Middle Level English Language Arts (ELA)

Grade 8

A Model Thematic Unit

Adventure and Adventurers

Unit Overview

Context(s): Social, Cultural, and Historical

Timeline: Approximately six weeks

Life offers us much opportunity for adventure and suspense. We can climb mountains, sail around the world, journey to faraway places, or travel through space. We can become explorers and adventurers. We can enjoy the challenge and overcome our fears and, with courage and determination, try something new. Sometimes we succeed and conquer. Other times we may fail to live up to the challenge but learn an unexpected lesson. The victories and the lessons remind us that all of life’s adventures must be kept in perspective.

The unit is organized around three focus questions with sample lessons and suggested resources included. Time allocations given are approximations only. Teachers can choose to spend more or less time on each lesson depending on the needs and interests of their students.

Note: Consider sharing with students and parents/guardians a unit overview, unit expectations, and overall grading plans for the unit. Highlight the key activities and resources that will be used with this unit.

Understanding: Real-life and fictional adventures and mysteries pique our interest and allow us to live through the experiences of others.

Focus Questions

  • Are you an adventurer? In what ways?
  • What makes an adventure? What are the defining moments in an adventure?
  • What are the qualities of real life adventurers?
  • What can we learn from our successes and our failures?
  • Questions students would like to explore:

English Language Arts Goals and Outcomes Overview [Grade 8]

Comprehend and Respond (CR). Students will extend their abilities to view, listen to, read, comprehend, and respond to a range of contemporary and traditional grade-level texts from First Nations, Métis, and other cultures in a variety of forms (oral, print, and other texts) for a variety of purposes including for learning, interest, and enjoyment.

CR8.1 View, listen to, read, comprehend, and respond to a variety of texts that address identity (e.g., Becoming Myself), social responsibility (e.g., In Search of Justice), and efficacy (e.g., Building a Better World).
CR8.2 Select and use appropriate strategies to construct meaning before (e.g., previewing and anticipating message), during (e.g., making inferences based on text and prior knowledge), and after (e.g., paraphrasing and summarizing) viewing, listening, and reading.
CR8.3 Use pragmatic (e.g., intended audience and tone), textual (e.g., how author organized text to achieve unity and coherence), syntactic (e.g., variety of sentence structures), semantic/lexical/morphological (e.g., imagery), graphophonic (e.g., stress, pitch, and juncture of a word), and other cues (e.g., layout and accompanying graphics) to construct and to confirm meaning.
CR8.4 View critically and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of visual and multimedia texts including videos, television broadcasts, informational presentations, dramatic presentations, websites, and news programs to locate and interpret key messages and details, to develop conclusions, opinions, and understanding, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the text.
CR8.5 Listen critically to understand, gather information, follow directions, form an opinion, and analyze oral presentations for diverse opinions, presenter’s point of view, values, and biases, stereotypes, or prejudices.
CR8.6 Read and demonstrate comprehension and interpretation of grade-appropriate texts including traditional and contemporary prose fiction, poetry, and plays from First Nations, Métis, and other cultures to evaluate the purpose, message, point of view, craft, values, and biases, stereotypes, or prejudices.
CR8.7 Read independently and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of information texts including understanding the main ideas and supporting evidence, explaining connections between new ideas and information and previous thoughts, and recognizing any biases or false reasoning.
CR8.8 Read Grade 8 appropriate texts to increase fluency (140-180 wcpm orally; 180-230 silently) and expression.
Compose and Create (CC). Students will extend their abilities to speak, write, and use other forms of representation to explore and present thoughts, feelings, and experiences in a variety of forms for a variety of purposes and audiences.
CC8.1 Create various visual, oral, written, and multimedia (including digital) texts that explore identity (e.g., Telling One’s Life Story), social responsibility (e.g., Examining the Influence of Popular Culture), and efficacy (e.g., Creating Turning Points).
CC8.2 Create and present a group inquiry project related to a topic, theme, or issue studied in English language arts.
CC8.3 Select and use the appropriate strategies to communicate meaning before (e.g., plan, organize, and sequence ideas to fit purpose, point of view, and format), during (e.g., use and maintain appropriate point of view for audience and purpose), and after (e.g., revise final drafts and presentations to ensure that the format and patterns within that format contribute to the effectiveness of the composition) speaking, writing, and other representing activities.
CC8.4 Use pragmatic (e.g., use appropriate language register), textual (e.g., use artistic devices such as figurative language), syntactical (e.g., combine sentences to form compound and complex sentences for variety, interest, and effect), semantic/lexical/morphological (e.g., use words to capture a particular aspect of meaning), graphophonic (e.g., correctly pronounce words with proper emphasis), and other cues (e.g, arrange and balance words and visuals as well as fonts) to construct and to communicate meaning.
CC8.5 Create and present a variety of visual and multimedia presentations including an illustrated report, a role play that ends with a tableau, a dramatization, presentation software, a newscast with adequate detail, clarity, and organization to explain (e.g., an important concept), to persuade (e.g., an opinion on an issue, a mini-debate), and to entertain (e.g., a humourous incident).
CC8.6 Use oral language to interact purposefully, confidently, and respectfully in a variety of situations including one-to-one, small group, and large group discussions (expressing feelings and viewpoints and contributing to group harmony).
CC8.7 Use oral language to effectively express information and ideas of complexity in formal and informal situations (e.g., to debate a point, to participate in a meeting, to give a dramatic reading of a poem or play excerpt).
CC8.8 Write to describe a landscape scene; to narrate a personal story or anecdote and an historical narrative; to explain and inform in a presentation of findings, a biography, a documented research report, and a résumé and covering letter; and to persuade in a mini-debate and a review.
CC8.9 Experiment with a variety of text forms (e.g., Reader’s Theatre, role play, humourous instructions, an electronic presentation, a dramatization, a mini-debate) and techniques (e.g., imagery, music, graphics, and statistics in a multimedia presentation).

Assess and Reflect on Language Abilities (AR). Students will extend their abilities to assess and reflect on their own language skills, discuss the skills of effective viewers, representers, listeners, speakers, readers, and writers, and set goals for future improvement.

AR8.1Use information gathered in self-assessment and teacher’s assessment to develop and work on goals for improving viewing, listening, reading, representing, speaking, and writing.
AR8.2Appraise own and others’ work for clarity, correctness, and variety.

Suggested Resources for the Unit

A range of language, prose (fiction and non-fiction), poetry, and plays (scripts), as well as human, video, and other resources are suggested.

Language Resources

ResourceLines 7/8

Language and Writing 8

Writers Inc: A Student Handbook for Writing and Learning

Identities 8

Poetry

“Empty Fears” (lyrical poem by Brian Lee) (Crossroads 8)

“Song of the Voyageurs” (anonymous narrative poem) (Crossroads 8)

Plays/Scripts

“See Saw” (excerpt) (Dennis Foon) (SightLines 8)

“The Monkey’s Paw”(play/oral piece) (SightLines 8)

Prose Non-Fiction

Shorter Prose Selections

“Maiden Voyage”(Tania Aebi with Bernadette Brennan) (Spirit of Adventure)

“Flying High: Roberta Bondar” (Doug Stuebing and Roberta Bondar) (Spirit of Adventure) or “Out of This World” (Andrew Phillips and Sarah Green) (Crossroads 8)

“When Hell Froze Over” (Rosi Di Manno) (Spirit of Adventure)

“A Rock Star Risks His Life for Freedom” (Marjorie Ingall) (Spirit of Adventure)

“Iron Trails to Adventure” (newspaper article by Catherine George) (Crossroads 8)

“The Way of a Winner” (personal narrative by Jesse Bruneau) (Identities 8)

“K2 Dreams and Reality” (descriptive narrative by Jim Haberl) (Identities 8)

“Your Hidden Skills” (from TG magazine) (SightLines 8)

“The Cool Crowd” (article by Phyllis Hersh Keaton) (SightLines 8)

Full-Length Non-Fiction

See bibliography and updates for titles.

Prose Fiction

Short Stories

“No Matter What” (Joan Lowery Nixon) (Crossroads 8)

“The Water of Life” (Kay Stone) (Crossroads 8)

“Da Trang” (a folk tale by Tony Montague) (Crossroads 8)

“On the Road” (a short story by Joanne Findon) (Crossroads 8)

Alternatives:“To Build a Fire,”“Not Ever Again,”“The Banana Tree,”Night of the Wild Horse,”“The Snake King” (Spirit of Adventure),or “What I Want to Be When I Grow Up,”“The Kitchen Knight,””The Getaway,”“Nothing to Be Afraid Of” (Adventures and Adventurers)

Novels

See bibliography and updates for titles.

Media/Magazines/Websites

“Messages Are Everywhere” (SightLines 8, pp. 30-31, 90-91, 168-169)

Canoe Manned by Voyageurs Passing a Waterfall (Frances Anne Hopkins) (SightLines 8)

Dawnof the Voyageurs(Frances Anne Hopkins)(Crossroads 8)

Other Visuals:

Coureurs de Bois: New France and the Fur Trade (NFB, 1990) (video)

Explore: Canada’s Outdoor Adventure Magazine (

Heritage Moment (Yukon Gold) (p. 53)

Outcomes /
Learning Activities
/ Assessment and Evaluation
CR 8.1
CC 8.7
CC 8.2
CC 8.6
CC 8.1
CR 8.5
CR 8.2
CR 8.2
CR 8.3
CR 8.2
CC 8.6
CC 8.9
CC 8.3 and 8.4
AR 8.2
CR 8.6
CR8.5
CR 8.2
CR 8.3
CR 8.2
CR 8.3
CC 8.7
CC 8.5
CR 8.1
CC 8.1
CC 8.6
CC 8.5
CR 8.7
CR 8.2
CR 8.3
CR 8.3
CR 8.3
CR 8.6
CR 8.2
CR 8.2
CR 8.3
CR 8.2
CC 8.5
CC 8.8
CC 8.2
CR 8.1
CR 8.5
CR 8.2
CR 8.3
CC 8.9
CC 8.9
CR 8.4
CR 8.2
CR 8.3
CR 8.4
CR 8.2
CR 8.3
CC 8.5
CC 8.2
CC 8.3
AR 8.2
CR 8.7
CR 8.3
CR 8.3
CR 8.3
CR 8.3
CC 8.4
CR 8.3
CR 8.4
CR 8.5
CR 8.6
CC 8.5
CC 8.6
CC 8.5
CC 8.8
CR 8.3
CC 8.8
CR 8.3
CR 8.6
CR 8.2
CR 8.3
CC 8.8
CC 8.2
CC 8.3
CC 8.6
CC 8.5
CC 8.2
CC 8.3
CR 8.1
CC 8.6
CC 8.5
AR 8.1
AR 8.2
CC 8.5
CC 8.7
CC 8.5
CC 8.9
CC 8.9
CC 8.9
CC 8.8 and 8.9
CC 8.8
CC 8.9
CC 8.9
CC 8.9
CC 8.9
CC 8.9 / Adventures and Adventurers
Lesson 1 – 60 minutes
Climb a mountain? Sail around the world? Journey to the Arctic? Fly to the distant planets? These and other adventures are possible in a world of challenges and achievements. We can overcome our fears and find the courage, determination, and commitment to try something new and embark on our own adventures.
In this unit, we see how adventures challenge others and us. We see how adventures test our strength and convictions, allow us to follow our dreams, and motivate us to achieve our goals. What kind of adventure do you want?
Are You an Adventurer? In What Ways?
Ask students to use two of the following sentence starters to explain how and in what way they are adventurers:
  • I am an adventurer because …
  • I find it exciting to …
  • The most exciting thing that I have done is …
  • The funniest adventure that I had was …
  • The most frightening adventure that I had was …
  • The most adventuresome thing that I would like to do if I had enough courage is …
What Makes an Adventure?
Our curiosity and urge for adventure often lead us to try things that we would not have tried. How adventuresome are you? Have students consider the following:
  • Do you prefer to do things like skateboarding, skiing, snowboarding, … rather than staying at home and watching television?
  • When you were younger, did you ever get lost or stray from your parents?
  • Do you usually accept “dares”?
  • Would you enjoy high, deep, or dark places?
  • Do you usually look or go to investigate what caused a loud or unusual noise?
  • Would you consider wearing clothes or a hairstyle different from those worn by others in your school?
Have students interview three of their classmates. Who seems most adventuresome? Why?
Possible Mini-Lessons: How to Conduct an Interview (p. 79, Crossroads 8, Teacher’s Guide), The Tone of Our Voices.
Note: Start a Class Language Profile that includes the language arts skills and strategies as well as the language cueing systems. What are the students’ language strengths? What are their needs? As students work through the unit, make anecdotal notes on the Class Language Profile in order to set teaching priorities.
Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained
Lesson 2 – 120 minutes
Few people are completely fearless. What situations or kinds of people do you fear most (dentists, closed rooms, darkness, mice and rats, being made fun of, others)?
Suggested Resources:“Empty Fears” (Crossroads 8, p. 135) or a similar lyrical poem about fear, hesitation, or a challenge.
Before Listening
  • Develop context and introduce a visualizing strategy.
  • Ask and discuss: “What are our fears, how do we hide them, what do we do to overcome them? How does fear relate to adventure? Why are some people, like explorers and adventurers, seemingly less afraid than others?”
During Listening
  • As students listen to this poem being read, have them close their eyes and picture (visualize) what the speaker is describing.
  • Have students sit in groups with their eyes closed while they listen to the first reading. What did they “see” in their “mind’s eye”?
  • Distribute recipe cards and ask students to listen a second time to the vivid phrases the speaker uses. Have students “sketch” the most vivid scene they saw in their “mind’s eye” and then share this with their group.
After Listening
  • Pair students. Have them read aloud the stanza that is represented by their sketch.
  • Ask the students to reread the poem silently one more time and to retell the poem to their partner as a story.
  • Ask students to respond in their journal or notebook to the following prompts: Why do you think the poem is called “Empty Fears”? What sights, sounds, and sensations were used in this poem to give a sense of feeling afraid of something?
  • Have students tell about a time that they were afraid (include where, when, what happened, and their feelings).
Writing
  • Discuss the writing process (Language and Writing 8, pp. 10-17) and the writing of personal narratives (ResourceLines 7/8, pp. 106-107).
  • Provide a clear prompt that includes the R(ole) A(udience) F(ormat) T(opic) S(trong verb) for the writing task. For example, “You are a young child who has just experienced a very frightening situation. Write a personal narrative to a grandparent or older person telling what happened.”
  • Model the writing process and take time to establish some guidelines for revision (e.g., ResourceLines 7/8, p. 107). Use the “Revising and Proofreading Guide” on page 435 in Crossroads 8, Teacher’s Guide.
  • Share the evaluation criteria for the composition with the students before they begin writing.
Possible Mini-Lessons: Visualizing, Listening for Detail, Participating in a Group, Writing in Complete Statements, Using Rhetorical Questions, Writing a Response, Writing a Narrative Paragraph/Personal Narrative, Revising, Punctuating Dialogue, Spelling Common Homophones (e.g., night/knight, know/no, knew/new, there/their/they’re, it’s/its, to/too/two).
Fitting In
Lesson 3 – 120 minutes
Suggested Resources: “See Saw”(excerpt by Dennis Foon) (SightLines 8) or a similar play about the individual challenges of being part or not part of the “in-crowd.”
Before Reading and Listening
  • Reading and enjoying a play require imagination. The script, written by a playwright, has to be interpreted by actors, presented on a stage, in front of an audience.
  • Reading a play requires us to imagine the stage and what happens on it. Using imagination and clues from the play’s stage directions, we try to “hear” the characters’ voices and “see” their actions.
  • This play excerpt reveals the pressures concerning popularity and bullies. A new girl, Charla, tries to understand the social scene and “fit in.”
  • The four realistic characters in “See Saw” are quite complex in their feelings and personality traits. The personalities they demonstrate on the outside are often different from their true selves.
During Reading and Listening
  • As students read and listen to the play, ask them to concentrate on the outer and inner sides of Paige, Josh, Adam, and Charla using the metaphor of a taco.
  • Cut circles and fold them in half. Have students use words, phrases, pictures, and quotes from the play to record the traits apparent to the outside world on the outside of the folded circle and the true inner feelings and traits on the inside.
  • Ask students to consider how the quality of the actors’ voices helps reveal character. Do the voices help bring out the meaning of the script? What challenges (and fears) did each character have to overcome?
After Reading and Listening
  • In small groups, have students prepare their reading of the script (Identities 8, pp. 184-185). This can become an audio recording.
  • If students are interested, they can perform the excerpt from “See Saw” and videotape their group’s project (see “Planning a Video Script” in the Teacher’s Guide for SightLines 8 and pages 228-231 of ResourceLines 7/8).
What are the Qualities of Real-life Adventurers?
Lesson 4 – 120 minutes
The urge for adventure varies with different people. Ask students, “What is one thing that you would most like to do if only you had enough courage or could overcome your fears?” Sometimes circumstances force us to overcome our fears and to find the courage, determination, and commitment to deal with the challenge.
Each of the following excerpts reflects a person’s urge for adventure. Each person attempted what some would consider impossible or foolhardy. Each person’s urge for adventure, however, surpassed his or her fears. What feats did each adventurer attempt to perform? What skills did each person need and what fears did each have to overcome?
  • … two adventurers hoping to be the first to fly a helicopter to both the North and South Poles were rescued yesterday in the ocean off Antarctica … (National Post, January, 2003).
  • … teenager survived an auto accident that catapulted him more than seven metres in the air by grabbing onto overhead utility wires like an action hero for 20 minutes before he was rescued … (Leader Post, January 29, 2003).
  • … the cry came just before the power on the boy’s cell phone ran out. They were floating helplessly in freezing temperatures … when their frail craft began taking on water … (National Post, January 29, 2003).
  • … seven students … died when they were caught in the avalanche … on a ski trip to the backcountry of the Rocky Mountains … (The Globe and Mail, February 3, 2003).
  • … from what the world now knows of the astronauts’ early lives, it is fair to say that even as young people, they … too … hungered for … adventure … (National Post, February 3, 2003).
  • … she had always dreamed of sailing around the world in a homemade boat. From Halifax … (National Post, February 3, 2003).
  • … the climbers made their way up the world's tallest mountain in dangerous conditions, fighting hypothermia, altitude sickness, and sheer physical exhaustion to achieve something few can boast … (National Geographic Adventure, June 18, 2010,
  • … Amy Racina survived for four days and nights, both legs badly broken, in a remote valley in California's Sierra Nevada mountains after a sixty-foot fall during a solo hiking trip … (Angels in the Wilderness, June 17, 2010,
“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” (Hellen Keller)