English Language Arts B10

English Language Arts B 10

Teacher: Mrs. Tricia Lucyshyn

tlucyshyn@srsd119.ca

Goals of English Language Arts

As with all English Language Arts courses, the aim of ELA 10 is to help students understand and appreciate language, and to use it both confidently and competently in a variety of situations for learning, communication, work, life, and personal satisfaction.

There are three goals in each ELA class: Comprehend/Respond (CR), Compose/Create (CC), and assess/Reflect (AR).

All three of these goals focus on text. Text is anything that can be read, listened to, spoken, viewed or represented. With the first goal, students will be asked to read, listen to or view text and express their understanding of it. In terms of the second goal, once students understand text, they then can develop knowledge, skills and understandings to create their own text. The last goal has students asking themselves how they are doing with the first two goals. This means, students will examine their own learning and establish plans for improvement and further growth. As a teacher, I will be offering several ways for students to get better at each of these goals. These goals are important and are applicable to every aspect of life.

The curriculum has stated outcomes which each student must achieve in order to earn the credit for this class. It is the responsibility of the students to take advantage of the practice feedback opportunities provided and clearly demonstrate his/her learning and understanding of each outcome. This means that all assignments must be completed in order to earn a credit for ELA B10.

Assessment

A variety of assessment techniques will be completed for the following purpose:

Assessment for learning involves the use of information about student progress to support and improve student learning, inform instructional practices. (Formative)

Assessment as learning actively involves student reflection on learning, monitoring of their progress. (Formative)

Assessment of learning involves teacher’s use of evidence of student learning to make judgments about student achievement. (Summative)

In order to determine student success, students will need to demonstrate evidence of what they have learned. This summative evidence will reflect where students have strong understanding of course goals and outcomes as well as areas that need improvement.

Student work will be assessed using the four point scale which is based on the following outcomes and understandings:

 ELA B10 Contexts: Equity and Ethics and the World Around and Within Us

ELA B10 RUBRIC

ELA B10 Units

• Journals- Using the Freedom Writer’s format, Students will respond daily in their journals.
• Writer’s Workshop- Students will participate daily in the workshop which will develop writing, reading, grammar, and comprehension skills. Students will also learn how to write effective paragraphs and essays.
• Poetry Unit – Students will learn literary terms and forms, as well as create their own poetry through the genre of rap, Spoken Word, and rock music.
• Multimedia Presentation – Students will be creating and presenting information in a number of ways using technology such as: PowerPoint, ipads, Smart board, and computers.
• Novel Study – An Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. Students will be guided through this novel and learn how to extract deeper meaning from the text studied. Author and character study will also be included in the unit.
• Play: Students will study and perform pieces from Macbeth.
• Non Fiction – Students will be introduced to essays, articles, documentaries, and websites that support the ELA B10 themes Equity and Ethics/The World Around and Within Us. Through these many informational texts, students will learn how important audience is and see how many different ways there are to communicate thoughts and ideas. Students will also be assessed on: Paraphrasing/Summarizing, Making Connections, and Synthesis.
• Final Exam – The final will assess how much students have learned in ELA B10, as well as how the resources, materials, and experiences in ELA B10 have impacted their personal lives. The final is outcome based.

Philosophy Students in ELA B10 will be active in the philosophical stance of Inquiry.

Inquiry learning provides students with opportunities to build knowledge, abilities, and inquiring habits of mind that lead to deeper understanding of their world and human experience. The inquiry process focuses on the development of compelling questions, formulated by teacher and students, to motivate and guide inquiries into topics, issues and challenges related to curriculum content and outcomes.Inquiry builds on students’ inherent sense of curiosity and wonder, drawing on their diverse backgrounds, interests, and experiences. The process provides opportunities for students to become active participants while in a collaborative search for meaning and understanding.

Attendance It is very important that students attend class regularly. Regular attendance in class is the most important variable influencing enjoyment and success in all classes. Students must attend every day and it is the expectation of all school staff that students will strive to achieve their best while at Wesmor Community School. Students are expected to be in every class, on time, every day, unless they are approved to be away. Remember, 80% of success is showing up. Parents should advise the school of absences by calling the absentee line at 764-5233 or text to 981-5231.

Behavior Appropriate behavior is required from all students. Students are expected to respect all staff, students, their property and the property of Saskatchewan Rivers Public School Division.