Alberta · Grades 7 to 9
English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9)
Alberta’s Grades 7 to 9 English language course, from Emerging Literacy (Levels A–B) to Level 5 — Extending.
- Units
- 6
- Lessons
- 7
- Skills
- 28
- Provincial exam
- None
- Official curriculum
- Alberta Education
Unit by unit
Every skill in the course, numbered by unit.
Unit 1 · 8 skills
Emerging Literacy (Levels A–B)
Level A — First Words & Letters
Level A — Listening
I can understand a few English words when I hear them with pictures and actions to help me.
Skill 1.1
Level A — Speaking
I can say one or two English words and use actions to show what I need.
Skill 1.2
Level A — Reading
I can name letters, use pictures to understand words in a book, and hold a book the right way.
Skill 1.3
Level A — Writing
I can copy letters and numbers.
Skill 1.4
Level B — Routines & Sounds
Level B — Listening
I can follow simple classroom routines when I see pictures and actions.
Skill 1.5
Level B — Speaking
I can use a few memorized words and phrases to say what I need.
Skill 1.6
Level B — Reading
I can read letter by letter and understand that letters make sounds.
Skill 1.7
Level B — Writing
I can copy familiar words and write letters and numbers from memory.
Skill 1.8
The official wording · 8 outcomes
- 1.1
- understand a few words with repetition, visuals, and actions for support
- 1.2
- repeat one or two words
- 1.3
- read letters, understand pictures in books related to familiar words, and develop book-handling skills
- 1.4
- copy letters and numbers
- 1.5
- understand classroom routines with pictures and actions for support
- 1.6
- use a few memorized words and phrases to communicate needs
- 1.7
- read letter by letter and understand that letters relate to sounds
- 1.8
- copy familiar words and use memorized letters and numbers with support
Key ideas
You do not need every word — catching one key word (with a picture or action) is enough to understand.
Classroom routines repeat every day (take out your book, line up) — so once you learn them, you can follow along.
The first words are the useful ones: greetings and classroom words like hello, book, sit.
A picture or an action shows you what a routine phrase means.
Saying just one or two words (like "hello" or "help") is real speaking — full sentences come later.
Watch out for
- Thinking you must understand every single word to understand the message.
- Thinking each routine is brand new every time (they repeat, so they get easier).
- Feeling that leaning on your home language to make sense of a word is "cheating" — it is a normal, helpful bridge.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Unit 2 · 4 skills
Level 1 — Beginning
Level 1 — Everyday English
Level 1 — Listening
I can follow familiar routines, everyday situations, and simple instructions when I have support.
Skill 2.1
Level 1 — Speaking
I can use familiar words and phrases to share what I need and ask simple questions.
Skill 2.2
Level 1 — Reading
I can sound out familiar sight words and read a few common words with picture support.
Skill 2.3
Level 1 — Writing
I can copy words and phrases and use them in patterned sentences.
Skill 2.4
The official wording · 4 outcomes
- 2.1
- understand familiar routines, social situations, and instructions with support
- 2.2
- use familiar social and classroom words and phrases to share needs and ask questions with support
- 2.3
- read word by word by sounding out familiar sight words and understand a few common words with visual support
- 2.4
- copy familiar words and phrases and use in patterned sentences
Key ideas
One-step instructions (open, close, write, look) tell you exactly one thing to do.
Familiar situations (a greeting, asking to borrow something) repeat, so you learn the pattern.
Question words start questions: What…? Where…? Who…?
Short phrases share needs: "I need…", "Can I…?"
Sight words (the, is, and, a) appear everywhere — learn them by sight.
Watch out for
- Trying to translate every word instead of catching the one action word (open, close, write).
- Thinking a question needs many words — a short "Where is…?" works.
- Trying to sound out sight words letter-by-letter (many, like "the", are learned whole).
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Unit 3 · 4 skills
Level 2 — Developing
Level 2 — Simple Sentences
Level 2 — Listening
I can understand information in familiar social and subject-area situations.
Skill 3.1
Level 2 — Speaking
I can use familiar words to ask and answer questions and talk with classmates.
Skill 3.2
Level 2 — Reading
I can read and understand familiar words and simple sentences with picture and home-language support.
Skill 3.3
Level 2 — Writing
I can write basic simple sentences using sentence frames.
Skill 3.4
The official wording · 4 outcomes
- 3.1
- understand information in familiar social and subject-area situations
- 3.2
- use familiar words to ask and respond to questions and speak with classmates
- 3.3
- read and understand familiar words and simple sentences with support from visuals and home language(s)
- 3.4
- use familiar words and basic simple sentences with support from sentence frames
Key ideas
Listen for the key words that carry the meaning of a short message.
Familiar topics (family, a school subject) are easier because you know the context.
A short exchange is: someone asks, you answer, then you can ask back.
Familiar words are enough to keep a simple conversation going.
A simple sentence puts known words together; read it left to right for the whole idea.
Watch out for
- Getting stuck on one unknown word instead of using the key words and context.
- Answering with only one word when a short sentence is now within reach.
- Reading word by word without stopping to picture the whole sentence's meaning.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Unit 4 · 4 skills
Level 3 — Expanding
Level 3 — Into Paragraphs
Level 3 — Listening
I can catch more details in familiar social and subject-area situations with support.
Skill 4.1
Level 3 — Speaking
I can ask and answer questions and speak on familiar subject-area topics.
Skill 4.2
Level 3 — Reading
I can understand familiar sentences with visual support and predict what comes next.
Skill 4.3
Level 3 — Writing
I can write a paragraph using simple and compound sentences with a paragraph frame.
Skill 4.4
The official wording · 4 outcomes
- 4.1
- understand more details in familiar social and subject-area situations with support
- 4.2
- use familiar words to ask and answer questions and speak on familiar subject-area topics
- 4.3
- understand familiar words and sentences, using visual supports
- 4.4
- use simple and familiar compound sentences in a paragraph on new topics with support from paragraph frames
Key ideas
Beyond the main idea, listen for details: who, when, how many.
Support (a re-read, a picture) helps you catch a detail you missed.
You can now say two or three sentences on a topic you know.
Asking and answering keeps a subject conversation going.
Good readers predict: use what you've read to guess the next event or step.
Watch out for
- Stopping at the main idea and missing the supporting details.
- Thinking speaking on a "subject-area topic" needs perfect vocabulary — familiar words carry it.
- Thinking a prediction is "wrong" if it differs from the text — a reasonable, evidence-based guess is the skill.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Unit 5 · 4 skills
Level 4 — Bridging
Level 4 — Ideas & Details
Level 4 — Listening
I can understand more details in new social and familiar subject-area situations with support.
Skill 5.1
Level 4 — Speaking
I can use familiar and some new words to express ideas and ask questions about familiar topics.
Skill 5.2
Level 4 — Reading
I can find main ideas and supporting details on familiar subject-area topics with support.
Skill 5.3
Level 4 — Writing
I can write sequenced paragraphs with compound sentences using a graphic organizer.
Skill 5.4
The official wording · 4 outcomes
- 5.1
- understand more details in new social and familiar subject-area situations with support
- 5.2
- use familiar words and some new words to express ideas and ask questions about familiar subject-area topics
- 5.3
- understand main ideas and supporting details on familiar subject-area topics with support
- 5.4
- use compound sentences in sequenced paragraphs on familiar topics
Key ideas
You can now handle a new situation, not only familiar ones, using context clues.
Support (a re-read or a visual) still helps with the harder details.
Adding a few new words lets you express a fuller idea.
You can express an opinion or idea, not just facts.
The main idea is what the whole text is mostly about; details support it.
Watch out for
- Assuming a new context is impossible — familiar strategies (key words, context) still work.
- Avoiding new words to stay "safe" — stretching with a new word is the growth.
- Mistaking an interesting detail for the main idea.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Unit 6 · 4 skills
Level 5 — Extending
Level 5 — Toward Grade Level
Level 5 — Listening
I can understand more details in new social and subject-area situations.
Skill 6.1
Level 5 — Speaking
I can use more new words in detailed sentences to express ideas about new topics.
Skill 6.2
Level 5 — Reading
I can read familiar information with expression and understand new subject-area topics with support.
Skill 6.3
Level 5 — Writing
I can write complex sentences with descriptive words using references.
Skill 6.4
The official wording · 4 outcomes
- 6.1
- understand more details in new social and subject-area situations
- 6.2
- use more new words in detailed sentences to express ideas about new subject-area topics
- 6.3
- read familiar information with expression and understand new subject-area topics with support
- 6.4
- use complex sentences and familiar descriptive words to create texts with support from references
Key ideas
You can now follow new social and subject-area situations with less support.
Details and implied meaning both matter at this level.
Detailed sentences add description and reasons ("because…", "which means…").
New subject-area words let you speak about new topics.
Reading with expression (phrasing, pausing at punctuation) shows and builds understanding.
Watch out for
- Expecting to understand 100% — strong learners still use context for a few unknown words.
- Adding new words without connecting them into a clear, detailed sentence.
- Reading every word flatly and equally instead of grouping words into meaningful phrases.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Plan the term
Pick your term and the days you study. Each unit gets its share of the weeks and comes back a week later for a review. The last two weeks go over the whole course.
The official curriculum
This page follows Alberta’s own curriculum for English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9).
Study it in MapleMind
MapleMind teaches English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9) one skill at a time. Each skill gets a short lesson, practice as you go and a check worth up to three stars. It remembers where you stopped.
Course Companion
Your year in one workbook
A fun way to keep English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9) organized, get to know your child better and see early when they need a hand. Fill it in on a screen, or print it.
- Pages
- 34
- Fillable fields
- 1,471
- Price
- $4.99
Questions about English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9)
What is English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9)?
Alberta’s Grades 7 to 9 English language course: 6 units and 28 skills, from Emerging Literacy (Levels A–B) to Level 5 — Extending.
What units are in English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9)?
1. Emerging Literacy (Levels A–B), 2. Level 1 — Beginning, 3. Level 2 — Developing, 4. Level 3 — Expanding, 5. Level 4 — Bridging and 6. Level 5 — Extending.
Is there a provincial exam for English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9)?
No. Alberta gives no provincial exam for English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9).
Can MapleMind help with English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9)?
Yes. MapleMind teaches every skill of English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9), step by step, with practice and checks, and its tutor answers questions about any of them. It’s free with daily limits, on iPhone, Android and the web.
Get ready for English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9)
Practise every skill of English as an Additional Language (Grades 7–9) in MapleMind, free with daily limits.
