CCSS ELA Standard: 7.W.1

Order and Chaos: Recipe or Instinct?

Two cooks make the same dinner. One follows the recipe to the exact gram. The other just throws things in by feel. Whose food turns out better — the ordered cook or the chaotic cook?

Order and Chaos: The Perfect Heartbeat

A heartbeat sounds steady, but a perfectly regular one is a warning sign — healthy hearts speed up and slow down a little. Is a healthy heart ordered or chaotic?

Order and Chaos: The Shuffle

Shuffling follows exact steps to make cards random. Are you creating chaos, or doing something very orderly?

Order and Chaos: No Traffic Lights

One town runs its intersections with signals. Another has no lights at all — drivers just work it out. Which town’s traffic is more orderly?

Order and Chaos: The Snowflake

A snowflake always has six sides, yet no two have ever matched. Is a snowflake order, or chaos?

Systems: Grandpa’s Axe

Grandpa’s axe broke, so he put on a new head. Years later the handle cracked, so he replaced that too. Now no original piece is left. Is it still the same axe, or a new one?

Systems: The Thermostat

A thermostat fights to keep a room the same — open a window and it just cranks the heat to undo you. In a system that pushes back like that, can you ever really change just one thing?

Systems: Watch vs. Forest

A watch stops dead if one tiny gear breaks. A forest can lose a whole species and barely notice. Which is the better-built system — the one where every part matters, or the one where no part is essential?

Systems: The Traffic Jam

Picture a jam where no one crashed and no one even stopped on purpose — everyone crawls for an hour, then it clears for no reason. Did anyone actually cause this traffic jam?

Systems: Pull One Thread

A sweater is really one long thread looped a thousand times. Pull the right loose end and the whole thing unravels in seconds. So is a system like that strong or fragile?

Change: The Caterpillar’s Bargain

To become a butterfly, a caterpillar doesn’t just sprout wings — inside the cocoon it dissolves into liquid first, almost nothing left, then rebuilds. Would you trade everything you are now to become something far greater?

Change: The Sealed Jar

You love a flower so much you seal it in a jar to keep it exactly as it is, forever. A month later it’s brown and crumbling. Did sealing it stop the change, or just hide it?

Change: The Tree’s Scar

A nail got hammered into a young tree. The tree didn’t push it out — it grew around it, sealing the nail inside a knot of new wood. Was that change the tree healing, or the tree getting damaged?

Change: One Domino

You nudge one domino. It tips the next, which tips two more, which tip four, until a thousand have fallen. Did you cause one change, or a thousand?

Change: Canyon vs. Earthquake

It took a river six million years to carve the Grand Canyon. An earthquake can drop a cliff into the sea in ten seconds. Which one changed the land more — the slow river or the fast quake?

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?

Not Like The Others: Rivers

Four rivers. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Cephalopods

Four cephalopods. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Flowers

Four flowers. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: 19th Century Presidents

Four 19th century presidents. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: 20th Century Presidents – Group B

Four 20th century presidents. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: 20th Century Presidents – Group A

Four 20th century presidents. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

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!?

Not Like The Others: African Nations

Four African nations. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: US National Parks

Four US national parks. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Discussing An Important Decision from History

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

Not Like The Others: Types of Diseases

Four diseases. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Birds of the Desert

Four desert birds. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Penguins

Four penguins. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Microstates of Europe

Four of the tiniest countries in Europe. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Microorganisms

Four microorganisms. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Plant Adaptation Tournament

Who will win in a tournament of eight plants with Interesting adaptations!?

Tournament: 8 Wonders of the Solar System

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

Not Like The Others: Ants of the World!

Four ants from around the world. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

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?

Precipitation Tournament

Eight types of precipitation battle it out in this tournament.

Tournament of Ancient Inventions

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

Animal Adaptation Tournament

Which animal has the most interesting, most valuable, or strangest adaptations?

Habitable Planets and Moons Tournament

Which object in the solar system is most habitable?

Parts of Speech Tournament

Which part of speech is most useful? Interesting? Strange?

Not Like The Others: Types of Volcanoes

Which of these types of volcanoes is not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Types of Rocks

Igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic — and one that doesn’t fit. But which one? Depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Snakes of the Rainforest

Four rainforest snakes. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Deserts

Which of these deserts is not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Rainforests

Which of these rainforests is not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Stars

How is each of these stars not like the others?

Not Like The Others: US States

How is each of these states not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Mountains

Which of these mountains is not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Birds of the Tropical Rainforest

Which of these four birds is not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Branches of the US Government

How is each part of the United States Government not like the other parts?

New Uses for a Paperclip

So what are some new ways to use a paperclip?

Tournament of Presidents

So who was the strangest of these eight presidents?

The Pros and Cons of Producers and Consumers

Sure, students might know the difference between a producer and a consumer… but have they considered how they feel about each other? What, in a producer’s opinion, are the pros and cons of a consumer?

Not Like The Others: Natural Disasters

Four natural disasters. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: States of Matter

How is each of the states of matter not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Countries

How is each of these four countries not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Charlotte’s Web

Four Charlotte’s Web characters. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Creatures of the Tundra

Four tundra creatures. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: US Presidents

Four US presidents. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Planets

Which of these planets is not like others? Well, it sure looks simple at first. But each option could be the one that doesn’t fit in.

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!

Propaganda and Logical Fallacies

Let’s see how propaganda techniques can make even something great seem bad.

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.