Middle schoolers aren't too young to feel strongly about politics, social issues, consumer rights, or environmental problems. Demonstrate the first steps toward social change with a project about action-oriented writing. Eighth...

Investigate ethical issues surrounding the Decode project in Iceland. Middle and high schoolers take the positions of the Icelandic government, scientific researchers, and citizens and defend or refute the Decode project in a Reykjavik...

Teach middle schoolers how to develop healthy relationships with activities and lessons designed to create a kind and inclusive classroom. Pupils create guidelines to develop a safe and civil learning environment. They learn how to...

Global warming is leaving coral reefs in hot water. What does that mean for their survival? Find out as scholars use authentic satellite data to explore the issue. Learners look for global trends in the data and research the effects the...

Do research projects at your school look like a class of eighth graders staring at a blank screen? Use the Big 6 research method to guide middle schoolers through the process of finding a topic, searching for and evaluating sources,...

An informative list compiled with quotes, authors, and discussion questions, along with 20 out-of-the-box application ideas, make up the collection of lessons geared to spark dialogue and creative thinking about quotations. 

Many informational texts are written as factual, but can your learners determine when an opinion is presented as fact? Have your kids read several articles on the same topic and record the statements that contain either facts or...

Eighth grades can master the ELA Common Core standards! Show your learners the connection between classroom activities and assignments and the standards with this set of "I Can" statement posters. Each standard has been rewritten as an...

How close are your eighth graders to mastering the ELA Common Core standards? Keep an eye on progress with these charts, which include every eighth grade identifier and full standard text. As you move through the year and teach,...

Readers are asked to evaluate Helen Keller's claim, and the evidence she uses to support her argument, that it is more difficult for hearing impaired children to learn to talk with others.

Travel back to 1787 as young scholars investigate the creation of the US Constitution. After first working in small groups to create sets of classroom rules, students go on to read a summary of the Constitution and watch a short video...

Your class experiences dozens of messages about beauty every day by reading magazines, watching movies, and listening to the radio. Have them analyze society's view of beauty in groups after discussing several resources, including...

Use a Huffington Post article focused on false pictures of Hurricane Sandy to launch a discussion about the reliability of online information. Groups compare and contrast how print and broadcast media regulate...

In this unit, students will gain background information on historic wars. Student will compare different media forms about these events, attend to different perspectives, research the unit's essential question, and then write an...

A quick guide to help you determine the relevance and authority of a resource.

[Accessible by TX Educators. Free Registration/Login Required] Learn strategies for evaluating and revising an essay so that it contains relevant information and valid inferences.

Analyze the quality, relevance, and credibility of evidence that supports or opposes an argument.

[Accessible by TX Educators. Free Registration/Login Required] Analyze the quality, relevance, and credibility of evidence that supports or opposes an argument.

Compare these two passages for some interesting ideas about how technology affects our lives. The questions that follow ask you to identify the main idea from either direct statement or inference.

A learning module with eight links to images, videos, charts, and assessments about ethos, logos, and pathos.

Analysis of The Real Pocahontas shows how to distinguish between fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment. Provides a practice activity.