English instruction in Mesa Public Schools is defined by the Arizona English Language Arts Standards.  The ELA Standards include ten reading standards (for both literature and informational text), ten writing standards, six speaking and listening standards, and six language standards and define what students should understand and be able to do by the end of each grade.  The grade-specific standards define the knowledge, understanding, and skills that need to be effectively taught and learned for all students to be ready to succeed in credit-bearing, college-entry courses and/or in the workplace.  The Arizona English Language Arts Standards have been developed to be:

• focused in a coherent progression across grades K-12,
• aligned with college and workforce expectations,
• inclusive of rigorous content and applications of knowledge through higher-level thinking, and
• research and evidence based.