Curriculum Map

English Language Arts

Build critical reading, analytical writing, and research skills through engaging literary and informational texts. Covers literary analysis, argument construction, grammar, vocabulary, and media literacy. TEKS §110.23 aligned.

14 Units

Early Units (Foundation)

Building Skills

Advanced Concepts

Capstone/Synthesis

How to Read Like a Detective

Master active reading strategies that transform you from a passive page-turner into a sharp, questioning reader.

3-4 days

The Architecture of Stories

Discover the structural elements every story is built from — plot, character, setting, and point of view — and learn to see how authors engineer them.

3-4 days

Reading Between the Lines

Learn to analyze literature like a critic — identifying theme, symbolism, figurative language, and irony beneath the surface of any text.

3-4 days

The Power of Poetry

Explore poetry as a concentrated form of language power — learning to read, analyze, and write poems that make words do more than they should be able to.

3-4 days

Reading Nonfiction Critically

Build the skills to read nonfiction like a skeptic — identifying main ideas, evaluating evidence, and detecting bias in articles, essays, speeches, and reports.

3-4 days

The Art of Argument

Learn to evaluate arguments by examining claims, evidence, and reasoning — and spot the logical fallacies that derail even the most confident-sounding arguments.

3-4 days

The Writing Process: From Brainstorm to Final Draft

Master the five-stage writing process and learn why messy drafts are not failures — they are how every great piece of writing gets made.

3-4 days

Writing Stories That Matter

Master narrative structure, sensory details, dialogue, and character voice to write stories that stick with readers long after they finish.

3-4 days

Explaining Complex Ideas Clearly

Learn to write clear, well-organized explanations that help readers understand difficult ideas. Thesis statements, evidence, analysis, and transitions are your tools.

3-4 days

Writing to Convince

Learn to construct arguments that persuade. Claim, evidence, warrant, counterarguments — and the difference between manipulation and honest persuasion.

3-4 days

Grammar and Mechanics: The Rules That Make You Clear

Master the sentence structures, agreements, and punctuation rules that are the backbone of clear writing. Grammar is not about being fancy — it is about being understood.

3-4 days

Vocabulary: Words in the Wild

Expand your vocabulary by learning to recognize context clues, understand word parts, and distinguish connotation from denotation. Words are tools; the more you have, the more you can build.

3-4 days

Research: Finding and Using Information

Learn to ask good research questions, find reliable sources, evaluate information critically, and give credit where it is due. Research is detective work.

3-4 days

Media Literacy: Reading the World Around You

Understand how media messages are constructed, spot bias and persuasion techniques, analyze visual rhetoric, and practice digital citizenship in an age of information.

3-4 days

Learning Progression

This course is designed to be taken sequentially. Earlier units establish foundational concepts that later units build upon. While you can explore units in any order, following the numbered sequence provides the most coherent learning experience.