Language Arts 5 A/B

Segment A of Language Arts 5 builds on the skills introduced in 4th grade. Students will study various types of traditional stories, including tall tales, myths and fables, as well as learn how cultural values are passed down through this literature. Knowledge of literary devices will expand to include hyperbole, personification and irony. Writing instruction includes lessons on the structure of narratives, descriptive writing, and developing “hooks” to get readers interested in personal writing. The segment also guides students through an introductory career
exploration unit and refines non-fiction reading skills.

Segment B continues to build and reinforce critical reading skills and then puts those skills to work as students read The Egypt Game, The BFG, and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. As they read increasingly complex texts, students will learn to identify literary devices such as puns, metaphors, imagery, and dialogue and explain their effect on the text. Students will also begin to build skills in writing in response to literature.

PRE-REQUISITES: Language Arts 4

ESTIMATED COMPLETION TIME: 32-36 weeks or approximately 125 – 135 hours

 

MAJOR TOPICS AND CONCEPTS — SEGMENT A

Writing

  • Writing with Quotations

  • Descriptive Writing

  • Word Choice

  • Elements of a Story

  • Five Stages of Writing

Genres of Traditional Stories

  • Traditional Story Genres

  • Personification and Imagery in Stories

  • Purpose and Cause and Effect in Stories

  • Symbolism and Hyperbole in Stories

  • Compare and Contrast

Career Research

  • Career Exploration

  • Research Paper

  • Learning Styles

  • The Importance of Work and Career

Non-fiction

  • Characteristics of Non-Fiction

  • Pre-Reading Strategies

  • Reading Non-Fiction Literature

  • Primary and Secondary Sources

 

MAJOR TOPICS AND CONCEPTS — SEGMENT B

Reading Skills

  • Character and Plot

  • Cause and Effect

  • Theme and Setting

  • Fact and Opinion

  • Compare and Contrast

  • Author’s Purpose

  • Point of View

  • Graphic Sources

  • Sequence

  • Main Idea and Detail

  • Drawing Conclusions

  • Generalizations

Historic Fiction: The Egypt Game

  • Historical Fiction

  • Nouns

  • Compare and Contrast

  • Verbs

  • Setting and Theme

  • Adjectives

  • Characterization

  • Adverbs

  • Author’s Purpose

  • Main Idea

Fiction: The Big Friendly Giant (The BFG)

  • Fiction

  • Conjunctions

  • Drawing Conclusions

  • Contractions

  • Cause and Effect

  • Sentences

  • Sequence

  • Punctuation and Capitalization

  • Generalizations

  • Fact and Opinion

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

  • Exploring Wonderland

  • Puns

  • Metaphors

  • Dialogue

  • Imagery

  • Trial

  • Poetry

  • Plot Structure