Grades 6-8

This Debate Unit provides students with research strategy and tools and gives them the opportunity to work on a team to deliver arguments in a classroom debate. Other highlights of the unit include organizing arguments, using connecting words, strengthening arguments through powerful vocabulary, persuasive techniques, and presentation skills.

In this "Natural Phenomena" unit, students  investigate the natural phenomena of earthquakes, volcanoes, and others of their choice through reading informative texts, interpreting text features such as maps and diagrams, and using multimedia tools both interperatively and expressively. Students practice the skills and language associated with identifying main ideas and key details, comparing and contrasting two academic topics, describing scientific concepts, and explaining causes and effects. In the Discussion Assessment, students have the opportunity to improve their speaking skills by engaging in academic conversations. Through conducting research for, compiling, and presenting the CEPA, students independently explore a natural disaster or phenomenon of personal interest while learning about multiple others from their classmates.

This unit incorporates the Massachusetts Science and Technology Engineering Framework, the Massachusetts ELA Framework, and the WIDA English Language Development Standards Framework, 2020 Edition.  It includes science vocabulary as well as the five Science Skills of Making Models, Classifying, Observing, Predicting, and Inferring, while focusing on language development within this scientific context. 

“Values in Literature” offers students contextualized, extended practice with discourse, sentence, and word/phrase dimensions of academic language. By the end of the unit, students will be equipped with the skills and knowledge needed to write a fiction story (a myth, fable, or folktale) and to present their story orally using visual supports. This unit is suitable for ELs who are receiving additional ELA support, as well as those who receive ELA instruction through their ESL teacher. Additionally, the unit was created to be implemented either in the classroom, remotely, or in a hybrid format. 

To prepare and equip students for the final project (CEPA) and to advance their language proficiency, written, interactive, and online activities throughout the unit teach and reinforce knowledge and skills that are transferable to literacy-based content beyond the ESL curriculum. Students also are given the opportunity to acquire language skills needed for participation in academic discussions. 

In this "Leaving Home" unit, students explore the hopes and struggles of refugees and make connections to their own experiences of relocating. The final project is a Country Poster in which students compile information about their home country or another country represented in their ESL community.

 This levels 3-4 "Leaving Home" unit is aligned with Levels 1-2 unit (above). Students will practice more advanced English language skills in researching the refugee crisis and sending a persuasive letter to a government official.

"The language development in this unit centers on two of the Key Uses of Academic Language as connected to the following key academic practices:

•  Explain causes and effects to create evidence-based claims.

• Discuss by stating opinions/claims about a substantive topic.

These unit-level Focus Language Goals were created through an analysis of the driving language demands embedded in “Model United Nations: Access to Clean Water.” 

"The embedded language development of this unit centers on two of the Key Uses of Academic Language: 

• Recount by describing real or imagined experiences/events using relevant details in a narrative.

• Discuss by summarizing to participate in grade appropriate exchanges of information. 

These unit-level Focus Language Goals were created through an analysis of the driving language demands of an existing English language arts Model Curriculum Unit for grade 6: 'Narrating a Journey: An Exploration of Style in Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck.'"

"The embedded language development of this unit centers on the following Key Uses of Academic Language: 

• Explain by comparing and contrasting data in order to communicate research findings. 

• Recount by summarizing statistical data.

• Argue by stating an opinion or claim and supporting it with reasoning and evidence. 

These unit-level Focus Language Goals were created through an analysis of the driving language demands of an existing Model Curriculum Unit for grade 6: 'Statistics: Representing, Analyzing and Interpreting Data.'"