I'm just wondering what is the list of skills that make up Language Arts? Or if there isn't an official list anywhere, what skills/subjects do you count under LA or English? I do NOT mean what are you doing for Langauge Arts or English, I mean, what are the skills you think should fall under this umbrella term? If you were to buy an all in one package for this subject, what would you expect in your package? Things like: Reading; phonics, sight words, literature, spelling, handwriting (cursive and/or manuscript) grammar, punctuation, homophones, etc... What else?
I would consider these language arts: Reading Writing Spelling Phonics Literature Grammar Vocabulary I wouldn't count handwriting as language arts because I consider it more along the lines of perfecting fine motor skills than practicing language.
I'd say the average person would say these things: reading/comprehension activities, composition/writing, spelling, vocabulary, and grammar/mechanics. I'd say these things (because I really like Charlotte Mason for LA!): ~copywork my son copies passages *this doesn't teach spelling, but it HELPS. It also helps with mechanics. ~dictation I dictate a passage to my son while he copies it. He studies it for a day or so before the dictation; he rarely, if ever, makes a mistake. I think these help with spelling & mechanics as well. ~usage & mechanics exercises My son copies sentences and fills in missing words (when to use is/are, when to use to/too/two, when to use a capital letter, etc.). ~composition A recent exercise in his book was to write a story about a talking horse. ~poetry memorization ~narration/oral reproduction He reads a passage or story and has to retell it to me in his own words. I consider his LA book to be complete for a 2nd/3rd grader. The next book in the series has more critical thinking/grammar type stuff in it.
I'd say anything that is obviously not math or science or whatever would fall under LA. If it deals with the written word, it's LA. If I were in the market for an all in one curriculum, it would include phonics, comprehension, spelling, grammar, literature, vocabulary, and so on. I'd want the program to use word roots and origins to teach the past and current meanings of words. I'd want the literature to include stories, plays, poetry, etc., not just library books or textbooks. I guess it would really depend on the grade level if I were to say what it should include. MOst kids who are still learning phonics aren't ready to discuss the hidden meanings of a passage of poetry. KWIM?
I'd have to agree with everybody else, that "language arts" is a very broad topic. Generally, reading/writing, listening/speaking, spelling, and penmanship. More specifically: Reading (phonics, fluent oral reading, and comprehension), spelling and vocabulary (depending on the grade level, could be and/or), composition (fiction and non-fiction, instructions, descriptive, persuasive, book reports written and oral, friendly letters and business letters and letters to the editor, essays, research papers, newspaper articles, personal narratives, character descriptions, compare/contrast papers, speeches written and oral, poetry of various kinds, just anything you can think of), grammar/usage/mechanics, listening comprehension, and conventions such as indenting a paragraph, addressing an envelope, and forms of address (like titles, honors, relationships -- Mr. X, Ms or Mrs. Y, Uncle D, Aunt B, Dr. and Mrs. W, Rev. T, and "lettered persons" like MD, DVM, PhD, ThD, Esq., whatever after their name).
