Grade 7 Language

Text Formats and Writing Styles

In the Text Formats and Writing Styles Unit, students will practise applying several effective reading strategies to various texts. They will begin to understand the process behind expository texts and reading with expression. They will analyze technical texts and create your own set of instructions. They will compare and analyze various texts and identify how their organizational patterns communicate meaning. They will explore effective punctuation in news articles and the use of adjectives to enhance persuasive writing pieces. They will learn about the characteristics of manual texts and analyze how they communicate meaning. They will also practise speaking skills and learn how to produce an effective writer’s pitch. Finally, students will reflect on the various pieces of media they have explored and created throughout the unit and identify their strengths and areas for improvement.

Speeches

In the Speeches Unit, students will read a variety of speeches and identify their purposes. They will learn to listen to speeches, identify presentation strategies, and make connections through compiling relevant questions. They will learn to identify various presentation techniques and explain how they enhance meaning. They will have an opportunity to choose a topic of their own for a passion project and organize information to support their point of view. They will learn the stages of structuring a speech and how to apply their point of view, while also considering differing points of view. They will practise drafting a speech, using verb tenses correctly, and selecting engaging language. They will review good proofreading and editing practices to enhance the style of their speech. Students will also practise using vocal effects and appropriate listening behaviours for presentations, and they will work toward creating a strong speech presentation.

Narratives

In the Narratives Unit, students will read a variety of texts and identify their genres. They will analyze narratives and identify if are linear, non-linear, or viewpoint narratives. They will examine text features and how they communicate meaning. They will have an opportunity to write a complex narrative and apply varying sentence structures to provide rhythm and pace. They will utilize an editing checklist to help proofread and correct their narrative, with specific attention to punctuation and how it can communicate meaning. They will practise using adjectives and adverbs to clearly communicate meaning. They will have an opportunity to create a recording of their narrative and evaluate their use of tone, pace, pitch, and volume. They will also have an opportunity to read a text at their reading level and practise reading it confidently and with expression. They will continue to work on identifying reading comprehension strategies before, during, and after reading. Students will use strategies to decode unfamiliar words, and will create a glossary of words they found difficult. Furthermore, they will reflect on any reading challenges they encountered and create a poster to practise overcoming them. They will learn to recognize text forms and explain how they help communicate meaning. They will use listening comprehension strategies to understand oral texts and evaluate their effectiveness. They will also have an opportunity to draft, revise, and publish a book review, where they will consider the topic, purpose, audience, and varying points of view.

Autobiographies

In the Autobiographies Unit, students will read and identify the purpose of different autobiographies. After listening to an oral autobiography, they will identify the organizational patterns used and explain the connection between the author’s tone and perspective. They will have opportunities to record and reflect on the author’s opinions and speaking style. They will practise using cues to help decode unfamiliar words and find their definitions and spellings. They will encounter various strategies that writers use while creating an autobiography and reflect on them. They will learn how to order the details of their lives chronologically and explore how using a timeline can help communicate more clearly. Finally, students will draft, revise, and publish their own autobiography using effective writing strategies.

Non-Fiction

In the Non-Fiction Unit, students will read and understand a variety of complex non-fiction texts, such as expository, argumentative, scientific, and economic pieces of non-fiction. They will learn to identify non-fiction text features and explain how they help communicate meaning. They will demonstrate their understanding of complex texts by summarizing key points. They will also develop their own interpretations of a text and discuss their reasoning. They will compare and interpret complex media texts and discuss their editorial positions. They will also have an opportunity to listen to a broadcast and demonstrate their understanding by identifying the main ideas and making their own interpretations. They will learn to gather relevant information from a persuasive essay and review the information for accuracy. They will explore and reflect on advertisements by identifying the point of view as well as any bias. Students will also have an opportunity to create, edit, publish, and present a radio broadcast. They will focus on voice, diction, and applying an effective start and end to their broadcast. In addition, they will identify a range of purposes for speaking and how the purpose and audience can influence speaking strategies.

Graphic Texts

In the Graphic Texts Unit, students will become familiar with the techniques and conventions that graphic texts utilize and explain how they convey meaning, influence the audience, and engage the audience. They will review irregular verbs and their proper use in order to communicate clearly. They will demonstrate an understanding of graphic texts by identifying and summarizing key ideas and supporting details. They will explore a variety of media texts and explain how audiences may have varying responses to them. They will identify point of view while using evidence from the text. They will practise and strengthen their skills as a media interpreter and begin to use a range of vocal effects appropriately while reading graphic novel excerpts. They will have an opportunity to create their own comic strip while considering appropriate voice for their characters. They will practise and apply research skills to support your ideas. Students will also have an opportunity to create an infographic to inform others and produce a persuasive piece for presentation.

Poetry

In the Poetry Unit, students will read and understand a variety of poetry styles. They will become familiar with the structure and style of diamante and concrete poetry. They will explore various written and visual style elements and reflect on how applying them helps to enhance meaning. They will work on brainstorming and sorting ideas for their own poetry. They will explore and apply the use of figurative language in their poetry and identify how the use of figurative language increases interest and meaning. They will reflect on word choice and vocabulary and select words that increase interest. They will also review the proper uses for pronouns and prepositions, and then practise applying them to their poetry. They will have an opportunity to draft, proofread, edit, revise, and publish their poetry while keeping visual elements of style in mind. They will become familiar with various speaking strategies that will enhance the meaning of your poetry. Students will conclude the unit by recording a reading of their own poem and considering appropriate vocal effects that relate to the theme and enhance the meaning for the audience.

Presentations

In the Presentations Unit, students will explore different perspectives in the media. They will consider different strategies that media presentations use to capture and keep the attention of the audience. They will deepen their understanding of messaging in advertising, and they will think critically about the various strategies media creators use to communicate both overt and implied messages. They will have a chance to use the skills they have acquired to evaluate the effectiveness of presentations and the strategies they use to communicate meaning to their target audience. They will deepen their understanding of the different conventions and techniques that advertisements use to sell products to their target audiences. Furthermore, they will also get the chance to broaden their oral communication skills as they learn more about effective presentation strategies. They will also deepen their understanding of writing by learning about how writers develop voice in their written work. Finally, students will reflect on their own oral communication skills while learning new strategies to help listen and to communicate their point of view effectively.