Grade 8

Viewing Standards for Literature

Viewing Standards for Informational Text

Standards for Published Signing

Discourse and Presentation Standards

Language Standards

Fingerspelling and Fingerreading Standards

Key Ideas and Details

Craft and Structure

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

Range of Viewing and Level of Text Complexity

Key Ideas and Details

Craft and Structure

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

Range of Viewing and Level of Text Complexity

Text Types and Purposes

Production and Distribution of Published Signing

Research to Build and Present Knowledge

Range of Signing

Comprehension and Collaboration

Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas

Structure of American Sign Language

Knowledge of Language

Vocabulary Acquisition and Use

Key Ideas

Initialized and Lexicalized Forms

Vocabulary Acquisition and Use

Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide an objective summary of the text.

Analyze how particular elements of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision.

Determine the meaning of signs and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of specific sign choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.

Compare and contrast the structure of two or more texts and analyze how the differing structure of each text contributes to its meaning and style.

Analyze how differences in the points of view of the characters and the audience or viewer (e.g., created through the use of dramatic irony) create such effects as suspense or humor.

Analyze the extent to which a filmed or live production of a story or drama stays faithful to or departs from the text or script, evaluating the choices made by the director or actors.

(Not applicable to literature.)

Analyze how a modern work of fiction draws on themes, patterns of events, or character types from myths, traditional stories, or religious works describing how the material is rendered new.

By the end of the year, view and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, at the high end of grades 6-8 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to supporting ideas; provide an objective summary of the text.

Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories).

Determine the meaning of signs and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of specific sign choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.

Analyze in detail the structure of a specific paragraph in a text, including the role of particular sentences in developing and refining a key concept.

Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author acknowledges and responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints.

Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using different mediums (e.g., published text or digital sources, video, multimedia) to present a particular topic or idea.

Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is solid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; recognize when irrelevant evidence is introduced.

Analyze a case in which two or more texts provide conflicting information on the same topic and identify where the texts disagree on matters of fact or interpretation.

By the end of the year, view and comprehend literary nonfiction at the high end of the grades 6-8 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

Sign arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.

Sign informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.

Sign narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.

Produce clear and coherent signing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for signing types are defined in standards 1-3 above.)

With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen signing as needed by planning, revising, editing, re-signing, or trying a new approach, focusing on how well purpose and audience have been addressed. (Editing for structure should demonstrate command of Language standards 1-3.)

Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish signing and present the relationships between information and ideas efficiently as well as to interact and collaborate with others, including linking to and citing sources

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.

Gather relevant information from multiple published 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.

Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

Sign routinely over extended time frames (e.g., time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (e.g., a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of disciplinespecific tasks, purposes, and audiences.

Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (e.g., one-on-one, in groups, teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 8 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

Analyze the purpose of information presented in diverse media and formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) and evaluate the motives (e.g., social, commercial, political) behind its presentation.

Delineate a signer’s argument and specific claims, evaluating the strength of the reasoning and relevance and sufficiency of the evidence and identifying when irrelevant evidence is introduced.

Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with relevant evidence, valid reasoning, and well-chosen details; use appropriate eye contact, appropriate signing space, and clear production.

Integrate multimedia and visual displays into presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and evidence, and add interest.

Adapt signs to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal ASL when indicated or appropriate. (See grade 8 Language standards for specific expectations.)

Demonstrate command of the standard ASL grammar and usage when signing (live and published).

Use knowledge of language and its structure when signing and viewing (live and published).

Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiplemeaning signs, fingerspelled words, spatial use, and phrases based on grade 8 viewing and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.

Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, sign relationships, and nuances in sign meanings.

Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific signs, fingerspelled words, and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering signs, fingerspelled words, or phrases important to comprehension or expression.

Understand that fingerspelling is used for various purposes, formally and informally.

Demonstrate understanding of initialized and lexicalized forms of fingerspelled words.

Know and apply grade-level parameters and sign analysis skills in decoding signs both in isolation and in context.

Introduce claim(s), acknowledge and distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims, and organize the reasons and evidence logically.

Support claim(s) with logical reasoning and relevant evidence, using accurate, credible sources and demonstrating an understanding of the topic or text.

Use words, phrases, depiction, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence.

Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument presented.

Establish and maintain a formal style.

Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information into broader categories; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.

Develop the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.

Use appropriate and varied transitions to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts.

Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic.

Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the information or explanation presented.

Establish and maintain a formal style.

Engage and orient the viewer by establishing a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.

Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, and reflection, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.

Use a variety of transition signs, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence, signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another, and show the relationships among experiences and events.

Use precise signs, depiction, and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.

Provide a conclusion that follows from and reflects on the narrated experiences or events.

Apply grade 8 Viewing 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.”).

Apply grade 8 Viewing standards to literary nonfiction (e.g., “Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is solid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; recognize when irrelevant evidence is introduced.”)

Come to discussions prepared, having viewed or researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence on the topic, text, or issue to probe and reflect on ideas under discussion.

Follow rules for collegial discussions and decision-making, track progress toward specific goals and deadlines, and define individual roles as needed.

Pose questions that connect the ideas of several speakers and respond to others’ questions and comments with relevant evidence, observations, and ideas.

Acknowledge new information expressed by others, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views in light of the evidence presented.

Vary sentence patterns for meaning, viewer interest, and style.

Fingerspell correctly and use a chaining approach when introducing new academic signs.

Use context (e.g., cause/effect relationships and comparisons in text) as a clue to the meaning of a sign, fingerspelled word, classifier, or phrase.

Consult general and specialized reference materials (e.g., general dictionaries and content-specific references), both print and digital, to determine and clarify its meaning.

Verify the meaning of a sign, depiction, or phrase (e.g., by checking the inferred meaning in context or other accessible resource).

Interpret figurative language in context.

Use relationships between particular sign choices to better understand each of the concepts/signs.

Distinguish among the connotations (associations) of signs with similar denotations (definitions).

Use common, phonology awareness as clues to the meaning of a word.

Use fingerspelled words for emphasis though pacing, chunking, and/or spatial.

Use fingerspelled words when there are no sign equivalents.

Connect initialized forms and alphabet letters to their equivalent in English.

Use signs compounded with signs and lexicalized fingerspelling.

Recognize that some words are fingerspelled due to domain-specific definition.