Ontario Secondary School Literacy Course

OLC4O is designed to help students meet the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Requirement (OSSLT) by strengthening essential reading and writing skills.

The course focuses on

• Developing communication strategies
• Comprehension techniques
• Writing styles required in both academic
• Everyday contexts

Students engage with informational, narrative, and graphic texts while practicing a variety of written formats. Successful completion of this course satisfies the OSSLT graduation requirement.

Unit 1: Understanding and Responding to Texts
Students learn to analyze a range of written and visual texts.
Lessons include:

• Reading Strategies and Text Features
• Comprehension Techniques for Informational Texts
• Responding to Graphic Texts
• Making Inferences and Identifying Main Ideas
• Summarizing and Paraphrasing Skills

Unit 2: Developing Writing Skills
This unit strengthens writing for different audiences and purposes.
Lessons include:

• Writing with Purpose and Clarity
• Paragraph Structure and Organization
• Sentence Variety and Grammar Essentials
• Writing Instructions, Letters, and Short Essays
• Writing for Employment and Real-World Use

Unit 3: Reading and Writing for Media and Digital Contexts
Students examine how to read and write effectively in media-rich environments.
Lessons include:

• Reading Advertisements and Editorials
• Interpreting News Articles and Social Media Content
• Writing Reviews, Blog Posts, and Opinion Pieces
• Understanding Tone and Bias in Media

Unit 4: Final Literacy Portfolio and Reflection
Students compile and reflect on their literacy progress.
Lessons include:

• Portfolio Preparation
• Revision and Editing Strategies
• Reflective Writing on Literacy Growth
• OSSLT-Style Practice Tasks

Unit 5: Final Evaluation
Students complete formal evaluations to demonstrate reading and writing proficiency.
Lessons include:

• Culminating Literacy Portfolio
• Final Literacy Assessment Task

• 70% of the final grade is based on coursework, including:
  • Reading comprehension tasks and response writing
  • Writing assignments in various genres
  • Media analysis and real-world writing practice
  • OSSLT practice tasks and skill-building quizzes
• 30% of the final grade is based on final evaluations:
  • 20% Literacy Portfolio showcasing growth and competencies
  • 10% Final literacy task simulating OSSLT conditions

All assessments follow Ontario curriculum standards and are designed to ensure students can communicate clearly and effectively in both academic and everyday situations.