Grade 8
-
Strand 1
-
Strand 2
-
Strand 3
-
Strand 4
-
Strand 5
-
Strand 6
-
Strand 7
-
Strand 8
-
Strand 9
-
Strand 10
-
Strand 11
-
Strand 12
TEKS ELA Standard: 8.6.E
interact with sources in meaningful ways such as notetaking, annotating, freewriting, or illustrating
Notice, Wonder: Fountain
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Notice, Wonder: Burton Island
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Halloween Worksheets
Crosswords, image analysis, and writing prompts for Halloween!
Indirect Power – Lighthouse vs Magnetism
Students explore the idea of indirect power – which can be both visible (a lighthouse) or invisible (magnetism).
Martial Arts in Space
Shaolin kung fu students as seen from a satellite.
St. Patrick and Other Legends
How would real people feel about the legends that have been created about them?
Not Like The Others: Flowers
Four flowers. 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.
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.
Van Gogh on Water
Oil paint floats on water and becomes a familiar scene.
Van Gogh Self-Portrait Tournament
Who will win the tournament of Van Gogh self-portraits!?
How to Reset Your Brain When You’re Flooded
Allison Edwards explains how changing your senses can reset your brain.
Cooking In Space
Watch astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti cook a meal in zero gravity on the International Space Station.
Frozen Bubble
What happens when you blow a bubble in below-freezing temperatures?
Lego Shadow Spinner
Watch this block of Lego cast three completely different shadows of three distinctly different objects! How’d he do it?
A Character’s Playlist
What playlist of songs best goes with a character’s change over time?
Create A Civ: Capital City
Every great capital is part geography, part human design. Research real ones, then build your own from scratch.
Notice, Wonder: Barringer
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Not Like The Others: US National Parks
Four US national parks. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Thanksgiving Photo Writing
Starting with an old-timey photo, students will write from a particular item’s point of view.
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: Microstates of Europe
Four of the tiniest countries in Europe. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Drawing An Impossible Triangle
Here’s how you can draw The Penrose Triangle, an example of an impossible shape.
Notice, Wonder: Bloom
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Notice, Wonder: Skylight
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Drawing Knots, Level 2
How to draw a more complex version of this twisty Henri Matisse knot!
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.
Notice, Wonder: Vortices
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Notice, Wonder: Swirls
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Notice, Wonder: Witch’s Fingers
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
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: Birds of the Tropical Rainforest
Which of these four birds is not like the others?
Create A Civilization: Design A Flag
What makes for a good flag? What makes a bad flag?
Think Like A Historian
Here’s how effects be causes and causes can be effects!
Looping Grid Art
Pick a few numbers, draw some corresponding lines on grid paper, and you’ll end up with some interesting, looping math-y art!
Writing About Art: The Scream
Your students will turn the iconic painting The Scream into a vivid, sensory poem.
Notice, Wonder: Green Circles
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Inferring With Art: A Man
What’s going on in this painting? Who is that guy? What’s his job? And where’s his other boot?
Art Lesson: One-Point Perspective
Let’s give our students an art history lesson while teaching them how to enhance their drawings using one-point perspective.
Art Lesson: Two-Point Perspective
Let’s get students’ art really popping with two-point perspective!
Self Portraits Part One: Line Drawings
Anyone, yes anyone, can create a (somewhat) realistic self-portrait using these steps. Anyone!
Self Portraits: Pointillism
Turn your students into a bunch of Monets with q-tips and some tempera paint.
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?
Writing Sample: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (Shrinking)
A passage from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.
Writing Sample: The Velveteen Rabbit (The Toys)
A passage from The Velveteen Rabbit to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.
Notice, Wonder: A Long Line
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Holiday vs Holiday (from a Mascot’s Perspective)
Want something to do during the holiday season that is both fun and involves thinking? Get students writing about what a snowman would think about Halloween or what a ghost would think about Thanksgiving.
Virtue or Vice?
Aristotle noted that positive traits and negative traits are often the same thing, but just in different amounts. The right amount is a virtue, but too much or too little and it’s a vice.
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.
Notice, Wonder: Akron
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Writing Sample: The Wind in the Willows
A passage from The Wind in the Willows to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.
Notice, Wonder: A River
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
Do Narrators Have Too Much Power?
Imagine being a character in a story. Are you worried that your story’s narrator may inaccurately describe you? What if they reveal something you wanted to be kept secret? Do narrators have too much power!?
Game: Notakto
What if you only played Tic-Tac-Toe with Xs and you could play on multiple boards?
Create A Civilization: Calendars
Why 12 months? Why 30ish days? Why 7 days in a week? Your civilization could organize a year in any way you want!
Improving Presentations 1: Watching The Greats
Get better at giving presentations by studying the greats!
Using Creativity Tools To Develop A Learning Exploration: Step Three
How do you turn “go research something” into a structured, creative learning exploration? Kathryn Haydon walks through it step by step.
Depth and Complexity: 📚 Across Disciplines
No topic is an island! With the 📚 Across Disciplines prompt, students note connections within and across multiple fields.
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.
Creating A Realistic Flower and Pollinator
Your students will create a new flower, designed to attract a specific pollinator.
Historic Social Media
How would people from history have interacted online? Students will develop a conversation online between people involved in the same event from history.
Drawing Natural Curves Like Andy Goldsworthy
Andy Goldsworthy turns leaves and stones into art. Your students will learn to draw his signature natural curves — then build on them.
How to Play Go
Ready to learn a 2,500-year-old Chinese board game? Let’s… Go!
Introduce Symbolism with Pixel Art
Create a pixelated icon that represents the essence of a character!
An App For A Historical Figure
What kind of an app could have helped Abe Lincoln accomplish his goals?
Reduce Anxiety: Brain Plate (Tool 3)
When a student’s brain is full of worries, everything feels urgent. Brain Plate helps them sort what’s real from what’s noise — and actually do something about it.
Teaching Empathy With Faberge Eggs
The story of the Fabergé Eggs is heartbreaking. It’s also the perfect way to build empathy in your classroom.
Intellectual Intensity
Do you know someone who becomes a bit overexcited by ideas?
Engineering: Build A Bridge
Using real bridges as their starting point, students will construct bridges out of straws and paperclips.