8th Grade Historical Literacy consists of two 43 minute class periods. Writing is one 43 minute block and reading is another. The teacher has picked themes based on social studies standards, and a read-aloud novel based on social studies serves as the mentor text for writing and reading skills. More social studies content is addressed in reading through teaching nonfiction reading skills and discussion.
Standards reflect CCSS ELA, Reading, and Social Studies Standards.

As diseases become stronger in nature, currently available antibiotics are no longer strong enough to suppress and cure said diseases. Therefore, what factors contribute to diseases becoming resistant to drugs and what public policies should be developed around them?  In this problem-based learning module, students will work with partners or in groups to first assess the increasing problem of drug-resistant diseases and the toll they are taking on the American public. Additionally, students will work to investigate what hospitals and lawmakers are doing to address this problem. Once students understand and are familiar with the current state of affairs, they will then work to further understand and research exactly why this issue needs to be brought to the attention of the general public, in order to promote change to current hospital procedures and policies. Further, students will determine the current political climate and support (or lack thereof) for policy, and will analyze the interest in keeping, changing or removing said policies altogether. Once the group has a full understanding, students will then work to determine their position on the issues surrounding antibiotic resistant diseases and the policies associated with these diseases. As soon as the group reaches a consensus, students will work to research and determine a professional way in which to present their goals and objectives for curbing the issue of drug-resistant diseases.

Students use Library of Congress primary sources to plan, take, and document a trip around the world in 1896.

Students use Library of Congress primary sources to examine the Civil War and American industrialization.

What does it take to be successful in the workplace? This unit provides students with the opportunity to examine this question, evaluate what others say and form their own voice, and finally to express and share what they find. The materials are for the instructor and provide options to adapt to specfic students. learning needs,  and time frame.

This activity is designed to help students understand the debates at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 that shaped America’s legislative branch of government. The primary goal of this activity is for students to discover how a compromise balanced the needs of large states and small states and how this led to the creation of the current House of Representatives and Senate.

In this problem-based learning module, students will work together collaboratively to establish questions and develop these questions into claims after being presented with the problem “How are today’s living standards contributing to the drug resistance disease crisis and what needs to be done to begin to reverse the effects of the contributing factors?”  The students will then work collaboratively to continue researching and will use the research to create a collaborative electronic public service announcement to go along with an individually written letter which will be sent to either a state representative, the FDA, lead community personnel, etc. Both products, the PSA and the letter will include their well defined claim, supported with evidence and backed up with reasoning.Prior to beginning module, please note: Module can be completed in isolation, or can be completed in conjunction with modules "Antibiotic Resistance and Antibiotic Policy" (science) and/or Advancing Change through Public Awareness (social studies) as part of a full interdisciplinary unit between 8th grade social studies, language arts and science.  This would allow for students to have a wider array of questions to guide their claims and the students could build the PSA in social studies and write the letter in Language Arts.

Students use Library of Congress primary sources to examine the forced acculturation of American Indians through government-run boarding schools.

This multiple day lesson focuses on Booker T. Washington’s life as a slave and as a free man trying to receive an education.  Students will read chapters 1-4 of the text to gain an understanding of the obstacles that Booker T. Washington encountered and what motivated him to pursue his education.  Students will identify the central ideas in the text and participate in a discussion which will inform their routine writing. Image source: "Bookert T Washington" by Harris & Ewing from the Prints & Photographs Online Catalog, Library of Congress.

This lesson spans multiple days and explores the value of debate teams in schools. During the first week of the unit, students learned to identify claims and warrants in texts. This week, students will build upon that knowledge by writing a basic argument and learning about the types of support that are used to build an argument. This will culminate with an assessment in which the students choose a position to take after reading a text and develop their claims and warrants with appropriate support and analysis.Cover image: "[Booker T. Washington, half-length portrait, seated]" by Frances Benjamin Johnston from the Prints & Photographs Onlince Catalog at loc.gov  

This lesson is intended to be taught over multiple days, focusing on Chapter XIII: Two Thousand Miles for A Five-Minute Speech from Up From Slavery by Booker T. Washington.  The students will also complete a close read of The Atlanta Exposition Address by Booker T. Washington.  Through the two texts, students will read about the events that led Booker T. Washington to deliver a speech at the Atlanta Exposition.  Students will write and deliver their own speech, supporting their arguments with claims and evidence. Image source: "Booker T. Washington" by skeeze on Pixabay.com

In ths lesson seed, students will compare a poem and a text about Booker T. Washington.  Students will identify the central idea and supporting evidence in each text. 

In this module, students will develop their ability to read and understand complex text as they consider the challenges of fictional and real refugees. In the first unit, students will begin Inside Out & Back Again, by Thanhha Lai, analyzing how critical incidents reveal the dynamic nature of the main character, Ha, a 10-year-old Vietnamese girl whose family is deciding whether to flee during the fall of Saigon. The novel, poignantly told in free verse, will challenge students to consider the impact of specific word choice on tone and meaning. Students will build their ability to infer and analyze text, both in discussion and through writing. They then will read informational text to learn more about the history of war in Vietnam, and the specific historical context of Ha’s family’s struggle during the fall of Saigon. In Unit 2, students will build knowledge about refugees’ search for a place to call home. They will read informational texts that convey universal themes of refugees’

Find the rest of the EngageNY ELA resources at https://archive.org/details/engageny-ela-archive .

In this second module, students will continue to develop their ability to closely read text while studying the theme of taking a stand. During the first half of Unit 1, students will read two speeches reflecting examples of real people taking a stand. By reading these speeches they will build background knowledge about the module’s overarching theme, engage in a study of the speaker’s perspective, and analyze the craft of forming an argument. In the second half of Unit 1, students will read Part 1 ofTo Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and continue to study the theme of taking a stand as it is revealed in the novel. Students will engage in a character study of Atticus by analyzing his actions and words, and what others say about him, to better understand him as a character. This analysis will provide details and evidence for students to use in their end of Unit 2 argument essay. In addition to reading and studying the text, students will view excerpts of the To Kill a Mockingbird film that strongly convey the novel’s themes, and they will analyze how the film remains true to the original text as well as how it veers from the original.

Find the rest of the EngageNY ELA resources at https://archive.org/details/engageny-ela-archive .

This resource includes multiple lesson plans developed by Washington State teacher John Zingale and can be taught as part of in-person, hybrid, or remote instructional settings. The core content areas include social studies, civics, and media literacy and are designed for use with students in grades 6-12. Additional integrations include ELA, world languages, mathematics, physical education and science. These lessons integrate both state and national civics instruction using project-based and collaborative learning strategies. Features of these lessons include:student researchcollaborative learningdigital learning strategieslateral readingdesign and creation of infographicsTo support these lessons, additional resources are provided to help educators and families with understanding and teaching information and media literacy to young people. Resources include:introductions to media literacyeducator guidesparent guidesstudent learning standards

Food waste is a major contributor to greenhouse gas. Wasted food and the resources to produce that food are responsible for approximately 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions. In this storyline, students learn about the resources required to produce food through following the carbon cycle and discover how food waste contributes to climate change. They will also learn the farm to table transport chain as well as how to conduct a food waste audit. Finally, the students will research solutions to the problem of food waste that can be applicable to their own lives, their school, and their community. 

 This inquiry unit leads students through the different perspectives behind a decision to have a dam removed. This unit looks at similar Washington state dam removal decisions as well as the complex issue of having the Election dam removed near Puyallup, WA. Students will be introduced to the stories and traditional ways of knowing about salmon that the Puyallup Tribe has built their culture upon. Then they will explore the science behind hydroelectricity and build models to discover how carbon neutral energy is gathered through hydro dams. This inquiry unit ends with students researching different perspectives surrounding the current (2021) decision to remove the Electron dam including: the Tribe’s Fishery department, the ecosystem, the city council, the fishermen and the hydro-electrical company who currently owns the dam. With their research, students will do a socratic seminar to mimic the court case lawsuit that is ongoing against the Electron Dam. 

During this problem-based learning unit, students will explore dystopian societies of past and in short stories in order to identify dystopian elements in today’s society.  In turn, students will have a choice between multiple product outputs in which they will apply what they have learned to modern day life and provide ideas of how to improve our society by combating these dystopian elements.*Students will need some prior knowledge of Nazi Germany, Civil Rights America in 1930’s, Present Day China, and Sierra Leone in order to make connections to why these societies have dystopian elements.

Students use Library of Congress primary sources to examine continuity and change in the governing of the United States by looking at the Constitution and linking early legislative debates to issues of...