In Grade 7, English Language Arts builds on the foundations of sixth grade as students become more independent and thoughtful readers, writers, researchers, and communicators. Through literature, nonfiction, poetry, and relevant real-world topics, students explore how our perspective shapes our understanding of people, communities, history, and the world around us. They deepen their analysis by looking beyond what a text says to examine how authors develop ideas and make purposeful choices, while learning to support increasingly complex interpretations with multiple pieces of evidence. Research, discussion, and varied writing experiences encourage students to consider different perspectives, evaluate information carefully, and communicate with greater clarity and confidence. Throughout the year, continued modeling, collaboration, practice, and feedback support students as they take greater ownership of their learning and strengthen the skills they will carry into their final year of middle school.

Students will:

• Read and closely analyze Flipped, tracing Juli's and Bryce's contrasting points of view and how each changes over the course of the novel.

• Gather multiple pieces of textual evidence to analyze character traits, motivations, choices, relationships, conflicts, and changes.

• Trace the development of themes including perspective, empathy, integrity, identity, appearance versus reality, and the influence of family and peers.

• Analyze how literary elements and authorial choices—including alternating narration, symbolism, conflict, and word choice—interact to develop characters and themes.

• Participate in collaborative, evidence-based discussions that require students to build on others' ideas and clearly express their own interpretations.

• Develop analytical paragraphs and a culminating literary analysis explaining how Bryce's and Juli's perspectives "flip," using relevant evidence and reasoning rather than plot summary.

Students will:

• Read and closely analyze Between Shades of Gray, examining how characters respond to escalating conditions of oppression across the cattle cars, the Altai kolkhoz, and Trofimovsk.

• Trace the development of central themes involving power, oppression, resistance, resilience, hope, humanity, and the impact of individual choices.

• Analyze how setting, conflict, characterization, symbolism, flashbacks, and structure interact to develop characters, themes, and readers' understanding of historical events.

• Read historical and informational sources about the Soviet deportations and compare them with the novel's fictional portrayal, considering how historical fiction preserves, represents, or alters history.

• Participate in collaborative discussions and write analytical paragraphs examining questions about power, dehumanization, resistance, historical accuracy, character choices, and the effectiveness of small acts of courage.

• Develop a culminating literary analysis evaluating how characters choose to act in the face of injustice and the extent to which those acts are effective, supporting conclusions with relevant evidence from across the novel.

Students will:

• Read and analyze nonfiction articles and expert perspectives about social media's potential effects on teenage mental health, relationships, identity, communication, learning, and safety.

• Analyze central ideas, point of view, purpose, claims, reasoning, and evidence, while distinguishing among fact, opinion, and potential bias.

• Compare and synthesize information presented across articles, videos, infographics, statistics, charts, and other formats, considering how different sources contribute to an understanding of the issue.

• Conduct a short research investigation by gathering information from multiple credible sources, organizing evidence into categories or subtopics, and quoting or paraphrasing source material appropriately.

• Create and analyze an unbiased survey about teen social media use, using the resulting data as an additional source of information alongside published research.

• Plan, draft, revise, edit, and publish an informational brochure for a teen audience that synthesizes research, explains the risks and rewards of social media, incorporates appropriate evidence and citations, and uses headings, visuals, and other text features to communicate information effectively.

Students will:

• Read and closely analyze The Crossover alongside mentor poems, using textual evidence to examine character, conflict, point of view, and the development of themes related to family, identity, competition, loss, and growth.

• Examine how Alexander and other poets use structure and form—including line breaks, spacing, repetition, rhythm, and other stylistic choices—to shape meaning and create emotional impact.

• Analyze figurative language, imagery, symbolism, extended metaphor, and word choice, considering how these techniques contribute to character development, theme, tone, and meaning.

• Trace a central theme across the novel, analyzing how significant events, relationships, conflicts, repeated ideas, and symbols contribute to its development.

• Study mentor texts and create original poetry that mimics or adapts elements of structure and style, experimenting with point of view, imagery, figurative language, and other techniques to express ideas and experiences.

• Demonstrate understanding of character, conflict, and theme through a culminating eulogy and thematic performance task, and share ideas and writing through collaborative discussion and presentation.