This unit helps to build a community of readers and writers, establish routines, and build foundational skills.

Students will understand: 

• All animals, including humans, directly or indirectly depend on plants to convert the sun’s energy into food.
• As scientific knowledge and technology progresses, the ways in which people develop natural resources changes.
• Human development of resources has a lasting impact on the natural world.
• There are costs and benefits to developing resources. 

Students will be able to: 

• Ask questions and create mental images. Reread to clarify understanding, and read on to clarify or confirm understanding.
• Identify key details and determine central ideas. Draw on information from multiple sources, including charts and graphs. Explain cause and effect relationships in a text. Determine the author’s point of view and purpose. Integrate information from several texts on the same topic. Analyze features and structure of poetry.
• Use context clues to determine the meaning of words and phrases.
• Write informational/explanatory essays based on text-based prompts.
• Use verb tense to convey sequence (order of events). Use conjunctions correctly. Correctly use frequently confused words. Combine sentences for meaning, interest, and style.
• Practice reading with speed/pacing (fast) and confirm or correct word recognition and understanding. Study word patterns, including short vowel syllable patterns, long vowels, and r-controlled vowels (er, ir, ur).
• Engage effectively in whole-class and peer discussions. State, clarify, and support ideas in a constructive conversation.

Students will understand: 

•  Realistic fiction is a genre of literature in which authors create characters who could exist in real life, flaws and all, as well as plots that could actually happen.
• Authors use their craft to communicate a character’s traits to readers, and how these traits are valued.
• Certain character traits, such as bravery and inquisitiveness, are valued across much of literature.
• Characters in stories can teach readers real-life problem-solving and relationship skills.

Students will be able to: 

•  Draw inferences and make connections. Stop and think about the author’s purpose. Read out loud to support comprehension.
• Summarize the text. Compare and contrast two characters in a story. Compare and contrast varieties of English (dialect and register). Analyze how visual elements contribute to meaning and tone. Explain how a series of chapters, scenes, or stanzas fits together to provide the structure of a novel. Interpret figurative language, focusing on hyperbole.
• Use context clues to determine the meaning of words and phrases.
• Write opinion essays based on text-based prompts.
• Use verb tense to convey various times, sequences, states, and conditions. Form and use the past perfect tense. Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb tense. Choose words and phrases to convey ideas precisely. Link ideas using words, phrases, and clauses.
• Practice expression through characterization/feelings and pausing (short pauses) while reading. Study word patterns, including r-controlled vowels (/âr/, /är/, /ôr/), closed syllable patterns, and open syllable patterns.
• Engage effectively in whole-class and peer discussions. State, clarify, and support ideas in a constructive conversation.

Students will understand: 

•  The purpose of the U.S. Constitution was to outline the powers and responsibilities of the three branches of the federal government.
• The laws of U.S. Constitution can be added to through the amendment process.
• Some laws need to be amended to eliminate bias and to expand the protection of people’s rights.
• Citizens may petition or protest for a cause and for changes to be made to laws.
• Determination is an important factor in working for changes to the U.S. Constitution.

Students will be able to: 

•  Distinguish between important and unimportant information. Summarize and synthesize information. Read more slowly and think about the words. Reread to clarify or confirm understanding.
• Explain the relationship between chronological events in a text. Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence. Compare and contrast the overall structure of concepts in two texts. Determine two or more central ideas and explain how details support them. Integrate information from two texts on the same topic. Interpret figurative language, focusing on metaphors.
• Use context clues to determine the meaning of words and phrases.
• Write informative/explanatory essays based on text-based prompts.
• Explain the function of prepositions. Use conjunctions and prepositions correctly. Review verb tenses. Use punctuation to separate items in a series. Apply rules for comma usage.
• Practice inflection/intonation (pitch) and phrasing (units of meaning in complex sentences) while reading. Study word patterns, including vowel-r syllable patterns, vowel team syllable patterns, and consonant-le syllable patterns.
• Engage effectively in whole-class and peer discussions. State, clarify, and support ideas in a constructive conversation.

Students will understand: 

• Every work of poetry or prose has a distinct point of view, a perspective, purpose, and theme(s).
• A narrator’s or speaker’s point of view and perspective influences how events are described and perceived.
• People of different genders, cultures, or perspectives may experience the same events or interactions differently.
• Reading about an event through another’s viewpoint offers readers an opportunity to build social awareness and expand their understanding of different perspectives, cultures, and contexts. 

Students will be able to: 

• Ask questions and create mental images of characters and events. Read on to clarify or confirm understanding. Stop and think about the author’s purpose.
• Explain how a series of sections provides the overall structure of a story. Describe how a narrator’s point of view influences how events are described. Summarize the text. Compare and contrast themes in two stories in the same genre. Describe the poet’s message and use of figurative language.
• Use context clues to determine the meaning of words and phrases. Determine the meaning of figurative language, including idioms, adages, proverbs, and similes.
• Write narratives based on text-based prompts.
• Choose words and phrases to convey ideas precisely. Form and use perfect verb tenses. Recognize dialect and register, including fragments and run-ons. Develop realistic dialogue. Use a comma to set off the words "yes" and "no" and to indicate direct address. Use interjections and conjunctions correctly.
• Practice expression through anticipation/mood and speed/pacing (slow) while reading. Study word patterns, including vowel-consonant-e syllable patterns, homographs, and variant vowels (/oo/ and /oo/ with oo, ew, ould, ull).
• Engage effectively in whole-class and peer discussions. State, clarify, and support ideas in a constructive conversation. 

Students will understand: 

• Technological innovation can have both positive and negative effects.
• The costs and benefits of new technologies are not distributed evenly.
• Scientific engineering is often used to make work more efficient.
• Technological innovation is a crucial part of the economic development of the United States.
• The Industrial Revolution (the late 1700s to the early 1800s) was a period when new technologies introduced widespread and rapid changes to society. 

Students will be able to: 

• Draw inferences and distinguish between important and unimportant information. Read out loud to support comprehension, and read more slowly while thinking about the words.
• Explain how a series of stanzas fit together to provide the overall structure of a poem. Explain the relationship between events in a text, focusing on problem/solution and chronological order. Integrate information from multiple sources. Determine the theme of a poem. Compare and contrast the overall structure of concepts in two texts. Compare and contrast poems with similar themes. Analyze problem/solution text structure. Analyze a poet’s use of figurative language, focusing on personification.
• Use context clues to determine the meaning of words and phrases.
• Write opinion essays based on text-based prompts.
• Correctly use frequently confused words. Ensure subject-verb and pronoun-antecedent agreement. Expand, combine, and reduce sentences for meaning, reader/listener interest, and style. Choose words and phrases to convey ideas precisely.
• Practice pausing at full stops and expression through anticipation/mood while reading. Study word patterns, including noun suffixes (-ology, -ant, -er, -or, -ery), Latin roots (spec, liter, vent, struct), and homophones.
• Engage effectively in a range of whole-class, small-group, and partner discussions. State, clarify, and support ideas in a constructive conversation.

Students will understand: 

• All works of fiction contain a theme, or central message, that is supported by setting, character, plot, and/or other story elements. 
• Works of fiction may vary in tone, style, or structure, yet still explore similar themes.
• The universal themes explored in literature are those that speak to all people, regardless of gender or ethnicity.
• The conflict of “animal vs. nature” and the question of “what compels living things to survive?” are universal themes often explored in literature.
• Literary characters and their response to challenges allow readers to learn valuable lessons about decision-making and problem-solving. 

Students will be able to: 

•  Make connections and summarize and synthesize information. Reread to clarify or confirm understanding.
• Compare and contrast two characters in a text. Determine the theme based on how characters in a story or drama respond to challenges. Compare and contrast two stories with similar themes. Analyze how visual elements contribute to meaning and tone.
• Use context clues to determine the meaning of words and phrases.
• Write to a text-based prompt, including informative/explanatory, opinion, and narrative writing.
• Correct inappropriate fragments. Use prepositions correctly. Form and use the perfect tense (past perfect). Expand sentences for meaning, reader/listener interest, and style.
• Practice inflection/intonation (pitch) and dramatic expression while reading. Study word patterns, including variant vowels (/ô/ with al, alk, all, au, aw), noun suffixes (-tion, -ty, -sion, -ness, -ment), and compound words (hyphenated, open).
• Engage effectively in whole-class and peer discussions. State, clarify, and support ideas in a constructive conversation. 

Students will understand: 

• Wars, and other conflicts that are resolved with violence, have major social, emotional, economic, and political effects that have a lasting impact on the peoples and nations involved.
• People can have different views, perspectives, and experiences of conflict.
• Different groups of people participated in the American Revolution for different reasons and the final outcome of the war impacted these groups in positive and negative ways.
• A wide range of primary and secondary sources are important pieces when building a full and meaningful understanding of the past.
• Writers may choose to deal with important historical topics such as the Revolutionary War through historical fiction. 

Students will be able to: 

• Make connections and summarize and synthesize information. Reread to clarify or confirm understanding.
• Compare and contrast two characters in a text. Determine the theme based on how characters in a story or drama respond to challenges. Compare and contrast two stories with similar themes. Analyze how visual elements contribute to meaning and tone.
• Use context clues to determine the meaning of words and phrases.
• Write to a text-based prompt, including informative/explanatory, opinion, and narrative writing.
• Correct inappropriate fragments. Use prepositions correctly. Form and use the perfect tense (past perfect). Expand sentences for meaning, reader/listener interest, and style.
• Practice inflection/intonation (pitch) and dramatic expression while reading. Study word patterns, including variant vowels (/ô/ with al, alk, all, au, aw), noun suffixes (-tion, -ty, -sion, -ness, -ment), and compound words (hyphenated, open).
• Engage effectively in whole-class and peer discussions. State, clarify, and support ideas in a constructive conversation.

Students will understand: 

• Water is an essential resource that supports all life on Earth.
• Water represents various things to different cultures around the world.
• Ancient Greek myths contain many sea gods and goddesses that exert their powers over mortals.
• Water plays an important role in the formation of communities and societies, and in people’s everyday lives.
• Freshwater and saltwater resources/oceans should be conserved and should be protected.

Students will be able to: 

• Apply metacognitive strategies. Read more slowly and think about the words. Reread to clarify or confirm understanding.
• Compare and contrast characters in a story. Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence. Integrate information from two texts to speak knowledgeably about a topic. Summarize the text. Explain how parts of a text fit together to provide the overall structure. Compare and contrast two texts with similar themes. Explain the relationship between events in a scientific text. Determine multiple themes from a poem.
• Determine the meaning of figurative language, including similes, metaphors, and personification. Use context clues to determine the meaning of words and phrases.
• Engage in process writing for a research project.
• Expand sentences for meaning, interest, and style. Use a comma to separate an introductory element. Use punctuation to separate items in a series. Form and use verb tenses (past perfect and present perfect). Recognize inappropriate shifts in verb tense. Use verb tense to convey various conditions.
• Practice inflection/intonation (volume) and confirm or correct word recognition and understanding while reading. Study word patterns, including /ou/ and /oi/ sounds, Latin roots (aud, vis, form, cede), and adjective suffixes (-y, -ent, -ive, -ic, -ful).
• Engage effectively in whole-class, small-group, and partner discussions. State, clarify, support, evaluate, and compare ideas in a constructive conversation. 

Students will understand: 

• The first people to live in the area that becomes a city are part of that city’s history.
• The economic development of a city is tied to its geographic location, resources, industry, population, and culture.
• People migrate to cities looking for jobs and opportunities.
• The migration of people to cities is fueled by factors such as racism, bias, economic hardship, and government policy.
• The economy can experience both ups and downs and often these ups and downs are cyclical.

Students will be able to: 

• Apply metacognitive strategies. Read on to clarify or confirm understanding. Stop and think about the author’s purpose.
• Draw on information from multiple sources. Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence. Integrate information from several texts on the same topic. Determine two or more central ideas and explain how key details support them. Analyze the poet’s use of figurative language.
• Use context clues to determine the meaning of words and phrases. Determine or clarify the meaning of multiple-meaning words.
• Create a multimedia presentation.
• Form and use present perfect and past perfect tense. Use subordinating conjunctions.
• Practice inflection/intonation (stress) and phrasing (units of meaning in complex sentences) while reading. Study word patterns, including irregular past tense verbs, inflectional endings with spelling changes (-ed, -ing), and prefixes that describe where (pro-, em-, en-, per-, im-).
• Engage effectively in whole-class and peer discussions. State, clarify, support, evaluate, and compare ideas in a constructive conversation.