What’s included in our Grades 3–5 language arts curriculum

Unit 1

Classic Tales: The Wind in the Willows

Students explore international classic tales, including The Wind in the Willows, Alice in Wonderland, and “Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp.”

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 2

Animal Classification

Students learn how scientists use animals’ characteristics to classify and study them; students apply knowledge through text-based discussions and writing exercises.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 3

The Human Body: Systems and Senses

This unit involves the study of the human body, building students’ understanding of its senses and skeletal, muscular, and nervous systems.

Number of Lessons: 14

Unit 4

The Ancient Roman Civilization

Students dive into ancient Rome, studying its history, culture, and myths about Roman gods and goddesses.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 5

Light and Sound

Students learn the science behind light and sound, read biographies of Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison, and write newspaper articles.

Number of Lessons: 17

Unit 6

The Viking Age (with Core Quest)

This unit’s informational and literary texts convey information about the Vikings, their culture, and their exploration.

Number of Lessons: 11

Unit 7

Astronomy: Our Solar System and Beyond

Students learn about astronomy, the universe, and important figures in the history of space exploration, including Nicolaus Copernicus and Mae Jemison.

Number of Lessons: 20

Unit 8

Native Americans: Regions and Cultures

Students compare, contrast, assemble information, and reflect on what they have learned about Native Americans and their ways of life.

Number of Lessons: 13

Unit 9

Early Explorations of North America

Students explore reasons for European exploration, what exploration was like, and who went exploring; then students write opinion pieces using this information.

Number of Lessons: 14

Unit 10

Colonial America

Students learn about colonies in early America, including how colonies were started and the progress colonists made after settling.

Number of Lessons: 16

Unit 11

Ecology

Students learn about different aspects of ecology, including food chains, the balance of nature, changes to the environment, and protecting the environment.

Number of Lessons: 12

Unit 1

Personal Narratives

This unit examines the genre of personal narratives, including nonfiction works written by a first-person narrator involved in the events being described.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 2

Empires in the Middle Ages

This unit covers the history of various empires and geographical regions throughout the Middle Ages.

Number of Lessons: 25

Unit 3

Poetry

Students explore poetry, training in methods and devices poets use and learning to read, write, and interpret formal and free verse poems.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 4

Eureka! Student Inventor

This Core Quest, a narrative-driven unit, immerses students in close-reading adventures and scientific and historical content about inventions. Students write and read opinion, informational, and narrative texts.

Number of Lessons: 10

Unit 5

Geology

This unit focuses on the composition of Earth and the forces that change its surface.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 6

Contemporary Fiction with excerpts from The House on Mango Street

This unit explores narrative literature and writing, using excerpts from The House on Mango Street as its anchor text.

Number of Lessons: 13

Unit 7

American Revolution

Students learn that disagreements about principles of government led colonists in North America to seek independence from Great Britain.

Number of Lessons: 17

Unit 8

Treasure Island

Students focus on character development, setting, plot, and literary devices while reading an abridged version of a classic novel, Treasure Island.

Number of Lessons: 19

Unit 5

Writing Quest (supplemental): The Contraption

In this supplemental Quest, students interact with a mysterious machine fueled by their writing and solve the machine’s puzzles. This Quest features a digital environment controlled by the teacher.

Unit 1

Personal Narratives

This unit examines the genre of personal narratives, including nonfiction works written by a first-person narrator involved in the events being described.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 2

Early American Civilizations

Students study the geography, climate, flora, and fauna of the Americas and the rise and fall of the Maya, Aztec, and Inca civilizations.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 3

Poetry

Students explore poetry, training in methods and devices poets use and learning to read, write, and interpret formal and free verse poems.

Number of Lessons: 13

Unit 4

Adventures of Don Quixote

In this unit students trace the development of plot, characters, and literary elements while reading a full-length, adapted version of Don Quixote.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 5

The Renaissance

This unit provides students with a broad exposure to the art and literature of the Renaissance through the works of renowned masters.

Number of Lessons: 19

Unit 6

The Reformation

This unit teaches students about the Reformation, a movement involving religious and political upheaval that shifted the political power in Europe.

Number of Lessons: 10

Unit 7

A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Core Quest)

This unit is an immersive Quest that treats Shakespeare’s comedy as both literature and a living text for interpretation and performance.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 8

Native Americans

Students learn how settlers, explorers, and the American government in the 1800s affected Native American cultures and their relationship with the land.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 9

Chemical Matter

Students learn about chemistry and close-reading through a literary and informational work, The Badlands Sleuth, in which the protagonist uses chemistry to solve mysteries.

Number of Lessons: 15

Unit 10

Writing Quest (supplemental): The Robot

Students interact with a classroom pet that learns and grows with their writing. This Quest features a digital environment controlled by the teacher.