Unit 1

Launching

The Reading Fundamentals Launching Unit of Study provides models for many reading behaviors, rituals, and routines. Active listening, thinking, engagement, and participation are fundamental expectations for reading

Students will:

■ Develop an understanding of themselves as readers;

■ Develop habits of mind for engaging with a variety of texts;

■ Learn and apply the expectations and routines for active participation in a reading community;

■ Self-select appropriate texts and apply self-monitoring skills;

■ Cite textual evidence to support analysis of a text;

■ Determine themes or central idea(s) of a text;

■ Analyze story elements and their role in fiction;

■ Use a variety of strategies to determine the meaning of challenging words and phrases in a text;

■ Analyze the impact of word choices on meaning and tone;

■ Analyze how the structure of texts supports meaning;

■ Utilize multimedia sources to support understanding of a topic;

■ Apply comprehension strategies to increase proficiency in understanding complex texts across fiction, poetry, and nonfiction;

■ Prepare for and engage in a range of collaborative conversations to deepen their own and others’ understanding of texts;

■ Write routinely to process their thinking about texts; and

■ Set and monitor goals for themselves as readers.workshop. Establishing a community that fosters these behaviors is vital and will help your students develop and grow.

Unit 2

Fiction

By reading and studying different types of fiction, students will develop an understanding of various forms, features, and purposes of fiction. Their reading of fiction texts will be enhanced by an understanding of the narrative structure, story elements, and themes associated with each particular type of fiction writing. Students will also learn and apply specific reading skills and strategies that will enable them to visualize historical settings, infer characters’ feelings and traits, analyze the author’s message, and actively engage with the texts they read.

Students will:

■ Recognize different types of fiction (historical, realistic, fantasy, mystery, contemporary, or science fiction);

■ Identify common story elements and structures in fiction texts (characters, setting, plot, exposition, conflict, rising action, falling action, and resolution) and how the scenes convey ideas and create an overall narrative, chronological structure;

■ Understand that there are different types of conflicts and resolutions in fiction texts that affect the plot and character development;

■ Understand that authors may create multiple narrators or characters in order to contrast points of view and influence the mood and tone of the story;

■ Understand how authors of fiction use or alter history and compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a time, place, or characters;

■ Identify big ideas and supporting details within texts and determine the themes of fiction stories;

■ Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly, as well as inferences drawn from the text;

■ Analyze how a drama’s form or structure contributes to its meaning;

■ Understand how to read with critical questions in mind in order to read and analyze a text closely and participate in conversations with peers;

■ Use strategies before, during, and after reading to enhance comprehension of texts;

■ Apply self-monitoring skills and strategies to determine the meaning of important vocabulary;

■ Understand how to read with pacing, tone, and overall fluency when reading different fiction texts; and

■ Compare and contrast a written drama to its film version, analyzing the effects of various techniques through discussion and writing.

Unit 3

Nonfiction

Nonfiction reading often leads to inquiry. Students have a natural curiosity and wonder about many things. Nonfiction texts encourage students to closely observe and learn about all that is around them. Students will develop passions for locating information, finding answers, and deepening their understanding about the nonfiction topics they are reading and learning about. This unit will help students learn and apply specific reading skills and strategies that will enable them to discover facts, identify big ideas, and learn new information about the topics they are reading about. It will also address the challenges of reading nonfiction, as well as ways to work through difficult text—essential skills for any reader.

Students will:

■ Read a variety of types of reference and literary nonfiction, including essays, speeches, memoirs, and biographies;

■ Use knowledge of genre, text structure, and text features to support understanding;

■ Use comprehension strategies before, during, and after reading to monitor and deepen comprehension;

■ Employ a repertoire of strategies to figure out unfamiliar vocabulary (including technical language) while reading;

■ Use textual evidence to support thinking about nonfiction reading in both conversation and writing;

■ Infer an author’s purpose or viewpoint;

■ Summarize and synthesize information to determine important ideas;

■ Analyze the impact of the author’s language choices on the meaning and tone of the text;

■ Analyze and evaluate arguments presented in nonfiction texts;

■ Synthesize and compare information across texts and in various formats (e.g., print, visual, multimedia); and

■ Determine and pursue meaningful goals for enhancing the reading of nonfiction.

Unit 4

Content Library

As knowledge explodes in the digital age, learning the “content” of science and social studies becomes both more challenging and also more critical. Our goal is to teach students to build knowledge through reading a variety of texts, discussing them from multiple stances, and writing from various sources. We teach students not to memorize disconnected facts but to sort through information, think about it, and analyze their own and others’ perspectives—in other words, to deeply comprehend it. Content literacy encompasses the skills and strategies necessary to acquire content knowledge through the exploration of a variety of complex texts.

Students will:

■ Participate in shared research and inquiry about the topic of study;

■ Recognize how new learning relates to essential questions in a historical study;

■ Cite relevant textual evidence to support thinking about reading in both conversation and writing;

■ Use prior knowledge and textual information to make inferences, draw conclusions, and synthesize information across texts;

■ Employ a repertoire of strategies to recognize, define the meaning of, and apply challenging academic and domain-specific vocabulary;

■ Deal with the challenges of complex text by reading closely, monitoring confusion, and applying comprehension strategies;

■ Learn and analyze key information from a variety of nonfiction sources, including reference nonfiction, speeches, memoirs, poetry, and multimedia sources such as political cartoons;

■ Infer an author’s point of view and how it affects the meaning of a text;

■ Compare and contrast multiple primary and secondary sources about a controversial issue to form independent judgments of actions and events in history;

■ Effectively contribute to peer discussions to clarify and develop thinking and identify key ideas;

■ Determine and analyze content for cause and effect relationships;

■ Analyze information in texts to determine importance, summarize key ideas, and synthesize important lessons and concepts;

■ Select appropriate online resources for accuracy and relevance;

■ Apply the lessons of historical study to present-day issues;

■ Clearly communicate content understanding both orally and in writing; and

■ Demonstrate synthesis and extension of learning by writing an argumentative essay with a clear thesis, strong reasons and evidence, a rebuttal of opposing arguments, and appropriate vocabulary.