Advanced LA

Course Description:

Advanced Language Arts is a fast-paced course in which you will be expected to read, think, and write at a high level on a daily basis. Students will work collaboratively and independently on both the 8th and 9th grade standards. Be prepared to challenge yourself. Be prepared to bring value to daily discussions. Be prepared to think and critique and create and engage. Ask yourself: Who do you want to be as a reader and a writer?

There will be daily homework in ADVLA. Most often, this will be individual reading and responses/annotation, drafting,  and preparation for discussions, performances, and assessment. Keeping up at the advanced level means being diligent and independent. Please seek help if you need it! 

Current Writing Piece: Throughout the year, you will be working toward polishing various formal pieces of writing, in addition to daily writing in and out of class. These pieces will often need to be drafted, edited or finalized at home. Please pay close attention to deadlines, as all assigned writing is a stepping stone to the next skill level. 

Independent Reading:  In language arts, you will typically have an assigned novel (at least one per quarter). Additionally, you need to always have a book on hand, and JUST KEEP READING! Some people are working their way toward finishing three this quarter, while others will devour a book or more a week. If you finish a book, make sure to find a new one for class the next day.  Students are expected to read 30 minutes, five days a week. A consistent reading schedule increases a reader’s fluency and has a direct positive impact on writing as well. We will work with our books daily in Language Arts, so please have any assigned books at all times. 

Other Skills: In addition to reading and writing, students in LA will work on Vocabulary usage and mastery, public speaking, and collaborative thinking. Additionally, we will complete iReady Progress Monitoring every month...more about that later! 

Possible Units of Study: We will begin and end the year with a calendar similar to the 8th Grade LA class as we build skills and routines.