Please note that many tasks were constructed prior to Common Core and the task alignments to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) were not identified in the task materials. To search for the performance tasks explicitly aligned to the CCSS, Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), or College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards, please go to CCSS, NGSS, and C3 tabs.
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Source Subject Grade Level |
7th Grade Common Core Assessment The 7th Grade Common Core Assessment includes four tasks. In Task 1, students will watch a video clip twice and write the central idea of the video and fill in an outline with specific examples or evidence. In Task 2, students will read an article and write two reasons that the article gives for why bottled water is a problem. For each reason, they will write a quote from the article that explains or supports that reason. In Task 3, students will read another article and identify the strongest evidence that the Bottled Water Association gives in defense of bottled water. They will write to explain why the evidence is convincing. In Task 4, students will take a position on the argument and write an essay. This assessment includes a rubric and an alternative text with a task. |
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Plague Doctor This task asks that students source a painting of clothing worn by doctors in the 17th century in order to determine its usefulness in answering the question of what doctors wore when treating patients with the Plague. Students with a sophisticated understanding of how to source a document will be able to explain that the painting is useful in that it is based on information from a person who witnessed the plague in the 17th century. They will also observe, however, that the image might be limited as evidence of what doctors wore, because it is an artist’s interpretation rendered over two centuries after the account was recorded. Resources include PDF downloads of the assessment with source materials, and a rubric with benchmark descriptors. |
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The Conservation Movement This task assesses students' ability to contextualize two historical documents and place them in the correct chronological order. This assessment draws on students' knowledge about American environmental movements. Document A is from an interview with Barry Commoner in Scientific American in 1997. Document B is part of an 1894 bill introduced to the House of Representatives. More than just the recall of facts and dates, students must show that they have a broad understanding of how the focus of the environmental movement changed over time and demonstrate the ability to use their knowledge about these changes to place the two documents in context. In this assessment, students who correctly contextualize the documents will see that Document B, which is a bill that proposed the establishment of Yellowstone as the first National Park, was a product of the Progressive Era push to conserve land in the West, and therefore likely written before Document A, which reflects more contemporary concerns about the effects of modern technology on the environment and human health. Resources include PDF downloads of the assessment (with primaary source materials), and a rubric with benchmark descriptors. |
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110 Years On This task uses mathematical reasoning to estimate the number of descendants a girl who lived 110 years ago might have today. This task includes: |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
1877 Railroad Strike This task assesses students’ ability to to source and corroborate a document. Drawing on knowledge gained from sourcing an excerpt from an 1877 newspaper article about railroad strikes in Columbus, Ohio, students then evaluate it in several ways; Question 1 asks students to evaluate whether the excerpt provides enough evidence to draw conclusions about the broader railroad strike as a whole. To answer this question, students must source the document to determine whether the account can be regarded as conclusive evidence. Question 2 asks students to identify and evaluate whether additional documents or perspectives could be used to corroborate the account. Resources include PDF downloads of the assessment with source materials, and a rubric with benchmark descriptors. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
7th Grade Medieval History End-of-Year History Writing Task In the 7th Grade Medieval History Enf-of-Year History Writing Task students will respond to the question "which two reasons best explain the fall of Tenochtitlan, the capital city of the Aztec Empire, to the Spanish?". They will write an essay using primary and secondary sources as evidence to support their argument. This task includes resources to help students write their introduction, learn vocabulary, evaluate sources and evidence, plan their essay, develop their claim, and an argumentative writing checklist. This task also includes:
The Oakland Unified School Districted has designed this history assessment to support the literacy goals of the Common Core State Standards. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
7th Grade Medieval History Mid-Year History Writing Task In the 7th Grade Medieval History Mid-Year History Writing Task students will respond to the question "was the Examination System during the Song Dynasty in China an effective way for the emperor to select high quality government official?". They will write an essay using primary and secondary sources and photographic evidence to support their argument. This task includes resources to help students write their introduction, evaluate sources and evidence, plan their essay, develop their claim, and an argumentative writing checklist. This task also includes:
The Oakland Unified School Districted has designed this history assessment to support the literacy goals of the Common Core State Standards. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
A Job Designed Just for You In this task, students will work in groups to put together and present an advertising portfolio for job applications. This task includes: |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
A Perspective on Slavery This task requires students to weigh the values and limitations of a document as historical evidence, as it relates to conditions slaves faced in the United States. Students well-versed in sourcing a document will be able to explain that the account of Henry Nelson, a son of former slaves, is useful in that it was informed by his parents whom, again, were slaves at the end of the Civil War. Students will also point out, however, that Nelson was offering second-hand information, making his interview less useful as specific evidence of the conditions facing slaves at the end of the war. Resources include PDF downloads of the assessment with source materials, and a rubric with benchmark descriptors. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
A Pound of Valentine’s Chocolates In A Pound of Valentine’s Chocolates, students are asked to find how long a one pound box of chocolates should last if Isolde eats it alone. The key concepts are fractions and proportional reasoning. This task includes:
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