5th Grade Language Arts Curriculum (ELA)
Language arts in fifth grade is an exciting time! At this stage, students begin to explore new genres to deepen their love of reading and find their unique writing voice.
In fifth grade ELA lessons, students continue to practice their reading skills with new genres and story element analysis. Writing lessons are more structured and purposeful, with an emphasis on crafting clear arguments, informative essays, and creative narratives.
Sample Lesson
Interested in more fifth grade language arts videos? Visit our YouTube channel @TheMiacademyLearningChannel!
Is my student ready for 5th grade ELA?
Before beginning ELA in fifth grade, students should have a solid understanding of fourth grade ELA skills. Students may also prepare for this course by completing our fourth grade language arts course.
Your student is likely ready for fifth grade language arts if they can:
- Read fluently and independently across a variety of texts, including fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
- Understand and explain the main idea or theme of a story or article, supporting it with details from the text.
- Make inferences and draw conclusions based on what they read.
- Use context clues to figure out the meaning of new or challenging words.
- Identify figurative language, like similes or metaphors, and explain their meaning.
- Write clear, organized paragraphs with a main idea, supporting details, and proper grammar.
- Construct different types of writing, such as opinion pieces, informative essays, and creative stories.
- Participate in discussions, listen to others’ ideas, and share their own thoughts clearly.
- Edit and revise their writing for grammar, punctuation, and clarity.
- Use evidence from texts to support their answers or arguments.
Free 5th Grade Language Arts Activities – PDF Download
Each video lesson has an accompanying activity PDF to extend learning beyond the screen.
Click here to download a free sample PDF of our fifth grade ELA worksheets:
What are the 5th grade ELA standards?
Fifth grade ELA standards guide students in developing stronger reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills. Writing standards focus on crafting well-organized opinion pieces, informative essays, and narratives with clear structure and detail. The standards also reinforce grammar, punctuation, and research skills to prepare students for more advanced language tasks in middle school.
By the end of the fifth grade, students should be able to:
- Determine the theme or central idea of a text and explain how it is supported by details.
- Explain the relationship between two or more ideas or concepts in informational texts.
- Use context clues to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words and phrases.
- Interpret figurative language, including similes and metaphors.
- Identify and analyze the narrator’s point of view.
- Write opinion pieces with supporting reasons and evidence.
- Write informative or explanatory texts to examine a topic clearly.
- Develop narratives with descriptive details and clear event sequences.
- Conduct short research projects using multiple sources.
- Engage in collaborative discussions, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
Standards can vary by state, so be sure to check what’s required where you live.
Scope and Sequence
Language Skills: Level F
Our fifth grade writing course strengthens language and grammar skills by introducing students to a variety of genres. It helps ensure they are well-prepared for the challenges of middle school language arts.
In this course, students practice using subordinating conjunctions and writing complex sentences. They will also explore different genres and modes of writing and create their own fictional and personal narratives. Vocabulary and punctuation lessons focus on advanced synonyms, antonyms, abbreviations, quotation marks in dialogue, and parentheses.
Reading Comprehension: Level F
Our fifth grade reading comprehension course has weekly practice designed for students reading on-level. Each lesson begins with a video that introduces the comprehension questions and shares helpful reading strategies.
Each week, students explore a new passage followed by six targeted questions that build essential reading skills. The questions focus on key areas such as:
- Identifying theme and central ideas
- Using evidence and reasoning
- Analyzing point of view and author’s purpose
- Making comparisons
- Examining character traits
- Interpreting words and phrases in context
- Understanding figurative language
Why is there more than one course?
Miacademy’s language arts curriculum is structured into three different courses, each that focus on a different set of skills:
Learn to Read (Levels A-C only): Focuses on letter sounds, rhyming, and common letter patterns to help kids practice reading for kindergarten to 2nd grade.
Language Skills (All levels): Covers comprehension strategies, grammar, and storytelling techniques to strengthen reading and writing.
Reading Comprehension (Levels C-I only): Provides weekly reading passages with questions to reinforce understanding and apply learned skills.
Students may work at different levels in each area to match their individual learning needs.
Miacademy’s Online 5th Grade Homeschool Curriculum
Miacademy’s fifth grade language arts curriculum is designed to create confident readers and writers. Through engaging lessons, interactive activities, and a strong emphasis on both comprehension and communication skills, our program helps students deepen their understanding of complex texts while learning to express their ideas clearly and effectively.
Plus, one of the best things about our fifth grade curriculum is homeschooling with flexibility! You get full customization over your lesson plans and assignments to fit your child’s unique learning needs. Students can skip what they already know and dive into new challenges!
Our family of accredited curricula covers everything from learning to read to analyzing literature and adapts easily to your child’s educational needs.
Whether you homeschool full time or are looking to supplement a public school education, we’re here to support you! Wondering if Miacademy’s fifth grade homeschool curriculum can be a good fit for your student? Start a chat with one of our friendly customer service agents below! They’ll be happy to help you with any questions you may have.
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