7

th
Grade English Language Arts
Course Description and Standards


Course Description
7
th
grade English/Language Arts is a comprehensive class that builds on prior skills and
knowledge and is guided by Kentuckys Common Core Standards. Students will engage
in, appreciate and enjoy reading, writing, listening and speaking every day.


English Language Arts Standards
>Reading Literature

_____ RL7.1 Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what
the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
_____ RL7.2 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.
_____ RL7.3 Analyze how particular elements of a story or drama interact.
_____ RL7.4 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 on a
specific verse or stanza of a poem or section of a story or drama
_____ RL7.5 Determine how a dramas or poems form or structure contribute to
its meaning.
_____ RL7.6 Analyze how an author develops and contrasts the points of view of
different characters or
narrators in a text.
_____ RL7.7 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.
_____ RL7.9 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.
_____ RL7.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including
stories, dramas and
poems, in the 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding at the
high end of the range.

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English Language Standards
>Reading Informational Text
_____ RI7.1 Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what
the text says explicitly as
well as inferences drawn from the text.
_____ RI7.2 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.
_____ RI7.3 Analyze the interactions between individuals, events, and ideas in a
text.
_____ RI7.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in
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text, including figurative,
connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of a specific words
on meaning and tone.
_____ RI7.5 Analyze the structure an author uses to organize a text, including
how the major sections
contribute to the whole and to the development of ideas.
_____ RI7.6 Determine an authors point of view or purpose in a text and analyze
how the author distinguishes
his or her position from that of others.
_____ RI7.7 Compare and contrast a text to an audio, video, or multimedia
version of the text, analyzing each
mediums portrayal of the subject.
_____ RI7.8 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.
_____ RI7.9 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.
_____ RI7.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in
the grades 6-8 complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high
end of the range.



English Language Arts Standards
>Writing
_____ W7.1 Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant
evidence
_____ W7.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey
ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis
of relevant content
_____ W7.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events
using effective technique, relevantndescriptive details, and well-structured event
sequences.
_____ W7.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development,
organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience
_____ W7.5 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.
_____ W7.6 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.
_____ W7.7 Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on
several sources and generating additional related, focused questions for further
research and investigation.
_____ W7.8 Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources,
using search terms effectively; assess the credibility and accuracy of each source;
quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism
and following a standard for citation.
_____ W7.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis,
reflection, and research.
_____ W7.10 Write routinely over extended time frames and shorter time frames,
for a range of discipline specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.

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English Language Arts
>Language
_____ L.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English
grammar and usage when
writing or speaking.
_____ L.2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English
capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
_____ L.3 Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in
different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style and to
comprehend more fully when reading or listening.
_____ L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning
words and phrases by using context clues, analyzing meaningful word parts, and
consulting general and specialized reference materials, as appropriate.
_____ L.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships
and nuances in word meanings.
_____ L.6 Acquire and use accurately a range of general academic and domain-
specific words and phrases sufficient for reading, and writing, speaking, and
listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in
gathering vocabulary knowledge when encountering an unknown term important to
comprehension or expression.

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English Language Arts
>Speaking and Listening
_____ SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and
collaborations with diverse partners, building on others ideas and expressing their
own clearly and persuasively.
_____ SL.2 Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and
formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
_____ SL.3 Evaluate a speakers point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence
and rhetoric.
_____ SL.4 Present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that
listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, and
style that are appropriate to task, purpose and audience.
_____ SL.5 Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to
express information and enhance understanding of presentations.
_____ SL.6 Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and communicative tasks,
demonstrating command of formal English when indicated appropriate.

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Vocabulary and definitions
*Highlight terms when mastered as demonstrated on assessment.
English Language Arts
>Reading Literature
1. comprehensive (adj) extensive, large
2. prior (adj) previous, coming before
3. cite (v) mention, quote
4. textual (adj) of or relating to a text
5. explicitly (adv) stated clearly and with detail to leave no room for doubt
6. inferences (n)/infer (v) deduce or conclude from evidence and logical reasoning
rather than from
explicit statements; implied, implicit
7. analyze (v)/ analysis (n) - to separate something into its parts and then to examine
those parts
8. phrase (n) - a group of words that functions as a unit but that lacks a subject, a verb,
or both
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9. figurative (adj) - language that transcends its literal meaning such as simile,
metaphor, hyperbole,
and idiom
10. connotative (adj) the feeling evoked by a word in addition to its literal meaning
11. verse (n) writing arranged with a metrical rhythm
12. stanza (n) a group of lines forming a unit in a poem
13. proficiently (adv) having or marked by an advanced degree of competency
14. scaffolding (v) the support given to a student in the early stages of learning


English Language Arts
>Reading Informational Text
1. text (n) written or printed work
2. objective (adj) unbiased; not influenced by personal feelings or opinions
3. technical (adj) of or related to a particular subject and its techniques; requiring
special knowledge
to be understood
4. trace (v) find or discover by investigation
5. evaluate (v) to form an idea of the value of
6. assess (v) evaluate
7. relevant (adj) closely connected to or appropriate to the matter at hand
8. emphasizing (v)/emphasis (n) give special meaning or importance to something in
speaking or writing
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English Language Arts >Writing
1. coherent (adj) clear, logical and consistent
2. collaborate (v) work jointly on an activity to produce or create something
3. credibility (n) the quality of being convincing, believable or trustworthy
4. paraphrase (v) to reword something written or spoken by something else
5. plagiarism (n) taking someone elses words and ideas and passing them off as
ones own
6. reflection (n) a thoughtful consideration
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English Language Arts >Language
1. conventions(n) the formally and informally agreed-upon ways to use language
2. grammar (n) the system of rules that explain how words are combined to form
sentences
3. usage (n) the way a word or phrase is normally and correctly used in grammar
4. context (n) the parts of something written or spoken that immediately precede and
follow a word or
passage, clarify its meaning, and allow the idea to be fully understood
5. nuances (n) a subtle, slight difference in meaning, expression, or sound
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English Language Arts >Speaking and Listening
1. integrate (v) combine parts to create a whole
2. quantitatively (adv) - related to, measuring, or measured by the quantity or amount of
something
3. rhetoric (n) effective or persuasive speaking or writing (often with the connotation of
insincerity)
4. enhance (v) improve the quality, value or extent of

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