Sample Curriculum Units
Communication Arts model curriculum units offer examples for instruction and assessment of specific Grade-Level Expectations. The lessons within each of the posted units illustrate use of specific, effective instructional and assessment strategies. These examples do not represent a limited set of prescribed strategies; instead, they are supportive of research-based instruction. Other units for kindergarten through eleventh grade will be posted as they become available.
Other units for kindergarten through eleventh grade will be posted as they become available.
Kindergarten
Celebrating Jan Brett The central theme of this unit is an author study of Jan Brett. The following books by Jan Brett are used during this unit: The Mitten, The Hat, Trouble with Trolls, and Annie and the Wild Animals. The lessons consist of two sections that address reading and phonemic awareness. (completed 9-8-2006)
Exploring Fiction and Non-Fiction with Caterpillars and Butterflies Students focus on understanding the components of fiction compared to nonfiction by reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar and nonfiction texts on caterpillars and butterflies. This unit could focus on any topic that interests children such as tadpoles and frogs by substituting the books used in each lesson. (completed 9-8-2006)
What Does a Name Have To Do With It? Students focus on literacy activities at the beginning of kindergarten. The central theme revolves around names, the most important word to young children. The lessons consists of three sections that address reading, phonemic awareness, and beginning writing workshop. (under revision)
First Grade
Bats This unit consists of eight lessons that focus on students reading nonfiction texts and locating important information about bats. The students will research bats and, at the conclusion of the unit, will present a bat project to share what they have learned. (Note: Any topic that interests children can be used in place of bats, such as plants, animals, or weather. Books will need to substituted accordingly.)
Writing Workshop This unit consists of 15 lessons that focus on the process of writing. It uses writing workshop to explore memoirs as a genre. (completed 8-24-2007)
Second Grade
Elements of Language in Poetry and Prose The overall theme of this unit is incorporating the elements of language through poetry and prose. The first part of this unit includes identifying rhythm, rhyme, and alliteration in fiction and nonfiction text, with assistance. The second part of the unit includes knowing and applying proper uses of punctuation, capitalization, and spelling in second grade. (completed 10-27-2006)
Exploring the World of Reading Students make connections in fiction and nonfiction works. by Cynthia Rylant They use details from fiction and nonfiction text elements and features to make inferences and predict in order to understand the text. Students read a variety of Cynthia Rylant’s literature and nonfiction literature to retell sequence of events and make inferences on problems and solutions. Student should be able to compare and contrast fiction and nonfiction works. (completed 9-26-2006)
Fun with Food Students utilize comprehension strategies during reading to decode unknown words and improve vocabulary skills. Students identify important information and the message being conveyed by each story. A connection is made to Health and Science Education. (completed 8-16-2006)
Nature Detective: Digging into Research (completed 8-28-2006) Students move from a review of features and elements of nonfiction text to exploring key words and questions in research, locating information from key words and questions in resources, and giving credit through discussions for others’ ideas, images and information. Students apply their understanding of research skills to produce their own expository writing. (completed 9-26-2006)
Thinking About Friendship Students will craft narrative writing after applying pre-reading strategies and using text to explore basic story elements. (completed 8-16-2006)
Trading for Things You Want Student read and interpret nonfiction text independently. Students independently learn to write friendly letters, messages, and directions using interrogative and declarative sentences. This unit incorporates the economic concept of bartering and a Book Trade Day. The students need to have prior knowledge of the economic concept of bartering. (completed 9-26-2006)
Understanding Directions through an Expository Genre Students apply their understanding of the writing process to produce an expository piece with a main idea and supporting details, using graphic organizers. The concept of media is introduced. Students share writing and practice essential speaking skills. (completed 5-30-2006)
Third Grade
Communities Students explore similarities and differences of communities. Students focus on the use of decoding strategies, developing vocabulary through text, developing and completing a graphic organizer, using context clues, inferring, developing and utilizing comprehension strategies during reading, and identifying the intended messages conveyed through media. (completed 8-16-2006)
Living Things Students identify intended messages conveyed through oral and visual media, write expository text with main idea and details, give two- and three-step oral directions to complete a simple task, and read and follow two- and three-step directions to complete a simple task. (completed 3-27-2006)
Researching Through the Nonfiction Animal Picture Book Genre This reading-writing unit focuses on the development of a nonfiction animal picture book. The reading and writing activities in this unit provides opportunities for students to read for a variety of purposes, to investigate or research topics and to compose a picture book using the writing process. (completed 9-26-2006)
Reading and Writing Fiction Students explore a variety of fiction and nonfiction reading and writing. (completed 8-16-2006)
Summary Writing and Research Using nonfiction text, students gain practice using details from text to identify keywords and main idea, determine cause and effect, compare and contrast, and draw conclusions. (completed 10-27-2006)
Using Nonfiction to Investigate Acts of Courage focus on reading and writing nonfiction while investigating the concept of courage. They apply their understanding of nonfiction to produce their own expository texts. (completed 3-31-2006)
Writing for a Reason Using details from the text, students organize a sequence of events, identify simple cause and effect, compare and contrast two nonfiction texts, and identify the author’s purpose. Students also locate and interpret key information in nonfiction texts, write a friendly letter using the four sentence types; and address an intended audience when writing both a friendly letter and an informative report. (completed 10-27-2006)
Fourth Grade
Figurative Language A focus on figurative language and sensory detail in fiction and nonfiction poetry and prose, and comparing and contrasting. (completed 3-31-2006)
Lewis and Clark Using nonfiction text features, students develop pre-reading and post-reading strategies. Students use story elements to retell main ideas, compare and contrast texts, and make inferences about problems and solutions. Students write expository and persuasive text using the Lewis and Clark theme. (completed 9-26-2006)
Tall Tales A focus on characteristics of tall tales, delve into comprehension through decoding and vocabulary practice, and identify story elements of the tall tales they read. (completed 3-31-2006)
Fifth Grade
Influential American Women Students apply comprehension skills to information about how women have shaped United States history. In the course of this unit, students will read about women who overcame obstacles to make a difference. (completed 8-16-2006)
Let Freedom Ring A focus on decoding and vocabulary reading strategies as well as during reading strategies using fiction or nonfiction passages. (completed 6-15-2006)
Lions, Tigers and Bears Students read fables and nonfiction passages about animals, focusing on text features, making connections, and text elements. Students apply the writing process and utilize listening and speaking skills. This unit integrates the study of science by asking student to classify the animals they read about.
(completed 8-16-2006)
Mind Your Manners This series of lessons will help students understand the importance of using correct manners by learning how to set a table complete with folded napkins and how to fold the American flag by reading, following, and giving oral multi-step directions. Students will write expository paragraphs and analyze messages conveyed in various media as they view various media connected with flag etiquette. (completed 9-20-2006)
Respect of Self and Others Students demonstrate a mastery of text features and text elements in drama, poetry, and fiction. The text elements include: making inferences, identifying cause and effect, and determining author’s purpose. Students create a narrative text that included a logical sequence of events and demonstrates correct use of parts of speech. (completed 9-20-2006)
Speed Limits Students analyze and demonstrate adjusted reading rate to a variety of grade-level texts. Students present their choice of two different texts to the class on a favorite subject or theme adjusting tone, rate and expression for particular listening purposes. (completed 9-20-2006)
Wild Wild West Students learn how to evaluate various non-fiction texts, develop questions to help guide research, organize ideas and information, and discover patterns, structures, and relationships. Using the writing process, students restate main idea, summarize, reflect on their beliefs and discoveries, and continue practicing formal and informal writing. (completed 8-16-2006)
Sixth Grade
Friendship Students investigate the meaning of friendship by focusing on fiction and nonfiction stories and articles. (completed 8-16-2006)
Growing Up and Facing Change Students will use text details to analyze the influence of setting on characters, plot, and resolution, explain cause and effect, and identify the problem-solving processes of characters and the effectiveness of solutions. (completed 8-16-2006)
Natural Disasters Following a theme of “natural disasters”, this unit requires students to apply decoding strategies, identify and develop grade level vocabulary, and apply reading strategies during reading to assist them in reading grade-level text. Students record and organize relevant information using a variety of note-taking strategies to assist them in writing summaries from magazines, newspapers, and informational text. Students identify and explain viewpoints conveyed in various media including videos, pictures, websites, artwork, plays and/or news programs. (completed9-20-2006)
People on the Move Students focus on reading and analyzing nonfiction texts while investigating the theme of human migration. (completed 8-28-2006)
People Who Make a Difference Students learn to evaluate multiple non-fiction texts, develop guiding research questions, organize ideas and information, and discover patterns, structures, and relationships. Using the writing process, students paraphrase, summarize, reflect on beliefs and discoveries, and practice formal and informal writing. (completed 8-16-2006)
We Built This City Students learn to identify and explain grade level appropriate figurative language through reading a number of fiction, nonfiction and poetry selections. They use conventions of capitalization for proper nouns and proper adjectives, use apostrophes in irregular and plural possessives, and quotation marks in dialogue. Activities in this unit provide opportunities for cross-curricular studies, especially with art and technology/computer classes. (completed 8-16-2006)
Seventh Grade
Challenged by Choices A focus on reading and writing fiction and nonfiction. (completed 3-31-2006)
Current Events Students identify and organize information using a newspaper/magazine article, editorial, or a news program. During reading, students develop and apply reading strategies to self-question and correct, infer, visualize, and predict and check. In addition, notes are taken to identify and explain media techniques used to convey messages in various media. (completed 8-16-2006)
Meeting Challenges A focus on meeting challenges using media and writing. (completed 3-31-2006)
Mining for Meaning Students focus on figurative language (symbolism, hyperbole and imagery) in fiction (poetry and prose) and nonfiction texts. (completed 8-16-2006)
Reading Nonfiction and Writing Expository Text Using nonfiction literature with a theme of fast food and eating, students apply pre-reading strategies to aid comprehension, and post-reading strategies to comprehend and interpret. Students analyze consumer texts such as product information and identify and interpret figurative language. Students also analyze propaganda techniques and write multi-paragraph expository essays. (completed 10-27-2006)
Under the Influence - Language Fluency to Understand Propaganda Using a theme of understanding propaganda, students demonstrate active and critical listening behaviors, use an organized note-taking system, and effectively use visual and audio media to demonstrate and present their understanding of key concepts within a designated time limit. (completed 10-27-2006)
Eighth Grade
Adventures Students focus on their ability to comprehend and analyze what they read, see, and hear. Students develop and apply their skills in vocabulary, reading comprehension strategies, note-taking and summarizing. (completed 9-12-2006)
Evaluating and Writing Nonfiction Students focus on overall evaluation of nonfiction text, including text features; problem-solving processes and the effectiveness of solutions; author’s purpose; author’s viewpoint; the accuracy and adequacy of information; word choice and connotation and precise language; and organizational effectiveness, including the use of cohesive devices such as transitions, repetition and parallelism. Students develop their writing skills, focusing on the use of precise language, cohesive devices, and editing while writing business communication from two different points of view. (completed 9-12-2006)
Rollin' on the River Although the theme of this unit is river literature, the primary focus is on identifying and explaining figurative language. Students will not only recognize jargon, dialect and slang in different genres but will also explain the literal meanings of those. The secondary focus of the unit is on using Standard English conventions for capitalization, especially capitalizing the names of historical periods and events, geological eras and certain scientific terms and capitalizing within divided quotations. (completed 9-28-2006)
Ninth Grade
Horror Students listen to the radio play War of the Worlds and use it as the foundation for mastery of the unit objectives. Other reading selections are used to enhance the mastery of the objectives. The stimuli for this unit includes: two radio plays, War of the Worlds and Dracula; Johns Stagg’s the Vampyre: Edgar Allen Poe’s The Cast of Amontillado; Emily Dickinson’s XXIV (A narrow fellow in the grass); Williams Butler Yeat’s Oil and Blood; Goldilocks and the Three Bears; the Scream Edvard Munch; The New York Time’s article Radio Listeners in Panic, Taking War Drama as Fact; materials about the year 1938; Vlad the Impaler; assorted web sites; and assorted newspapers. The summative assessment is based on the radio play Dracula so “cold assessment” of the objectives occur. As part of the summative assessment students also write their own modern day radio plays. (completed 9-20-2006)
Life Is a Journey A focus on reading strategies to unknown text, decode unknown words, summarize text, evaluate media messages (completed 3-27-2006)
Training to Travel This unit focuses on travel in combination with workplace communication. Students are asked to create various handouts related to travel including letter of inquiry, maps and an itinerary (completed 9-20-2006)
Tenth Grade
Career and Job Opportunities A focus on writing for the workplace (completed 2-20-2006)
Exploring War Literature Although the theme of this unit is war literature, the focus is upon elements of language. Students not only recognize irony and sound devices in different genres, but also analyze how these elements add the meaning of the literature. In addition, students learn to apply the rules of capitalization and punctuation and use spelling resources in particular situations. (complete 9-28-2006)
Julius Caesar: Two Sides to Every Story Students read selected scenes from Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare with omitted scenes summarized by the teacher. (Teachers may choose to read the entire play.) Students analyze point of view, dialogue, and tone. In small groups, students rewrite specific passages into modern English while maintaining point of view, tone, and correct dialogue format. (completed 9-26-2006)
Power and Loyalty: Using Investigative Skills to Study Shakespeare's Julius Caesar The primary reading material is Julius Caesar. This unit is designed to provide students with an insight into reading Shakespeare, Shakespeare’s characters, plot development and word choice. (completed 9-26-2006)
Slam: Social Commentary Through Performance Poetry Students explore the history of performance poetry, identify tone, write poetry of social commentary, give oral directions, perform in a poetry competition — a Slam, and produce a written reflection of their process and performance. (completed 9-26-2006)
Unsung Heroes Students develop and apply their skills in vocabulary, reading comprehension strategies, note-taking, summarizing, and analyzing media messages (completed 8-16-2006)
Eleventh Grade
Challenge A focus on giving and following directions and expository writing (completed 3-27-2006)
Examining Workplace Text Students create various documents including a letter of complaint and a brochure. To complete this unit, students: locate and interpret key information in illustrations, title, headings, table of contents, glossary, charts, diagrams, captions, maps, format, graphics, sequence, and index; create and use graphic organizers; predict and infer; use and create a variety of graphic organizers; identify parts of and compose business letters; and compose text using various sentence structures and length which include both cohesive devices and active voice. (completed 5-15-2006)
Figuratively Speaking Students focus on higher-order thinking skills through analysis and evaluation of literature. They analyze and evaluate irony, symbolism, figurative language, and sound devices. (completed 8-28-2006)
Identifying and Organizing Information / Media Messages Students learn and apply reading strategies. Students analyze, evaluate, and synthesize messages in various media. Students select and use an appropriate note-taking strategy to summarize a variety of information. (completed 10-27-2006)
Making Connections: Problem/Solution and Human Suffering Students work on making text to self, text to world, and text to text connections, analysis and evaluation of problem-solving and persuasive skills, analysis of literary elements, locating and interpreting text features and text elements, and honing presentation skills. Major stimulus materials for the unit are the novel Night by Elie Wiesel and “Gary Keillor” by Garrison Keillor. (completed 9-8-2006)
Nonfiction Audience and Purpose The unit focuses on text features, text elements, letters to the editor, letters of complaint, and brochure writing. (completed 10-27-2006)
Reading and Writing Nonfiction from Various Perspectives: Students study of the elements of persuasive text using literature from Chief Red Jacket and Reverend Cram (completed 2-18-2006)
Today's Journey Students continue to develop and apply their skills in vocabulary, reading comprehension strategies, note taking, summarizing, and analyzing media messages. (completed 8-16-2006)
Credits Communication Arts Model Curriculum Unit Writers
Comments and questions about the communication arts model curriculum units may
be directed to DESE Curriculum Services at webreplyimprcurr@dese.mo.gov or
(573) 751-2625.
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