Course Details

Grade 7 ELA: "Analysis and Argumentation" Course Description

7th Grade ELA is where we take reading and writing to the next level, focusing on deep analysis and strong argumentation. Students will learn to trace and evaluate arguments in non-fiction and compare how a single story can change when told in different formats, like a book versus a movie. Writing becomes a powerful tool for persuasion and explanation as students learn to structure complex ideas and support their claims with logical reasoning.

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What We'll Explore:

Tracing and Evaluating an Argument: We'll read a news editorial and map out the author's main claim. Then, we'll evaluate if the evidence they used is strong and relevant or if it's based on weak reasoning.

Comparing Written Stories to Media: We'll analyze how a director's choices change a story. For example: "How did the movie version of a scene from The Hunger Games create a different mood than the original book chapter, and why did the director make that choice?"

Writing with Logical Reasoning: Students will learn to build an argument brick by brick. For example, when writing about a historical event, they'll learn to connect their points with transition words that show clear, logical connections, making their writing more persuasive and easier to follow.

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Learning Outcomes

• Cite several pieces of textual evidence to strongly support analysis.
• Analyze the interactions between individuals, events, and ideas in a text.
• Compare and contrast a written story to its audio, video, or stage version.
• Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text.
• Support claims with logical reasoning and relevant, accurate data and evidence.