods.

Literature Informational Text

Stories drama Poetry Literary nonfiction Includes the subgenres of adventure stories, historical fiction, mysteries, myths, science fiction, realistic fiction, allegories, parodies, satire, and graphic novels

Includes one-act and multi-act plays, both in written form and on film

Includes the subgenres of narrative poems, lyrical poems, free verse poems, sonnets, odes, ballads, and epics

Includes the subgenres of exposition, argument, and functional text in the form of personal essays, speeches, opinion pieces, essays about art or literature, biographies, memoirs, journalism, and historical, scientific, technical, or economic accounts (including digital sources) written for a broad audience

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Texts Illustrating the Complexity, Quality, and Range of Student Reading 6–12Literature: Stories, Dramas, Poetry Informational Texts: Literary Nonfiction

6–8

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (1869)

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain (1876)

“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost (1915)

The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper (1973)

Dragonwings by Laurence Yep (1975)

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor (1976)

“Letter on Thomas Jefferson” by John Adams (1776)

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass (1845)

“Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat: Address to Parliament on May 13th, 1940” by Winston Churchill (1940)

Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad by Ann Petry (1955)

Travels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck (1962)

9–10

The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare (1592)

“Ozymandias” by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1817)

“The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe (1845)

“The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry (1906)

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (1939)

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (1953)

The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara (1975)

“Speech to the Second Virginia Convention” by Patrick Henry (1775)

“Farewell Address” by George Washington (1796)

“Gettysburg Address” by Abraham Lincoln (1863)

“State of the Union Address” by Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1941)

“Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King, Jr. (1964)

“Hope, Despair and Memory” by Elie Wiesel (1997)

11–CCR

“Ode on a Grecian Urn” by John Keats (1820)

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë (1848)

“Because I Could Not Stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson (1890)

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925)

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston (1937)

A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry (1959)

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri (2003)

Common Sense by Thomas Paine (1776)

Walden by Henry David Thoreau (1854)

“Society and Solitude” by Ralph Waldo Emerson (1857)

“The Fallacy of Success” by G. K. Chesterton (1909)

Black Boy by Richard Wright (1945)

“Politics and the English Language” by George Orwell (1946)

“Take the Tortillas Out of Your Poetry” by Rudolfo Anaya (1995)

Note: Given space limitations, the illustrative texts listed above are meant only to show individual titles that are representative of a range of topics and genres. (See Appendix B for excerpts of these and other texts illustrative of grades 6–12 text complexity, quality, and range.) At a curricular or instructional level, within and across grade levels, texts need to be selected around topics or themes that generate knowledge and allow students to study those topics or themes in depth.

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Nebraska Language Arts Standards Additions to indicators by Lincoln Public Schools

Grade 6

LA 6.1 Students will learn and apply reading skills and strategies to comprehend

text.

LA 6.1.1 Knowledge of Print: Concept mastered at a previous grade level

LA 6.1.2 Phonological Awareness: Concept mastered at a previous grade level

LA 6.1.3 Word Analysis: Students will use knowledge of phonetic and structural

analysis to read, write, and spell grade level text. LA 6.1.3.a Use knowledge of phonetic and structural analysis (e.g., Anglo-Saxon, Greek,

and Latin roots, foreign words frequently used in English, bases, affixes)

-Common roots (HM): scrib, port, tele, vis, curr, logy, mem, min

-Common roots (Vocab. Guide): astro, aud, dict, geo, graph, meter, mit/miss, ped, phon,

spect, struct,

-Prefixes: un-, re-, in-, im-, con-, de-, dis-, ex-, inter-, per-, pre-, pro-, ad-, ob-

-Suffixes: -ful, -less, -ly, -al, -ive, -ous, -en, -ive, -ify, -ic, -ure, -ion, -ation, -ent, -ence, -

ant, ance, -able, -ible, -ate

LA 6.1.4 Fluency: Students will read a variety of grade level texts fluently with

accuracy, appropriate pace, phrasing, and expression. LA 6.1.4.a Apply elements of oral prosodic reading to reflect the meaning of text (e.g.,

poem read slowly, conversational narrative, emphasis on key points of information)

LA 6.1.4.b Adjust oral or silent reading pace based on purpose, text difficulty, form, and

style

LA 6.1.4.c Read grade level text with 94% accuracy or better and a rate of between 128-

151 words correct per minute

LA 6.1.5 Vocabulary: Students will build literary, general academic, and content

specific grade level vocabulary. (Indicators marked with * are tested on NeSA-R) *LA 6.1.5.a Determine the meaning of words through structural analysis, using

knowledge of Greek, Latin, and Anglo Saxon roots, prefixes, and suffixes to understand

complex words, including words in science, mathematics, and social studies (See word

analysis standard)

LA 6.1.5.b Relate new grade level vocabulary to prior knowledge and use in new

situations

*LA 6.1.5.c Select and apply knowledge of context clues (e.g., word, phrase, sentence,

and paragraph clues, re-reading) and text features (e.g., glossary, headings, subheadings,

index, tables, maps, charts) to determine meaning of unknown words in a variety of text

structures

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*LA 6.1.5.d Identify semantic relationships (e.g., metaphors, similes, idioms, analogies,

comparisons)

LA 6.1.5.e Determine meaning using print and digital reference materials (e.g.,

dictionary, thesaurus glossary)

LA 6.1.6 Comprehension: Students will extract and construct meaning using prior

knowledge, applying text information, and monitoring comprehension while reading

grade level text. (Indicators marked with * are tested on NeSA-R) *LA 6.1.6.a Explain how author’s purpose and perspective affect the meaning and

reliability of the text

*LA 6.1.6.b Identify and analyze elements of narrative text (e.g., character development,

setting, plot development, conflict, point of view, theme)

*LA 6.1.6.c Summarize narrative text using understanding of characters, setting,

sequence of events, plot, and theme

*LA 6.1.6.d Interpret and explain the author’s use of literary devices (e.g., simile,

metaphor, alliteration, onomatopoeia, imagery, rhythm)

*LA 6.1.6.e Summarize, analyze, and synthesize informational text using main idea and

supporting details

*LA 6.1.6.f Apply knowledge of organizational patterns found in informational text (e.g.,

sequence, description, cause and effect, compare/contrast, fact/opinion)

*LA 6.1.6.g Apply knowledge of text features to locate information and gain meaning

from a text (e.g., index, maps, charts, tables, graphs, headings, subheadings)

*LA 6.1.6.h Distinguish between the defining characteristics of different narrative and

informational genres (e.g., textbooks, myths, fantasies, science fiction, drama,

periodicals, and essays)

LA 6.1.6.i Describe the social, historical, cultural, and biographical influences in a

variety of genres

LA 6.1.6.j Use narrative and informational text to develop a national and global multi-

cultural perspective

*LA 6.1.6.k Generate and/or answer literal, inferential, critical, and interpretive

questions, supporting answers using prior knowledge and information from the text and

additional sources

LA 6.1.6.l Select text for a particular purpose (e.g., information, pleasure, answer a

specific question)

LA 6.1.6.m Build and activate prior knowledge in order to identify text to self, text to

text, and text to world connections before, during, and after reading

LA 6.1.6.n Self-monitor comprehension for accuracy and understanding when errors

detract from meaning by applying appropriate strategies to self-correct

LA 6.1.6.o Use examples and details to make inferences or logical predictions while

previewing and reading text

LA 6.1.6.p Respond to text verbally, in writing, or artistically

LA 6.2 Students will learn and apply writing skills and strategies to

communicate.

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LA 6.2.1 Writing Process: Students will apply the writing process to plan, draft,

revise, edit and publish writing using correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and

other standard conventions appropriate for grade level. LA 6.2.1.a Use prewriting activities and inquiry tools, using available technology, to

generate and organize information, guide writing, answer questions

LA 6.2.1.b Generate a draft by:

-Selecting and organizing ideas relevant to topic, purpose, and genre

-Composing paragraphs with simple, compound, and complex sentences, avoiding

fragments and run-ons of varying length and complexity

-Concluding with detailed summary linked to the purpose of the composition

LA 6.2.1.c Revise to improve writing (e.g., quality of ideas, organization, sentence

fluency, word choice, voice)

LA 6.2.1.d Provide oral, written, and/or electronic feedback to other writers; utilize

others’ feedback to improve own writing

LA 6.2.1.e Edit writing for format and conventions (e.g., spelling, capitalization,

grammar, punctuation)

LA 6.2.1.f Publish a legible document (e.g., report, podcast, web page, PowerPoint) that

applies formatting techniques to aid comprehension (e.g., differing fonts, title page,

highlighting, spacing)

LA 6.2.2 Writing Genres: Students will write for a variety of purposes and

audiences in multiple genres. LA 6.2.2.a Write in a selected genre considering purpose (e.g., inform, entertain,

persuade, instruct)

LA 6.2.2.b Write to a specified audience considering interests, background knowledge,

and expectations (e.g., known or unknown individual, business, organization, cyber

audience)

LA 6.2.2.c Write considering typical characteristics of the selected genre (e.g.,

descriptive essay, fictional story, persuasive writing, research report, poetry)

LA 6.2.2.d Select and apply an organizational structure appropriate to the task (e.g.,

chronological order, cause and effect, compare and contrast)

LA 6.2.2.e Analyze models and examples (own and others’) of various genres in order to

create a similar piece

LA 6.3 Students will learn and apply speaking and listening skills and strategies

to communicate.

LA 6.3.1 Speaking Skills: Students will develop and apply speaking skills to

communicate key ideas in a variety of situations. LA 6.3.1.a Communicate ideas and information in a manner appropriate for the purpose

and setting

LA 6.3.1.b Demonstrate and adjust speaking techniques for a variety of purposes and

situations

LA 6.3.1.c Utilize available media to enhance communication

F25


LA 6.3.2 Listening Skills: Students will develop, apply, and refine active listening

skills across a variety of situations. LA 6.3.2.a Demonstrate listening skills needed for multiple situations and modalities

(e.g., video, audio, distance, one-to-one, group)

LA 6.3.2.b Listen, ask questions to clarify, and take notes to ensure accuracy of

information

LA 6.3.2.c Listen to, analyze, and evaluate message, purpose, and perspective of

information being communicated

LA 6.3.3 Reciprocal Communication: Students will develop, apply, and adapt

reciprocal communication skills. LA 6.3.3.a Demonstrate sensitivity to the use of words in general as well as to a

particular audience (e.g., stereotypes, connotations, subtleties of language)

LA 6.3.3.b Apply conversation strategies (e.g., listen while others are talking, gain the

floor, eye contact, tone, stay on topic, non-verbal cues)

LA 6.3.3.c Interact and collaborate with others in learning situations by contributing

questions, information, opinions, and ideas using a variety of media and formats

LA 6.4 Students will identify, locate, and evaluate information.

LA 6.4.1 Multiple Literacies: Students will research, synthesize, evaluate and

communicate information in a variety of media and formats (textual, visual, and

digital). LA 6.4.1.a Select and use multiple resources to generate and answer questions and

establish validity of information (e.g., print, subscription databases, web resources)

LA 6.4.1.b Demonstrate ethical and legal use of information by citing sources using a

prescribed format (e.g., citation of information used)

LA 6.4.1.c Practice safe and ethical behaviors when communicating and interacting with

others (e.g., safe information to share online, appropriate language use, utilize appropriate

sites and materials, respect diverse perspectives)

LA 6.4.1.d Engage in activities with learners from a variety of cultures through electronic

means (e.g., podcasts, video chats, distance learning)

LA 6.4.1.e While reading, listening, and viewing, evaluate the message for bias,

commercialism and hidden agendas (e.g., product placement, television ad, radio ad,

movie, body image, sexism)

LA 6.4.1.f Gather and share information and opinions as a result of communication with

others (e.g., video/audio chat, interview, podcast, multi-media presentations)

LA 6.4.1.g Use social networks and information tools to gather and share information

(e.g., social bookmarking, online collaborative tools)

F26


Comparison of Expectations for Comprehension of Literature and Informational Texts for Grade 6

Cluster CCSS Literature Informational

Key

Id

eas

and

det

ails

Standard 1

Cite evidence to support analysis

Cite evidence to support analysis and inferences

Standard 2 Determine theme or central idea (6.1.6.a)

Summarizes without personal opinions (6.1.6.c)

Determine central idea as supported by details NE 6.1 .6.e)

Summarize text without personal opinions (NE 6.1.6.e)

Standard 3

Describe how plot unfolds 6.1.6.a)

Describes how characters change or respond to change

Analyze in detail how a key individual, event or idea is introduced and elaborated (NE 6.1.6.b)

Cra

ft a

nd

Str

uct

ure

Standard 4 Determine meaning of unknown words and phrases Determine meaning of figurative and connotative meanings (6.1.6.d) Analyze impact of word choice

Determine meaning of unknown words and phrases Determine meaning of figurative, connotative, and technical meanings (NE 6.1.5.d)

Standard 5 Analyze how parts of a text contribute to the development of the whole

Analyze how parts of a text contribute to the development of the whole

Standard 6 Explain how author develops point of view (NE 6.1.6.a)

Determine author’s purpose or point of view and how it is conveyed (NE 6.1.6.a)

Inte

grat

ion

of

kn

ow

led

ge

and

idea

s

Standard 7 Compare and contrast experience of reading, listening, and viewing.

Integrate information from multiple formats to develop understanding of a topic (NE 6.4.1.a)

Standard 8 Not applicable to literature Trace and evaluate the arguments and specific claims in a text

Standard 9 Compare and contrast genres as they approach similar themes and topics

Compare and contrast the presentation of events from multiple authors

Tex

t C

om

ple

xit

y

Standard 10

Read and comprehend literature, including stories, drama, and poetry on grade level or above

Read and comprehend informational text at the 6-8 level with scaffolding at the high end of the band.

F27


Comparison of Common Core Language Standards and the NE Standards K-6

CCSS NE Standards K -2 Gr. 3-6 Grammar LS 1

LA O.2.1.e LA 1.2.3.e LA 2.2.3.e LA 3.2.3.e LA 4.2.3.e LA 5.2.3.e LA 6.2.3.e

Conventions are listed only as a function of editing writing in NE standards. Individual skills are clearly laid out in Common Core

Conventions are listed

only as a function of editing writing in NE standards. Individual skills are clearly laid out in Common Core

Conventions and Spelling LS 2

LA 0.1.3.d LA 1.1.3.d LA 2.1.3.d LA 3.1.3.a LA 4.1.3.a LA 5.1.3.a LA 6.1.3.a

Spelling as a part of word analysis in NE standards, in Common core it is use of standard English when speaking or writing.

Spelling as a part of word analysis in NE standards, in Common core it is use of standard English when speaking or writing.

Vocabulary Acquisition LS3

LA 0.1.5.a,b LA 1.1.5.a,b LA 2.1.5.a,b LA 3.1.5.a,b LA 4.1.3.a LA 5 LA 6

Begins in grade 2 Use knowledge of language and its conventions when reading, writing, listening, and speaking

Use knowledge of language and its conventions when reading, writing, listening, and speaking

Use strategies to determine word meanings LS4 LS5

LA 0.1.5.b,c,e LA 1.1.5.b,c,e LA 2.1.5.b,c,e LA 3.1.5.b,c,e LA 4.1.3. b,c,e LA5.1.5.a,b,c,d,e LA6.1.5.a,b,c,d,e

Uses strategies to determine meaning >context >Common affixes and roots

Uses strategies to determine meaning >context >Greek and Latin affixes and roots >reference materials

Applying language and words LS6

Uses words acquired through conversations and text reading

Acquire and use grade appropriate general academic and domain specific words

F28

Gr6 Vocabulary DOK Level DOK 1 DOK 2 DOK 3Item

Total

LA 6.1.5 Vocabulary: Students will build literary,

general academic, and content specific grade level

vocabulary.

LA 6.1.5.a

Determine the meaning of words through structural

analysis, using knowledge of Greek, Latin, and Anglo

Saxon roots, prefixes, and suffixes to understand complex

words, including words in science, mathematics, and

social studies

1 4-6 0 0 4-6

LA 6.1.5.b

Relate new grade level vocabulary to prior knowledge and

use in new situations

LA 6.1.5.c

Select and apply knowledge of context clues (e.g., word,

phrase, sentence and paragraph clues, re-reading) and

text features (e.g., glossary, headings, subheadings,

index, tables, maps, charts) to determine meaning of

unknown words in a variety of text structures

2 1-2 3-4 0 4-6

LA 6.1.5.d

Identify semantic relationships (e.g., metaphors, similes,

idioms, analogies, comparisons)

1 2-4 0 0 2-4

LA 6.1.5.e

Determine meaning using print and digital reference

materials (e.g., dictionary, thesaurus, glossary)

Gr6 Comprehension DOK Level DOK 1 DOK 2 DOK 3Item

Total

LA 6.1.6 Comprehension: Students will extract and

construct meaning using prior knowledge, applying

text information, and monitoring comprehension

while reading grade level text.

LA 6.1.6.a

Explain how author’s purpose and perspective affect the

meaning and reliability of the text

3 0 1-2 1-2 2-4

LA 6.1.6.b

Identify and analyze elements of narrative text (e.g.,

character development, setting, plot development,

conflict, point of view, theme)

2 1-3 2-3 0 3-6

LA 6.1.6.c

Summarize narrative text using understanding of

characters, setting, sequence of events, plot, and theme

2 1-2 2-4 0 3-6

Nebraska State Accountability - Reading (NeSA-R)

Table of SpecificationsGrade 6

Assessed at the local level



LA 6.1.6.d

Interpret and explain the author's use of literary devices

(e.g., simile, metaphor, alliteration, onomatopoeia,

imagery, rhythm)

3 0 1-2 1-2 2-4

LA 6.1.6.e

Summarize, analyze, and synthesize informational text

using main idea and supporting details

3 1-2 1-2 2-3 4-7

LA 6.1.6.f

Apply knowledge of organizational patterns found in

informational text (e.g., sequence, description, cause and

effect, compare/contrast, fact/opinion)

2 1-2 2-4 0 3-6

LA 6.1.6.g

Apply knowledge of text features to locate information

and gain meaning from a text (e.g., index, maps, charts,

tables, graphs, headings, subheadings)

2 1-2 1-2 0 2-4

LA 6.1.6.h

Distinguish between the defining characteristics of

different narrative and informational genres (e.g.,

textbooks, myths, fantasies, science fiction, drama,

periodicals, and essays)

2 0 1-3 0 1-3

LA 6.1.6.i

Describe the social, historical, cultural, and biographical

influences in a variety of genres

LA 6.1.6.j

Use narrative and informational text to develop a national and

global multi-cultural perspective

LA 6.1.6.k

Generate and/or answer literal, inferential, critical, and

interpretive questions, supporting answers using prior

knowledge and literal and inferential information from the text

and additional sources

3 1-2 2-4 1-2 4-8

LA 6.1.6.l

Select text for a particular purpose (e.g., information, pleasure,

answer a specific question)

LA 6.1.6.m

Build and activate prior knowledge in order to identify text to

self, text to text, and text to world connections before, during,

and after reading

LA 6.1.6.n

Self-monitor comprehension for accuracy and understanding

when errors detract from meaning by applying appropriate

strategies to self-correct

LA 6.1.6.o

Use examples and details to make inferences or logical

predictions while previewing and reading text

LA 6.1.6.p

Respond to text verbally, in writing, or artisticallyAssessed at the local level







Lincoln Public Schools F30 May 2013


Pacing Guides Grade Level Pacing Guides are provided to guarantee that all students have an opportunity to learn the entire curriculum. Following the established sequence of the curriculum throughout the district ensures an easier transition for students who transfer between schools during the year. It also allows for the curriculum to spiral up to increasingly complex skills that build on each other. The pacing forms provided in the frameworks section are generic forms giving the approximate length of each teaching unit. Each year we will also provide pacing guides in the spring with dates for the upcoming year to support curriculum mapping. These specific forms can be kept in the Planning and Resources section of the guide. Are these pacing guides static and unchangeable? These pacing guides will change and grow as our students become more familiar with the curriculum. This first year, our emphasis will be to ensure that students meet the expectations of more complex text at each grade level and deeper thinking about that text. But we recognize that students will enter their grade level more prepared as the years go by. More time will then be spent on the integration of knowledge and ideas found in week six of each theme. In addition, as science, social studies, and health standards are established, we will work to find the integration with these standards that already exist in our materials; and if necessary, add inquiry projects that will address those needs. Individual classrooms will have students with a diverse range of reading abilities and needs. They will all receive the basic grade level instruction as described in the pacing guides. In addition, they will receive guided instruction at their specific level of need. How will state adoption of the Common Core State Standards change our pacing? The emphasis on integration of knowledge using multiple texts as well as digital sources is very strong in the common core. Independence in using multiple sources of information forms to develop understanding is tested and our instruction will need to move quickly towards that focus. The materials are already available in our materials, so as the skills become more approachable for all students, we will be able to expand our focus to include more of these inquiry projects. Will the pacing of our writing curriculum remain the same? Our writing curriculum is based on the Nebraska writing standards and assessment. Currently, at K-1, 80% of the writing is narrative; at 2-6, 50% is narrative. This writing program has produced very strong writers who have been able to demonstrate what they know and are able to do on the state NEAS-W exam. We will keep this writing curriculum and pacing as long as the Nebraska standards and

F31


NESA-W are in place. When the state moves to Common Core State Standards, we will need to make major revisions since only 30% of the Common Core State Standards in writing are narrative writing. Our grammar, taught and assessed in the reading units and reinforced in writing, will be graded as a part of writing using Nebraska standards. The skills and pacing will follow the units in Wonders, and revisions in grammar skills are found online in the revised Writing Program Guide. Grammar in the Common Core State Standards is a part of “Language” and any changes in standards will be accompanied by changes in report cards. Pacing will be virtually unchanged.

F32

Grade 6 Reading Wonders Pacing Chart 2013-14

Lincoln Public Schools Curriculum May 2013 Lin

Unit 1 Think It Through The Big Idea: How can changes transform the way people look at the world?

Six Weeks

Week 1

Perspectives

Essential Question: How do new experiences offer new perspectives?

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Comprehension Strategy: Visualize;

Comprehension Skill: Character, Setting, Plot: Compare and Contrast

Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Sentence Clues;

Vocabulary: consolation, glimmer, heinous, indispensable, perception, phobic,

sarcastic, threshold

Grammar: Sentence Types and Fragments

Week 2

Alliances

Essential Question: Why do people form alliances?

Genre: Historical Fiction

Comprehension Strategy: Visualize;

Comprehension Skill: Character, Setting, Plot: Sequence

Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Paragraph Clues Vocabulary: adversity,

alliance, confinement, inflicted, reminisce, retrieved, smuggle, spindly

Grammar: Subjects and Predicates

Week 3

Environments

Essential Question: How do life forms vary in different environments?

Genre: Expository Text

Comprehension Strategy: Reread;

Comprehension Skill: Main Idea & Key Details

Vocabulary Strategy: Word Parts: Greek Roots;

Vocabulary: classifications, compartment, engulfs, flanked maneuvering obscure,

species, submerged

Grammar: Sentence Combining

Week 4

Dynamic Earth

Essential Question: How do natural forces affect Earth?

Genre: Narrative Nonfiction


Comprehension Skill: Main Idea & Key Details

Vocabulary Strategy: Figurative Language: Metaphor and Simile

Vocabulary: cascaded, documentation, dynamic, exerts, plummeting, pulverize,

scalding, shards

Grammar: Clauses and Complex Sentences

Week 5

Using Money

Essential Question: What factors influence how people use money?

Genre: Information Article-Expository


Comprehension Skill: Author’s Point of View

Vocabulary Strategy: Word Parts: Root Words;

Vocabulary: available, basically, factors, fluctuate, formula, inventory,

manufactured, salaries

Grammar: Run-On Sentences and Common Splices

Week 6

Unit

Assessment

Essential Question: How can changes transform the way people look at the world?

Unit 1 Assessment – 2 sessions

Option – Reader’s Theater: “Recycling: Taming the Plastic Monster!”

Option – Reading Digitally: Time for Kids Teen Tanning

Option – Research / Inquiry: Research Skill – Choosing A Research Question

F33



Unit 2 Excursions Across Time The Big Idea: What can we gain from reading about past civilizations?

Six Weeks

Week 1

Contributions

Essential Question: What contributions were made by early civilizations?


Comprehension Strategy: Ask and Answer Questions;

Comprehension Skill: Text Structure: Problem and Solution

Vocabulary Strategy: Word Parts: Latin Roots;

Vocabulary: artifact, communal, derived, inscription, millennium, stationary, utilize,

yields

Grammar: Kinds of Nouns

Week 2

Democracy

End of First

Quarter

Essential Question: How did democracy develop?



Comprehension Skill: Text Structure: Compare and Contrast

Vocabulary Strategy: Word Parts: Greek and Latin Roots;

Vocabulary: aspiring, foundation, preceded, principal, promote, restrict, speculation,

withstood

Grammar: Singular and Plural Nouns

Week 3

Ancient

Societies

Essential Question: What was life like for people in ancient cultures?

Genre: Historical Nonfiction

Comprehension Strategy: Make, confirm, and revise predictions;

Comprehension Skill: Point of View

Vocabulary Strategy: Word Relationships; Connotations and Denotations;

Vocabulary: alcove, commerce, domestic, exotic, fluent, stifling, upheaval, utmost

Grammar: More Plural Nouns

Week 4

Influences

Essential Question: What influences the development of a culture?


Comprehension Strategy: Make, Confirm, Revise Predictions;


Vocabulary Strategy: Word Parts: Greek and Latin Suffixes;

Vocabulary: benefit, deftly, derision, eaves, expertise, impudence, legacy, symmetry

Grammar: Possessive Nouns

Week 5

Past

and

Present

Essential Question: What can the past teach us?

Genre: Poetry

Literary Elements: Meter and Rhyme;


Vocabulary Strategy: Figurative Language;

Vocabulary: brittle, creative, descriptive, outstretched

Grammar: Combining Sentences

Week 6

Excursions Across Time

Essential Question: What can we gain from reading about past civilizations?


Option – Reader’s Theater: “The Case of the Uncooked Eggs”

Option – Reading Digitally: Time for Kids – Who Owns History

Option – Research / Inquiry: Research Skill – Information from Reliable Sources

F34



Unit 3 Accomplishments The Big Idea: What does it take to accomplish a goal?

Six Weeks

Week 1

Common

Ground

Essential Question: What happens when people share ideas?


Comprehension Strategy: Make Confirm, Revise Predictions;

Comprehension Skill: Theme

Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Syntactic Clues;

Vocabulary: capacity, enthralled, fallow, insight, negotiate, regulation, resemblance,

unseemly

Grammar: Action Verbs; Direct/Indirect Objects

Week 2

Transformations

Essential Question: What kinds of challenges transform people?


Comprehension Strategy: Make Confirm, Revise Predictions;


Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Paragraph Clues;

Vocabulary: dilemma, feebly, persistent, recoiled, roused, skewed, summon, vastness

Grammar: Subject-Verb Agreement

Week 3

Inspiration

Essential Question: What can people accomplish by working together?


Comprehension Strategy: Summarize;

Comprehension Skill: Text Structure: Sequence

Vocabulary Strategy: Word Parts: Prefixes and Suffixes;

Vocabulary: abundant, impoverished, ingenuity, productivity, sharecropper, solitude,

unearthed, windswept

Grammar: Main and Helping Verbs

Week 4

Milestones

Essential Question: How can one person affect the opinions of others?

Genre: Biography


Comprehension Skill: Text Structure: Cause and Effect

Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Paragraph Clues;

Vocabulary: adept, aristocracy, collective, perseverance, prevail, prominent,

spectators, trailblazer

Grammar: Linking Verbs

Week 5

A Greener

Future

Essential Question: What steps can people take to promote a healthier environment?

Genre: Informational Article- Expository


Comprehension Skill: Main Idea and Key Details

Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Synonyms and Antonyms;

Vocabulary: advocates, commonplace, designate, initial, insulation, invasive,

irrational, optimal

Grammar: Irregular Verbs

Week 6 Accomplishments

End of Second

Quarter

Essential Question: What does it take to accomplish a goal?


Option – Reader’s Theater: “A Visit from an Ancient Pharaoh”

Option – Reading Digitally: Time for Kids – Elephant Camp

Option – Research / Inquiry: Research Skill – Quoting and Paraphrasing

F35



Unit 4 Challenges The Big Idea: How do people meet challenges and solve problems?

Begin Second Semester Six Weeks

Week 1

Changing

Environments

Essential Question: How do people meet environmental challenges?


Comprehension Strategy: Reread


Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Paragraph Clues

Vocabulary: alignment, calamity, eclipse, generated, inconvenience, periodic,

prolonged, tenacity

Grammar: Pronouns and Antecedents

Week 2

Overcoming

Challenges

Essential Question: Why do people meet personal challenges?

Genre: Biography



Vocabulary Strategy: Idioms;

Vocabulary: assess, compensate, deteriorated, devastating, implement, peripheral,

potential, summit

Grammar: Kinds of Pronouns

Week 3

Standing Tall

Essential Question: When are decisions hard to make?

Genre: Drama

Comprehension Strategy: Summarize


Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Homophones;

Vocabulary: benefactor, empathy, endeavor, entail, extensive, indecision, multitude,

tentatively

Grammar: Use of Possessive Pronouns

Week 4

Shared

Experiences

Essential Question: How do people uncover what they have in common?

Genre: Realistic Fiction Written in Free Verse



Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Homographs;

Vocabulary: adjustment, chattering, ember, mentor, nomadic, rapport, reunites,

sturdy

Grammar: Pronoun-Verb Agreement

Week 5

Taking

Responsibility

Essential Question: How can we take responsibility?

Genre: Poetry



Vocabulary Strategy: Figurative Language: Idioms

Vocabulary: answerable, lounge, obligation, proportion

Poetry Terms: alliteration, assonance, free verse, narrative poem

Grammar: More Pronouns

Week 6

Challenges

Essential Question: How do people meet challenges and solve problems?


Option – Reader’s Theater: “Tennessee Tornado”

Option – Reading Digitally: Time for Kids: Revved Up

Option – Research / Inquiry: Research Skill – Using Primary and Secondary Sources

F36



Unit 5 Figure It Out The Big Idea: How can discoveries open new possibilities?

Six Weeks

Week 1

Myths

Essential Question: Why do people tell and retell myths?

Genre: Myth

Comprehension Strategy: Make Confirm and Revise Predictions

Comprehension Skill: Character, Setting, Plot: Problem and Solution

Vocabulary Strategy: Word Parts: Word Origins;

Vocabulary: audacity, deception, desolate, exploits, oblivious, somber, steadfast,

valiant

Grammar: Adjectives

Week 2

Personal

Strengths

Essential Question: How do people show inner strength?


Comprehension Strategy: Make Confirm and Revise Predictions

Comprehension Skill: Character, Setting, Plot: Cause and Effect

Vocabulary Strategy: Figurative Language: Adages and Proverbs;

Vocabulary: disposed, eavesdropping, fortitude, infinite, retaliation, rigors, stoop,

undaunted

Grammar: Articles and demonstrative Adjectives

Week 3

Innovations

End of Third

Quarter

Essential Question: How do people benefit from innovation?




Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Cause and Effect;

Vocabulary: industrial, inefficient, manipulation, modification, mutated, nutrients,

sparse, surplus

Grammar: Adjectives that Compare

Week 4

Breakthroughs

Essential Question: How does technology lead to discoveries?




Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Definitions and Restatements;

Vocabulary: colleagues, conservatively, deduction, drones, galaxy, sustain,

ultimately, verify

Grammar: Comparing with More and Most

Week 5

Exploration

Essential Question: How have tools used for exploration evolved over time?

Genre: Informational Article-Expository



Vocabulary Strategy: Word Relationships: Connotations and Denotations;

Vocabulary: application, catastrophic, computations, deployed, elevating, magnetic,

obsolete, subsequently

Grammar: Comparing with Good and Bad

Week 6

Discoveries

Essential Question: How can discoveries open new possibilities?

Unit 5 Assessment – Possibly skip for state/national test

Option – Reader’s Theater: “Samantha Smith: Ambassador of Goodwill”

Option – Reading Digitally: Time for Kids – Eye in the Sky

Option – Research / Inquiry: Research Skill – Creating a Bibliography

F37



Unit 6 Taking Action The Big Idea: When is it important to take action?

Six Weeks

Week 1

Resources

Essential Question: How have people used natural resources?




Vocabulary Strategy: Word Parts: Latin Roots;

Vocabulary: commodity, distribution, dominant, edible, impenetrable, ornate,

replenished, significant

Grammar: Adverbs

Week 2

Witnesses

Essential Question: How do we learn about historical events?




Vocabulary Strategy: Figurative Language: Adages and Proverbs;

Vocabulary: agitated, crucial, futile, populous, presumed, smoldering, undiminished,

urgency

Grammar: Adverbs that Compare

Week 3

Investigations

Essential Question: How can a scientific investigation be an adventure?




Vocabulary Strategy: Context Clues: Comparisons;

Vocabulary: alternative, correspond, extract, foliage, hypothesis, protein, resilient,

saturated

Grammar: Negatives

Week 4

Extraordinary

Finds

Essential Question: What has been the role of money over time?




Vocabulary Strategy: Word Parts: Greek Roots;

Vocabulary: bedrock, embark, excavation, exquisite, intriguing, intrinsic, methodical,

meticulously

Grammar: Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases

Week 5

Taking A

Break

Essential Question: Why is taking a break important?

Genre: Poetry Literary Elements: Visualize;

Skill: Theme

Vocabulary Strategy: Figurative Language-Hyperbole;

Vocabulary: horizons, incentive, recreation, unfettered

Poetry Terms: hyperbole, imagery, ode, repetition

Grammar: Sentence Combining

Week 6

Taking Action

Essential Question: How can you build on what came before?

Unit 5-6 Assessment – 2 sessions

Option – Reader’s Theater: “A Steel Drivin’ Man”

Option – Reading Digitally: Time for Kids – World Wonders in Danger

Option – Research / Inquiry: Research Skill – Presentation Skills

F38


K-6 Language Arts: Designing Effective Lessons for Instruction

How is a lesson defined?

A lesson is the amount of teaching and learning occurring at a given time. The time may

be as brief as a few minutes, or span across several class sessions. Lessons are practiced,

reviewed, formatively and summatively assessed, and retaught as necessary across time.

Why is lesson planning important?

“Thorough lesson plans focus instruction, enable use of individual teaching strengths,

maximize class time, and advance learning for all students.” (Ainsworth, 2010). Such

plans provide educators with solid evidence that teaching practices are intentional and not

accidental. Active engagement strategies, specialized instructional strategies and

differentiation must be part of each and every lesson. There are far too many complex

elements to just leave to chance. Efficient and effective planning makes it much easier to

respond to diverse needs of students and make changes without losing focus.

How does McGraw-Hill Wonders support effective lesson design?

McGraw-Hill Wonders is built on the Common Core State Standards and integrates the

most current research in reading and writing instruction. The program follows routines

that reflect best classroom practices in order to fully apply this research. Learning and

using the instructional routines within a solid lesson design framework ensure effective

and efficient implementation of a comprehensive literacy program.

Why are instructional routines important?

Instructional routines are step-by-step procedures to help teachers scaffold instruction,

minimize instructional time and teacher talk, and maximize student participation.

Routines make learning easier. Since students are not expending energy learning a new

way to do something, they can focus on learning the skill at hand. For detailed

information, see the McGraw-Hill Wonders Instructional Routine Handbook.

How is reading and writing time structured at each grade level?

McGraw-Hill Reading Wonders is organized into 10 themes at Kindergarten and 6 units

for Grades 1 through 6. The Teacher’s Edition (TE) includes a Suggested Lesson Plan at

the beginning of each 5-day cycle. The following tables indicate time allotments and the

major components taught during reading, writing and word workshops.

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Grade 6: Total 120 minutes

Whole Group Reading and Word Work

Total: 55 minutes

Comprehension

• Build Background

• Listening Comprehension:

Interactive Read Aloud (optional)

• Skills and Strategies

• Close Reading of Complex Text –

Reading/Writing Workshop

• Close Reading – Literature

Anthology

• Collaborative Conversations

• Vocabulary – Context / Strategies

• Integrate Ideas

Word Work

• Phonics/Fluency

• Grammar

• Structural Analysis

• Spelling

• Build Vocabulary

Guided Reading

Leveled Readers: Approaching, On Level, Beyond Level, ELL

• Teacher works with 1 group each day.

• Students engage in collaborative or independent reading

practice that connects to goals established.

20 minutes

Writing Workshop

• Mini-lesson

• Independent Writing and Conferring

• Sharing

45 minutes

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What is the most effective and efficient lesson design model? Teachers need a comprehensive road map within a flexible framework in which to apply

their expertise. The following instructional framework offers a collaborative model for

creatively planning and delivering user-friendly curriculum.

Interactive Lesson Design: Whole Group and Guided Reading Teacher Subject Date

NE Standard CCSS

Lesson Goal What specifically will students learn during this less?

Larger Goal Where in the context of a series of lessons does this lesson fit? Relay its relevance: why,

where and when does this skill or strategy fit into the big picture?

Learning Procedure based on Gradual Release of Responsibility

Introduce • Explain • Model • Collaborate • Guided Practice • Independent Practice

Introduce

Explain

Model

Check For Understanding

• Question

• Response

• Examples / non-examples

• Monitor

• Provide feedback

Collaborate

Guided Practice (prompted)

Independent Practice (unprompted)

Assessment ____ informal formative

____ formal formative

____ summative

Plan for Differentiation

Figure 1.1

References Ainsworth, Larry. (2010). Rigorous curriculum design: How to create curricular units of

study that align standards, instruction and assessment. Englewood, CO:

Lead+Learn Press.

Archer, A. and Hughes, C. (2011). Explicit instruction: Effective and efficient teaching.

New York, NY: The Guilford Press.

McGraw-Hill Reading Wonders. "Instructional Routines Introduction". Professional

Development Instructional Routines Handbook. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

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Lincoln Public Schools Curriculum May, 2013

K-6 Student Permanent Records

Why do we have to keep permanent records?

Permanent records are kept as long-term evidence of the student’s opportunity to learn

and the map of their progress over time. It is important that records are completed each

year and passed on in the student’s permanent records.

What is the easiest way to record these scores?

The scores are recorded quarterly (K-1) or by unit (2-5) on the grade level Excel

spreadsheets. Raw scores are converted to grades (1, 2, 3, 4) and color coded for ease in

interpretation. The tabs at the bottom of the page take you to the different worksheets for

each unit.

Where can I find these spreadsheets?

These spreadsheets can be found in your grade level assessment collection:

Administrative and Support Services > Curriculum > Elementary Language Arts >

Grade Level > Assessment. Download the spreadsheet to your computer so that you can

enter your class data. This data is useful for instructional conferences and PLCs. The

final worksheet is in the format of the Individual Literacy Record and can be printed on

stickers for each literacy record

Individual Literacy Record (Yellow tag folders with K-2 insert) p. 73.

The Individual Literacy Record has three sections: The tests of oral reading for

longitudinal growth information, the summary of McGraw-Hill Wonders quarterly or unit

tests for yearlong progress, and the general recording sheet for teacher comments.

Test of Oral Reading is the DRA2 for K-1 or the DRA for Grades 1-2. The

placement level is the independent reading level. To be placed at that level, all of

the criterion must be met. See the specific guidelines for DRA and DRA2 in the

Assessment section of this guide. The recording sheets are found on docushare in

you grade level folder. The path: Administrative and Support Services >

Curriculum > Elementary Language Arts > Grade Level > Assessment.

At grade 3-6 a screening assessment, including a brief oral reading, retelling and

multiple choice comprehension, is recorded. Specific guidelines for the screening

are found in the Assessment section of this guide.

The K-1 Quarterly Assessments and the 3-6 McGraw-Hill Unit Assessments are

recorded on the spreadsheet each month for use in school data collection

including instructional conferences and PLCs. Together with McGraw-Hill

online reports, these data will help teachers determine reteaching needs in the

classroom as well as possible additional intervention.

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Lincoln Public Schools Curriculum May, 2013

The End-of Year Record should have a sticker with the student’s name, and ID

number. Comments are professional information that may give other professional

staff insights into the student’s progress.

K-6 Cumulative Writing Record (Pocket folder containing student writing) p. 75.

The cumulative writing record contains selected pieces of student writing that are added

each year K-5. The writing included in the folder is listed in each grade level box on the

outside of the folder. Pre-and Post assessments are scored and labeled. Put the most

current grade level writing in the front of the folder.

All writing goes with the student to middle school. In sixth grade, students review their

writing over time and develop long-term goals for the future. All student writing from K-

6 goes home with the students at the end of sixth grade. The cumulative record stays in

the permanent file.

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Documents

Grade 6 Table of Contents - LPS · 3. Short and multiple research projects as well as longer research projects Could be collection of information rather than a finished product 4