Grade 7 English Language Arts: how to help at home
What your child learns in Grade 7 english language arts in the Ontario Curriculum, and simple things to try at home.
The Big Ideas this year
- A1 Transferable Skills: Demonstrate an understanding of how the seven transferable skills (critical thinking and problem solving; innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship; self-directed learning; collaboration; communication; global citizenship and sustainability; and digital literacy) are used in various language and literacy contexts
- A2 Digital Media Literacy: Demonstrate and apply the knowledge and skills needed to interact safely and responsibly in online environments, use digital and media tools to construct knowledge, and demonstrate learning as critical consumers and creators of media
- A3 Applications, Connections, and Contributions: Apply language and literacy skills in cross-curricular and integrated learning, and demonstrate an understanding of, and make connections to, diverse voices, experiences, perspectives, histories, and contributions, including those of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit individuals, communities, groups, and nations
- B1 Oral and Non-Verbal Communication: Apply listening, speaking, and non-verbal communication skills and strategies to understand and communicate meaning in formal and informal contexts and for various purposes and audiences
- B2 Language Foundations for Reading and Writing: Demonstrate an understanding of foundational language knowledge and skills, and apply this understanding when reading and writing
- B3 Language Conventions for Reading and Writing: Demonstrate an understanding of sentence structure, grammar, cohesive ties, and capitalization and punctuation, and apply this knowledge when reading and writing sentences, paragraphs, and a variety of texts
- C1 Knowledge about Texts: Apply foundational knowledge and skills to understand a variety of texts, including digital and media texts, by creators with diverse identities, perspectives, and experience, and demonstrate an understanding of the patterns, features, and elements of style associated with various text forms and genres
- C2 Comprehension Strategies: Apply comprehension strategies before, during, and after reading, listening to, and viewing a variety of texts, including digital and media texts, by creators with diverse identities, perspectives, and experience, in order to understand and clarify the meaning of texts
- C3 Critical Thinking in Literacy: Apply critical thinking skills to deepen understanding of texts, and analyze how various perspectives and topics are communicated and addressed in a variety of texts, including digital, media, and cultural texts
- D1 Developing Ideas and Organizing Content: Plan, develop ideas, gather information, and organize content for creating texts of various forms, including digital and media texts, on a variety of topics
- D2 Creating Texts: Apply knowledge and understanding of various text forms and genres to create, revise, edit, and proofread their own texts, using a variety of media, tools, and strategies, and reflect critically on created texts
- D3 Publishing, Presenting, and Reflecting: Select suitable and effective media, techniques, and tools to publish and present final texts, and critically analyze how well the texts address various topics
Easy ways to practise english language arts at home
- Read what they are interested in: graphic novels, sports pages, series. Then talk about it.
- Ask for the main idea and one piece of evidence from the text.
- Have them write real messages: a thank-you note, a short review, a note to a relative.
- Read their writing aloud to them; they often spot their own mistakes by ear.
What each unit covers
Clauses & Sentences
Finding independent and dependent clauses, naming the four sentence types, and fixing fragments, run-ons and comma splices, the building blocks of varied, clear sentences.
Grammar Gears
Finding the person who receives something (indirect object), words after linking verbs that rename or describe the subject, -ing and -ed describing words (participles), and phrases that tell when, where, how or why.
Modifiers & Parallelism
Revising sentences so describing phrases sit next to what they describe (no misplaced or dangling modifiers) and list items match in form (parallel structure).
Punctuation Power
Using a colon before a quotation, a semicolon with words like however and therefore, and ellipses or dashes to show a pause, an omission or a break.
Semicolons, Colons & Dashes
Using semicolons to join related sentences and separate complex lists, colons to introduce lists and explanations, and dashes to add emphasis or interruptions.
Close Reading
Reading original stories, arguments and informational passages, then identifying theme and main idea, making inferences, spotting claims and counterarguments, and explaining why an author made certain choices.
Whose Story?
Telling first, second and third person apart, finding the clues, and imagining how a different narrator would change the story.
Literary Devices
Recognizing the tools writers use: figurative language, foreshadowing, flashback, symbolism and the three kinds of irony (verbal, situational and dramatic), plus the parts of a plot.
Tone & Mood
Telling the writer's attitude (tone) apart from the reader's feeling (mood), and seeing how word choice and connotation shape both.
Patterns & Features
Spotting causes and effects, using signal words, and explaining why features like a bibliography, index or clear fonts help readers.
Persuasive Power
Identifying appeals to credibility, emotion and logic; spotting weak reasoning like bandwagon, false cause and slippery slope; and judging which evidence and rebuttals are strongest.
Source Check
Researching responsibly: judging whether a source is trustworthy and current, noticing bias, separating fact from opinion, and giving credit through quotation, paraphrase and citation.
Poetry Lab
Reading short original poems to find rhyme schemes, count stanzas, identify the speaker, recognize forms like haiku, limerick and free verse, and interpret figurative language and theme.
What the report card levels look like at home
- Level 1
- Just getting started with this idea. Short, regular practice with lots of support helps most.
- Level 2
- Understands parts of it and is building confidence. Keep practising the tricky parts.
- Level 3
- Has it! Level 3 is the provincial standard. Mixed review now and then keeps it strong.
- Level 4
- Applies it confidently, even in new or harder situations. Try challenge mode and real-life problems.
Your child’s teacher decides the level on the report card. Read the Ontario report card guide.
Common questions
How can I help my Grade 7 child with english language arts?
Read what they are interested in: graphic novels, sports pages, series. Then talk about it. Ask for the main idea and one piece of evidence from the text. Keep sessions short, about 10 to 15 minutes, and stop on a success.
What does my child learn in Grade 7 english language arts in Ontario?
The Ontario Curriculum Grade 7 english language arts units include clauses & sentences, grammar gears, modifiers & parallelism, punctuation power, semicolons, colons & dashes, close reading.
Free printable Grade 7 english language arts practice sheet
Questions from every unit, with an answer key.