First Grade Curriculum
English - Language Arts

 

The language arts curriculum provides systematic, explicit skills instruction that includes phonemic awareness (sounds in spoken words), phonics and decoding skills. Literature and language-rich activities ensure that all students develop the skills to become fluent readers, writers, listeners, speakers, and thinkers. Some examples of specific concepts and skills which students are to master are provided in the topic areas listed below:


READING:

Phonemic Awareness (sounds in spoken words)

  • rhyme, blend and segment sounds in spoken words

Phonics, Decoding, and Word Recognition

  • produce the sounds for letters and letter patterns, including consonant blends and long and short-vowels
  • segment words into sounds and blend sounds to read words
  • produce words that begin and end with the same consonant sound
  • use phonics knowledge to decode unknown words
  • read common, irregular sight words (e.g., the, have, said, come, give, of)
  • read common word families (e.g., -ite, -ill, -ate)
  • read compound words and contractions

Comprehension

  • answer who, what, when, where and how questions about text
  • summarize the main ideas of simple expository and narrative passages
  • describe the plot, setting and characters of a story including the story’s beginning, middle, and ending
  • make and confirm predictions about text
  • follow one-step written instructions

Fluency

  • read numerous books to build fluency and comprehension
  • read a grade level selection orally

WRITING:

Application

  • write clear and coherent sentences and stories
  • write compositions that describe and explain familiar events and experiences

Capitalization, Punctuation and Grammar

  • identify and correctly use singular and plural nouns
  • capitalize the first word of a sentence, proper nouns and the pronoun “I”
  • use period, exclamation point, or question mark

Spelling

  • spell assigned words correctly
  • spell three and four-letter short-vowel words and spell other high frequency sight words correctly
  • apply spelling skills in written work

Penmanship

  • write legibly with appropriate spacing for letters, words and sentences
  • form letters and numerals correctly
  • write neatly in daily work

LISTENING AND SPEAKING:

  • listen attentively
  • give, restate and follow two-step directions
  • speak audibly in complete sentences
  • deliver brief recitations and oral presentations
  • stay on topic, when speaking
  • recite poems, rhymes, songs and stories
  • retells stories, sequencing story events by answering who, what, why, when, and how
  • relate an experience in a logical sequence