Grade 8

Instructional Guide

SEEd Storylines

Assessment Guidance

Collaborative Spaces and Sharing

Additional Resources

SEEd Storylines

Until OSD adopts a district secondary science curriculum, it is highly recommend that educators leverage the SEEd Storylines to plan engaging and aligned science instruction. SEEd Storylines are endorsed by USBE and were developed by Utah educators. SEEd Storylines are phenomena-based, detailed lesson plans and resources designed for 3-dimensional teaching and learning. Student materials, lesson pacing guidance, teacher Slide decks, Nearpods, labs, material lists, assessments, and instructional hints are included in the SEEd Storylines.

Assessment Guidance

In addition to the lesson-based formative assessments, it is recommended that teachers administer at least one summative assessment at the conclusion of each unit of instruction as they finish teaching a SEEd standard or strand. It is recommended that teachers prioritize and administer USBE's RISE Benchmarks, as appropriate, in order for students to get comfortable with the RISE system and question types in preparation for their end of year RISE assessment.

In RISE, the following grade 8 Benchmarks are available for the following SEEd standards:

8.1.6
8.2.4
8.4.4

When a RISE Benchmark is not available or appropriate, it is recommended that teachers administer formative assessments from the USBE Science Core Guide: Grade 8, found for each standard under the Assessment Exemplar section.

Additional RISE testing considerations: For RISE Benchmark administration, just like the end of year testing, students will need to know their SSID and session ID to get logged into the test. Teachers will need to open a testing session and write the session ID on the board for students to log-in. For more detailed information about RISE Benchmark administration, consult the Testing Administration Manual available on the RISE site by clicking resources on the left blue menu and then clicking User Guide from the left menu.

To preview the RISE Benchmarks:

Go to https://utahrise.org/.
On the left, click Benchmark Module Previewing.
You will then be prompted to log-in. If you need a user ID, check with the building testing administrator.
Once logged in, choose a grade level and all subjects' Benchmarks will be visible via PDF files.
Scroll to find the appropriate Science Benchmark and click on it.

Collaborative Spaces and Sharing

OSD Google Space

Connects grade level teachers to ask questions, trade resources, and share best practices.

OSD Shared Drive Folder

Space to share files with other grade level teachers.

To update or gain access to these spaces, contact the OSD Office of Student Achievement.

Additional Resources

It is recommended that you prioritize the use of the SEEd Storylines when planning for science instruction in OSD, which provides a full school year worth of resources. If additional resources are necessary and for more background information, consult the following resources.

Newsela

Accessed through Canvas on the left sidebar; search text articles and current events, filter by standard, modify Lexile levels, and create assignments for students