8th Grade Reading Projects

Dive into the rich tapestry of Black history with our Ultimate Black History Month Educational Bundle, meticulously crafted for educators passionate about providing a comprehensive, interactive, and engaging learning experience. This bundle combines a variety of resources, ensuring a well-rounded approach to teaching pivotal moments and figures in Black history. Suitable for grades 4-8, these resources are perfect for integrating into ELA, Social Studies, Art, and more.

1. Black History Month Athlete Trading Cards - Interactive Digital & Print Resource: Engage and educate your students with this interactive set of athlete trading cards. Celebrate the achievements of influential Black athletes with this 60-slide resource, perfect for classroom activities, creative projects, and bulletin board displays.
2. Claudette Colvin STAAR Test Prep Text (Grades 6-8) - FREEBIE: Dive into the inspiring story of Claudette Colvin with this STAAR test prep text. Designed for students in grades 6-8, this resource not only enriches students' knowledge about an important figure in the Civil Rights Movement but also sharpens their test-taking skills.
3. MLK 3 Interactive Timelines, Bulletin Boards & Door Decor: Honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with interactive timelines and visually appealing decor. This resource is perfect for creating an educational environment that celebrates MLK's journey and teachings, inspiring students through interactive learning and creative expression.
4. Black History Month Digital Resource - 45 Google Slides, 15 Texts, Video & Writing: This comprehensive digital resource is a treasure trove of information, featuring 45 Google Slides, 15 texts, videos, and writing prompts. It's designed to provide a rich educational experience, sparking discussions and deepening understanding.
5. Civil Rights Movement Song Analysis (Grades 5-8) - Valentine's Day Special: Analyze the profound messages in songs from the Civil Rights Movement with this unique resource. It's an engaging way for students to connect with history through music, enhancing their analytical skills and emotional understanding of the era.
6. Color & Discover Modern Heroes of Black History Month - Freebie: This creative resource allows students to learn about modern heroes of Black History Month through coloring activities. It's a fun, engaging way to introduce younger students to influential figures and their contributions.
7. Claudette Colvin STAAR Test Prep Text (Grades 6-8) - FREEBIE (Duplicate): Reinforce your students' understanding and appreciation of Claudette Colvin's courageous stand during the Civil Rights Movement with this STAAR test prep text. This resource doubles the opportunity to integrate critical reading and historical knowledge into your test preparation activities.

Each resource in this bundle is thoughtfully designed to cater to different learning styles and classroom needs, making it the perfect package to explore, celebrate, and honor Black History Month in your classroom. Equip your students with knowledge, critical thinking skills, and a deep appreciation for the contributions and stories of Black individuals with our Ultimate Black History Month Educational Bundle.

Explore themes of equity, disabilities, and resilience with this dynamic resource bundle designed for grades 5-8!

1. 18-Day Disabilities & Equity Unit (Grades 6+): This comprehensive unit includes engaging projects, thought-provoking essays, rigorous assessments, and Socratic seminars to help students explore visible and invisible disabilities, equity in schools, and societal challenges. Perfect for deepening understanding and fostering empathy in your classroom.
2. Out of My Mind Movie Guide and Activities (Grades 5+): Dive deeper into Sharon Draper’s Out of My Mind with this movie guide and activity pack! Students will analyze characters, themes, and key scenes while practicing critical thinking and reflection skills.

This bundle is ideal for educators looking to combine standards-aligned instruction with meaningful, real-world themes. Save time and inspire your students with these ready-to-use resources!

Students are eager to engage in conversation and learning around their identities! This engaging social identity unit explores the 8 Big Social Identities—gender, race, age, religion, orientation, ability, ethnicity, and class—through a blend of activities, texts, videos, music, and projects. Perfect for middle and early high school students, this unit is low prep for teachers, offering print-and-go materials that ensure a seamless teaching experience.

What’s Included:

• 19-Day Unit of 60-Minute Lessons: Each day is planned with detailed agendas and objectives.
• Engaging Slides: Visually appealing and informative slides for each lesson to enhance learning and retention.
• Texts, Videos, Movies, and Music: A variety of multimedia resources to engage students and deepen their understanding.
• Interactive Activities and Projects: Hands-on learning through discourse, writing, reading, annotating, research, data collection, data analysis, presentation building, and peer feedback.

Daily Activities Overview:

Day 1: Understanding Social Identity

• Activities: Do Now prompt, "Cross the Line" activity, discussion, reflection writing.

Day 2: The Big 8 Social Identities

• Activities: Do Now prompt, fill in the Social Wheel, group discussion, reflection writing.

Day 3: Power, Privilege, and Marginalization

• Activities: Do Now prompt, discussion on power and privilege, activity on social identity axis, Turn & Talk, reflection writing.

Day 4: Cultural Heritage and Identity

• Activities: Do Now prompt, whole group reading ("Fish Cheeks" by Amy Tan), independent evidence mining, closing discussion.

Day 5: Family Traditions and Social Identity

• Activities: Do Now prompt, whole group reading ("Taco Head"), independent evidence mining, closing discussion.

Day 6: Seminar Preparation

• Activities: Do Now prompt, review evidence mined from readings, seminar setup, discuss seminar norms.

Day 7: Media Representation and Identity

• Activities: Do Now prompt, watch video and read lyrics, independent evidence mining, group discussion.

Day 8: Cultural Pride and Daily Life

• Activities: Do Now prompt, watch video and read lyrics, independent evidence mining, group discussion.

Day 9: Traditional Music and Identity

• Activities: Do Now prompt, review evidence mined from activities, student-led seminar, reflection.

Day 10: Film Connection - "Wonder"

• Activities: Do Now prompt, introduce film and its connection to social identity, film viewing (Part 1), discussion.

Day 11: Continuation of "Wonder"

• Activities: Do Now prompt, preview questions, film viewing (Part 2), discussion.

Day 12: Conclusion of "Wonder"

• Activities: Do Now prompt, preview questions, film viewing (Part 3), discussion.

Day 13: Seminar on "Wonder"

• Activities: Do Now prompt, seminar setup, student-led seminar, reflection.

Day 14: Personal Narrative Writing

• Activities: Do Now prompt, read example narratives, brainstorm, partner sharing, begin writing introduction and body paragraph.

Day 15: Continue Personal Narrative Writing

• Activities: Do Now prompt, review narrative structure, continue writing narrative essay.

Day 16: Peer Feedback on Narratives

• Activities: Do Now prompt, peer feedback, revise essays based on feedback.

Day 17: Identity Mask Project

• Activities: Do Now prompt, introduce identity mask project, sketch ideas, gather materials.

Day 18: Continue Identity Mask Project

• Activities: Do Now prompt, continue crafting masks, wrap up.

Day 19: Finalize Identity Mask Project

• Activities: Do Now prompt, finish crafting and decorating masks, present masks and share reflections.

Key Features:

• Low Prep for Teachers: Print-and-go materials make it easy to implement the unit with minimal preparation.
• Engaging Multimedia Resources: Texts, videos, movies, and music provide diverse perspectives and deepen understanding.
• Explores the 8 Big Social Identities: Gender, race, age, religion, orientation, ability, ethnicity, and class.
• Interactive and Reflective Activities: Encourages critical thinking, self-reflection, and peer collaboration.

Bring social identity to life in your classroom with this dynamic and interactive unit. Equip your students with the knowledge and skills to understand and appreciate the diverse identities that shape our world. Purchase now and make a meaningful impact on your students' understanding of social identity!

Unlock a powerful, multimedia learning experience with this 18-Day Human Migration & Immigration Unit designed for grades 7 and up. Perfectly suited for middle and high school students, this comprehensive unit takes a deep dive into the complex themes of immigration, refugee experiences, human rights, and resilience, offering a diverse range of engaging activities, discussions, and assessments to enhance your students’ understanding of migration.

Why You’ll Love This Resource:

This unit is packed with dynamic content, carefully curated to foster critical thinking, empathy, and real-world connections to the global immigration experience. Whether you're teaching ELA, Social Studies, or Civics, this resource makes it easy to cover key learning standards while keeping students deeply engaged.

Key Features:

• 18-Day Overview with links: An organized, day-by-day curriculum featuring thought-provoking discussions, debates, and creative projects.
• Multimedia Approach: Engage students with film (A Better Life), poetry (e.g., "Home" by Warsan Shire), art, and political cartoons to explore different perspectives on migration.
• Political Cartoon Capstone Project: Culminate the unit with an original political cartoon that challenges students to think critically and creatively about immigration or refugee issues.
• Full-Length Essay: Scaffolded instruction to help students write a STAAR-aligned ECR Extended Constructed Response informational essay on U.S. immigration changes over time.
• Student-Led Socratic Seminars: Foster meaningful student discussion through Socratic seminars on immigration themes, encouraging students to reflect on resilience and media representation.
• Collaborative Projects: Group activities like creating a one-pager on legal immigration pathways and a debate on immigration rights help students work together to deepen their learning.
• Visual Analysis Activities: Analyze and create political cartoons on immigration, developing students' understanding of how media portrays immigration issues.
• Adaptable for Grades 7-12: Scaffolded activities that can be easily modified to fit your students’ grade level, ensuring accessibility for middle and high school learners.

What’s Included:

• Detailed 18-Day Unit Plan: Complete lesson breakdowns and objectives for each day.
• Engaging Activities: Four Corners debates, circle discussions, Socratic seminars, and peer editing sessions.
• Poetry Analysis: Focus on powerful immigration-themed poems like Warsan Shire’s "Home" to build empathy and understanding.
• Film-Based Learning: Dive deep into the immigrant experience with the film A Better Life, supported by guiding discussion questions.
• Political Cartoon Creation & Analysis: Encourage creativity and visual literacy with a capstone political cartoon project, complete with a rubric, directions, and planning sheets.
• Extended Constructed Response (ECR) Essay Assignment: Guide students through writing a detailed essay on the historical shifts in U.S. immigration policies, helping them gather evidence and structure their argument.

Perfect for:

• English Language Arts (ELA) Teachers: Integrate critical thinking, reading comprehension, and writing skills into your curriculum through immigration-related poetry, essays, and discussions.
• Social Studies & Civics Teachers: This unit aligns with standards related to immigration, human rights, and social justice, making it an ideal choice for interdisciplinary learning.
• Project-Based Learning: Teachers seeking hands-on, creative projects that encourage students to connect real-world issues with classroom content.
• Middle & High School Classrooms: Adaptable for grades 7-12, making it perfect for different learning levels and classroom settings.

Benefits for Your Classroom:

• Standards-Aligned: Fully aligned with ELA, social studies, and civics standards for middle and high school.
• Easy to Implement: Clear, step-by-step instructions and a well-organized unit plan make it easy to integrate into your teaching.
• Creative & Engaging: Helps students develop both analytical and creative skills through a variety of learning activities and projects.
• Fosters Critical Thinking: Encourages deep reflection and discussion on complex issues like immigration policy, human rights, and media portrayal.
• Boosts Empathy: Through multimedia and personal stories, this unit helps students build empathy for people facing migration and displacement.

Bring immigration to life for your students with this engaging, interactive, and thought-provoking 18-Day Human Migration & Immigration Unit. Get your classroom discussing, debating, creating, and writing about one of the most critical global issues of our time!

Engage your middle and high school students with this 21-Day Multimedia Thematic Unit focused on Social Media and Mental Health! Designed for Grades 7 and up, this comprehensive unit weaves together ELA, social studies, and digital literacy through interactive lessons, activities, and assessments that explore the influence of social media on identity, mental health, and society.

This unit features a variety of multimedia resources, including TED Talks, informational articles, political cartoons, and the documentary The Social Dilemma. Students will develop critical thinking skills as they engage with different forms of media, reflect on their personal social media habits, and create meaningful projects like a political cartoon capstone.

What’s Included:

• Daily Lesson Plans for 21 days of engaging, standards-aligned instruction
• A range of activities including debates, Socratic seminars, and reflective writing
• Viewing guides and discussion prompts for multimedia content
• Informational text analysis with evidence-gathering strategies
• Step-by-step directions for creating a capstone political cartoon on social media’s impact
• Assessment rubrics and graphic organizers to support student learning

Aligned Standards:
This interdisciplinary unit is aligned with Common Core ELA Standards (including reading, writing, speaking, and listening), as well as ISTE Digital Literacy Standards. Perfect for cross-curricular learning, it encourages students to develop literacy skills, media analysis, and digital responsibility.

Why You'll Love This Unit:

• Interactive and Student-Centered: Students engage with real-world issues like social media usage, body image, and mental health in meaningful ways.
• Multimedia Integration: Incorporates TED Talks, articles, documentaries, and more to create a rich, dynamic learning experience.
• Project-Based Learning: Culminates with a creative capstone project where students design their own political cartoons, showcasing their understanding of the unit’s themes.
• Critical Thinking and Reflection: Encourages self-awareness as students reflect on their own social media habits and the impact on their mental health.

Who It’s For:

• Middle and high school teachers (Grades 7-12) looking for an engaging, interdisciplinary unit that addresses current issues.
• Educators seeking a Common Core-aligned and ISTE-aligned unit that integrates social media, mental health, and literacy skills.

Perfect for:

• ELA, social studies, and digital literacy classrooms
• Teachers looking for 21st-century skill-building units
• Classrooms wanting to address the impacts of social media on student well-being

This 21-Day Multimedia Unit will help students understand the impact of social media on their lives while improving essential academic skills. Get ready for insightful discussions, creative projects, and meaningful reflections that resonate with your students’ real-world experiences. Download now and bring relevant, standards-aligned learning to your classroom!

Engage your middle and high school students with this 18-Day Multimedia Thematic Unit on Disabilities in Schools and Society! Designed for Grades 6 and up, this comprehensive unit explores both visible and invisible disabilities through a variety of media, hands-on projects, and critical assessments. Perfect for ELA, social studies, or humanities classes, this unit provides students with opportunities to develop empathy, research skills, and a deeper understanding of accessibility and inclusivity.

This unit integrates multimedia resources, including documentaries, political cartoons, TED Talks, and informational texts. Students will build critical thinking skills as they analyze real-world challenges faced by individuals with disabilities, assess their school’s ADA compliance, and create projects to promote inclusivity.

What’s Included:

• Pacing Plan for 18 days of engaging, standards-aligned instruction.
• A range of activities including debates, Socratic seminars, evidence-mining, and reflective writing.
• Viewing guides and discussion prompts for multimedia content such as The Miracle Worker and the Zion Clark documentary.
• Informational text analysis with strategies for gathering evidence.
• Projects like the Walk in My Shoes research project, school ADA evaluation, and political cartoon analysis to encourage creative thinking and real-world application.
• Assessment rubrics and graphic organizers to support student learning.

Aligned Standards:

This interdisciplinary unit is aligned with Common Core ELA Standards (reading, writing, speaking, and listening) and encourages cross-curricular learning with a focus on disabilities, social studies, and media literacy. It promotes research, empathy, and accessibility discussions through engaging multimedia and project-based learning.

Why You'll Love This Unit:

• Interactive and Student-Centered: Students actively engage with real-world issues around disability awareness and inclusivity through meaningful activities.
• Multimedia Integration: TED Talks, articles, films, and political cartoons create a dynamic and engaging learning experience.
• Project-Based Learning: Includes hands-on projects like the Walk in My Shoes disability research project, allowing students to take ownership of their learning.
• Critical Thinking and Reflection: Encourages students to reflect on how disabilities affect individuals’ lives and how society can become more inclusive.

Who It’s For:

• Middle and high school teachers (Grades 6-9) looking for an engaging, interdisciplinary unit addressing disabilities and inclusivity.
• Educators seeking a Common Core-aligned unit that integrates multimedia, research, and project-based learning.

Perfect for:

• ELA, social studies, and humanities classrooms.
• Teachers seeking units that focus on empathy, accessibility, and real-world issues.
• Maternity leave or long-term sub plans, with a pacing guide and ready-to-use materials.

This 18-Day Multimedia Unit helps students understand the challenges and strengths of individuals with disabilities while improving essential academic skills. Get ready for insightful discussions, creative projects, and meaningful reflections that resonate with your students’ real-world experiences. Download now and bring relevant, standards-aligned learning to your classroom!

The goal of this AUTHOR STUDY FOR LANGSTON HUGHES is to provide clear, factual information about the author, explore two published work samples, and supply a digital scaffolded research organizer so students may successfully complete a cohesive research project.

1. *The 2 PREREADING PowerPoint lessons provide digital pre-reading resources, historical background info, vocabulary word study, practice, and assessment for two of Hughes’ short stories; Thank You Ma’m and One Friday Morning. PDF LINKS to texts, AUTHOR INTERVIEW LINK, LINKS FOR BIOGRAPHICAL RESEARCH included.

2. *These lessons have been paired with the DIGITAL BIOGRAPHY RESEARCH TEMPLATE to create a full AUTHOR STUDY bundle .

EACH SHORT STORY PREREADING LESSON
• Opening slide
-genre, author photo and short bio.

-INTERVIEW LINK IS INCLUDED

- PDF LINK IS INCLUDED
• 2 setting slides
-Location photos with map
-Time period photos with live link to period music clip!
• Vibrant Vocab slides
-bold photos appear without word for inference making
-vocab word 'slides in' so photo can be first WITHOUT the word
-part of speech
-concise definition
• Context clue worksheets used as a pretest, posttest, or practice
• Quizlet vocab practice link
• Part of speech sort
*Class prediction and word connotation discussion slide

EDITABLE BIOGRAPHY RESEARCH TEMPLATE

This PowerPoint template has been designed to assist students in creating a well organized nonfiction biography project. The editable slides are highly organized with slide titles needed for a thorough project. Questions and prompts are included so students will always include all critical information.

Teachers can adapt the template to their needs and the needs of their students. The template is perfect to support Special Education students, ESL students, struggling students, or guide the entire class!

Nonfiction design includes elements such as topic, main idea, factual details, paraphrasing, and citations. The slides are logically organized and allow for adding photos or drawings . Slides can be deleted and others added where needed. The end product may be used as a Reading assessment.

This Digital Editable PowerPoint template will allow all students to complete their NONFICTION Biography Project and present an end product they are proud of!

THIS AUTHOR STUDY will provide factual information, explore published work samples, and supply a digital scaffolded research organizer so students may complete an AUTHOR STUDY FOR O. HENRY.

1. *The 2 PREREADING PowerPoint lessons provide digital pre-reading resources, historical background info, vocabulary word study, practice, and assessment for two of Henry’s short stories : PDF LINKS to texts, AUTHOR INTERVIEW LINK, LINKS FOR BIOGRAPHICAL RESEARCH included.

2. *These lessons have been paired with the DIGITAL BIOGRAPHY RESEARCH TEMPLATE to create a full AUTHOR STUDY bundle .

EACH SHORT STORY PREREADING LESSON INCLUDES

• Opening slide -genre, author photo and short bio.
• RESEARCH LINKS ARE INCLUDED
• PDF LINK TO TEXTS INCLUDED
• 2 setting slides -Location photos with map -Time period photos with live link to period music clip!
• Vibrant Vocab slides -bold photos appear without word for inference making -vocab word 'slides in' so photo can be first WITHOUT the word -part of speech -concise definition •
• Context clue worksheets used as a pretest, posttest, or practice
• PRACTICE: • Quizlet vocab practice link • Part of speech sort *Class prediction and word connotation discussion slide

PLUS!
EDITABLE BIOGRAPHY RESEARCH PROJECT TEMPLATE digital PowerPoint presentation

EDITABLE BIOGRAPHY RESEARCH TEMPLATE
This PowerPoint template has been designed to assist students in creating a well organized nonfiction biography project. The editable slides are highly organized with slide titles needed for a thorough project. Questions and prompts are included so students will always include all critical information. Teachers can adapt the template to their needs and the needs of their students.

The template is perfect to support Special Education students, ESL students, struggling students, or guide the entire class! Nonfiction design includes elements such as topic, main idea, factual details, paraphrasing, and citations. The slides are logically organized and allow for adding photos or drawings . Slides can be deleted and others added where needed.

The end product may be used as a Reading assessment. This Digital Editable PowerPoint template will allow all students to complete their NONFICTION Biography Project and present an end product they are proud of!

This SUMMER READING bundle of GOOGLE SLIDE BOOK REPORT TEMPLATES includes editable presentations for fiction, nonfiction, biography, and historical fiction. Teachers can adapt the templates to their needs and the needs of their students.

The slideshow is perfect to support Special Education students, ESL students, struggling students, or guide the entire class! These Google Slide templates have been designed to assist students in creating a well-organized book project. The report outline is scaffolded to support the student with slide titles, subtitles, questions and prompts to ensure students include all critical information.

The slides are logically organized and allow for adding text, photos or drawings . Slides can be deleted and others added where needed. The end product may be used as a Reading assessment.

Help your students return to school next year with confidence in their Summer Reading Presentations. Pre-designed, editable slides provide the structure and organization needed to create a successful book report. This Digital Google Slide bundle will allow all students to complete their Book Project and present an end product they are proud no matter what genre.

This SUMMER READING bundle of POWERPOINT BOOK REPORT TEMPLATES includes editable presentations for fiction, nonfiction, biography, and historical fiction. Teachers can adapt the templates to their needs and the needs of their students.

The slideshow is perfect to support Special Education students, ESL students, struggling students, or guide the entire class! These POWERPOINT templates have been designed to assist students in creating a well-organized book project. The report outline is scaffolded to support the student with slide titles, subtitles, questions and prompts to ensure students include all critical information.

The digital slides are logically organized and allow for adding text, photos or drawing . Slides can be deleted and others added where needed. The end product may be used as a Reading assessment.

Help your students return to school next year with confidence in their Summer Reading Presentations. Pre-designed, editable slides provide the structure and organization needed to create a successful book report. This Digital POWERPOINT bundle will allow all students to complete their Book Project and present an end product they are proud no matter what genre.

This PREDESIGNED bundle of EDITABLE POWERPOINT BOOK REPORT TEMPLATES includes BEAUTIFUL presentations for fiction, nonfiction, biography, and historical fiction. Teachers can adapt the templates to their needs and the needs of their students.

The slideshow is perfect to support Special Education students, ESL students, struggling students, or guide the entire class! These POWERPOINT templates have been designed to assist students in creating a well-organized book project. The report outline is scaffolded to support the student with slide titles, subtitles, questions and prompts to ensure students include all critical information.

The digital slides are logically organized and allow for adding text, photos or drawing . Slides can be deleted and others added where needed. The end product may be used as a Reading assessment.

Help your students return to school next year with confidence in their Reading Presentations. Pre-designed, editable slides provide the structure and organization needed to create a successful book report. This Digital POWERPOINT bundle will allow all students to complete their Book Project and present an end product they are proud no matter what genre.

This PREDESIGNED bundle of GOOGLE SLIDE BOOK REPORT TEMPLATES includes editable presentations for fiction, nonfiction, biography, and historical fiction. Teachers can adapt the templates to their needs and the needs of their students.

The slideshow is perfect to support Special Education students, ESL students, struggling students, or guide the entire class! These Google Slide templates have been designed to assist students in creating a well-organized book project. The report outline is scaffolded to support the student with slide titles, subtitles, questions and prompts to ensure students include all critical information.

The slides are logically organized and allow for adding text, photos or drawings . Slides can be deleted and others added where needed. The end product may be used as a Reading assessment.

Help your students return to school next year with confidence in their Reading Presentations. Pre-designed, editable slides provide the structure and organization needed to create a successful book report. This Digital Google Slide bundle will allow all students to complete their Book Project and present an end product they are proud no matter what genre.