Analyze recurrent themes in world literature

Analyze, in oral and written responses, distinctive elements, including theme and structure, of literary forms and types, including: essays by early and modern writers, lyric, narrative, and dramatic poetry, drama, including ancient, Renaissance, and modern, short stories, novellas, and novels, biographies and autobiographies, and speeches

Demonstrate understanding of information in grade-appropriate texts using a variety of reasoning strategies, including: summarizing and paraphrasing information and story elements, comparing and contrasting information in various texts (e.g., televised news, news magazines, documentaries, online information), comparing and contrasting complex literary elements, devices, and ideas within and across texts, examining the sequence of information and procedures in order to critique the logic or development of ideas in texts, making inferences and drawing conclusions, and making predictions and generalizations

Analyze information within and across grade-appropriate texts using various reasoning skills, including: identifying cause-effect relationships, raising questions, reasoning inductively and deductively, generating a theory or hypothesis, and distinguishing facts from opinions and probability

Develop organized, coherent paragraphs that include the following: topic sentences, logical sequence, transitional words and phrases, appropriate closing sentences, and parallel construction where appropriate

Develop multiparagraph compositions organized with the following: a clearly stated central idea/thesis statement, a clear, overall structure that includes an introduction, a body, and an appropriate conclusion, supporting paragraphs appropriate to the topic organized in a logical sequence (e.g., spatial order, order of importance, ascending/descending order, chronological order, parallel construction), and transitional words and phrases that unify throughout

Develop complex compositions on student- or teacher-selected topics that are suited to an identified audience and purpose and that include the following: word choices appropriate to the identified audience and/or purpose, vocabulary selected to clarify meaning, create images, and set a tone, information/ideas selected to engage the interest of the reader, and clear voice (individual personality)

Develop complex compositions using writing processes, including: selecting topic and form, determining purpose and audience, prewriting (e.g., brainstorming, clustering, outlining, generating main idea/thesis statements), drafting, conferencing (e.g., with peers and teachers), revising for content and structure based on feedback, proofreading/editing to improve conventions of language, and publishing using technology

Use all modes to write complex compositions, including: comparison/contrast of ideas and information in reading materials or current issues, literary analyses that compare and contrast multiple texts, and editorials on current affairs

Develop writing using a variety of complex literary and rhetorical devices, including imagery and the rhetorical question

Develop individual writing style that includes the following: a variety of sentence structures (e.g., parallel or repetitive) and lengths, diction selected to create a tone and set a mood, and selected vocabulary and phrasing that reflect the character and temperament (voice) of the writer

Write for various purposes, including: formal and business letters, such as letters of complaint and requests for information, letters to the editor, job applications, and text-supported interpretations that connect life experiences to works of literature

Apply standard rules of sentence formation, avoiding common errors, such as: fragments, run-on sentences, and syntax problems

Apply standard rules of mechanics, including: using commas to set off appositives or parenthetical phrases, using quotation marks to set off titles of short works, using colons preceding a list and after a salutation in a business letter, and using appropriate capitalization, including names of political and ethnic groups, religions, and continents

Use correct spelling conventions when writing and editing

Listen to detailed oral instructions and presentations and carry out complex procedures, including: taking accurate notes, writing summaries or responses, and forming groups

Use active listening strategies, including: onitoring message for clarity, selecting and organizing essential information, noting cues such as changes in pace, and generating and asking questions concerning a speaker's content, delivery, and attitude toward the subject

Analyze media information in oral and written responses, including: comparing and contrasting the ways in which print and broadcast media cover the same event, evaluating media messages for clarity, quality, effectiveness, motive, and coherence, and listening to and critiquing audio/video presentations

Locate, analyze, and synthesize information from grade-appropriate resources, including: multiple printed texts (e.g., encyclopedias, atlases, library catalogs, specialized dictionaries, almanacs, technical encyclopedias, and periodicals), electronic sources (e.g., Web sites and databases), and other media sources (e.g., community and government data, television and radio resources, and other audio and visual materials)