Grade 6 Reading Curriculum

Family-facing version of the grade 6 Reading curriculum

Quarterly Overview of Grade 6 Reading

The objectives and outcomes for each unit are common across FCPS and based on the Virginia Standards of Learning. The pacing by quarter and by week provides an example of how the curriculum can be organized throughout the year. Teacher teams may adjust the pacing or order of units to best meet the needs of students.

Units and Details

Unit 1: Building a Community of Readers

Students will be able to: 

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues.
    • Participate as a facilitator and a contributor in a group.
    • Participate in collaborative discussions with partners building on others’ ideas.
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective.
    • Summarize the main points a speaker makes.
    • Analyze the effectiveness of participant interactions.
    • Evaluate own contributions to discussions.
    • Demonstrate the ability to collaborate with diverse teams.
    • Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of fictional texts, literary nonfiction, and poetry:
    • Identify the elements of narrative structure, including setting, character, plot, conflict, and theme.
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences using the text for support. 
    • Identify the characteristics of a variety of genres. 
    • Compare/contrast details in literary and informational nonfiction texts.
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern. 
    • Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process. 
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of nonfiction texts:
    • Skim materials using text features such as type, headings, and graphics to predict and categorize information.
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences based on explicit and implied information.
    • Identify the author’s organizational pattern(s).
    • Analyze ideas within and between selections providing textual evidence.
    • Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Lead and contribute to discussions and viewpoints with others across content areas and in seminars. 
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker.
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars.
    • Pose and respond to open ended questions, clarifying and challenging ideas.
    • Understand and encapsulate the speaker’s main points.
    • Use specific vocabulary to communicate ideas.
    • Use specific vocabulary to communicate ideas.
    • Use word origins and stems to expand vocabulary.
    • Articulate understanding of a reading to a partner. 
    • Engage in discussions with others by exchanging ideas, asking questions, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully to the comments of others.
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.
    • Develop linguistic competency.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction, and poetry:
    • Make new connections considering the evidence and reasoning presented. 
    • Compare and contrast internal and external influences on settings, characters, and events over time. 
    • Develop analytical and interpretative skills in fiction, poetry, and/or non-fiction text. 
    • Respond to and question the answers of peers. 
    • Develop analytical and interpretative skills in fiction, poetry, and/or non-fiction texts. 
    • Employ a variety of strategies, to include determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions, and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Develop reasoning skills in language arts. 
    • Understand the concept of change to analyze literature. 
    • Identify a concept or “Big Idea” that supports interdisciplinary connections e.g. change, systems, patterns, relationships, etc. to analyze real-world problems. 
    • Consider long and short-term consequences of solutions.
    • State the main ideas or themes of the story. 
    • Monitor understanding and know what to do when it is not occurring. 
    • Use expression, rhythm, and phrasing.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts:
    • Use reading strategies such as predicting, questioning, and connecting to own
    • Monitor understanding and know what to do when it is not occurring  experiences 
    • Summarize and encapsulate important ideas.

Unit 2: Fiction Book Clubs

Students will be able to:

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues. 
    • Participate as a facilitator and a contributor in a group.
    • Participate in collaborative discussions with partners building on others’ ideas.
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective.
    • Summarize the main points a speaker makes.
    • Summarize and evaluate group activities.
    • Analyze the effectiveness of participant interactions.
    • Evaluate own contributions to discussions.
    • Demonstrate the ability to collaborate with diverse teams.
    • Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction texts, and poetry:
    • Identify the elements of narrative structure, including setting, character, plot, conflict, and theme.
    • Describe cause and effect relationships and their impact on plot.
    • Explain how an author uses character development to drive conflict and resolution.
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences using the text for support.
    • Identify and analyze the author’s use of figurative language.
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern.
    • Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Articulate understanding of a reading to a partner.
    • State the main ideas or themes of the story.
    • Engage in a dialogue about the meaning of a selection.
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Make informative and persuasive oral presentations using purposeful structure and visuals. 
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker. 
    • Develop skills of argument formulation in persuasive communication. 
    • Support opinions with examples and details.
    • Engage in discussions with others by exchanging ideas, asking questions, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully to the comments of others.
    • Lead and contribute to discussions and viewpoints with others across content areas and in seminars.
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to
    • figure out unfamiliar words.
      Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction texts, and poetry:
    • Evaluate the choices the author makes to construct power, position, and perspective.
    • Use a variety of strategies including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/text based on categories.
    • Monitor reading and know what to do when understanding is not occurring. 
    • Use a variety of word recognition skills. 
    • Increase number of known words.

Unit 3: Narrative Nonfiction

Students will be able to:

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues. 
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective. 
    • Summarize the main points a speaker makes.
    • Demonstrate the ability to collaborate with diverse teams.
    • Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts: 
    • Skim materials using text features such as type, headings, and graphics to predict and categorize information.
    • Identify the main idea.
    • Summarize supporting details. 
    • Create an objective summary including main idea and supporting details. 
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences based on explicit and implied information.
    • Identify the author’s organizational pattern(s). 
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern.
    • Differentiate between fact and opinion. 
    • Identify cause and effect relationships.
    • Analyze ideas within and between selections providing textual evidence.
    • Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Articulate understanding of a reading to a partner.
    • State the main ideas or themes of the story.
    • Engage in a dialogue about the meaning of a selection.
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Make informative and persuasive oral presentations using purposeful structure and visuals. 
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker. 
    • Develop skills of argument formulation in persuasive communication. 
    • Support opinions with examples and details.
    • Engage in discussions with others by exchanging ideas, asking questions, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully to the comments of others.
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to figure out unfamiliar words.
    • Use reference books to determine meaning, pronunciation and origin of words.
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.
    • Lead and contribute to discussions and viewpoints with others across content areas and in seminars.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts:
    • Identify and use text features such as headings, formats, charts, and diagrams.
    • Use a variety of strategies, including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Provide a sequence of events, procedures, and/or activities that occur in the text. 
    • Understand classification of details to make generalizations within text. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/‌text based on categories and concepts.
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature.
    • Develop reasoning skills in the language arts.
    • Understand the concept of change in the language arts.
    • Identify a concept or “Big Idea” that supports interdisciplinary connections e.g. change, systems, patterns, relationships, etc. to analyze real-world problems.
    • Understand cause and effect and its relationship to consequences and implications within a text. 
    • Create and answer questions about a topic. 
    • Monitor reading and know what to do when understanding is not occurring.  
    • Use a variety of word recognition skills

Unit 4: Nonfiction

Students will be able to:

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues.
    • Participate in collaborative discussions with partners building on others’ ideas.
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective. 
    • Summarize the main points a speaker makes.
    • Evaluate own contributions to discussions.
    • Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction, and poetry: 
    • Identify the elements of narrative structure, including setting, character, plot, conflict, and theme.
    • Describe cause and effect relationships and their impact on plot. 
    • Explain how an author uses character development to drive conflict and resolution. 
    • Differentiate between first and third person point-of-view. 
    • Describe how word choice and imagery contribute to the meaning of a text. 
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences using the text for support. 
    • Identify and analyze the author’s use of figurative language.
    • Compare/contrast details in literary and informational nonfiction texts. 
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern. 
    • Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Articulate understanding of a reading to a partner.
    • State the main ideas or themes of the story.
    • Engage in a dialogue about the meaning of a selection.
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Make informative and persuasive oral presentations using purposeful structure and visuals. 
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker. 
    • Develop skills of argument formulation in persuasive communication. 
    • Support opinions with examples and details.
    • Engage in discussions with others by exchanging ideas, asking questions, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully to the comments of others.
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and speaker in seminars. 
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to figure out unfamiliar words.
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language. 
    • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction texts, and poetry.
    • Evaluate the choices the author makes to construct power, position, and perspective.
    • Use a variety of strategies including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/text based on categories.
    • Understand cause and effect and its relationship to consequences and implications within a text.
    • Monitor reading and know what to do when understanding is not occurring. 
    • Use a variety of word recognition skills. 
    • Increase number of known words. 
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts:
    • Identify and use text features such as headings, formats, charts, and diagrams.
    • Use a variety of strategies, including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Provide a sequence of events, procedures, and/or activities that occur in the text. 
    • Understand classification of details to make generalizations within text. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/‌text based on categories and concepts.
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature.
    • Develop reasoning skills in the language arts.
    • Understand the concept of change in the language arts.
    • Identify a concept or “Big Idea” that supports interdisciplinary connections e.g. change, systems, patterns, relationships, etc. to analyze real-world problems.
    • Understand cause and effect and its relationship to consequences and implications within a text. 
    • Create and answer questions about a topic. 
    • Monitor reading and know what to do when understanding is not occurring.  
    • Use a variety of word recognition skills. 
    • Increase number of known words.

Unit 5: Critical Literacy

Students will be able to: 

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues. 
    • Participate as a facilitator and a contributor in a group. 
    • Participate in collaborative discussions with partners building on others’ ideas. 
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective.
    • Summarize the main points a speaker makes.
    • Summarize and evaluate group activities. 
    • Analyze the effectiveness of participant interactions.
    • Evaluate own contributions to discussions.
    • Demonstrate the ability to collaborate with diverse teams.
    • Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Determine the purpose of media messages and examine how they are constructed:
    • Compare and contrast techniques used in a variety of media messages.
    • Identify the characteristics and effectiveness of a variety of media messages. 
    • Interpret information presented in diverse media formats and explain how it contributes to the topic.
    • Craft and publish audience-specific media messages.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Determine the main points of a media message by identifying the strengths and limitations of the message.
  • Lead and contribute to discussions and viewpoints with others across content areas. 
  • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in media and nonfiction texts.
  • Analyze literature through the lens of a concept.
  • Use a variety of strategies including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions, and considering multiple perspectives.
  • Evaluate the influence of author and audience bias in each document.
  • Validate a source as to its authenticity, authority, and representativeness.

Unit 6: Poetry

Students will be able to: 

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues. 
    • Participate as a facilitator and a contributor in a group. 
    • Participate in collaborative discussions with partners building on others’ ideas. 
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective. 
    • Summarize the main points a speaker makes.
    • Summarize and evaluate group activities.
    • Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Read and determine the meanings of unfamiliar words and phrases within authentic texts:
    • Use roots, affixes, synonyms, and antonyms to expand vocabulary.
    • Use context and sentence structure to determine meanings and differentiate among multiple meanings of words.
    • Identify and analyze the author’s use of figurative language.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction texts, and poetry:
    • Identify the elements of narrative structure, including setting, character, plot, conflict, and theme. 
    • Describe how word choice and imagery contribute to the meaning of a text.
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences using the text for support.
    • Identify the characteristics of a variety of genres.
    • Identify and analyze the author’s use of figurative language.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Articulate understanding of a reading to a partner.
    • State the main ideas or themes of the story.
    • Engage in a dialogue about the meaning of a selection.
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Make informative and persuasive oral presentations using purposeful structure and visuals. 
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker. 
    • Develop skills of argument formulation in persuasive communication. 
    • Support opinions with examples and details.
    • Engage in discussions with others by exchanging ideas, asking questions, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully to the comments of others.
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and speaker in seminars. 
    • Lead and contribute to discussions and viewpoints with others across content areas and in seminars.
  • Create and deliver multimodal, interactive presentations:
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Use specific vocabulary to communicate ideas.
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to figure out unfamiliar words.
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction texts, and poetry:
    • Evaluate the choices the author makes to construct power, position, and perspective.
    • Monitor reading and know what to do when understanding is not occurring. 
    • Use a variety of word recognition skills. 
    • Increase number of known words. 

Unit 7: Content Area Research

Students will be able to: 

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues. 
    • Participate as a facilitator and a contributor in a group. 
    • Participate in collaborative discussions with partners building on others’ ideas. 
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective.
    • Demonstrate the ability to collaborate with diverse teams.
    • Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Create multimodal presentations that effectively communicate ideas:
    • Use effective verbal and nonverbal communication skills to deliver multimodal presentations.
    • Use language and vocabulary appropriate to the audience, topic, and purpose. 
    • Give collaborative and individual formal and informal interactive presentations. 
    • Paraphrase and summarize key ideas of a presentation.
  • Read and determine the meanings of unfamiliar words and phrases within authentic texts:
    • Use context and sentence structure to determine meanings and differentiate among multiple meanings of words. 
    • Use word-reference materials.
    • Extend general and cross-curricular vocabulary through speaking, listening, reading, and writing. 
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of nonfiction texts:
    • Skim materials using text features such as type, headings, and graphics to predict and categorize information. 
    • Identify the main idea.
    • Summarize supporting details. 
    • Create an objective summary including main idea and supporting details.
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences based on explicit and implied information.
    • Identify the author’s organizational pattern(s). 
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern.
    • Differentiate between fact and opinion.
    • Identify cause and effect relationships.
    • Analyze ideas within and between selections providing textual evidence.
    • Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process.
  • Find, evaluate, and select appropriate resources to create a research product:
    • Formulate and revise questions about a research topic. 
    • Collect and organize information from multiple sources. 
    • Evaluate and analyze the validity and credibility of sources.
    • Demonstrate ethical use of the Internet.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Develop listening and oral communication skills.
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Articulate understanding of a reading to a partner.
    • State the main ideas or themes of the story.
    • Engage in a dialogue about the meaning of a selection.
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Make informative and persuasive oral presentations using purposeful structure and visuals. 
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker. 
    • Develop skills of argument formulation in persuasive communication. 
    • Support opinions with examples and details.
    • Engage in discussions with others by exchanging ideas, asking questions, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully to the comments of others.
  • Create and deliver multimodal, interactive presentations:
    • Know the type of information found in various reference materials including atlases, dictionaries, and websites.
    • Select appropriate resources to find answers to questions about a topic.
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Use specific vocabulary to communicate ideas.
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker. 
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to figure out unfamiliar words.
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.
    • Use reference books to determine meaning, pronunciation, and origin of words.
    • Lead and contribute to discussions and viewpoints with others across content areas and in seminars.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts:
    • Identify and use text features such as headings, formats, charts, and diagrams.
    • Use a variety of strategies, including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Provide a sequence of events, procedures, and/or activities that occur in the text. 
    • Understand classification of details to make generalizations within text. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/‌text based on categories and concepts.
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature. 
    • Develop reasoning skills in the language arts.
    • Understand the concept of change in the language arts. 
    • Identify a concept or “Big Idea” that supports interdisciplinary connections e.g. change, systems, patterns, relationships, etc. to analyze real-world problems.

Unit 8: Historical Fiction Book Clubs

Students will be able to:

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues.
    • Participate as a facilitator and a contributor in a group.
    • Participate in collaborative discussions with partners building on others’ ideas.
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective.
    • Summarize the main points a speaker makes.
    • Summarize and evaluate group activities.
    • Analyze the effectiveness of participant interactions.
    • Evaluate own contributions to discussions.
    • Demonstrate the ability to collaborate with diverse teams.
    • Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Read and determine the meanings of unfamiliar words and phrases within authentic texts:
    • Use context and sentence structure to determine meanings and differentiate among multiple meanings of words.
    • Extend general and cross-curricular vocabulary through speaking, listening, reading, and writing.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction, and poetry:
    • Identify the elements of narrative structure, including setting, character, plot, conflict, and theme. 
    • Describe cause and effect relationships and their impact on plot. 
    • Explain how an author uses character development to drive conflict and resolution. 
    • Differentiate between first and third person point-of-view. 
    • Describe how word choice and imagery contribute to the meaning of a text.
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences using the text for support.
    • Identify the characteristics of a variety of genres. 
    • Identify and analyze the author’s use of figurative language.
    • Compare/contrast details in literary and informational nonfiction texts.
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Articulate understanding of a reading to a partner.
    • State the main ideas or themes of the story.
    • Engage in a dialogue about the meaning of a selection.
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Make informative and persuasive oral presentations using purposeful structure and visuals. 
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker. 
    • Develop skills of argument formulation in persuasive communication. 
    • Support opinions with examples and details.
    • Engage in discussions with others by exchanging ideas, asking questions, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully to the comments of others.
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to figure out unfamiliar words.
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.
    • Lead and contribute to discussions and viewpoints with others across content areas and in seminars.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction texts, and poetry:
    • Evaluate the choices the author makes to construct power, position, and perspective.
    • Use a variety of strategies including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/text based on categories.
    • Monitor reading and know what to do when understanding is not occurring.
    • Use a variety of word recognition skills. 
    • Increase number of known words.

Unit 9: Functional Texts

Students will be able to: 

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues.
    • Participate as a facilitator and a contributor in a group.
    • Participate in collaborative discussions with partners building on others’ ideas. 
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective. 
    • Summarize the main points a speaker makes. 
    • Demonstrate the ability to collaborate with diverse teams.
    • Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Create multimodal presentations that effectively communicate ideas:
    • Use effective verbal and nonverbal communication skills to deliver multimodal presentations. 
    • Use language and vocabulary appropriate to audience, topic, and purpose. 
    • Give collaborative and individual formal and informal interactive presentations.
    • Paraphrase and summarize key ideas of a presentation.
  • Determine the purpose of media messages and examine how they are constructed:
    • Compare and contrast techniques used in a variety of media messages. 
    • Identify the characteristics and effectiveness of a variety of media messages. 
    • Interpret information presented in diverse media formats and explain how it contributes to the topic.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts: 
    • Skim materials using text features such as type, headings, and graphics to predict and categorize information.
    • Identify the main idea. 
    • Summarize supporting details. 
    • Create an objective summary including main idea and supporting details.
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences based on explicit and implied information.
    • Identify the author’s organizational pattern(s). 
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern.
    • Differentiate between fact and opinion. 
    • Identify cause and effect relationships. 
    • Analyze ideas within and between selections providing textual evidence. 
    • Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Articulate understanding of a reading to a partner.
    • State the main ideas or themes of the story.
    • Engage in a dialogue about the meaning of a selection.
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Make informative and persuasive oral presentations using purposeful structure and visuals. 
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker. 
    • Develop skills of argument formulation in persuasive communication. 
    • Support opinions with examples and details.
    • Engage in discussions with others by exchanging ideas, asking questions, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully to the comments of others.
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to figure out unfamiliar words.
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.
    • Use reference books to determine meaning, pronunciation, and origin of words.
    • Lead and contribute to discussions and viewpoints with others across content areas and in seminars.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts:
    • Identify and use text features such as headings, formats, charts, and diagrams.
    • Use a variety of strategies, including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Provide a sequence of events, procedures, and/or activities that occur in the text. 
    • Understand classification of details to make generalizations within text. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/‌text based on categories and concepts.
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature. 
    • Develop reasoning skills in the language arts.
    • Understand the concept of change in the language arts. 
    • Identify a concept or “Big Idea” that supports interdisciplinary connections e.g. change, systems, patterns, relationships, etc. to analyze real-world problems.

Unit 10: Testing as a Genre

Students will be able to: 

  • Read and learn the meanings of unfamiliar words and phrases within authentic texts:
    • Identify word origins and derivations. 
    • Use roots, affixes, synonyms, and antonyms to expand vocabulary. 
    • Use context and sentence structure to determine meanings and differentiate among multiple meanings of words. 
    • Identify and analyze the construction and impact of figurative language.
    • Use word-reference materials.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction, and poetry:
    • Identify the elements of narrative structure, including setting, character, plot, conflict, and theme.
    • Describe cause-and-effect relationships and their impact on plot. 
    • Explain how an author uses character development to drive conflict and resolution. 
    • Differentiate between first- and third-person point of view. 
    • Describe how word choice and imagery contribute to the meaning of a text. 
    • Draw conclusions and make inference using the text for support. 
    • Identify the characteristics of a variety of genres. 
    • Identify and analyze the author’s use of figurative language. 
    • Compare/contrast details in literacy and informational nonfiction texts.
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts:
    • Skim materials using text features, such as type, headings, and graphics to predict and categorize information.
    • Identify the main idea.
    • Summarize supporting details. 
    • Create an objective summary including main idea and supporting details. 
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences based on explicit and implied information. 
    • Identify the author’s organizational pattern(s). 
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern. 
    • Differentiate between fact and opinion. 
    • Identify cause-and-effect relationships.
    • Analyze ideas within and between selections providing textual evidence.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to figure out unfamiliar words.
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.
    • Use reference books to determine meaning, pronunciation, and origin of words.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction texts, and poetry:
    • Evaluate the choices the author makes to construct power, position, and perspective.
    • Use a variety of strategies including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions, and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/text based on categories.
    • Use a variety of word recognition skills.
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to figure out unfamiliar words.
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.  
    • Lead and contribute to discussions and viewpoints with others across content areas and in seminars.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts:
    • Identify and use text features such as headings, formats, charts, and diagrams.
    • Use a variety of strategies, including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions, and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Provide a sequence of events, procedures, and/or activities that occur in the text. 
    • Understand classification of details to make generalizations within text. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/‌text based on categories and concepts.
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature. 
    • Develop reasoning skills in the language arts.
    • Understand the concept of change in the language arts. 
    • Identify a concept or “Big Idea” that supports interdisciplinary connections e.g. change, systems, patterns, relationships, etc. to analyze real-world problems.

Unit 11: Book Clubs

Students will be able to: 

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Listen actively and speak using appropriate discussion rules with awareness of verbal and nonverbal cues. 
    • Participate as a facilitator and a contributor in a group.
    • Participate in collaborative discussions with partners building on others’ ideas.
    • Ask questions to clarify the speaker’s purpose and perspective. 
    • Summarize the main points a speaker makes. 
    • Summarize and evaluate group activities. 
    • Analyze the effectiveness of participant interactions. 
    • Evaluate own contributions to discussions.
    • Demonstrate the ability to collaborate with diverse teams.
      Work respectfully with others and show value for individual contributions.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction, and poetry:
    • Identify the elements of narrative structure, including setting, character, plot, conflict, and theme. 
    • Describe cause and effect relationships and their impact on plot. 
    • Explain how an author uses character development to drive conflict and resolution. 
    • Differentiate between first and third person point-of-view. 
    • Describe how word choice and imagery contribute to the meaning of a text. 
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences using the text for support. 
    • Identify the characteristics of a variety of genres. 
    • Identify and analyze the author’s use of figurative language. 
    • Compare/contrast details in literary and informational nonfiction texts. 
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern. 
    • Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of nonfiction texts:
    • Skim materials using text features such as type, headings, and graphics to predict and categorize information. 
    • Identify the main idea. 
    • Summarize supporting details. 
    • Create an objective summary including main idea and supporting details.
    • Draw conclusions and make inferences based on explicit and implied information. 
    • Identify the author’s organizational pattern(s). 
    • Identify transitional words and phrases that signal an author’s organizational pattern. 
    • Differentiate between fact and opinion. 
    • Identify cause and effect relationships.
    • Analyze ideas within and between selections providing textual evidence. 
    • Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process.

Extended Standards

In addition to the Virginia Standards of Learning above, students who receive full-time Advanced Academic (AAP Level IV) Services engage with these extensions.

  • Use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings:
    • Participate in group discussions as a listener and a speaker in seminars. 
    • Develop listening/oral communication skills.
    • Articulate understanding of a reading to a partner.
    • State the main ideas or themes of the story.
    • Engage in a dialogue about the meaning of a selection.
    • Make informative and persuasive oral presentations using purposeful structure and visuals. 
    • Ask clarifying questions and take notes when listening to a speaker. 
    • Develop skills of argument formulation in persuasive communication. 
    • Support opinions with examples and details.
    • Engage in discussions with others by exchanging ideas, asking questions, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully to the comments of others.
  • Expand vocabulary when reading:
    • Use the words around an unknown word to figure out its meaning. 
    • Use text, word parts, knowledge of stems and word origins to figure out unfamiliar words. 
    • Increase vocabulary development by applying the knowledge of Greek and Latin stems to the English language.
  • Read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, literary nonfiction texts, and poetry:
    • Evaluate the choices the author makes to construct power, position, and perspective.
    • Use a variety of strategies including determining importance, making inferences, drawing conclusions, and considering multiple perspectives. 
    • Develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature. 
    • Draw consequences and implications from text for application in the real world.
    • Create generalizations about the story/text based on categories.
    • Use a variety of word recognition skills.
    • Monitor reading and know what to do when understanding is not occurring.
    • Use a variety of word recognition skills.   
    • Increase the number of known words.

Virginia Department of Education Resources

Assessments

Student assessments are part of the teaching and learning process.

  • Teachers give assessments to students on an ongoing basis to
    • Check for understanding 
    • Gather information about students' knowledge or skills.
  • Assessments provide information about a child's development of knowledge and skills that can help families and teachers better plan for the next steps in instruction.

For testing questions or additional information about how schools and teachers use test results to support student success, families can contact their children's schools.

In Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), grade 3 tests focus on measuring content knowledge and skill development.

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