Language Arts 8 with Ms. Kevorkian

Class overview

lThroughout the school year, students will be guided and encouraged to read, write, speak and listen more deeply and meaningfully by learning to question their thinking to articulate purpose and evaluate effectiveness of the ensuing argument. Students will explore various literary genres, questioning and examining writers' choices for purpose, audience and literary techniques, and will incorporate their observations so that they articulate clear, coherent, compelling ideas orally and in writing. The Eighth Grade English Language Arts program will develop students’ critical thinking skills, strategic approach to reading a wide variety of texts, and clear articulation of views and ideas within the frame of a sustained argument. The literature program is designed to enlighten students to the concept of empathy and change through character analysis, inferential and interpretive reading, and literary discussion. Specifically, the course is designed as one continuous program, organized into four units that correspond to the marking periods. The units, though, are not distinct; rather, each flows naturally into the next, always recalling previous concepts and skills to continually build upon them.

The Art of Narrative, Literary Analysis, Comparative Analysis, Argument, Multi-Genre Research Project; PCR, Vocabulary, Grammar