Course Description
This course emphasizes the development of literacy, communication, and critical and creative thinking skills necessary for success in academic and daily life. Students will analyze challenging literary texts from various periods, countries, and cultures, as well as a range of informational and graphic texts, and create oral, written, and media texts in a variety of form. An important focus will be on using language, with precision and clarity and incorporating stylistic devices appropriately and effectively. The course is intended to prepare students for the compulsory Grade 12 university or college preparation course.
Curricular Expectations
Strand 1: ORAL COMMUNICATION OVERALL EXPECTATIONS By the end of this course, students will:
Listening to Understand: listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes;
Speaking to Communicate: use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes;
Reflecting on Skills and Strategies: reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
Strand 2: READING AND LITERATURE STUDIES OVERALL EXPECTATIONS By the end of this course, students will:
Reading for Meaning: read and demonstrate an understanding of a variety of literary, informational, and graphic texts, using a range of strategies to construct meaning;
Understanding Form and Style: recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning;
Reading with Fluency: use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently;
Reflecting on Skills and Strategies: reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.
Strand 3: WRITING OVERALL EXPECTATIONS By the end of this course, students will:
Developing and Organizing Content: generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience;
Using Knowledge of Form and Style: draft and revise their writing, using a variety of literary, informational, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the purpose and audience;
Applying Knowledge of Conventions: use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively;
Reflecting on Skills and Strategies: reflect on and identify their strengths as writers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful at different stages in the writing process.
Strand 4: MEDIA STUDIES OVERALL EXPECTATIONS By the end of this course, students will:
Understanding Media Texts: demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts;
Understanding Media Forms, Conventions, and Techniques: identify some media forms and explain how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning;
Creating Media Texts: create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques;
Reflecting on Skills and Strategies: reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
Course Content Units, Unit titles, sequence of Delivery and duration
Unit 1
Non-Fiction
25 hours
Unit 2
Novel Study
30 hours
Unit 3
Poetry
20 hours
Unit 4
Drama Study
30 hours
Unit 5
Independent Study
5 hours