Hack The 8th Grade STAAR - Full Year Curriculum Guide

You're a social studies teacher who wants your students to be successful on the STAAR test... but the State TEKS are so

- numerous (130+ TEKS)

- categorized out of sequential order on state documents

- and so vague

That you as a teacher find yourself overwhelmed and confused about what to teach.

Example: 8.4A Analyze causes of the American Revolution including Mercantilism, British policies after the French and Indian War, The Proclamation of 1763, the Stamp Act, lack of representation in Parliament, and the Intolerable Acts.

How are you as a teacher supposed to know which of those are the most important to the state? How are you as a teacher supposed to know what about each of those is most important to the state? If you don't know the answer to those questions, how can you teach effectively?

How would your life as a teacher change if you knew the following....

* From 2013-2021 the State of Texas has asked 5 questions about this TEK and you have a link to view each of these questions in one list instead of viewing each individual test

* The following is the exact language the State of Texas has used when asking questions on the STAAR about this TEK

The primary reasons Parliament passed the Sugar Act, Stamp Act, and Townshend Act
- To recover the cost of defending the Colonies

The main dissatisfaction that the Colonist had with Great Britain after the French and Indian War

- Economic policies imposed by Great Britain following the war

What the colonist did to protest the Stamp Act of 1765

- They boycotted British Goods

Why the Colonist objected to the Proclamation of 1763

- Resented the limits it imposed on westward expansion

How the Sugar Act, Quartering Act, and Stamp Act contributed to the start of the Revolutionary War

- They angered the colonist who believed their civil liberties had been violated

* These are surrounding TEKS That add context to 8.4A, but have had fewer than 3 STAAR questions asked about them.

8.11A - analyze how physical characteristics of the environment influenced population distribution, settlement patterns, and economic activities in the United States

8.20B - analyze reasons for and the impact of selected examples of civil disobedience in U.S. history such as the Boston Tea Party

This set of curriculum documents gives you all of this information in an accessible format that you can use on a daily basis to help your students pass the STAAR and make you look like a hero! It also includes a space where you can add links to your resources for easy access now and in the future. Click on the link below to see an example of a unit.

- Link To Example of curriculum -

A Note From The Creator:

My name is Michael Hirtzel. I am a former social studies teacher who got frustrated with the issues listed above and decided to do something about it! My goal is that you are able to use the curriculum to not only make your students more successful, but also take stress off of you as a teacher.