Embedded Files
EL Education is the curriculum program that Wake County adopted in 2017 for language arts in grades 2 through 8. Each "module," or topic-centered unit of study, will last approximately 12 weeks. Students will be provided a workbook and a central text for use during their study of the module. Modules progress in three stages: building background knowledge -> extended reading and research -> extended writing, culminating in a performance task. Students should plan to read for at least 20 minutes daily -- either an assigned section of our class text to support their instructional experiences, or a text of their choice to build reading stamina.
Module 1:
Module 1:
"Myths: Not Just Long Ago"
"Myths: Not Just Long Ago"
Focus: Reading closely and writing to learn
Description: Students will study the purposes and elements of mythology. Students will read Rick Riordan's The Lightning Thief with a focus on the archetypal hero's journey and close reading of the many mythical allusions. They will also read complex informational texts about the elements of mythology. As a whole class, students will closely read several complex Greek myths, and then work in small groups to build expertise on an additional myth. Students then develop their narrative writing skills as they create their own hero's journey narrative.
Central Text:
The Lightning Thief, Rick Riordan
Units:
Percy Jackson and the Hero's Journey
Elements and Themes of Mythology in The Lightning Thief
Culminating Project: My Hero’s Journey Narrative
Performance Task:
My Hero's Journey Narrative scaffolded narrative (ELA Standards RL.6.3, W.6.3, W.6.4, W.6.5, W.6.6, W.6.11c, L.6.2, and L.6.3)
Focus: Working with evidence (drama)
Description: Students will explore the idea of adversity of people across time and place, and through multiple modes of writing. Students will begin this module with a research-based unit on the Middle Ages. They will read closely about one demographic group in order to write an informational essay based on their research. Students will then move on to read literature: Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village, in order to identify the various adversities faced by this cast of characters and to examine the author's craft. To conclude the unit students will move into the modern voices of adversity by reading concrete poems in the book Technically, It's Not My Fault and write their own text about adversities faced by sixth-graders.
Central Texts:
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village, Laura Amy Schlitz
Technically, It's Not My Fault: Concrete Poems, John Grandits
Units:
Adversities in Medieval Times
Monologues, Language, and Literary Argument: Voices of a Medieval Village
Modern Voices of Adversity
Performance Task: Narrative: Giving Voice to Adversity scaffolded narrative poem (ELA Standards W.6.3, SL.6.4, SL.6.6, L.6.1, L.6.3, L.6.6)
Module 2:
Module 2:
"Voices of Adversity"
"Voices of Adversity"
Module 3: "Sustaining the Oceans"
Module 3: "Sustaining the Oceans"
Focus: Understanding perspectives
Description: Students will study how an author develops point of view and how an author’s perspective, based on his or her geographic location, is evident in his or her writing. Students consider point of view as they learn about ocean conservation and the impact of human activities on life in the oceans. Through close reading, students will learn multiple strategies for acquiring and using academic vocabulary.
Central Texts:
Flush, Carl Hiaasen
World without Fish, Mark Kurlansky
Units:
Narrator’s Point of View and Evidence of Author’s Perspective in Flush
Author’s Point of View and Idea Development in World without Fish
Researching and Interpreting Information: What You Need to Know When Buying Fish
Performance Task: Informational Consumer Guide: What Do People Need to Know about Overfishing and Fish Depletion When Buying Fish? (ELA Standards W.6.2, W.6.7, L.6.2, L.6.2a, L.6.2b, L.6.3, L.6.3a, and L.6.3)
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