8th Grade ELA Targeted Standards
(W) Writing Strand
Cluster: Production and Distribution of Writing

ELA-08.W.06 Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and present the relationships between information and ideas efficiently as well as to interact and collaborate with others.

8th Grade ELA Targeted Standards
(W) Writing Strand
Cluster: Research to Build and Present Knowledge

ELA-08.W.07 Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question), drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.

“The Standard.” The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding any of the information and processes that were end-of-instruction expectations.

The student can

• develop her/her own primary or driving question for research based on content study or area of interest.
• develop need-to-know questions (or sub questions) that will help them answer their primary or driving question.
• access and evaluate credible and reliable sources from multiple print and digital sources.
• determine what path research needs to take in order to answer the driving question and understand when the original focus might need to change because of the information found. 
• draw evidence from what he/she has read to support research.
• integrate and synthesize information without plagiarizing.
• cite sources and weave information into his/her own work by paraphrasing, summarizing, or directly quoting source.
• write or present research answers to driving question.

The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding the simpler details and processes but exhibits major errors or omissions regarding the more complex ideas and processes (Score 3.0 content).

The student can

• develop his/her own driving question and sub-questions for research but it might be too broad or too specific for in-depth research.
• understand the criteria for selecting credible sources and can (a majority of the time), apply those criteria when finding own sources.
• stays on focus with research, but often cannot see when research should/could take a different path.
• draw evidence from what has been read, but not all evidence is relative or supportive of driving question.
• use information but is unable to blend or synthesize various sources to support a reason.
• generalize use of sources in a bibliography or reference page, but is not able to consistently cite sources appropriately within the paper or presentation.
• write or present research answers to driving question.

8th Grade ELA Targeted Standards
(W) Writing Strand
Cluster: Research to Build and Present Knowledge

ELA-08.W.08 Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.

8th Grade ELA Targeted Standards
(W) Writing Strand
Cluster: Research to Build and Present Knowledge

ELA-08.W.09 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

• a. Apply grade 8 Reading standards to literature (e.g., "Analyze how a modern work of fiction draws on themes, patterns of events, or character types from myths, traditional stories, or religious works such as the Bible, including describing how the material is rendered new"). 
• b. Apply grade 8 Reading standards to literary nonfiction (e.g., "Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; recognize when irrelevant evidence is introduced").

8th Grade ELA Targeted Standards
(W) Writing Strand
Cluster: Range of Writing

ELA-08.W.10 Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.

Strand (L)

Language

8th Grade ELA Targeted Standards
(L) Language Strand
Cluster: Conventions of Standard English

ELA-08.L.01 Within the context of authentic English writing and speaking ... 

Introduce:

a. Place phrases and clauses within a sentence, recognizing and correcting misplaced and dangling modifier

b. Recognize and correct vague pronouns (i.e. ones with unclear or ambiguous antecedents).

Practice:

c. Ensure pronoun-antecedent agreement.

d. Recognize variations from Standard English in their own and others’ writing and speaking, and identify and use strategies to improve expression in conventional language.

e. Explain the function of phrases and clauses in general and their function in specifics sentences.

f. Choose among simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences to signal differing relationships among ideas.

g. Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb tense.

h. Ensure that pronouns are in the proper case (subjective, objective, possessive).

i. Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in pronoun number and person.

j. Resolve issues of complex or contested usage, consulting reliable references as needed.

Demonstrate proficiency in:

k. Rearrange complete simple and compound sentences of a variety of lengths.

l. Use and describe verbals (gerunds, participles, infinitives) in general and their function in particular sentences.

m. Form and use verbs in the active and passive voice.

n. Order adjectives within sentences according to conventional patterns (e.g. a small red bag rather than a red small bag).

o. Explain the function of an adverb

p. Explain the function of coordinating conjunction.

q. Use coordinating and subordinating conjunctions.

In addition to Score 3.0, the student demonstrates in-depth inferences and applications regarding more complex material that go beyond end of instruction expectations.

• In his/her writing, the student can use verbals, effective voice, and consistent mood with stylistic flair to enhance meaning of work.

“The Standard.” The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding any of the information and processes that were end of instruction expectations.

The student can

·  draw conclusions about the purposeful use of verb tenses and forms, skillful use of voice, and contextual meaning of language.

·  explain how verbals affect or enhance the meaning of a passage.

·  use verbals in his/her writing to increase power of writing.

·  form and use verbs in active and passive voice.

·  recognize and correct inappropriate shifts and/or use in verb voice (passive/active) and mood.

·  form and use verbs in indicative, imperative, interrogative, conditional, and subjunctive mood.

The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding the simpler details and processes but exhibits major errors or omissions regarding the more complex ideas and processes (Score 3.0 content).

The student can

·  recognize verbals

·  identify gerunds, participles, infinitives

·  define verbals, gerunds, participles, infinitives, active voice, passive voice, indicative, imperative, interrogative, conditional, and subjunctive mood

·  identify sentences as active or passive

·  identify verbs in indicative, imperative, interrogative, conditional, and subjunctive mood

·  attempts to use verbals, active/passive voice, and various mood structures within writing, but with limited success.

8th Grade ELA Targeted Standards
(L) Language Strand
Cluster: Conventions of Standard English

ELA-08.L.02 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.

Introduce:

• a. Use punctuation (comma, ellipsis, dash) to indicate a pause or break.
• b. Use an ellipsis to indicate an omission.
• c. Spell correctly.

Practice:

• d. Spell grade-appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed and/or using spelling patterns and generalizations. (e.g., word families, position-based spelling, syllable patterns, ending rules, meaningful word parts)

Display proficiency in:

• e. Use a comma to separate coordinate adjectives (e.g., It was fascinating, enjoyable movie but not He word an old [,] green shirt). 

“The Standard.” The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding any of the information and processes that were end of instruction expectations.

The student consistently can:

•  determine when to use commas, ellipses, and dashes (among other punctuation marks).
  
•  use punctuation (comma, ellipsis, dash) to indicate a pause or break.
  
• use an ellipsis to indicate an omission.
  
• spell correctly.
  
• spell grade-appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed.
  
• use spelling patterns and generalizations. (e.g., word families, position-based spelling, syllable patterns, ending rules, meaningful word parts). 
  
• use a comma to separate coordinate adjectives (e.g., It was fascinating, enjoyable movie but not He word an old [,] green shirt). 
  
•  create written work that models grade-appropriate usage of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling (Capitalization: I, proper nouns, proper adjectives, and in sentences; Punctuation: end marks, quotation marks in dialogue, comma in a compound sentence, and items in series, apostrophes, ellipses, and dashes).
  

The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding the simpler details and processes but exhibits major errors or omissions regarding the more complex ideas and processes (Score 3.0 content).

The student can:

-recall the rules of punctuation and capitalization for standard English.

-recognize capitalization, punctuation, and spelling errors within a written work.

8th Grade ELA Targeted Standards
(L) Language Strand
Cluster: Vocabulary Acquisition and Use

ELA-08.L.06 Acquire and accurately use grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.

“The Standard.” The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding any of the information and processes that were end of instruction expectations.

The student can

• acquire and use vocabulary (using context, word parts, and/or consulting reference materials) to enhance reading comprehension.
• apply general academic and domain-specific words to reading, writing, and language.

The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding the simpler details and processes but exhibits major errors or omissions regarding the more complex ideas and processes (Score 3.0 content).

The student can

• identify or define the meaning of words by using context clues, word parts, or by consulting reference materials.
• define general academic and domain-specific words and phrases.

Strand (RI)

Reading Information

8th Grade ELA Targeted Standards
(RI) Reading Information Strand
Cluster: Key Ideas and Details

ELA-08.RI.01 Read closely to comprehend text

a. Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly.

b. Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports inferences drawn from the text.

c. Provide an objective summary of the text.

(Textual evidence may include graphs, chart, diagrams, maps, pictures as well as text.

“The Standard.” The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding any of the information and processes that were end of instruction expectations.

The student:

• reads closely and finds answers explicitly stated in text as well as answers that require an inference.
• analyzes an author’s words and determines the textual evidence that most strongly supports both explicit and inferential questions.

The student demonstrates no major errors or omissions regarding the simpler details and processes but exhibits major errors or omissions regarding the more complex ideas and processes (Score 3.0 content).

The student:

• recognizes or recalls specific terminology, such as: textual evidence, analyze, inference, explicit.
• defines textual evidence (“word for word” support).
• defines inference and explains how a reader uses textual evidence to reach a logical conclusion (“based on what I’ve read, it’s most likely true that …”).