Language Arts/English Curriculum Frameworks - Albemarle County ...

• RAFT papers – Teachers structure writing assignments using RAFT, by identifying the Role of the
writer; the Audience; the Format of the writing assignment; and the Topic + strong verb (i.e.,
describe; request; explain).
• School Paper (i.e., 5-paragraph essay)
• Framed Paragraph – The teacher creates a framed paragraph by providing the topic and concluding
sentence with transitions between sentences. Students complete the framed paragraph by
providing details.
Word Study
Although most closely associated with spelling, Word Study is defined as the study of phonemic
awareness, letter recognition, phonics, spelling, and vocabulary development. While it is based
on the developmental spelling level of the student, it is still a method of instruction where the explicit
teaching of spelling features of words at the student’s instructional level takes place. It is impossible to
overemphasize the connection between spelling development and reading development. Word Study in
the classroom joins the reading instruction to give children tools for decoding words and provides a
growing vocabulary of words that children are expected to spell correctly in written work. Teachers hold
students accountable for correctly using features that have been taught. Effective and explicit instruction
in orthography (spelling) contributes significantly to student reading and writing fluency.
© ASPIRE K-12, Albemarle County Public Schools, 2003
Appendix B
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