Grade 8
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Critical Literacy
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Digital Literacy
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Language Literacy
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Standards
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Research Literacy
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VL
Alabama ELA Standard: 8.CL.2
Make complex inferences from the structure and content of a text, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, cause and effect, and substantiated and unsubstantiated claims and evidence, to draw logical conclusions about the author’s perspective.
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?
Chaos Makes Sense (Later)
In the moment, a chaotic event makes no sense. But later, that same event can feel like it was part of a larger story.
Power – Blue Whale vs Krill
Sure, a Blue Whale is huge. But does a tiny krill have more power?
Great Sloths – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about great sloths back into the correct order?
The Moon – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about The Moon back into the correct order?
The Great Sphinx – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about The Great Sphinx back into the correct order?
What Happens In Your Brain When You’re Worried or Afraid
Allison Edwards explains how blood flow in your brain affects your decision-making
Robot Writing: The Bridge
One painting of a bridge. Three robots. Who wrote it best?
Think Like A Historian
Here’s how effects be causes and causes can be effects!
Analyze Paragraphs: Wolverines
Three paragraphs about wolverines. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
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?
Inferring With Art: A Couple
What’s going on in this room? There are shoes everywhere! Are those… oranges? Let’s make some inferences!
Think Like A Philosopher
What would Socrates have thought if he watched Frozen?
What’s In My Brain: May vs May
The word “may” can be used for possibility or permission. It’s a modal auxiliary verb!
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.”
Propaganda and Logical Fallacies
Let’s see how propaganda techniques can make even something great seem bad.
Content Imperatives: Paradox
How can one idea pull in opposite directions, being both true and false or right and wrong at the same time? It’s time to explore Paradoxes!
Content Imperatives: Convergence
Add complexity by considering how multiple factors 🔄 Converge within one topic.
Content Imperatives: Parallel
Get students thinking broadly by exploring similarities across multiple topics. Combine with Depth and Complexity for bonus points!
Content Imperatives: Contribuition
Pull on one thread and watch the whole topic move. Contribution asks: what single factor is quietly shaping everything else?
Content Imperatives: Origin
Take students back to the beginning by using the Content Imperative ⏺️ Origin.
Persuasion and Packaging: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos
How does a drink’s packaging affect us emotionally and logically?
Depth and Complexity: 📈 Trends
Has something been changing recently? What might be causing that? What are the effects?
Depth and Complexity: 👓 Multiple Perspectives
Every topic looks different depending on who’s looking. This prompt teaches students to see through someone else’s eyes.
Depth and Complexity: Patterns
Can your students spot anything that repeats? Or that has stopped repeating?