Profile Outcomes

Most students in Grade 8 will be have achieved the level 4 outcomes listed below and be working towards level 5. Some students may also be working towards level 4 or level 6 outcomes.

Level 4 Outcomes

Speaking and Listening

• speaks and responds to others with confidence, after having thought about topics
• selects and uses suitable language for different settings, purposes and audiences
• uses language to entertain, inform and influence people
• selects and organises information to present ideas and information clearly
• speaks and listens in ways that continue to improve communication with others, e.g. giving different viewpoints, encouraging others to contribute to group discussions

Writing

• uses writing to develop familiar ideas, events and information, e.g. writes poetry in various forms
• adjusts own writing by taking into account the purpose for the writing, the interests and needs of the people who will read it
• controls the structures and features of basic types of texts such as reports, stories and arguments and uses a clear and neat handwriting style uses a range of ways to plan, review and proofread their writing with teacher guidance
• uses a range of spelling methods to develop an increasingly accurate spelling vocabulary

Reading and Viewing

• gives reasons for own interpretations of ideas, information and events
• gives possible reasons for the different ways that people interpret texts they read and view
• with teacher guidance, identifies and discusses how the structures and features of language influence understanding and affect meaning, e.g. discusses the techniques of lighting and music that are used by film makers to create a certain mood; discusses the effect of descriptive language when reading. selects and uses techniques to interpret a range of texts, e.g. scanning for main points, rereading, making notes
• works with other students on research tasks to identify what information they need to know and where to find it

Level 5 Outcomes

Speaking and Listening

• speaks and responds to other students, in formal groups, to discuss familiar subjects that involve challenging ideas and issues
• identifies how different settings, audiences and purposes change the way we speak, e.g. how people speak when telephoning a friend compared with when telephoning a stranger
• discusses and experiments with spoken language structures and features that help speakers to influence an audience, e.g. by using body language, vocabulary and recognising statements of opinion
• develops and uses specific ways of listening for information and recording it, e.g. selecting key ideas

Writing

• uses a variety of text types such as stories, poems, journals, articles to write about familiar subjects and explore challenging ideas and issues
• understands that readers have expectations of certain text types and tries to meet these in own writing
• makes sure of clear communication when writing texts of some length by checking layout, sequences and grammar
• plans and reviews own writing in order to effectively complete the task

Reading and Viewing

• discusses challenging themes, issues and ideas and prepares responses to explain understandings
• recognises that texts are constructed in particular ways which appeal to different individuals and groups
• uses knowledge of the structures and features of written and viewed texts to explain how they are constructed, e.g. works out themes, examines plots and sub-plots, considers images
• identifies features, purposes and effects in stories, films and videos and understands how this influences the meaning of other texts, e.g. how the use of an American western setting, characters, language in a poster advertising jeans help to create an instantly recognisable image for the product
• develops systematic ways to find and record information