Riverdale Writing Curriculum Standards
4-6
Fourth Grade
Fifth Grade
Sixth Grade
By the end of fourth grade students will…
Write in several modes: expository, narrative,
descriptive, imaginary and persuasive (I)
Use revision and editing techniques, including selfediting skills (D)
Use contextual grammar skills in written work (I)
Use capital letters, periods, commas, question
marks, quotation marks, colons, and exclamation
marks appropriately (I/D)
Spell with a high degree of accuracy (D)
Use legible cursive handwriting (D)
Draft, rewrite, and publish own writing using
complete sentences and appropriate paragraph form
(D)
Conduct research and present short reports; gather,
summarize, organize, and present information from
nonfiction sources including books, magazines,
primary sources, and electronic information sources
(I)
Organize, sequence, and present ideas with clarity
(D)
By the end of fifth grade students will…
Write in several modes: expository, narrative,
descriptive, imaginary and persuasive (D)
Use revision and editing techniques, including selfediting skills (D)
Use contextual grammar skills in written work (D)
Use punctuation conventions appropriately (D)
By the end of sixth grade students will…
Write in several modes: expository, narrative,
descriptive, imaginary and persuasive (P)
Use revision and editing techniques, including selfediting skills (P)
Use contextual grammar skills in written work (P)
Use punctuation conventions appropriately (P)
Spell with a high degree of accuracy (D)
Use legible cursive handwriting (P)
Draft, rewrite, and publish own writing using
complete sentences and appropriate paragraph form
(P)
Conduct research and present short reports; gather,
summarize, organize, and present information from
nonfiction sources including books, magazines,
primary sources, and electronic information sources
(D)
Organize, sequence, and present ideas with clarity
(D)
Include an identifiable purpose and main idea in
writing (I)
Provide content and select details that consider
purpose (I)
Use strategies to write for different audiences (I)
Use a variety of techniques to convey personal style
and voice (I)
Develop a flow and rhythm of sentences; vary
Spell with a high degree of accuracy (P)
Use legible cursive handwriting (R/E)
Draft, rewrite, and publish own writing using
complete sentences and appropriate paragraph form
(R/E)
Conduct research and present short reports; gather,
summarize, organize, and present information from
nonfiction sources including books, magazines,
primary sources, and electronic information sources
(P)
Organize, sequence, and present ideas with clarity
(D)
Include an identifiable purpose and main idea in
writing (D)
Provide content and select details that consider
purpose (D)
Use strategies to write for different audiences (D)
Use a variety of techniques to convey personal style
and choice (D)
Develop a flow and rhythm of sentences; vary
I = Introduce
D = Develop
P = Proficient
R/E = Reinforce & Extend
sentence length and complexity; demonstrate
understanding of the difference between simple and
complex sentences (D)
Defend a point of view (D)
Record personal experiences (P)
Evaluate writing of self and others (I)
Defend a point of view (I)
Record personal experiences (D)
sentence length and complexity; demonstrate
understanding of the difference between simple and
complex sentences (D)
Defend a point of view (P)
Record personal experiences (R/E)
Evaluate writing of self and others (D)
Use appropriate transitional devices (I)
Use descriptive language that clarifies and enhances
an idea (I)
Grammar
I = Introduce
Fourth Grade
Fifth Grade
Sixth Grade
By the end of fourth grade
students will…
Use developing grammatical
skills, including correct use of
the eight parts of speech,
parts of sentences,
punctuation, capitalization,
subject/verb agreement, tense
and punctuation (D)
By the end of fifth grade
students will…
Use grammatical skills in
writing and speaking,
including correct use of the
eight parts of speech, parts of
sentences, punctuation,
capitalization, subject/verb
agreement, tense and
punctuation (D)
By the end of sixth grade
students will…
Use grammatical skills in
writing and speaking,
including correct use of the
eight parts of speech, parts of
sentences, punctuation,
capitalization, subject/verb
agreement, appropriate
pronoun use, tense, and
dialogue punctuation,
thesaurus and dictionary
skills (D)
D = Develop
P = Proficient
R/E = Reinforce & Extend