About the Illinois English Language Arts Standards:
The Illinois State Standards for English Language Arts are divided into sections for K-5 and 6-12. The standards for all grades fall into the following domains, or groups of related standards:
- Reading: covers analysis and understanding of literature and informational text
- Writing: deals with persuasive, narrative, and expository writing; organization; and research
- Speaking and Listening: focuses on comprehension, presentations, and working with others
- Language: includes grammar, usage, punctuation, vocabulary, and other conventions of language
Elementary Grades: K-5
The standards for younger students focus on developing comprehension strategies, or different ways to understand what they read. The goal for kindergarten through grade 5 is to help students become independent readers and writers who think critically about literature. This way, students build a solid foundation for middle and high school.
Students will:
- Develop basic foundational skills in using written and spoken language in kindergarten.
- Learn how to read and think critically about informational text, such as newspapers, maps, and charts.
- Become effective communicators.
- Discover how to present their knowledge and converse with other in a respectful way.
- Understand the basics of how to use language properly, in both speaking and writing.
These skills will lay the groundwork for students to convey their ideas well in later grades.
Middle Grades: 6-8
Middle school students are expected to look even deeper into what they’re reading, and to use what they learn about the structure and literary elements in their writing:
Students will:
- Become familiar with different types of text, such as modern fiction, non-fiction, myths, and plays.
- Explore texts in different media, including digital text and video.
- Learn more about elements of literature, such as irony.
- Analyze text for meaning, bias, and other complex elements.
- Learn how to conduct research projects, build persuasive arguments, and present their findings to others.
- Continue to develop grammar and expand vocabulary.