Gateway Language Arts

Comprehensive site for English 9 EOC Review

Standard Number:

1.0     Writing

Grammar / writing rules and help

Excellent PowerPoint on effective writing  

Performance Indicators

State:

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

GC

C

C

C

C

C

WC

WC

WC

O

At Level 1, the student is able to

·          combine sentences using a comma and coordinating conjunction or correct a run-on sentence within a writing sample;

Sentence Combining Rules and Three Quizzes

·          distinguish fact from opinion from a passage or writing sample;

MLK activity / Fact or Opinion worksheet

Great explanation and interactive worksheet

·          identify the targeted audience for a selected passage;

Identifying target audience activity

·          choose the sentence that relates the writer's purpose (e.g., to persuade or to inform) in a selected passage;

A short explanation and a few short example questions

·          evaluate the relevance of each supporting sentence by deleting an irrelevant sentence in a passage;

Interactive paragraphs for irrelevant sentences

·          select the most appropriate title for a passage;

How to write titles

·          recognize the proper use of the comparative and superlative form of adjectives (CVS);

Great site for explanation and interactive worksheets on comparatives and superlatives

·          select the correct word for the sense of the sentence (your and you're, where, and were, it's and its, their, they're, and there, to and too)(CVS);

Common Errors in English Usage

·          choose the correct word for the sense of the sentence (stationary and stationery, complement and compliment, principle and principal, accept and except, capitol and capital, affect and effect)(CVS);

Common Errors in English Usage

·          determine the stage of the writing process (using graphics which represent the stages: prewriting, first draft, revision, editing, and publishing).

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

GC

GC

C

GC

O

C

O

WC

WC

O

WC

GC

GC

GC

M

O

O

GC

At Level 2, the student is able to

·          combine or correct sentence fragments using a subordinate conjunction within a writing sample;

Subordinate conjunctions with examples and exercises

·          recognize correct subject/verb agreement with confusing intervening prepositional phrases within a writing sample;

Great explanation, very thorough with self-test

·          select sentences to strengthen an argument within either a writing sample or a passage;

Excellent persuasive writing site with examples and lesson activities

·          select correct pronoun/antecedent agreement within a writing sample;

Same site as subject/verb agreement link, also with self-test

·          select the appropriate transitional word for a given sentence within a paragraph;

Jefferson County’s list of suggested transition words

·          distinguish the strongest or weakest point of an argument within a passage;

Excellent PowerPoint on effective writing

·          select the most effective method of combining three sentences to improve the structure within a passage;

Interactive site with practice questions and self checking

·          select vivid words to strengthen a description (adjective or adverb) within a writing sample or a passage;

Great explanatory handout of word choice

·          select vivid words to strengthen a description (verb) within a writing sample or a passage;

Handout activity to practice and use vivid verbs in writing

·          determine the most effective order of sentences within a writing sample or a passage;

Good examples and practice questions in a test format

·          choose the correct pronoun case in a sentence in which the pronoun follows "than" within a writing sample or a passage;

Very thorough explanation of pronoun case and usage

·          recognize a shift in any of the following: verb tense, point of view, tone, or pronoun usage within a writing sample;

Interactive self test from OWL

·          recognize the correct use of quotation marks in a direct quote (CVS);

Explanation by OWL, followed by an exercise

·          recognize the correct use of a semicolon in a compound sentence within a writing sample or a passage;

OWL again, but a very helpful site with self practice included

·          choose the thesis that is more effective than the underlined thesis statement (given an introductory paragraph of a student essay);

·          rearrange the order of the supporting paragraphs in the specified organizational pattern (e.g., strongest to weakest, time order, cause/effect, or comparison/contrast) within a writing sample;

Excellent lesson of order and transition for supporting paragraphs

·          select the best placement for an additional supporting sentence within a writing sample;

Description of qualifying support sentences

·          recognize the correct use of the comma to set off nonessential elements in a sentence (CVS).

Good lesson with exercise

A

A

A

C

O

O

At Level 3, the student is able to-

·          determine which rebuttal statement best refutes the writer's viewpoint or a line that reveals the writer's biases, assumptions, or values within a passage;

Good examples and explanation

·          revise sentences using effective parallelism within a writing sample;

Description and self-test

·          choose the transitional device that appropriately connects paragraphs (e.g., transitional adverbs, verbal phrases, and unambiguous pronoun references) within a writing sample.

Many examples and uses of transition

Specifications of Passages:

·          early drafts of student essays (one of which must be persuasive);

·          consumer report type article written with a persuasive slant of interest to teens (e.g., cars, stereos, or tennis shoes)

·          letter to the Editor;

·          CVS - A collection of varied sentences containing underlined elements, one of which contains an error, which will be identified by the student; it will be possible for the sentence to contain no error (to be used only where specified by CVS).

Performance Indicators

Teacher:

At Level 1, the student is able to

·          describe appropriate details of his/her surroundings;

·          relate an incident of controversy using standard English;

·          write a letter to the editor and submit it to the school/local newspaper;

·          cast a movie for your novel (Who will play the parts and why?);

·          use prewriting techniques as a springboard for writing (e.g., clustering, journals, directed response, brainstorming);

·          extend the prewriting to draft a composition.

At Level 2, the student is able to

·          create an explanation to a stated problem using standard English;

·          write a letter to a major national publication in response to its position/coverage of a subject;

·          rewrite a prose passage in dialogue;

·          illustrate and caption a comic book version of a short story or a chapter from a novel;

·          draft essays using the writing process;

·          develop a writing portfolio (e.g., genre, assessment, creativity, and/or voice);

·          differentiate between editing and revision.

Standard Number:

Performance Indicators

State:

A

A

A

A

M

T

T

T

At Level 1, the student is able to

·          discern an implied main idea from a passage (T);

Practice reading and exam

·          interpret an author's point of view (1st person or 3rd person limited/omniscient) (T);

·          identify the simile, metaphor, onomatopoeia, alliteration, or personification in a given portion of a poem;

Many PowerPoint presentations on figurative language

·          identify how the author reveals character (physical characteristics, dialogue, what other characters say about them, and/or character's own actions) (T).

Great handout and explanation

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

M

M

T

M

M

M

M

At Level 2, the student is able to

·          draw inference(s) from a selected passage (T);

Many examples and exercises of inferences

·          determine the meaning of a word in context (T);

Many quiz and practice handouts

·          differentiate between verbal and situational irony (T);

Great lesson plan with handouts

·          pinpoint a cause/effect relationship in a given passage (T);

Cause and Effect Tutorial

·          discover the common theme in a series of passages (T);

Good idea and lesson plan on Scholastic

·          determine the significance/meaning of a symbol in a written selection (T);

Symbolism lessons and links

·          determine the analogous relationship of a vocabulary word from one of the passages.

Great quiz to determine and teach word relationships

A

T

At Level 3, the student is able to

·          select the allusion in a given passage.

Great site with links to handouts, explanations, etc.

Excellent high school pop culture allusion handout

Specifications of Thematic Passages [indicators followed by (T) will employ these reading selections]

·          a thematic presentation of at least three of the following genres:  short story excerpt, poem or dialogue, essay, editorial or magazine article, drama excerpt, and/or news account;

·          characterized by a balance of fiction and nonfiction;

·          characterized by diversity in structure (prose, poetry, and/or drama);

·          characterized by multicultural diversity;

·          a short passage leading to further study (optional).

Performance Indicators

Teacher:

At Level 1, the student is able to

·          participate in paired readings using one or more sources;

·          read silently from a variety of sources;

·          identify appropriate resource material for further study of a topic in a nonfiction excerpt (e.g., encyclopedia, almanac, dictionary, and/or thesaurus).

At Level 2, the student is able to

·          participate in a group oral presentation (e.g., choral reading, readers' theater, or play performance);

·          present an excerpt from a dramatic work containing dialect and interpret the literal meaning of the passage;

·          select appropriate resource material for further study of a topic in a nonfiction excerpt and integrate the resources;

·          analyze and create visual and verbal symbols using multiple texts;

·          develop a variety of strategies for extending vocabulary (e.g., context, analogy, derivation, etc.).

At Level 3, the student is able to

·          create a story on tape (e.g., sound effects, background music, etc.);

·          perform a dramatic presentation/monologue;

·          create and present an original project involving the thematic similarity in several genres.

Standard Number:

Performance Indicators

State:

A

C

At Level 1, the student is able to

·          select the type of conflict (man vs. man, man vs. environment, man vs. himself, and man vs. supernatural, et al.) in a photograph.

This seems a bit elementary, but check it out, this has great links and ideas

Good plot and conflict PowerPoint

A

A

T

M

At Level 2, the student is able to

·          select the appropriate persuasive device in a given ad (e.g., famous people say, new and improved, everybody's using it, if you want to be popular, et al.);

Great advertisement fallacies lesson plan

Huge file of themed handouts and worksheets to teach persuasion in advertising

·          infer the mood or tone in a photograph.

Great interactive link to teach tone, mood, and their differences

A

T

At Level 3, the student is able to

·         prioritize the most reliable media sources given four different sources (e.g., personal journal, interview, authorized biography, People magazine, et al.).

Determining internet site reliability for research