Grade 6 English Language Arts
11 units matched to the Ontario Curriculum. Kids see this subject as “Language Arts”.
Overall expectations
- A1 Transferable Skills: Demonstrate an understanding of how the seven transferable skills (critical thinking and problem solving; innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship; self-directed learning; collaboration; communication; global citizenship and sustainability; and digital literacy) are used in various language and literacy contexts
- A2 Digital Media Literacy: Demonstrate and apply the knowledge and skills needed to interact safely and responsibly in online environments, use digital and media tools to construct knowledge, and demonstrate learning as critical consumers and creators of media
- A3 Applications, Connections, and Contributions: Apply language and literacy skills in cross-curricular and integrated learning, and demonstrate an understanding of, and make connections to, diverse voices, experiences, perspectives, histories, and contributions, including those of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit individuals, communities, groups, and nations
- B1 Oral and Non-Verbal Communication: Apply listening, speaking, and non-verbal communication skills and strategies to understand and communicate meaning in formal and informal contexts and for various purposes and audiences
- B2 Language Foundations for Reading and Writing: Demonstrate an understanding of foundational language knowledge and skills, and apply this understanding when reading and writing
- B3 Language Conventions for Reading and Writing: Demonstrate an understanding of sentence structure, grammar, cohesive ties, and capitalization and punctuation, and apply this knowledge when reading and writing sentences, paragraphs, and a variety of texts
- C1 Knowledge about Texts: Apply foundational knowledge and skills to understand a variety of texts, including digital and media texts, by creators with diverse identities, perspectives, and experience, and demonstrate an understanding of the patterns, features, and elements of style associated with various text forms and genres
- C2 Comprehension Strategies: Apply comprehension strategies before, during, and after reading, listening to, and viewing a variety of texts, including digital and media texts, by creators with diverse identities, perspectives, and experience, in order to understand and clarify the meaning of texts
- C3 Critical Thinking in Literacy: Apply critical thinking skills to deepen understanding of texts, and analyze how various perspectives and topics are communicated and addressed in a variety of texts, including digital, media, and cultural texts
- D1 Developing Ideas and Organizing Content: Plan, develop ideas, gather information, and organize content for creating texts of various forms, including digital and media texts, on a variety of topics
- D2 Creating Texts: Apply knowledge and understanding of various text forms and genres to create, revise, edit, and proofread their own texts, using a variety of media, tools, and strategies, and reflect critically on created texts
- D3 Publishing, Presenting, and Reflecting: Select suitable and effective media, techniques, and tools to publish and present final texts, and critically analyze how well the texts address various topics
Units
Unit 1
Roots & Analogies
Using Greek and Latin roots (like “geo,” “aud” and “port”) to work out unfamiliar words, and completing analogies that compare word relationships.
Expectation: B2.1, B2.2 · word roots, morphology and vocabulary
Unit 2
Grammar Gears
Spotting -ing words that act as nouns (gerunds), telling active sentences from passive ones, and changing a sentence from one voice to the other.
Expectation: B3.2 · gerunds, and active and passive voice
Unit 3
Sentence Builders
Using clauses that start with who, which, that, whose and where to add detail and join short sentences.
Expectation: B3.1 · complex sentences with adjective or relative clauses
Unit 4
Commas & Clauses
Finding dependent clauses, telling simple, compound and complex sentences apart, and using commas in lists, compound sentences, introductions and appositives.
Expectation: B3.1, B3.3 · clauses and commas
Unit 5
Punctuation Power
Using a colon in a formal greeting or after a speaker's name in a script, and putting a comma after words like However and phrases like For example.
Expectation: B3.3 · colons in formal letters and memos and for script speakers, and commas after transitional words and phrases
Unit 6
Close Reading
Reading original stories and information texts, then finding the theme or main idea, making inferences, explaining why characters act as they do and choosing the sentence that best supports an answer.
Expectation: C2.6, C3.2, C3.3 · main ideas, inferences and evaluating information
Unit 7
Point of View
Telling first person, third person limited and third person omniscient apart, and thinking about what each narrator can and can't know.
Expectation: C1.6 · the narrator's point of view
Unit 8
Figurative Language
Naming similes, metaphors, personification, hyperbole, onomatopoeia, alliteration and idioms, explaining what they mean, finding the sense an image appeals to and working out what a symbol stands for.
Expectation: C3.1 · hyperbole, idioms and other literary devices
Unit 9
Connotation & Tone
Words can share a dictionary meaning (denotation) but carry different feelings (connotation), like “cozy” and “cramped.” Students choose words for effect and identify a writer's tone.
Expectation: C1.5 · word choice, voice and tone
Unit 10
Sources & Bias
Separating fact from opinion, judging whether a source is reliable, spotting loaded words and one-sided reporting, and asking who made a message and why.
Expectation: C3.3, C3.5 · evaluating sources and spotting bias
Unit 11
Text Forms & Features
Recognizing problem-and-solution reports, scripts, and web features like menus, and explaining how pictures and graphics add to a text.
Expectation: C1.2–C1.4 · text forms, text patterns and features such as subheadings and menus, and how images and graphics add meaning
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