Inform your class about the origins of photography with this short passage and accompanying questions. After reading a short informational text, leaners answer 3 questions about the content of the text. This resource could be used in a...

Instruct your class on biomimetics while practicing reading comprehension with this worksheet. Learners read a passage that describes the efforts of scientists, starting with Leonardo da Vinci, to emulate nature to solve issues in...

In this critical reading exercise, students evaluate the credibility of a piece of writing. Students read descriptions of various interest groups and lobbies and identify the group that made a quotation.

Sometimes the most important details of an informational text aren't within the text at all. Teach your class how to read timeline with a set of activities that prompts them to find specific dates and events on the timelines, as well as...

Middle schoolers can analyze primary source documents to answer the question, "Why did the Aztec and Inca civilizations disappear?" They will read the provided excerpts then answer 11 different questions to uncover the ultimate answer.

This is not just a New York Time article to read, this is a set of amazing activity ideas all related to the slide shows "Breaking Bread Everywhere" and "Where Children Sleep." Your class can view each show, read about what they mean...

Is interacting with people from different backgrounds part of a well-rounded education? A big question awaits young readers as they explore two New York Times articles that discuss modern-day segregation, population statistics, and...

After reading about the events of September 11, 2001 learners can think critically with the aid of nine interesting questions. They answer each question in a full sentence and answer as if they were confronted with these questions at the...

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a political cartoon is like reading an essay. Have your critical thinkers examine three cartoons to read between the lines, gaining insight and information. They analyze how these cartoons...

Kids consider the characteristics needed to be reformers like Martin Luther King and Cesar Chavez. They read a series of quotes focused on both animal and human rights to answer eight critical thinking questions. 

Challenge your class to reevaluate preconceived notions about government with this political cartoon analysis. An image presents a clear example of irony, in which a disgruntled American complains about his government, yet fails to see...

Blogs can be a good way for learners to engage in writing, critical thinking, and social media in a formal way. The New York Times has provided learners age 13-18 with an article, background information, and several prompts to get them...

Connect events of the past to events of today. Budding historians read an eight paragraph passage describing the Watergate scandal. They then connect the Nixon scandal to sex scandals of recent times. There are six critical thinking...

Your class can read about the changes Obama considered making to Bush's No Child Left Behind Act. After reading the article, pupils answer 13 questions that ask, who, what, when, where, and why.

Primary source documents provide a realistic context for pupils to explore. Included are 5 experts relating European ideals and methods for colonizing and controlling the African continent. Middle schoolers answer 4 critical-thinking...

Warm up the class with this political cartoon analysis. They use the provided guiding questions to analyze a cartoon depicting issues of debate regarding Federal debt. Critical thinking is a must with this worksheet.

Rigged elections make for both intriguing current events and hilarious political cartoons. In this analysis worksheet, pupils read background information to help them grasp a cartoon about rigged presidential elections in 2007 by Russia,...

What are the most prominent symbols of the United States? Learn about the bald eagle, the American flag, and the Statue of Liberty in a reading comprehension activity that includes a short passage and five reflective questions.

If your kids are curious about the American Revolution, help them understand more about its background with a reading passage and comprehension questions. Kids use context clues to answer each question, some of which require more...

Who is Salman Khan? That is the first question learners will answer after reading a New York Times article about the online math and science educator. They'll read the article and respond to eight questions that ask, who, what, when,...

Examine issues and events surrounding US withdrawal of troops from the Iraq War. After reading this New York Times article learners respond to each of the nine who, what, when, where, and why questions. 

Theodore Roosevelt's "The Man in the Arena" speech not only provides individuals with a chance to develop their reading skills but also provides much food for thought about current political situations. Cynics, fops, and...

This activity uses a question and answer format to scaffold middle schoolers comprehension of a short dialogue about the Chesapeake Bay and its tradition of log canoes. After reading the short passage, students are prompted to find three...

Read this interesting background information regarding the presidential election of 2008. Your class will read the provided passages and then answer four critical thinking questions that require them to consider the reading and what they...