How to plan a full semester of ENG2D (Grade 10 Academic English)

ENG2D packs a lot into one semester: reading, writing, oral communication and media literacy, the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT), and now a mandatory 20% written exam. Here's a unit-by-unit roadmap that fits a standard semester of 75-minute periods, with room for assemblies and PD days.

A unit-by-unit plan

1. Voice and Story (about 13 lessons). Start with short fiction and personal narrative. Students get to know each other, you get a baseline writing sample, and narrative craft (character, conflict, point of view) sets up everything that follows.
2. Media Decoded (about 9 lessons and a project). Algorithms, ads, influencers and AI. Media literacy is easiest to teach with texts students already scroll through every day.
3. Speak Up (about 11 lessons). Rhetoric, argument and persuasive speech. Teach ethos, pathos and logos, then build to a speech so students get real practice with oral communication.
4. Power Plays: Macbeth (about 10 lessons). By midsemester students have the tools to analyse character, theme and dramatic language. Mix performance with close reading so the play stays alive.
5. Literacy Bootcamp (about 6 lessons). Time this just before your school writes the OSSLT. Short, focused practice on reading strategies and the kinds of writing tasks students will see on the test.
6. Language That Hits (about 8 lessons). Poetry, lyrics and spoken word: a high-energy unit after the literacy test, and a chance to revisit figurative language before the exam.
7. Independent Study and Final Exam (about 6 lessons). A student-choice novel study with a seminar and portfolio, then review and the final exam.

Tips that make the semester run smoothly

• Track expectations as you go. A course map that links every lesson to the expectations it covers makes it easy to see gaps before the exam period.
• Build the exam from the units. A two-hour exam with a reading section, a written response and a sight passage rewards the skills students practised all semester.
• Keep a few stand-alone lessons ready. Flex days, assemblies and supply days happen. A handful of buffer lessons that don't depend on where you are in a unit keeps the class moving.
• Plan the 2026 evaluation up front. In Grade 10, that's 65% classroom work, 20% final evaluation (a written exam in English) and 15% attendance and participation. See what the new rules mean.

Want it ready to teach?

The ENG2D Complete Course follows this plan: every lesson with a teacher plan, slides with speaker notes, handouts and answer guides, plus a day-by-day schedule, the culminating task, the final exam and five buffer lessons. You can also buy single units, or try a free ENG2D lesson first.

Teaching Grade 10 English outside Ontario? The same sequence works for any Grade 10 English or ELA 10 course; swap the Literacy Bootcamp for your own reading and writing assessment.