Language Standards
Note on range and content of student language use:
To build a foundation for college and career readiness in language, students must gain control over many
conventions of writing and speaking as well as acquire new words and understand those that they encounter
through listening, reading, and media use. They must be able to determine the meaning of grade-appropriate
words, come to appreciate that words have shadings of meaning and relationships to other words, and expand
their vocabulary through conversation and (especially in later grades) through reading and by being taught words
directly in the course of studying subject matter. The inclusion of language standards in their own strand should
not be taken as an indication that skills related to conventions and vocabulary are unimportant to reading, writing,
speaking, and listening; indeed, they are inseparable from such contexts.
Conventions of Standard
English
1. Demonstrate command of
the conventions of standard
English grammar and usage
when writing or speaking.
a. Explain the function of
nouns, pronouns, verbs,
adjectives, and adverbs in
general and their functions in
particular sentences.
b. Form and use regular and
irregular plural nouns.
c. Use abstract nouns (e.g.,
childhood).
d. Form and use regular and
irregular verbs.
e. Form and use the simple
(e.g., I walked; I walk; I will
walk) verb tenses.
f. Ensure subject-verb and
pronoun-antecedent
agreement.*
g. Form and use comparative
and superlative adjectives and
adverbs, and choose between
them depending on what is to
be modified.
h. Use coordinating and
subordinating conjunctions.
i. Produce simple, compound,
and complex sentences.
Learning Target
I can define noun,
pronoun, verb,
adjective and
adverb.
I can explain how
nouns, pronouns,
verbs, adjectives
and adverbs
function in a
sentence.
I can define
plural.
I can make a
singular noun into
a regular plural
noun (boy/boys)
or an irregular
plural noun
(mouse/mice).
I can define
abstract nouns
(nouns that
represent an idea,
emotion or
feeling) and use
them correctly.
I can explain the
difference
between regular
(walk/walked)
and irregular
(run/ran) verbs
and use them
Vocabulary
Define
Noun
Pronoun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Singular
Plural
Regular verb
Irregular verb
Abstract noun
Past tense
Present tense
Future tense
Coordinating
conjunction
Subordinating
conjunction
Simple
sentence
Compound
sentence
Complex
sentence
Antecedent
Evidence of Mastery
Writing rubrics
Invitation to notice??
(term clarification for
new
teachers/example?)
Grammar activity
sheets (insert
examples)
Discussion/Conference
(writing workshop)
MAP test
Word Work
(example?)
Teacher Observation
Workbook pages
Charts and drawings
B
M
E
correctly.
I can explain the
difference
between simple
verb tenses (past,
present and
future) and use
them correctly.
I can define
subject and verb
and explain that a
singular subject
needs a singular
verb and a plural
subject needs a
plural verb.
I can define
antecedent (the
word or group of
words a pronoun
replaces) and
make sure a
pronoun agrees
with its
antecedent (the
girl/her; the
group/them)
I can choose the
correct form of an
adjective, its –er
form and its
-est form when
writing or
speaking.
I can identify
coordinating
conjunctions (for,
and, nor, but, or,
yet, so) and
subordinating
conjunctions
(after, because, if,
since, while) and
use them
correctly.
2. Demonstrate command of
the conventions of standard
English capitalization,
punctuation, and spelling
when writing.
a. Capitalize appropriate
words in titles.
W.GR.02.01
b. Use commas in addresses.
c. Use commas and quotation
marks in dialogue.
d. Form and use possessives.
e. Use conventional spelling
for high-frequency and other
studied words and for adding
suffixes to base words
(e.g., sitting, smiled, cries,
happiness).
f. Use spelling patterns and
generalizations (e.g., word
families, position-based
spellings, syllable patterns,
ending rules, meaningful word
parts) in writing words.
g. Consult reference
materials, including beginning
dictionaries, as needed to
check and correct spellings.
I can identify and
create simple
sentences (Emma
walks to school.),
compound
sentences (Emma
walks to school,
and her dog
follows her.), and
complex
sentences
(Because Emma
took the dog back
home, she was
late for school.).
I can identify
words in a title
that should be
capitalized.
Capitalize
Comma
Quotation
Marks
Dialogue
I can identify
Apostrophe
words in a title
Suffix
that should not be Prefix
capitalized.
Singular
possessive
I can use a
Plural
comma to
possessive
separate the city
and state in an
address.
I can use commas
and quotations
marks correctly in
dialogue.
I can identify
possessives
(nouns that own
something) and
form singular
possessives (‘s)
and plural
possessives (s’).
DOL
Writing rubrics
Invitation to notice
Grammar activity
sheets (examples)
Discusion/Conference
(writing workshop)
Small Group
Teacher Observation
Peer Editing
Letters/Envelopes
(address)
MAP test
Spelling tests
Quick word
Vocabulary activity
sheets (examples)
Word Work (example)
I can spell sight
words and
spelling words
correctly, and I
know the spelling
rules to use when
I add suffixes.
I can write words
correctly using
common spelling
patterns.
I can identify
misspelled words
and use resources
to help me in
spelling correctly.
Knowledge of
Language
3. Use knowledge of language
and its conventions when
writing, speaking, reading, or
listening.
a. Choose words and phrases
for effect.*
b. Recognize and observe
differences between the
conventions of spoken and
written standard English.
I can identify
words or phrases
in a story that
bring it to life.
I can choose
words and
phrases when
writing or
speaking to bring
my story to life.
I can explain the
difference
between written
and spoken
language and
when it is
appropriate to
use formal or
informal language
conventions?
I can follow
standard English
rules when
writing.
Vocabulary Acquisition and
Written
language
Spoken
language
Standard
English rules
Formal
language
Informal
language
Writing Rubrics
Discussion/Conference
Invitation to Notice
Teacher observation
Writer’s workshop
Student presentations
Peer evaluation
Use
4. Determine or clarify the
meaning of unknown and
multiple-meaning word and
phrases based on grade 3
reading and content, choosing
flexibly from a range of
strategies.
a. Use sentence-level context
as a clue to the meaning of a
word or phrase.
b. Determine the meaning of
the new word formed when a
known affix is added to a
known word (e.g.,
agreeable/disagreeable,
comfortable/uncomfortable,
care/careless, heat/preheat).
c. Use a known root word as a
clue to the meaning of an
unknown word with the same
root (e.g., company,
companion).
d. Use glossaries or beginning
dictionaries, both print and
digital, to determine or clarify
the precise meaning of key
words and phrases.
I can use context
clues in a
sentence to help
me understand
the meaning of an
unknown word.
Context clues
Affixes
Root word
Base word
Reference
materials
I can recognize
and define (use
understand??)
common affixes
(un, dis, able,
less).
I can break down
unknown words
into units of
meaning (affix,
root) to
understand a
word.
Teacher Observation
T.O.C.
Rigby
Dibels
Vocabulary activities
(example??)
DOL
Word Work activities
(examples??)
Phonics workbook??
Small Group
Discussion/Conference
Lexile
DORF
Lexia
Workbook
MAP
I can find the
meaning of a
word using
references
materials
(dictionaries,
glossaries,
QuickWord, etc.)
5. Demonstrate
understanding of word
relationships and nuances in
word meanings.
a. Distinguish the literal and
non-literal meanings of words
and phrases in context
(e.g., take steps).
b. Identify real-life
connections between words
I can explain the
difference
between literal
meaning (means
exactly what it
says) and
nonliteral
meaning (what it
says is not exactly
Literal meaning
Nonliteral
meaning
Figurative
language
Connection
Mood
Correct retell of text
Vocabulary activities
(various per teacher)
AR Vocab. quizzes
DOL
Writing rubrics (does
this fit??)
Discussion/Conference
Small Group
and their use (e.g., describe
people who are friendly or
helpful).
c. Distinguish shades of
meaning among related words
that describe states of mind
or degrees of certainty (e.g.,
knew, believed, suspected,
heard, wondered).
what it means) of
words and
phrases.
I can tell when a
word or phrase
means something
other than what it
says.
I can make reallife connections
to words I hear
and read.
6. Acquire and use accurately
grade-appropriate
conversational, general
academic, and domainspecific
words and phrases, including
those that signal spatial and
temporal relationships (e.g.,
After dinner that night we
went looking for them).
I can recognize
words that have
similar meaning
and choose the
word that best
describes the
mood.
I can learn and
use new
vocabulary
correctly.
I can recognize
the difference
between words
used in general
and vocabulary
words used in
certain subjects.
Vocabulary activities
(example??)
Rigby
Dibels
AR Vocab quizzes
Subject specific
assessments that
contain vocabulary
Writing rubrics
Correct retell of text
Discussion/Conference
Small Group
**Reading log example included as an option formatted to align with Reader’s Workshop.
**Spoken evidence of mastery includes discussion, small group, book clubs, one-on-one conferencing,
pair share, etc.
**Written retells may include written sentences/paragraphs, reflections, graphic organizer, etc.