English Language Arts (ELA) is more than reading and writing. ELA involves:

  • Communicating effectively in various places for many different audiences and reasons
  • Selecting appropriate forms, structures and technology for a variety of contexts
  • Understanding, appreciating and creating a broad range of texts (including multi-media, visual, oral, and print)


Grade 6 English Language Arts

  • How can I understand the people around me? How will they understand me? Your child will develop writing and speaking skills that will help them adjust to different situations and communicate effectively. They will draw information from different sources to expand their understanding.
  • What Your Child is Learning
    • offer relevant information and logical reasoning to enhance collaborative dialogue
    • analyze texts and interpret contexts to build comprehension
    • refine and adjust writing through creative and critical thinking to reflect individuality and skills
    • apply grammar, spelling, and punctuation accurately and skillfully in written communication
    • analyze how a variety of texts are organized and can influence understandings of ourselves, other people, and the world
  • For more information about Grade 6 English Language Arts and Literature, refer to the new curriculum.


Grade 7 English Language Arts

  • I can use different text forms to help me express my ideas. Grade 7 students extend their understanding by finding different ways to express ideas, such as through magazine ads or brochures. They analyze how storylines progress, considering settings and characters, and make notes using headings, subheadings, or symbols.
  • What Your Child is Learning
    • In Grade 7, your child will extend their understanding by finding different sources of information that help them develop their ideas. They will explore different ways that people express ideas, such as through magazine ads and brochures, and they’ll discover how ideas are directed at specific audiences to capture interest. Your child will analyze how storylines progress, considering settings and characters, and they’ll take notes using headings, subheadings, or symbols. For more about Grade 7 English Language Arts, refer to the program of studies.

Grade 8 English Language Arts

  • Analyze ends with –lyze, so paralyze, which sounds similar, likely ends the same way! Your teen will study and create their own texts, including oral, print, and visual texts, as they develop listening and speaking, reading and writing, viewing and representing, and inquiry and research skills.
  • What Your Child is Learning
    • Your teen will apply the rules they’ve learned about spelling to figure out how new words are spelled. They’ll take notes and create outlines that show logical flow of their thoughts, and they’ll select good information sources to help them write about a specific topic, for a specific audience and purpose. Their writing will become more convincing as they add words to prove their point. Still curious? Refer to the program of studies for more information about Grade 8 English Language Arts.

Grade 9 English Language Arts

  • I want to develop language and communication skills and experience success in ELA! Grade 9 students examine ideas, experiences, and information from points of view that differ from their own. They discuss how different people take away different meanings from the same material. Using different sources of information, they continue to develop their own opinions and impressions.
  • What Your Child is Learning
    • In the last year of junior high English Language Arts, Grade 9 students examine ideas, experiences, and information from points of view that differ from their own. Your teen will discuss how different people take away different meanings from the same material, understanding that each individual’s knowledge and experience affect their way of interpreting information. Using different sources of information, your teen will continue to develop their own opinions and impressions on various topics. Want to know more? Refer to the program of studies for more information about Grade 9 English Language Arts.