Language arts elements are woven throughout the City Academy curriculum. Students’ ability to master and refine fluency, deepen reading comprehension skills, develop literary analysis and critical thinking skills are engineered through practice and projects specifically designed to draw attention to these skills.

 

The writing curriculum encompasses the teaching of writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. Students develop different skills and techniques that can be employed for a variety writing of purposes including narrative, descriptive, creative, expository and persuasive writing. City Academy employs the Step-Up-To-Writing and 6+1 Writing Traits approach to help students understand that writers use a process in order to produce well-crafted pieces of writing. The writing process includes prewriting, drafting, sharing, revising, and editing in order to produce a final published piece.

The acquisition of an expansive vocabulary is critical to the development of a strong reader and writer. The language arts curriculum is designed to help students improve their vocabulary skills using age-appropriate approaches. Spelling is introduced to students using Words Their Way with a separate vocabulary method utilizing the textbook Wordly Wise.