Do your class members ever focus too much on graphics or animations when designing a PowerPoint presentation? Have you ever come across a presentation filled with great information, but found it difficult to read because of color choices...

Whether you are teaching mainstream, advanced, or intervention language arts classes, you will find something helpful in a thorough writing packet. It includes prompts, rubrics, responses, helpful hints, graphic organizers, and many...

Here is an unexpected, but practical resource. It is not a instructional activity, but rather an outline of what a science laboratory participant should include in a report. Especially valuable is a grading rubric that spells out what is...

Communication is key. Eight sample items show how important communication and reasoning is for sixth grade mathematics. Part of the Claim 2-4 slide show series, the presentation uses concepts from fifth and sixth grade to illicit...

Develop a model for prep. The resource provides examples of how items reflect modeling and data analysis for Smarter Balanced assessments. Items use on-grade or below-grade content to focus on the modeling aspect. The questions revolve...

A math model is a good model. A slide show presents 10 sample items on modeling and data analysis. Items from Smarter Balanced illustrate different ways that Claim 4 may be assessed on the 8th grade math assessment. The presentation is...

Develop a radical approach to covering the Smarter Balanced targets for 8th grade math with a presentation that helps further develop math skills. Seven sample items demonstrate the expectation for working with integer exponents,...

Functions model relationships between quantities. The Smarter Balanced sample items demonstrate the assessment strategies for eighth grade function modeling standards. Items range from constructing linear functions from a table and a...

The probability is high that these questions will challenge your pupils! The ninth and final installment of the Grade 7 Claim 1 Slideshow series, a set of items assesses the understanding of simple and compound probability concepts....

Fraction and integer operations follow the same rules.  Assess the depth of understanding with operations with rational numbers using a presentation from the Grade 7 Claim 1 Slideshow series. A set of slides presents 12 question and...

The time has come to find out what your fourth grade readers have learned after another year of hard work. This Common Core-designed practice assessment provides two reading passages, one narrative and one expository, that children must...

If you're about to start a California mission project in your class, check out the worksheets offered in this resource for learners to use to guide their research and report back on what they discovered.

Show learners how to use simulations and random sampling to reach conclusions with the last resource in a 25-part series. The assessment contains three scenarios, each with several parts, and covers comparing populations using...

Math can be a problem in eighth grade. Sample items show how problem solving exists within the eighth grade standards. Part of the Gr. 8 Claim 2 - 4 Item Slide Shows series, the presentation contains eight items to illustrate the...

To solve or not to solve that is the problem. A slide presentation of 17 items show different ways that Smarter Balanced assesses Claim 2, problem solving. The items span from sixth and seventh grade concepts to highlight the...

Don't leave learning to chance! Assess your class's understanding of random sampling and making inferences using questions from the experts at Smarter Balanced. As the seventh of nine parts in the Gr. 7 Claim 1 Item Slide Shows...

Scholars apply their knowledge of statistical questions to determine which questions meet the criteria. Grade 6 Claim 1 Item Slide Shows offers a couple of practice problems for scholars to discuss.

Practice makes perfect. A practice test designed for the ELA MCAS Assessment gives seventh grade learners the opportunity to answer reading comprehension questions and respond to essay prompts. Questions involve general fiction and...

Jane wants a new television, but she's not sure what size to buy! Your middle schoolers can figure it out when they apply the Pythagorean theorem. Produced especially for meeting Common Core standards in geometry, this activity appeals...

Communication is the key. A dozen sample items require scholars to communicate their reasoning involved in arriving at a solution. The PowerPoint from the Gr. 8 Claim 2 - 4 Item Slide Shows series uses a variety of content to...

Does the explanation make sense? Sample items highlight claim three, communicating reason, in the Smarter Balanced assessments. Teachers use the 16 items to help show pupils the importance of communication and reasoning within...

Build the model right out of the box. A few sample items show teachers how Smarter Balanced assessments may approach Claim 4, modeling and data analysis. Pupils use their skills to create equations or expressions to model the situation...

Not one but two box plots. How will your pupils fare? Assess their understanding of box plots by having them compare two populations. The eighth of nine installments in the Gr. 7 Claim 1 Item Slide Shows series, the resource has...

Put expressions, equations, and inequalities to work! Young scholars solve problems using various strategies. Meant as a snapshot of the Smarter Balanced Assessment, a set of seven questions includes topics from writing expressions to...