What’s In My Brain: Primary Sources

Two columns. One is an example, one isn’t. Can you figure out the hidden rule before the big reveal?

Order and Chaos Hide Inside Each Other

Chaos can contain order. Order can contain chaos! Is chaos ever truly random?

Who has more power: the Queen Bee or the Hive?

Sometimes power is concentrated in one place. Other times it is spread out.

Founding The Colonies

13 colonies activities including a word search and task cards packed with facts. Plus, students will create their own colony with a name, story, and map!

Hero or Not A Hero?

Students will determine what makes a hero a hero.

Holiday Shuffle – Day vs Date

Wouldn’t some holidays be better on a certain day of the week? Should Thanksgiving have a set date?

Tournament of Mythological Creatures

Who will win the tournament of mythological creatures!?

Tournament of Not-So-Famous Inventors

Which inventor and invention will win the tournament?

Student Introductions With Depth, Complexity, and Frames: Level Two

Once students know the prompts of Depth and Complexity, let’s take them much higher up Bloom’s Taxonomy.

Domesticated Animals Tournament

Which domesticated animal will win the tournament?

Types of Energy Tournament

Which type of energy will win the tournament!?

Natural Disasters Tournament

Earthquake vs. hurricane. Tsunami vs. wildfire. Students set the criteria, argue their case, and crown a champion. Warning: it gets heated.

Van Gogh Self-Portrait Tournament

Who will win the tournament of Van Gogh self-portraits!?

Notice, Wonder: Barringer

A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!

Discussing An Important Decision from History

How would people with two different perspectives discuss a decision from history?

Chess Variant: Monster Chess

What if you had really weak chess pieces, but you could always move twice?

Charge of the Light Brigade – Chess Variant

What if one side played with THREE QUEENS and the other had SEVEN KNIGHTS!? What if?

Horde Chess Variant

What if one player had, say, 32 pawns?

Tournament: 8 Wonders of the Solar System

Which location is the most wondrous place in the solar system?

The 8th Wonder of the World Tournament

Which of these eight wonders deserves to become the Eighth Wonder of the World!?

Exploration Technology Tournament

Which of these pieces of exploration technology is most important? Most underrated? Most long-lasting?

Tournament of Ancient Inventions

Which of these inventions of the ancient world is most influential? Least useful today? Most taken-for-granted?

Habitable Planets and Moons Tournament

Which object in the solar system is most habitable?

Tournament of Presidents

So who was the strangest of these eight presidents?

Paradox: Rebuilding A Ship

What if we completely rebuild something slowly? What if we completely rebuild it all at once? Is it still the same thing?

How Renewable Is That Resource?

Which resource is more renewable? And which is easier to find?

Notice, Wonder: Akron

A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!

The Tournament of Biomes

Want to move beyond memorizing the characteristics of biomes? In this lesson, students work through a Tournament of Biomes, explaining which biome wins in each round (based on criteria you choose). In the end, they crown a 👑 Champion Biome!

Paradox: Crocodile Dilemma

A crocodile makes a deal. But the deal creates a paradox. Can your students untangle a 2,000-year-old logic puzzle?

Paradox: The Liar’s Paradox

Nothing like a paradox to get your kids brains exploding 🤯! This one starts with five simple words: “This statement is a lie.”

Content Imperatives: Contribuition

Pull on one thread and watch the whole topic move. Contribution asks: what single factor is quietly shaping everything else?

Persuasion and Packaging: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos

How does a drink’s packaging affect us emotionally and logically?

Teaching Criticism

For Teachers

Ask students to go beyond “I don’t like it” and form critical opinions based on a set of criteria. Students can produce written arguments or turn their opinion into oral presentations.