English Language Arts

Grade 5

In Grade 5, to learn and practice skills in ELA and literacy, we have developed novel studies. These studies allow students to build reading endurance. Units are developed based on the following books:

  • Wonder by R.J. Palacio
  • Blood on the River by Elisa Carbone
  • Love That Dog by Sharon Creech

Students will also use companion texts to the core novel studies,The Reading Strategies Book 2.0, and Scholastic resources.

New learning at grade 5 includes:

  • Quoting directly from a text when speaking or writing about it
  • Understanding the concept of genre (type of text)
  • Recognizing and writing texts in different genres, such as myths, mysteries, and historical fiction
  • Comparing various types of English used in texts
  • Choosing verbs carefully when speaking or writing

Grade 6

We have developed novel studies to learn and practice skills in ELA and literacy. These studies allow students to build reading endurance and advance in analyzing themes as they transition to junior high school. Units are developed based on the following books:

  • No Summit Out of Sight by Jordan Romero
  • A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park

Students will also use companion texts to the core novel studies, The Reading Strategies Book 2.0, andadditional literary and nonfiction works.

New learning in grade 6 includes:

  • Moving from writing opinions to writing arguments. Arguments are more formal and objective, and they rely on evidence (like quotations or statistics)
  • When citing evidence from a text, deciding whether to quote the text directly or to paraphrase it (put it in different words)
  • Developing skills in writing with varied sentence structure
  • Prepare for and participate in literature circles to promote deeper conversation skills
  • Delivering oral presentations with confidence
  • Engaging in peer feedback