Account Registration: To make purchases, you must register for an account on our platform. Your account information will be used to manage your purchases and provide access to downloadable content.
Purchasing and Downloading
Download Link: After completing your purchase, a download link for the purchased PDF file(s) will be displayed on your screen. The link will also be saved in the “Imports and Purchases” section of your account dashboard for future access.
Limited-Time Availability: Download links will remain active for [e.g., 7 days] after the purchase date. Please download your files within this period. Extensions may be granted at the discretion of the store administrators upon request.
Content Updates
Updates and Changes: We reserve the right to update, modify, or remove PDF content at any time without prior notice. Updated versions of a purchased PDF may not be automatically available unless explicitly stated.
Usage and Restrictions
Intended Use: Purchased materials are intended for personal or educational use only. Redistribution, resale, or unauthorized sharing of downloaded files is strictly prohibited.
No Refunds: Due to the nature of digital products, refunds or exchanges are not provided once a purchase has been completed and the download link displayed.
Responsibility
Technical Issues: We are not responsible for technical issues, such as incompatible software or hardware, that prevent you from using downloaded files. Ensure your system has the necessary tools to open and view PDF files.
Account Security: You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account and password and for all activities under your account.
Disclaimers
Accuracy and Quality: While we strive to ensure the accuracy and quality of our PDF materials, we do not guarantee that every document will meet all user expectations.
Modifications to Terms
Changes to Terms: We reserve the right to modify these terms and conditions at any time. Changes will be effective immediately upon posting on this page.
By completing a purchase, you agree to these terms and conditions. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our support team.
If you teach high school social studies just about anywhere, working with primary source documents is likely a central feature to your course. This has been a major shift in teaching social studies in the past thirty years and it is a good one!
Retired now, I taught high school social studies for 18 of my 35 years on the job. Over that time, I developed a large collection of document-based tasks and training lessons to teach students to use them properly to reconstruct the likely past.
Most of my document-based tasks followed the structure of the New York State Regents Examinations for social studies: the enduring issue essay and constructed-response question (CRQ) in grades nine and ten and the short essay and civic literacy essay in US History grade 11. But incorporating one lengthy primary source text in each unit was also important to me and having students respond in a standard essay format was key for my units. I invite the reader to read more about using extended primary source tasks here.
In the DBQ shop, you will find document-based tasks that I edited and created. They are arranged by category. The sources are cited and this is especially important because students are supposed to consider the sources carefully. If you are interested in lessons for teaching students about primary sources, you may find something you like in the PowerPoint shop!
You need to be a subscriber to make purchases from the Innovation shops. Download links for purchased items are stored in your dashboard. The resources are all in PDF format. Please review the terms and conditions.
This year, I am enjoying teaching French remotely, both one-on-one and in whole group configurations. In a whole group situation, encouraging engagement is important and synchronous chat is a great way to do this.
Most video conferencing apps like Zoom and Teams have chat features. But I don’t like using this for instruction for a variety of reasons. I need something that provides structured synchronous remote conversations in an environment that I can moderate, monitor, and record for possible later assessment. The Innovation synchronous chat is like a chat breakout room for education. Read more about the theoretical underpinnings of this app.
Permit me to describe how to use this handy educational app.
Step 1: Create a New Chat
First, the instructor creates a new chat. Select the course in which playlist you wish to post the chat. Click any of the green plus-sign buttons to add a new task. From the top, select “Chats”.
Now you can set up your new chat with a title and optional accessories. “Accessories” are additional elements that your assignment may need, such as a PDF document, a video, or just a simple description.
When you create the task, it places the link in the course playlist just like any other task. It will be listed as a “forum” type task and, while it can be viewed in form format, it will be a chat. Read more here about asynchronous discussion forums. When you are ready to use it, click on the link to start the host teacher session.
The Host Controls
Your teacher’s host controls are on the right. “Live Link” creates a URL that you can send to students so they can join the session. You can, for example, post this in the video conferencing app chat or in an email.
Another way students can join is by logging in to their Innovation dashboard, navigating to the course where the link is posted, and clicking on the link to the chat. Students cannot use the chat session if there is no teacher host. Teachers can hide links in the playlist for a course as needed.
There must be at least two students for the app to proceed.
My preference is to start up the chat and then copy the live link URL and paste it into the video conferencing chat so students can join easily without searching for a link.
As students join, their names appear in the participants list on the lower right.
Conducting a Chat
Once your students have joined, click on the “Assign Partners” button control. This will randomly and anonymously assign students to a chat partner (if there is an odd number of students, one group of 3 is created).
Now that partners have been assigned, you will see each team listed in the column to the right. Teams are nicknamed by world cities. You can click on these any time to view the current chat. You can share this screen so you can conduct instruction while chats are going on and share with the class anonymously what students are chatting about.
The chats need to be started. You can optionally set a timer to end the sessions after a certain number of minutes.
Students now have full functionality to conduct their assigned chat.
When the Session is Completed
Once the session is completed or is to be paused, you click the Disable Chat button. Now you can move to Debriefing Mode if you wish to display a shared screen with each teams chats and offer advice and commentary or discussion.
Other Features
Scoring Mode
Scoring mode is for the teacher. In scoring mode, you can assess students’ participation using a built-in rubric. Just click the team name to view the chat and the form for grading the chat. The rubric’s dimensions are quality, etiquette, appropriateness, and form. You can save the score. You can also just score it manually.
You may also find it useful to view the chat in a forum format. This is good for lengthier discussions with longer post sizes. You can grade the work here as well.
Viewing in forum mode lets you grade it based on other installed rubrics such as those for online discussion.
What if a student joins after we have started?
Students who join after the chat has been are automatically assigned to one of the other groups.
What if we want to resume the chats?
If the teacher enables chat again after a stop, the teams are the same and the chat picks up where it left off.
This app empowers teachers to foster meaningful interactions in a structured, remote environment while maintaining control and oversight. Its flexibility allows for dynamic group work, individual assessment, and real-time engagement—all tailored to the needs of modern educators and learners. By integrating tools like these, educators can enhance the depth and quality of online instruction, creating opportunities for collaboration that rival, and often surpass, traditional classroom experiences.
When I took up my first full-time job teaching at a small, rural school in 1991, I inherited a vast trove of teaching materials from the former instructor. A lot of it I pitched (some was dated from the 60s!) but some I kept and was grateful to have.
So, I’m retired. But what about all my stuff? Well, dear web-site-visitor, here is my stuff! I would like to invite you into my virtual classroom archives, kind of like a virtual garage sale. There are two shops here I hope you will browse to find many valuable purchases: one features online learning activities from my recent and current online courses (I continue to teach part-time in retirement) and the other shop features my old PowerPoint slide shows. Some of them date back 25 years, if you can believe it!
You need to be a subscriber to buy from either shop. The annual fee to subscribe to Innovation is extremely reasonable! Your purchases are saved to your account, your virtual classroom, in a course your students cannot see that is called “Purchases and Imports”.
Log in and shop across my recent and current courses for teaching world history, US history, and French levels I through AP French and even French V!
As you browse, you can preview items you might like. Click for pricing details to see what the activity contains (questions, images, audio, etc.). Checkout when you are ready and when you’re entering credit card data, don’t forget to enter a coupon or promo code you may have come across!
Upon transaction completion, the activities are copied from my class to yours in Innovation. You will find them in a class called Purchases and Imports.
Log in to make purchases here too. These are downloads of PPTX files of all different sizes and on many different themes. I have taught French all levels, social studies middle and high school, and even computer science courses. At this writing, the shop already has over 300 PowerPoints and I have not even uploaded them all yet!
Once your purchase is complete, you will get links to download each file you purchased. The links also are posted to your own virtual classroom here at Innovation, that class called Purchases and Imports.
Account Registration: You must register for an account on our platform to make purchases. Your account information will be used to manage your purchases and provide access to downloadable content.
Purchasing and Downloading
Download Link: After completing your purchase, a download link for the purchased PowerPoint file(s) will be displayed on your screen. The link will also be saved to the “Imports and Purchases” section of your account dashboard for future access.
Limited-Time Availability: Download links will remain active for [e.g., 7 days] after the purchase date. Ensure you download your files within this period. Extensions may be granted at the discretion of the store administrators upon request.
Content Updates
Updates and Changes: We reserve the right to update, modify, or remove slideshows at any time without prior notice. Updated versions of a purchased slideshow may not be automatically available unless explicitly stated.
Usage and Restrictions
Intended Use: Purchased materials are intended for personal or educational use only. Redistribution, resale, or unauthorized sharing of downloaded files is strictly prohibited.
No Refunds: Due to the nature of digital products, refunds or exchanges are not provided once a purchase has been completed and the download link displayed.
Responsibility
Technical Issues: We are not responsible for technical issues, such as incompatible software or hardware, that prevent you from using downloaded files. Ensure your system meets the necessary requirements to open and use PowerPoint (.pptx) files.
Account Security: You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account and password and for all activities under your account.
Disclaimers
Accuracy and Quality: While we strive to ensure the accuracy and quality of our slideshows, we do not guarantee that every presentation will meet all user expectations.
Liability: We are not liable for any direct or indirect damages resulting from the use of purchased slideshows.
Modifications to Terms
Changes to Terms: We reserve the right to modify these terms and conditions at any time. Changes will be effective immediately upon posting on this page.
By completing a purchase, you agree to these terms and conditions. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our support team.
TestDrive is a feature of Innovation that allows teachers to provide content to anonymous users via passcodes. There are some limitations to using passcodes. Student data is not recorded or saved, teachers cannot edit tasks or monitor student access. We’d like to encourage teachers to become subscribers! As such, teachers can use the passcodes to import the task into their own account and then have full access to all Innovation features.
Innovation Assessments LLC provides access to teacher-generated content through unique passcodes. Each passcode allows students to access specific learning applications within the TestDrive platform. Teachers who purchase or are granted passcodes may share them solely with their students for completing designated online tasks in TestDrive. Passcodes do not require student registration or login.
By using a passcode as described above, you acknowledge and agree to the following:
Restricted Sharing: Passcodes are intended only for students in the teacher’s class or assigned group. Passcodes may not be shared outside this scope.
Third-Party Content: Embedded content, such as YouTube videos, may not be owned or controlled by Innovation Assessments LLC and could become inaccessible without notice.
Duration of Access: Passcodes will generally remain functional indefinitely, allowing access to activities as long as they are part of the active curriculum. However, Innovation Assessments LLC reserves the right to deactivate or discontinue passcodes in the event of significant business changes or content restructuring. Passcodes will remain active until such a time unless otherwise stated.
Content Revisions: Activities accessed through passcodes may be revised, edited, or updated at any time without notice to improve content quality, adapt to curriculum changes, or meet technical requirements.
One of my favorite lessons teaching any time period of social studies has always been working with extended length primary sources.
Students’ initial difficulty completing these tasks usually stemmed from habits I like to help them break. The first bad habit was to copy sections of the source text verbatim instead of paraphrasing. Another was the expectation that all the answers were in the source text. An important, if not vital, competency in studying primary sources is to be aware of the outside knowledge and possible biases that the reader them-self brings to the source. This task calls on students to bring prior knowledge to direct awareness.
My primary source analysis task is a short essay. The process is the same for every source no matter the time period or even the grade level. Students address the source type, purpose, and audience. They provide relevant historical context from their own knowledge. They summarize the source. They address reliability factors. For middle schoolers, these “essays” are really more like short compositions. My high schoolers came to compose more extended length essays. Here’s one you can have for nothing:
Up to my retirement, I was teaching in a small, rural K-12 school where I had students for three or even four years. This was a great benefit for so many reasons, one of which was they became “skilled at the skills”. I integrated a lot of writing and reading in my courses.
The Important is Not Always in the Text Itself
Most elementary level reading comprehension tasks call on students to locate an answer in the text to prove they understand. Working with primary sources means understanding what was going on in the historical period that produced the document. Getting students to grasp this takes patience and perseverance. This task asks students to deduce how the audience was expected to react to the source, who the intended audience was, what was going on historically at the time, and factors affecting reliability of the source. None of this is in the document explicitly itself.
A Great Way to Teach Critical Thinking and Deduction
I cannot recommend this assignment strongly enough for my fellow social studies teachers out there. I assigned this right after I completed the content delivery in a unit. It lent itself to long-term retention of the historical content because students needed to apply this newly acquired knowledge to the text. It promotes reading comprehension. It stimulates discussion in class. Often, a student would have a question about the source or how to answer questions of bias and audience and reliability. It would make a great opportunity to pause and have a discussion about these things. These extended length primary sources offer much more to the learning process that the short 200-word snippets we find in textbooks and on state tests (think document-based essays and constructed-response tasks).
The Essay Prompt Assignment may be a Hard Sell to Teachers
I have not been very successful in promoting this method to many others. Very few of the essay versions sell at our TeachersPayTeachers store. I think I understand why. It takes time and consistency to teach reliability factors to students. Grading a hundred short essays every unit of study is a daunting proposition in light of everything else we have to do. More than one transfer student remarked that my social studies courses had a lot of writing. None regretted it. More than one said they learned to write in my class.
But I get it! So, I am developing an automated multiple-choice version of these assignments. Mind you, reader, I feel that doing this as a composition is a better practice, but I can also see how doing a multiple-choice version of this task can be very instructive. I invite you to download this free resource to try it out.
First of all, if you want to have your students write the essay version of this assignment, each prompt includes the same organizer to guide their writing.
I have carefully documented where I got the source using an easy-to-understand source citation system that I borrowed from genealogists. This citation is presented first and should prompt the student to consider factors affecting reliability.
The multiple-choice version is auto-corrected. You get a passcode that students use to access the online task at the Innovation website. Learn more about our passcodes from this short video:
The questions are categorized under “Observations” whose categories are intended audience, historical context, source summary, and reliability factors. The resource includes a text version of the questions in case you don’t feel the online auto-corrected version is best.
If you’ve purchased one of our products on TeachersPayTeachers, you may have received passcodes for online activities. These passcodes allow your students to access and complete exercises on our website, where their scores will be displayed. But there’s more you can do with these passcodes, especially if you’re a subscriber to our Innovation platform. Here’s how you can maximize their potential.
Distribute to Students: Give the passcode to your students. They will enter it on the TestDrive page of the Innovation website to access the exercise. The system will display their scores upon completion.
Import into Your Dashboard:
Log into Your Dashboard: Navigate to the upper right-hand corner of the Innovation website.
Enter the Passcode: Paste the code into the provided field. Ensure you’ve copied it correctly.
Import the Activity: Click “Import,” select the class for the activity, and confirm. The system will notify you of a successful import.
Organize Your Activities: The new activity will appear at the top of your list. You can rearrange it by using the “Actions” > “Reorder” button and drag and drop it as needed.
Benefits of Importing Activities
Enhanced Monitoring: By importing activities into your Innovation account, you can track student progress more effectively. You’ll see who completed what, when, and how long they spent on each task.
Customization Options:
Edit Questions: Tailor the questions to better suit your teaching style or add cue points for enhanced engagement.
Add Resources: Upload PDFs, audio files, or other materials to create a richer learning experience.
Create New Questions: Use our question bank to generate new activities. The imported questions are saved in your database, categorized for easy access.
Creating Tests and Tutors
Instant Tests: Use the question bank to quickly assemble multiple-choice tests. Select the desired questions, and voilà – you have a ready-to-go test.
Tutoring Features: Set up practice sessions so students can rehearse before tackling the main exercise. This helps reinforce learning and builds confidence.
By subscribing to our Innovation platform, you gain these powerful tools to enhance your teaching experience. Import your activities, monitor student engagement, and customize content to meet your needs. We hope you’ll join us and unlock the full potential of your teaching resources.
Can Vocabulary Knowledge Predict Content Knowledge? Unveiling Insights from Classroom Practice
Encountering a scholarly paper delving into curriculum-based measures (CBM) for content area secondary courses like social studies ignited my curiosity. Eager to implement and extend their research, I embarked on a journey within my own classroom. As an educator committed to maximizing my students’ potential, I aimed to investigate whether vocabulary knowledge could serve as a predictor of content comprehension. Through practical application and careful observation, I sought to unearth valuable insights to refine my teaching methodologies. Here’s what unfolded during this intriguing exploration.
The intersection of vocabulary and content knowledge has long been a subject of interest in education. While vocabulary is recognized as a fundamental component of academic proficiency, its role in anticipating students’ understanding of intricate subject matter remains a matter of debate. The paper I encountered proposed that assessing students’ vocabulary knowledge through CBM could offer valuable insights into their grasp of content area material, particularly in disciplines like social studies characterized by specialized terminology and concepts.
To test this hypothesis, I integrated vocabulary-focused CBM into my social studies curriculum, meticulously tracking students’ progress across multiple units. I developed targeted vocabulary assessments, quizzes, and assignments tailored to evaluate students’ familiarity with key terms and concepts relevant to each unit of study. Additionally, I incorporated vocabulary-building exercises into classroom activities, discussions, and readings to reinforce students’ comprehension and retention of subject-specific terminology.
Through continuous assessment and analysis, intriguing patterns began to emerge in students’ performance. Those exhibiting proficiency in vocabulary consistently demonstrated a deeper comprehension of the content material. They showcased their understanding by articulating complex ideas, drawing connections between different topics, and applying their knowledge in diverse contexts. Conversely, students grappling with vocabulary challenges often struggled to grasp the underlying concepts and themes presented in the curriculum.
One significant revelation was the predictive capacity of certain high-utility terms in gauging students’ overall content mastery. Terms acting as linchpins or conceptual anchors within the curriculum correlated strongly with students’ performance on unit assessments and projects. By prioritizing the teaching and reinforcement of these critical vocabulary terms, I could scaffold students’ learning and facilitate deeper engagement with the subject matter.
Moreover, I observed that vocabulary instruction served as a gateway to content proficiency, enabling students to access and comprehend complex texts, primary sources, and multimedia resources more effectively. Equipping students with the linguistic tools to decode and interpret content area material empowered them to become more independent and self-directed learners.
However, it’s crucial to acknowledge the limitations of relying solely on vocabulary knowledge as a predictor of content understanding. While vocabulary forms a foundational aspect of academic literacy, it should be viewed as part of a broader assessment framework. Factors such as background knowledge, cognitive skills, and socio-cultural influences also significantly influence students’ learning experiences and outcomes.
In conclusion, my exploration into the relationship between vocabulary knowledge, CBM, and content understanding provided valuable insights into student learning dynamics within the social studies classroom. While vocabulary instruction can undoubtedly enhance students’ comprehension and retention of subject matter, it should complement a comprehensive approach to teaching and learning. By integrating targeted vocabulary CBM with engaging content-based activities and assessments, educators can create enriching learning experiences that foster deep understanding and critical thinking skills in students.
In the ever-evolving landscape of education, the integration of technology has become increasingly prevalent, promising to revolutionize teaching and learning experiences. One popular trend that has emerged is gamification – the use of game elements and principles in non-game contexts, such as education. While gamifying lessons can undoubtedly enhance engagement and motivation, it’s essential to recognize that it’s not synonymous with digital learning. In this blog post, we’ll explore the distinction between gamification and digital learning and delve into the implications for educators.
Understanding Gamification
Gamification involves incorporating elements of game design, such as points, badges, leaderboards, and rewards, into educational activities to motivate and engage students. By tapping into the intrinsic human desire for achievement, competition, and mastery, gamification seeks to make learning more enjoyable and immersive. From quiz-based review games to interactive simulations and role-playing activities, gamified lessons offer students a sense of agency and autonomy, fostering a deeper level of involvement and participation.
The Pitfalls of Digital Learning
On the other hand, digital learning encompasses a broader spectrum of educational technologies and practices, beyond just gamification. While gamified lessons leverage game mechanics to enhance engagement, digital learning encompasses a wide range of digital tools, resources, and methodologies aimed at facilitating learning outcomes. From online courses and virtual reality simulations to interactive multimedia presentations and collaborative platforms, digital learning encompasses a diverse array of approaches to instruction and assessment.
Moving Beyond Gamification
While gamifying lessons can be a valuable strategy for engaging students, it’s essential to recognize its limitations and explore the broader landscape of digital learning opportunities. Rather than relying solely on game elements, educators should strive to incorporate a variety of digital tools and resources that cater to different learning styles and preferences. From interactive tutorials and multimedia presentations to collaborative projects and real-world simulations, digital learning offers endless possibilities for enhancing student engagement and achievement.
Integrating Gamification into Digital Learning
That said, gamification can still play a valuable role within the context of digital learning. By integrating game elements strategically into digital lessons and activities, educators can create dynamic and interactive learning experiences that captivate students’ attention and foster intrinsic motivation. Whether through gamified quizzes, interactive storytelling, or collaborative challenges, gamification can complement and enhance existing digital learning initiatives, providing an additional layer of engagement and interactivity.
Conclusion: Balancing Engagement and Learning Outcomes
In conclusion, while gamifying lessons can be a powerful tool for increasing engagement and motivation, it’s essential to recognize that it’s just one aspect of digital learning. Educators must strive to strike a balance between engaging students and achieving meaningful learning outcomes. By leveraging a variety of digital tools and methodologies, educators can create dynamic and interactive learning experiences that cater to the diverse needs and preferences of today’s learners. So, let’s embrace the potential of gamification within the broader landscape of digital learning and empower students to thrive in an increasingly digital world.
