ENL 1W

English, Grade 9

Start your high school journey by mastering the art of digital storytelling. Grade 9 English at Asynchronous Academy moves beyond standard rote worksheets. Here, you'll develop vital, foundational reading and writing skills by diving into real-world communication projects. From analyzing how Indigenous influencers shape modern culture to writing contemporary fables and drafting your first multimedia social media plans, you'll practice using modern digital tools to make your voice heard. It's about building confidence, structure, and media literacy for the digital age.

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BSID 665288 (Inspected by Ontario Ministry of Education)

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Reference Materials Essential technical details, policies, templates, and support guides for navigating the course.

Course Outline

Technical details about the course, including assignment weights and course policies.

File Formats

Reference guide for acceptable file formats and tools for completing coursework.

Teacher Support

Chat with a teacher or attend a Teacher Time meeting on your Account page.

AI & LLMS Explore the ethical implications and practical applications of generative AI in education and writing.

How is Async Academy Different?

Get introduced to the unique style of learning here. Discover how setting your own goals drives your education forward.

Learning Goals:

Plan and reflect on my creative process to set meaningful goals for improvement.
Use digital tools, like AI and video editors, to create informative and engaging content that reflects your digital identity.

Assessment for Learning

Expectations Covered:

A1 A2 B1 C3 D1 D2 D3

AI & Piracy

Start thinking about the ethics of digital content creation. Learn the basics of what it means to be a responsible digital citizen.

Learning Goals:

Critically evaluate online sources for credibility, purpose, and potential bias
Create persuasive media using styles and techniques designed to influence an audience
Use revision strategies to ensure a clear, impactful message

Assessment for Learning

Expectations Covered:

A2 B2 C1 C2 D2 D3

AI in Schools

Explore the ways AI can help you brainstorm and organize your thoughts. Understand the tools available to support your academic journey.

Learning Goals:

Plan our writing by researching ideas and organizing them logically to suit our purpose and audience.
Communicate clearly in writing using a professional voice, tone, and vocabulary appropriate for a personal essay.
Connect our personal goals to future opportunities by analyzing how AI can help develop valuable skills.

Assessment of Learning

Expectations Covered:

A3 B1 B2 C2 D1 D2

Storytelling Develop foundational reading, writing, and analytical skills by deconstructing and composing culturally-significant narratives.

Culturally-Significant Stories

Explore traditional tales from diverse backgrounds to see how stories shape culture. Identify common structural elements across different traditions.

Learning Goals:

Analyze how form and cultural context shape meaning in stories.
Develop and express complex ideas through planning, scripting, and revising.
Use transferable skills like critical thinking and communication to create an effective final product.

Assessment for Learning

Expectations Covered:

Making Yourself Heard

Learn the foundational elements of crafting a compelling narrative. Practice sharing your personal stories with confidence.

Learning Goals:

Analyze effective media by deconstructing how creators use video techniques to influence an audience.
Communicate effectively on camera by using a variety of oral and non-verbal techniques to engage viewers.
Use video production tools purposefully to create a specific effect and clearly convey a message.

Assessment for Learning

Expectations Covered:

Modern Folk Tale

Write your own contemporary fable that addresses a current societal issue. Apply the classic storytelling structures learned previously.

Learning Goals:

Write a purposeful story using a voice, style, and tone appropriate for a young audience.
Use digital tools ethically and effectively to support the creative process.
Reflect on the creative process to evaluate the effectiveness of strategies and tools.

Assessment of Learning

Expectations Covered:

OSSLT Preparation Prepare for the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test through targeted diagnostic and mock assessments.

OSSLT Module 2: Reading & Short Writing

Develop advanced scanning and skimming reading strategies to extract implicit detail. Practice the APE (Answer-Prove-Explain) short-writing method and record a video tutorial explaining the strategy.

Learning Goals:

Extract specific details and implicit information from a variety of informational texts
Construct concise, evidence-based responses using the APE method

Assessment as Learning

OSSLT Module 3: News Report Mastery

Master the structure of the news report. Deconstruct headlines in Canva, draft a formal 250-word objective news report using the Inverted Pyramid structure, and partner with AI to eliminate personal bias.

Learning Goals:

Deconstruct a headline and image to identify the 5 Ws and organize ideas
Write an objective news report using a formal third-person point of view

Assessment as Learning

OSSLT Module 4: Opinion Essay Workshop

Structure persuasive arguments using the 'Hamburger Structure'. Plan your points, play 'Devil's Advocate' with AI to stress-test your logic, and draft a high-impact, multi-paragraph opinion essay.

Learning Goals:

Develop a clear, well-supported position on a controversial prompt with three distinct reasons
Organize persuasive paragraphs logically using professional transition words

Assessment as Learning

Social Media Profiles Analyze audience engagement strategies and draft a multimedia plan to launch your digital content.

What Makes a Good Profile?

Analyze popular social media accounts by Indigenous creators using an Indigenous Storywork lens. Identify visual, textual, and cultural communication strategies, and establish personal goals for your own content.

Learning Goals:

Analyze creator techniques used to suit purpose and audience, focusing on Indigenous content creators
Apply an Indigenous Storywork lens to understand relationships, contexts, and cultural themes in media texts
Demonstrate safe, respectful, and responsible digital citizenship when engaging with diverse voices online
Establish personal presentation, content writing, and video production goals for upcoming projects

Assessment for Learning

Expectations Covered:

Social Media Plan

Draft a simple blueprint for a fictional or real social media presence. Begin practicing the organization required for consistent content creation.

Learning Goals:

Plan and organize ideas for different audiences and purposes.
Adapt a core message for different digital media platforms and formats.
Use digital tools and communication strategies to build a positive online presence.

Assessment for Learning

Expectations Covered:

Creating Your Content

Take your first steps into multimedia production by executing your plan. Focus on clear communication and basic technical execution.

Learning Goals:

Use a pre-production plan to create engaging and purposeful digital content.
Apply platform-specific conventions to communicate effectively to different audiences.
Reflect on the creative process to identify specific steps for skill improvement.

Assessment of Learning

Expectations Covered:

Writing for the Screen Dissect the anatomy of screenwriting, dramatic structure, and cinematic visual storytelling techniques.

Choosing A Screenplay

Select a script that interests you to begin a foundational study of dramatic structure. Learn how to read formatting conventions used in the industry.

Learning Goals:

Use various comprehension strategies to make sense of new and complex texts.
Analyze texts to identify specific techniques we can apply to our creative work.
Evaluate how different reading strategies impact our understanding and help us achieve our learning goals.

Assessment for Learning

Expectations Covered:

Film Analysis

Watch and dissect a film to understand visual storytelling techniques. Practice identifying themes, character motivations, and director choices.

Learning Goals:

Analyze how adaptation across media impacts message and intended audience.
Identify perspectives and biases in a media text and evaluate how they are communicated.
Evaluate professional media using personal goals as a lens.

Assessment for Learning

Expectations Covered:

Your Masterpiece

Create a final creative project that synthesizes your newly developed skills. Focus on producing clear, engaging, and well-structured communication.

Learning Goals:

Manage the creative process of adapting a complex narrative into a concise short-form series.
Use writing, performance, and production techniques to communicate a story to a specific audience.
Make intentional choices about point of view and word choice to shape a narrative for a new format.

Assessment of Learning

Expectations Covered:

A2 B1 C1 C2 D1 D2 D3

Portfolio & Exam Task Compile your course deliverables, reflect on your learning journey, and complete your final exam.

Portfolio

Gather your foundational assignments into a single collection. Reflect on your initial progress in reading, writing, and digital media.

Learning Goals:

Evaluate growth as a communicator by reflecting on a collection of work.
Analyze strategies and tools that supported learning most effectively.
Synthesize learning to set meaningful and achievable future goals.

Assessment as Learning

Expectations Covered:

Exam Task

Demonstrate the fundamental reading and writing skills you have acquired. Complete a comprehensive assessment to conclude the course.

Learning Goals:

Analyze communication requirements of different professions.
Apply a range of communication skills to tasks related to potential career paths.
Synthesize personal strengths and growth areas to inform future goals.

Assessment of Learning

Expectations Covered: