Curriculum » NC Standard Course of Study & aligned resources
English Language Development — Grades 9–12
Goal 1. Listening
Select a proficiency level:
- Novice Low
- Students will use various forms of non-verbal communication to express ideas and demonstrate basic comprehension. They may point, touch, match, draw, act out, demonstrate an action, or play games to show their understanding. Learning objectives focus on distinguishing between minimal pairs, identifying meaning of non-verbal cues, developing basic academic vocabulary, following one and two-step directions with modeling, recognizing some academic language conventions, recognizing and pronouncing most of the English alphabet, repeating words and phrases correctly, speaking with simple words and phrases, developing phonemic awareness, recognizing common environmental print, understanding directionality, recognizing cardinal and ordinal numbers, locating and using resource materials, copying words and phrases, developing an awareness of sentence styles, using basic conventions when writing, and recognizing characteristics of American high schools.
- Novice High
- Students will begin to use simple words and phrases, while continuing to use forms of non-verbal communication to express ideas and demonstrate comprehension. They may use pictures, actions, and limited verbal responses to show their understanding. Learning objectives focus on distinguishing between minimal pairs, identifying meaning of non-verbal cues, developing basic academic vocabulary, following one and two-step directions with modeling, recognizing some academic language conventions, recognizing and pronouncing most of the English alphabet, using tone of voice and gestures to enhance meaning, preparing and delivering short presentations, increasing phonemic awareness, recognizing common environmental print, identifying cognates, identifying sequence in stories, using resource materials, copying words and phrases, writing simple sentences and paragraphs with basic conventions, and recognizing characteristics of American high schools.
- Intermediate Low
- Students will begin to use limited vocabulary to participate in discussions on familiar topics spoken at normal speed with periods of momentary silence. In addition, they may use forms of non-verbal communication to demonstrate comprehension. Learning objectives focus on demonstrating an understanding of English phonemes, knowing the essential content of messages and greetings, following one and two-step directions, demonstrating comprehension of various literary genres, participating in group discourse, using tone of voice and gestures to enhance meaning, applying grammatical patterns in speech, incorporating idioms, self-correcting basic vocabulary and grammar, retelling and restating, making predictions, identifying basic text features, identifying elements of fiction and non-fiction, using reference materials, discerning cultural variations represented in texts, learning guided note-taking, writing paragraphs on familiar topics, editing own writing, and recognizing characteristics of American high schools.
- Intermediate High
- Students will begin to use expanded vocabulary to participate effectively in social and academic conversations and presentations with occasional difficulty. They may continue to use forms of non-verbal communication to demonstrate comprehension, but will rely more upon verbal skills. Learning objectives focus on developing more complex academic vocabulary, comprehending academic questions spoken at normal speed, following multi-step directions, demonstrating comprehension of various literary genres, participating in group discourse, using appropriate stress and intonation, applying grammatical patterns in speech, negotiating meaning, paraphrasing, identifying elements of fiction and non-fiction, beginning to understand elements of poetry, using reference materials, discerning cultural variations represented in texts, learning guided note-taking, writing multi-paragraph essays with complex sentence styles, and editing own grammar and writing conventions.
- Advanced
- Students will use expanded vocabulary effectively in social and academic settings with few errors and will rely much less on forms of non-verbal communication. Learning objectives focus on comprehending academic questions spoken at normal speed, following multi-step directions on academic topics, demonstrating comprehension of various literary genres, initiating and participating in group discourse, preparing and delivering presentations, elaborate effectively using description and comparison, developing reading fluency, analyzing text and evaluating literature, understanding the elements of poetry, using reference materials, discerning cultural variations represented in texts, identifying literary elements of fiction and non-fiction, writing about complex themes, reflecting, evaluating, analyzing and responding to texts, and examining cause-effect relationships.
- Superior
- Students will interpret conversational and academic expressions of grade-level concepts when spoken at a normal speed with no difficulties. Learning objectives focus on understanding academic language conventions across content areas, making oral presentations that include an introduction and conclusion, using appropriate ways of speaking based on purpose, audience, and subject matter, analyzing literature, interpreting literary themes, examining the relationships between authors and their works, defining issues and using argument effectively, critically analyzing how literature relates to historical and current viewpoints, applying conventions of grammar and language usage, and critiquing characteristics of cultural variations represented in texts.
