Even if you've never picked up a musical instrument, chances are that music has directly impacted your mental and emotional development. Sixth graders engage in a reading activity in which they read two articles on the impact of music on...

William Shakespeare penned some of the richest and most fascinating works of literature—or did he? Middle schoolers read three brief informative passages and conduct additional research to evaluate the claim that Shakespeare did not...

Everyone has a different point of view, even when it comes to the enormity of the universe. Two separate text passages explain the scope of a galaxy, prompting young readers to write an essay about each author's argument and how the...

Challenge writers to compose an essay detailing their stance on, and the history of, voting. Three assignments, each broken down into three parts, requires fifth graders to take notes, read and complete charts, write paragraphs, compare...

After reading the first, second, and third parts of "How Bear Lost His Tail", third grade writers answer questions about the story by completing a series of options, including discussion points. Then, they begin to plan a new narrative...

A three-part assessment promotes reading comprehension skills. Class members read literary texts and take notes to discuss their findings, answer comprehension questions, write summaries, and complete charts. 

Use a performance task to assess third graders' ability to read informational text. After they plan a lemonade stand business, young entrepreneurs implement that plan through informational writing. The task assumes learners can...

Should the work of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences be funded by the government? Middle schoolers weigh in on the status of federal funding for programs that protect the environment with three text passages...

Which animal is best for you—a dog or cat? Why? Engage third graders in an opinion writing assessment that prompts them to read facts about both pets, and then write and decide which pet is best for them.

Are American young people prepared to become tomorrow's leaders in technological innovation, or does an obsession with being cool sidetrack essential skills? That is the question freshmen and sophomores must address in a performance...

A three-part writing assessment challenges scholars to think critically about schools of the past and present. Learners read informative texts, answer questions to prepare for a discussion, research in small groups, complete a Venn...

On June 26, 1963 President John F. Kennedy delivered his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech close to the Berlin Wall at the Rudolph Wilde Platz. On June 12, 1987 President Ronald Reagan Delivered his famous "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down...

Looking for a performance assessment that asks individuals to demonstrate their competency in writing about informational text? Use Frederick Douglass' essay "On the Dred Scott Decision," and an excerpt from Abraham Lincoln's 1857 speech...

Writing and sketching functions—what more could you want to do? Learners write and sketch functions that meet certain conditions as they complete a short task. They find a parabola that encompasses three quadrants of the coordinate plane...

Ready, set, write! Every great film begins with a script, and every presentation starts with a plan. Directors use their research and experience to compose an essay explaining the rationale behind their film's musical and visual choices...

As part of a mid-unit assessment, scholars draft their inside-out poems and then work on their "Back Again" poems. Learners use a rubric and graphic organizers to guide their writing.

The authors of the court's decision and the dissenting opinion on Plessy v. Ferguson disagreed on their interpretations of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments. Scholars set out to show how with an on-demand writing prompt. They...

Powerful orators make their messages compelling with a combination of factors. Learn how to be an inspirational speaker with a reading assessment activity that presents a list of persuasive speaking techniques, as well as two...

How do you assess whether pupils have mastered certain concepts and skills? Designing a performance task that asks learners to demonstrate their skills and providing writers with a rubric that identifies these skills and provides...

To demonstrate their ability to craft an analysis of informational text, class members read excerpts from James Madison's "The Federalist No. 10," from George Washington's Farewell Address, and from Thomas Jefferson's First Inaugural...

Is it crazy to fall in love with your own work, or is that the purest love of all? Compare two renditions of the classic Greek myth Pygmalion and Galatea with a literary analysis exercise. After students compare the similarities and...

A two-day assessment challenges scholars to read an excerpt from the story, Bud Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis then complete a series of exercises in preparation for a writing assignment. Day one includes an independent...

It's all in the numbers! Create a mathematical model to analyze a number game and develop a winning strategy. Using a given numerical pattern, scholars write an expression to model the scenario. They then interpret the pattern of the...

Scholars use the 2007 AP® English Literature and Composition Free-Response Questions to write essays examining how a character's tie to the past affects the story. The resource also requires pupils to write essays comparing two related...