8th Grade English/Language Arts

Eighth grade English students are guided to be passionate, reflective learners. The course is designed to provide students with daily opportunities to build critical thinking skills and exercise their imaginations.

Students write across multiple genres throughout the year, developing both technical skill and their personal voices as writers. Students will make use of scaffolded writing instruction and during the drafting process, actively use Google Classroom or handwritten comments, combined with one-to-one teacher conferences, to produce polished analytical, personal, and fictional pieces throughout the year. They use all phases of the writing process and are guided to apply oral and written feedback to the revision process. They are always guided to consider the purpose and audience for their writing, and they receive ample formative and summative feedback through rubrics, comments, and one-on-one writing conferences addressing precise and varied word choice, complexity of style, effective use of evidence, and application of rules of grammar and punctuation. 

Students engage critically with a range of challenging texts to further develop their literary and linguistic skills. They work independently and with their peers to examine texts deeply and apply active reading skills to help make meaning and draw inferences. They are taught to annotate critically as they read, and students are guided to always look for something good in everything they read to maintain interest. Students read George Orwell’s Animal Farm, Shakespeare’s Macbeth, and Jamaica Kincaid’s Annie John in addition to selected short stories, articles, and poetry. Independent reading and book groups are part and parcel of 8th grade English. 

Students also develop and refine their ability to communicate effectively in class discussions, personal reflections, debates, performances, and presentations. Assignments include original writing, dramatic performances, monologues, speeches, articles, blogs, film study, and collaborative projects. Advanced discussion skills and participation in Socratic seminars help prepare students for high school English and beyond.