Students participate in a mock trial, defending or dismantling an author's argument based on the quality of their evidence.
A culminating week where students compile their work into a portfolio and perform a 'Final Verse' for their peers.
Teaching students that poems can tell stories. Students will read and write short narrative verses about everyday events.
Exploring the emotional side of poetry. Students will identify how a poem makes them feel and what 'vibes' the author is sending.
Helping students find the 'big idea' or lesson in a poem. Students will identify simple themes like bravery, friendship, and change.
Exploring how poems can make objects act like people (personification) and how words can sound like their meanings (onomatopoeia).
Introducing similes and metaphors as "secret comparisons." Students will use simple 'like' and 'as' structures to describe themselves and their world.
Focuses on building mental pictures using the five senses. Students will explore how simple words can describe smells, sights, and sounds in an urban or relatable environment.
An introduction to the rhythm and 'beat' of poetry. Students will learn to identify the steady pulse in verse and practice simple rhyme schemes using accessible vocabulary.
Combining prefixes, roots, and suffixes to decode complex multi-syllabic academic words.
Mastering Latin roots commonly found in academic literature and formal writing.
Identifying and defining core Greek roots that form the foundation of scientific and technical vocabulary.
Exploring high-frequency academic suffixes and their role in determining a word's part of speech.
Introduction to common academic prefixes and how they modify the meaning of base words.
Focus on the root 'TRACT' (to pull) and a final review of the Word Alchemist principles.
Focus on the root 'AUD' (to hear) and words related to sound and listening.
Focus on the roots 'VIS' and 'VID' (to see) and their distinction from 'SPECT'.
Focus on the roots 'SCRIBE' and 'SCRIPT' (to write) and their presence in modern documentation.
Focus on the root 'PORT' (to carry) and its role in movement and trade vocabulary.
Focus on the root 'JECT' (to throw) and how it creates dynamic action words.
Focus on the root 'STRUCT' (to build) and prefixes that change the direction or nature of building.
Focus on the root 'DICT' (to speak) and common suffixes used for speech and action.
Focus on the root 'SPECT' (to look/see) with prefixes like in-, pro-, and re-.
An introduction to the three main components of words: prefixes, roots, and suffixes, setting the stage for the 'Linguistic Laboratory' theme.
A lesson focused on identifying theme by collecting evidence, identifying topics, and synthesizing life lessons.
A lesson focused on identifying and mapping non-fiction text structures to improve reading comprehension and writing organization. Students will learn to see the 'skeleton' of informational texts through architectural-themed visual mapping.
A rigorous assessment focusing on modern literary analysis and thematic synthesis. Students explore grit, struggle, and empathy through contemporary prose and poetry from diverse perspectives.
