We believe that the development and integration of reading, writing,
thinking, speaking, and listening skills are critical for a student’s
success in all areas of the curriculum. Mindful of individual needs and
learning styles, the Reading/Language Arts program should provide
opportunities for students to utilize their communication skills in a
functional, meaningful manner. Standard 1: Uses the general skills and strategies of the writing process. Benchmark 1. Prewriting: Uses prewriting strategies to plan written work (e.g., discusses ideas with peers, draws pictures to generate ideas, writes key thoughts and questions, rehearses ideas, records reactions and observations) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Records observations as a pre-writing strategy 2. Discusses ideas with peers as a pre-writing strategy 3. Draws pictures to generate ideas for writing 4. Writes key thoughts to generate ideas for writing 5. Writes questions to generate ideas for writing 6. Rehearses ideas for writing 7. Records reactions to ideas or topics as a pre-writing strategy Benchmark 2. Drafting and Revising: Uses strategies to draft and revise written work (e.g., rereads; rearranges words, sentences, and paragraphs to improve or clarify meaning; varies sentence type; adds descriptive words and details; deletes extraneous information; incorporates suggestions from peers and teachers; sharpens the focus) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Uses strategies to draft written work appropriate to grades K-2 2. Uses strategies to revise written work appropriate to grades K-2 3. Rereads own writing to aid drafting and revision 4. Rearranges words to improve sequence during drafting and revision 5. Rearranges sentences to improve sequence during drafting and revision 6. Rearranges paragraphs to improve sequence during drafting and revision 7. Rearranges words to clarify meaning during drafting and revision 8. Rearranges sentences to clarify meaning during drafting and revision 9. Rearranges paragraphs to clarify meaning during drafting and revision 10.Varies sentence types during drafting and revision 11.A dds descriptive words to writing during drafting and revision 12.Adds descriptive details to writing during drafting and revision 13.Deletes extraneous information from written work during drafting and revision 14.Incorporates suggestions from peers into writing during drafting and revision 15.Incorporates suggestions from teachers into writing during drafting and revision 16.Sharpens focus of writing during drafting and revision Benchmark 3. Editing and Publishing: Uses strategies to edit and publish written work (e.g., proofreads using a dictionary and other resources; edits for grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling at a developmentally appropriate level; incorporates illustrations or photos; uses available, appropriate technology to compose and publish work; shares finished product) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Uses strategies to edit written work 2. Uses strategies to publish written work 3. Proofreads writing using dictionary 4. Proofreads written work using other resources 5. Edits written work for grammar appropriate to grades K-2 6. Edits written work for punctuation appropriate to grades K-2 7. Edits written work for capitalization appropriate to grades K-2 8. Edits written work for spelling at developmentally appropriate level appropriate to grades K-2 9. Incorporates illustrations appropriate to grades K-2 10.Incorporates photos appropriate to grades K-2 11.Uses technology to compose work appropriate to grades K-2 12.Uses technology to publish work appropriate to grades K-2 13.Shares finished product Benchmark 4. Evaluates own and others’ writing (e.g., asks questions and makes comments about writing, helps classmates apply grammatical and mechanical conventions) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Evaluates own writing appropriate to grades K-2 2. Evaluates others’ writing appropriate to grades K-2 3. Asks questions about writing 4. Makes comments about writing 5. Helps classmates apply grammatical conventions 6. Helps classmates apply mechanical conventions Benchmark 5. Uses strategies to organize written work (e.g., includes a beginning, middle, and ending; uses a sequence of events) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Uses a sequence of events in written work 2. Includes a beginning in written work 3. Includes a middle in written work 4. Includes an ending in written work Benchmark 6. Uses writing and other methods (e.g., using letters or phonetically spelled words, telling, dictating, making lists) to describe familiar persons, places, objects, or experiences Knowledge/skill statements 1. Uses writing to describe familiar persons 2. Uses writing to describe familiar places 3. Uses writing to describe familiar objects 4. Uses writing to describe familiar experiences 5. Uses letters to describe familiar persons 6. Uses letters to describe familiar places 7. Uses letters to describe familiar objects 8. Uses letters to describe familiar experiences 9. Uses phonetically spelled words to describe familiar persons 10.Uses phonetically spelled words to describe familiar places 11.Uses phonetically spelled words to describe familiar objects 12.Uses phonetically spelled words to describe familiar experiences 13.Makes lists to describe familiar persons 14.Makes lists to describe familiar places 15.Makes lists to describe familiar objects 16.Makes lists to describe familiar experiences Benchmark 7. Writes in a variety of forms or genres (e.g., picture books, friendly letters, stories, poems, information pieces, invitations, personal experience narratives, messages, responses to literature) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Writes in a variety of forms 2. Writes in a variety of genres 3. Writes picture books 4. Writes friendly letters 5. Writes stories appropriate to grades K-2 6. Writes poems 7. Writes information pieces 8. Writes invitations 9. Writes narratives of personal experiences 10.Writes messages 11.Writes in response to literature Benchmark 8. Writes for different purposes (e.g., to entertain, inform, learn, communicate ideas) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Writes in order to entertain 2. Writes in order to inform 3. Writes in order to learn 4. Writes in order to communicate idea Standard 2: Uses the stylistic and rhetorical aspects of writing Benchmark 1. Uses descriptive words to convey basic ideas Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows a variety of descriptive words Standard 3: Uses grammatical and mechanical conventions in written compositions Benchmark 1. Uses conventions of print in writing (e.g., forms letters in print, uses upper- and lowercase letters of the alphabet, spaces words and sentences, writes from left-to-right and top-to-bottom, includes margins Knowledge/skill statements 1. Includes margins in writing 2. Forms letters in print 3. Uses uppercase letters of the alphabet 4. Uses lowercase letters of the alphabet 5. Spaces words 6. Spaces sentences 7. Writes from left to right 8. Writes from top to bottom Benchmark 2. Uses complete sentences in written compositions Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands the concept of a complete sentence Benchmark 3. Uses nouns in written compositions (e.g., nouns for simple objects, family members, community workers, and categories) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands the concept of a noun 2. Uses nouns for simple objects 3. Uses nouns for family members 4. Uses nouns for community workers 5. Uses nouns for categories Benchmark 4. Uses verbs in written compositions (e.g., verbs for a variety of situations, action words) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands the concept of a verb 2. Uses verbs as action words Benchmark 5. Uses adjectives in written compositions (e.g., uses descriptive words) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands the concept of an adjective Benchmark 6. Uses adverbs in written compositions (i.e., uses words that answer how, when, where, and why questions) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands the concept of an adverb 2. Uses words that answer where questions 3. Uses words that answer how questions 4. Uses words that answer why questions 5. Uses words that answer when questions Benchmark 7. Uses conventions of spelling in written compositions (e.g., spells high frequency, commonly misspelled words from appropriate grade-level list; spells phonetically regular words; uses letter-sound relationships; spells basic short vowel, long vowel, r-controlled, and consonant blend patterns; uses a dictionary and other resources to spell words) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Spells high frequency, commonly misspelled words appropriate to grades K-2 2. Spells phonetically regular words 3. Uses letter-sound relationships to spell words 4. Spells basic short vowel patterns 5. Spells basic long vowel patterns 6. Spells r-controlled patterns 7. Spells consonant blend patterns 8. Uses a dictionary to spell words 9. Uses other resources to spell words Benchmark 8. Uses conventions of capitalization in written compositions (e.g., first and last names, first word of a sentence) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands the purpose of capitalization 2. Capitalizes first names 3. Capitalizes last names 4. Capitalizes first word of a sentence Benchmark 9. Uses conventions of punctuation in written compositions (e.g., uses periods after declarative sentences, uses questions marks after interrogative sentences, uses commas in a series of words) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands the concept of punctuation 2. Understands the purpose of punctuation 3. Knows various types of punctuation 4. Uses commas in a series of words 5. Uses periods after declarative sentences 6. Uses questions marks after interrogative sentences Standard 4: Gathers and uses information for research purposes Benchmark 1. Generates questions about topics of personal interest Knowledge/skill statements 1. Identifies topics of personal interest Benchmark 2. Uses a variety of sources to gather information (e.g., informational books, pictures, charts, indexes, videos, television programs, guest speakers, Internet, own observation) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Uses own observation to gather information 2. Uses informational books to gather information 3. Uses pictures to gather information 4. Uses charts to gather information 5. Uses indexes to gather information 6. Uses videos to gather information appropriate to grades K-2 7. Uses guest speakers to gather information 8. Uses television programs to gather information appropriate to grades K-2 9. Uses the Internet to gather information appropriate to grades K-2 READING Standard 5: Uses the general skills and strategies of the reading process Benchmark 1. Uses mental images based on pictures and print to aid in comprehension of text Knowledge/skill statements 1. Creates mental images from pictures 2. Creates mental images from print Benchmark 2. Uses meaning clues (e.g., picture captions, title, cover, headings, story structure, story topic) to aid comprehension and make predictions about content (e.g., action, events, character’s behavior) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Uses meaning clues to aid comprehension about content 2. Uses meaning clues to make predictions about content 3. Uses meaning clues to aid comprehension about action 4. Uses meaning clues to make predictions about actions 5. Uses meaning clues to aid comprehension about events 6. Uses meaning clues to make predictions about events 7. Uses meaning clues to aid comprehension about a character’s behavior 8. Uses meaning clues to make predictions about a character’s behavior 9. Uses pictures to aid comprehension about content 10.Uses pictures to make predictions about content 11.Uses pictures to aid comprehension about action 12.Uses pictures to make predictions about action 13.Uses pictures to aid comprehension about events 14.Uses pictures to make predictions about events 15.Uses pictures to aid comprehension about a character’s behavior 16.Uses pictures to make predictions about a character’s behavior 17.Uses picture captions to aid comprehension about content 18.Uses picture captions to make predictions about content 19.Uses picture captions to aid comprehension about action 20.Uses picture captions to make predictions about action 21.Uses picture captions to aid comprehension about events 22.Uses picture captions to make predictions about events 23.Uses picture captions to aid comprehension about a character’s behavior 24.Uses picture captions to make predictions about a character’s behavior 25.Uses the title to aid comprehension about content 26.Uses the title to make predictions about content 27.Uses the title to make predictions about the action 28.Uses the title to aid comprehension about the action 29.Uses the title to aid comprehension about events 30.Uses the title to make predictions about events 31.Uses the title to aid comprehension about a character’s behavior 32.Uses the title to make predictions about a character’s behavior 33.Uses the cover to aid comprehension about content 34.Uses the cover to make predictions about content 36.Uses the cover to make predictions about action 37.Uses the cover to aid comprehension about events 38.Uses the cover to make predictions about events 39.Uses the cover to aid comprehension about a character’s behavior 40.Uses the cover to make predictions about a character’s behavior 41.Uses headings to aid comprehension about content 42.Uses headings to make predictions about content 43.Uses headings to aid comprehension about action 44.Uses headings to make predictions about action 45.Uses headings to aid comprehension about events 46.Uses headings to make predictions about events 47.Uses headings to aid comprehension about a character’s behavior 48.Uses headings to make predictions about a character’s behavior 49.Uses story structure to aid comprehension about content 50.Uses story structure to make predictions about content 51.Uses story structure to aid comprehension about action 52.Uses story structure to make predictions about action 53.Uses story structure to aid comprehension about events 54.Uses story structure to make predictions about events 55.Uses story structure to aid comprehension about a character’s behavior 56.Uses story structure to make predictions about a character’s behavior 57.Uses story topic to aid comprehension about content 58.Uses story topic to make predictions about content 59.Uses story topic to aid comprehension about action 60.Uses story topic to make predictions about action 61.Uses story topic to aid comprehension about events 62.Uses story topic to make predictions about events 63.Uses story topic to aid comprehension about a character’s behavior 64.Uses story topic to make predictions about a character’s behavior Benchmark 3. Uses basic elements of phonetic analysis (e.g., common letter/sound relationships, beginning and ending consonants, vowel sounds, blends, word patterns) to decode unknown words Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows letters of the alphabet 2. Uses common letter/sound relationships to decode unknown words 3. Uses beginning consonants to decode unknown words 4. Uses ending consonants to decode unknown words 5. Uses vowel sounds to decode unknown words 6. Uses blends to decode unknown words 7. Uses word patterns to decode unknown words Benchmark 4. Uses basic elements of structural analysis (e.g., syllables, basic prefixes, suffixes, root words, compound words, spelling patterns, contractions) to decode unknown words Knowledge/skill statements 1. Uses contractions to decode unknown words 2. Uses syllables to decode unknown words P 3. Uses basic prefixes to decode unknown words 4. Uses suffixes to decode unknown words 5. Uses root words to decode unknown words appropriate to K-2 6. Uses compound words to decode unknown words 7. Uses spelling patterns to decode unknown words Benchmark 5. Uses a picture dictionary to determine word meaning Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows the type of information found in a picture dictionary Benchmark 6. Understands level-appropriate sight words and vocabulary (e.g., words for persons, places, things, actions; high frequency words such as said, was, and where) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands sight words 2. Understands level-appropriate vocabulary 3. Understands words for persons 4. Understands words for places 5. Understands words for things 6. Understands words for actions 7. Understands high-frequency words Benchmark 7. Uses self-correction strategies (e.g., searches for cues, identifies miscues, rereads, asks for help) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Asks for help with reading 2. Searches for cues when reading 3. Identifies miscues when reading 4. Rereads appropriate to grades K-2 Benchmark 8. Reads aloud familiar stories, poems, and passages with fluency and expression (e.g., rhythm, flow, meter, tempo, pitch, tone, intonation) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Reads aloud familiar stories with fluency 2. Reads aloud familiar poems with fluency 3. Reads aloud familiar passages with fluency 4. Reads aloud familiar stories with expression 5. Reads aloud familiar poems with expression 6. Reads aloud familiar passages with expression 7. Reads aloud familiar stories with rhythm 8. Reads aloud familiar stories with flow 9. Reads aloud familiar stories with meter 10.Reads aloud familiar stories with tempo 11.Reads aloud familiar stories with pitch 12.Reads aloud familiar stories with tone 13.Reads aloud familiar stories with intonation 14.Reads aloud familiar poems with rhythm 15.Reads aloud familiar poems with flow 16.Reads aloud familiar poems with meter 17.Reads aloud familiar poems with tempo 18.Reads aloud familiar poems with pitch 19.Reads aloud familiar poems with tone 20.Reads aloud familiar poems with intonation 21.Reads aloud familiar passages with rhythm 22.Reads aloud familiar passages with flow 23.Reads aloud familiar passages with meter 24.Reads aloud familiar passages with tempo 25.Reads aloud familiar passages with pitch 26.Reads aloud familiar passages with tone 27.Reads aloud familiar passages with intonation Standard 6: Uses reading skills and strategies to understand and interpret a variety of literary texts Benchmark 1. Uses reading skills and strategies to understand a variety of familiar literary passages and texts (e.g., fairy tales, folktales, fiction, nonfiction, egends, fables, myths, poems, nursery rhymes, picture books, predictable books) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Reads fairy tales appropriate to grades K-2 2. Reads folktales appropriate to grades K-2 3. Reads fiction appropriate to grades K-2 4. Reads nonfiction appropriate to grades K-2 5. Reads legends 6. Reads poems appropriate to grades K-2 7. Reads fables 8. Reads myths appropriate to K-2 9. Reads nursery rhymes 10.Reads picture books 11.Reads predictable books Benchmark 2. Knows the basic characteristics of familiar genres (e.g., picture books, fairy tales, nursery rhymes) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows the distinguishing features of a picture book 2. Knows the distinguishing features of a fairy tale 3. Knows the distinguishing features of a nursery rhyme Benchmark 3. Knows setting, main characters, main events, sequence, and problems in stories Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows the setting in a story 2. Knows the main characters in a story 3. Knows the main events in a story 4. Understands the sequence of a story 5. Knows the problems in a story Benchmark 4. Knows the main ideas or theme of a story Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows the main ideas of a story 2. Knows the theme of a story Benchmark 5. Relates stories to personal experiences (e.g., events, characters, conflicts, themes) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Relates story themes to personal experiences 2. Relates story events to personal experiences 3. Relates story characters to personal experiences 4. Relates story conflicts to personal experiences Standard 7: Uses reading skills and strategies to understand and interpret a variety of informational texts Benchmark 1. Uses reading skills and strategies to understand a variety of informational texts (e.g., written directions, signs, captions, warning labels, informational books) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Reads written directions 2. Reads signs 3. Reads captions 4. Reads warning labels 5. Reads informational books Benchmark 2. Understands the main idea and supporting details of simple expository information Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands main idea of expository information 2. Understands supporting details of expository information Benchmark 3. Summarizes information found in texts (e.g., retells in own words) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Retells information from texts in own words Benchmark 4. Relates new information to prior knowledge and experience Knowledge/skill statements 1. Relates new information from reading to prior knowledge 2. Relates new information from reading to prior experience LISTENING and SPEAKING Standard 8: Uses listening and speaking strategies for different purposes Benchmark 1. Makes contributions in class and group discussions (e.g., reports on ideas and personal knowledge about a topic, initiates conversations, connects ideas and experiences with those of others) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Makes contributions in class discussions 2. Makes contributions in group discussions 3. Reports on ideas about a topic in class or group discussions 4. Reports on personal knowledge about topic in class or group discussions 5. Initiates class or group conversations 6. Connects ideas with those of others in class or group discussions 7. Connects experiences with those of others in class or group discussions VIEWING Standard 9: Uses viewing skills and strategies to understand and interpret visual media Benchmark 1. Understands the main idea or message in visual media (e.g., pictures, cartoons, weather reports on television, newspaper photographs, visual narratives) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands the main idea in visual media 2. Understands the main message in visual media 3. Understands the main idea of visual media when shown in pictures 4. Understands cartoons 5. Understands weather reports on television 6. Understands newspaper photographs 7. Understands visual narratives Benchmark 2. Uses a variety of strategies to predict content and meaning in visual media (e.g., uses knowledge of the structure of television programs: for cartoons, make predictions based on program length, experience that a resolution will be reached and that main characters will overcome difficulties to return to the next episode; uses knowledge of cause-and-effect relationships to predict plot development) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Uses strategies to predict content in visual media 2. Uses strategies to predict meaning in visual media 3. Uses knowledge of the structure of television programs to predict content and meaning in visual media 4. Uses knowledge of structure for cartoons to predict their content and meaning 5. Makes of a program’s length to predict its content and meaning 6. Uses knowledge based on experience that a resolution will be reached to predict content and meaning 7. Makes predictions based on expectation that main characters will overcome difficulties to return to the next episode 8. Uses knowledge of cause-and-effect relationships to predict plot development Benchmark 3. Knows how different elements help to establish plot, setting, and character in visual narratives (e.g., action, dialogue, music, clothing, facial expressions) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows different plot elements in visual narratives 2. Knows literary elements that help establish setting in visual narratives 3. Knows how different literary elements establish characters in visual narratives 4. Knows how dialogue helps establish plot, setting, and characters of visual media 5. Knows how music helps establish plot, setting, and characters of visual media 6. Knows how clothing helps establish plot, setting, and characters of visual media 7. Knows how facial expressions help establish plot, setting, and characters of visual media Benchmark 4. Knows different features (e.g., facial expressions, body language, gesture, clothing, actions, relationships, dialogue) that affect a viewer’s perceptions of characters in visual media (e.g., qualities that identify a "hero" or a "villain") Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows qualities that identify a hero 2. Knows qualities that identify a villain Benchmark 5. Knows different elements from films, videos, television, and other visual media that appeal to him or her (e.g., scary parts, action segments, particular characters, color, sound effects, animation, layout, music) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows elements from films that appeal to him or her 2. Knows elements from videos that appeal to to him or her 3. Knows elements from television that appeal to to him or her 4. Knows elements from other visual media that appeal to to him or her 5. Knows how much action segments appeal to him or her 6. Knows how much scary parts in media appeal to him or her 7. Knows particular characters in visual media appeal to him or her 8. Knows much animation appeals to him or her 9. Knows how much color in visual media appeals to him or her 10.Knows how much various layouts of visual media appeal to him or her 11.Knows much sound effects in visual media appeal to him or her 12.Knows how much music in visual media appeals to him or her Benchmark 6. Understands the similarities and differences between real life and life depicted in visual media (e.g., compares own family to families represented in television cartoons or films; knows that there is a difference between a character in a program and the actor) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands similarities between real life and life depicted in visual media 2. Understands differences between real life and life depicted in visual media 3. Compares own family to families on television cartoons 4. Compares own family to families on film MEDIA Standard 10: Understands the characteristics and components of the media Benchmark 1. Knows the various types of media (e.g., newspapers, radio, television, billboards) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows billboards as a type of media 2. Knows newspapersas a type of media 3. Knows radioas a type of media 4. Knows television as a type of media Benchmark 2. Knows that there are different types of media categories (e.g., news programs, sports programs, commercials) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Knows commercials as a category of media 2. Knows news programs as a category of media 3. Knows sports programs as a category of media Benchmark 3. Understands that there are common conventions used in media (e.g., the layout of a newspaper, including headlines, photographs, and different sections; how theme music, sound effects, titles, and graphics represent the beginning and ending of a television program) Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands graphics represent the beginning and ending of a television program 2. Understands that newspapers have a specific type of layout 3. Understands the layout of a newspaper includes headlines 4. Understands that the layout of newspapers include photographs 5. Understands that the layout of a newspaper includes different sections 6. Understands theme music represents the beginning and ending of a television program 7. Understands sound effects represent the beginning and ending of a television program 8. Understands titles represent the beginning and ending of a television program Benchmark 4. Understands that media messages and products are created by people (e.g., individuals and groups) and represent real and imaginary experience Knowledge/skill statements 1. Understands media messages are created by people 2. Understands media products are created by people 3. Understands media messages represent real experiences 4. Understands media messages represent imaginary experience 5. Understands media products represent real experiences 6. Understands media products represent imaginary experience |
K-2 Language Arts |