West Haven Public Schools
Unit Planning Organizer
Subject: English Language Arts
Grade ___7___
Unit 4- Communicating for a Purpose
Pacing: 30
Essential Question(s):
1. What does the author use to help me picture what I am reading?
2. How does my understanding of the author’s purpose help me understand and
connect with other texts?
3. How do we write with a purpose?
4. How does reading influence us?
Big Idea(s): Finding the Evidence
1. Authors and writers use literary devices (imagery, personification, metaphor,
flashback…) to convey meaning.
2. When a reader or writer understands the purpose, they can gather information from its
meaning.
3. Reading can shape our thoughts, ideas, and perspectives.
Common Core State Standards (includes West Haven’s “Priority” Common Core
Standards in BOLD and “Supporting” Standards)
RL.1: Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says
explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
RL.2: Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the
course of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide an
objective summary of the text.
RI.3: Analyze the interactions between individuals, events, and ideas in a text (e.g., how
ideas influence individuals or event, or how individuals influence ideas or events).
RI 6: Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author
distinguishes his or her position from that of others.
Grade 7, Unit 4- revised June 2014
RI.8: Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in text, assessing whether the
reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient to support the claims.
RI.10: By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 6-8 text
complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
RI 4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including
figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on
meaning and tone.
W.2.b: Develop the topic with relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or
other information and examples.
W.2.d: Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the
topic.
W.4: Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
L.1.b: Choose among simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences to
signal differing relationships among ideas.
L.1c: Place phrases and clauses within a sentence, recognizing and correcting misplaced and
dangling modifiers.
L.5b: Use the relationship between particular words (e.g., synonym/ antonym, analogy) to
better understand each of the words.
L.1: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when
writing or speaking.
L.2: Demonstrate command of the conventions of Standard English capitalization, punctuation,
and spelling when writing.
L.2.b: Spell correctly.
L.3: Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or
listening.
Grade 7, ELA, Unit 4- revised June 2014
L.4.a: Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence or paragraph; a word’s position or
function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
W.1.c: Use words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among
claims(s), reasons, and evidence.
W.1.d: Establish and maintain a formal style.
W.1.e: Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument
presented.
W.5: With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing
as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on how
well purpose and audience have been addressed.
“Unwrapped” Concepts and Skills, and Bloom Levels (BL)
Concepts (Need to Know)
Skills (Able to Do)
B
L
R.L.1:
 Using evidence and inference from
text
R.L.2:
 Ideas, themes, and issues across
texts
R.L.1
Identifying textual evidence
R.I.3:






R.I.3
Identify (literary concepts)
Explain (the purpose of literary concepts and
their impact on a story)
3
2
R.I.6
Compare/Contrast (author’s style and purpose)
Compare/ Contrast (character’s actions and
beliefs)
4
4
Literary Concepts
Dialect
Irony
Tone
Bias
Humor
R.I. 6:
 Author’s purpose for Writing a Text
Grade 7, ELA, Unit 4- revised June 2014
1
R.L.2
Identify common themes and summarize
1
L.5.b
L.5.b
5

Synonyms/antonyms/analogies
L.1, L.2

- revise and re-construct sentences using vivid
synonyms to replace weak language
-determine opposite meanings using antonyms
-evaluate how things are related using
analogies
2
6
L.1, L.2
3
Using dialogue
-to apply quotation marks correctly in direct
quotations and dialogue
-to utilize quotations marks correctly with
other punctuation marks
Assessments
Common Formative Pre- Assessment (Followed by Data Team Analysis):
“Dipsticks” (Informal Progress Monitoring Checks):
“The Dinner Party” pp. 118-119, Holt Assessment
Teacher Created Portfolio
Vocabulary ch. 1-6, 7-10, 11-13, 14-15, 16-18, 19-22
Grade 7, ELA, Unit 4- revised June 2014
3
Comprehension ch. 1-6, 7-10, 11-13, 14-15, 16-18, 19-22
Cloze ch. 1-6, 7-10, 11-13, 19-22
T= Teacher’s Manual S= Student’s text book P = Teacher-created Skill Packet
1.Writer’s Craft(s) Complex/compound sentences pp 555-570.
2. Writer’s Craft Workbook pp. 88-96
3. Writer’s Craft (s) synonyms and antonyms p. 365.
4. Writer’s Craft (s) quotations pp 648-651
5. Writer’s Craft Workbook pp. 129-131.
6. Holt Handbook (T) pp 136-138
7. Writer’s Craft, p.553 (paragraph revision)
Common Formative Post- Assessment (Followed by Data Team Analysis):
“The Red Girl” pp. 228-229, Holt Assessment
Instructional Planning
Suggested Resources/Materials:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Where the Red Fern Grows
The Sign of the Beaver- (developmental)
Dear Levi - (developmental)
The Voyage of the Frog- (developmental)
The Writer’s Craft, level7, pp 555-574
Elements of Literature Workbook, pp.97-99
Grammar and Usage Workbook, pp. 91-96
Grade 7, ELA, Unit 4- revised June 2014
Expository Writing Packet taken from Expository Time’s Up.
Expository Pillars for planning
Vocabulary Workshop, lessons 9 and 10 (pp. 33-40)
Suggested Research-based Effective Instructional Strategies:
Maps, Timeline, Poster
Vocabulary/Word Wall
Imagery
Flashback
Enrichment/Extension
Refer to Teacher-Created
Portfolio
Dialect
Irony
Tone
Bias
Humor
Point-of- View
Author’s Purpose
Foreshadowing
Grade 7, ELA, Unit 4- revised June 2014
Interdisciplinary
Connections
Refer to supplemental
resource and study guides
with connections.
Compound
complex
“Using Compound and
Complex Sentences” (T) pp
555-573
coordinating conjunctions
main clause
subordinate clause
Powerpoint
Presentation:
- Compound/Complex
“Using compound and
complex
sentences”(workbook pp
- clauses vs. complete
sentences
synonym
88-94
antonym
analogy
dialogue
quotation marks
direct quotation
indirect quotation
“Language Handbook 15:
Punctuation” (Holt Language
Handbook) Worksheets pp
135-138)
Skill Packet created from
“Expository Time’s Up”
expository
golden bricks
lead
Writer’s Craft pp 233-234
thesis
Graphic organizer
“considering your audience”
supporting details
Writer’s Craft p.128
“Publish and Present
Grade 7, ELA, Unit 4- revised June 2014
CBAS online writing program