Don’t Judge a Skater

Looks at the perseverance and hard work it takes to “make it big” in the worlds of skateboarding and snowboarding, pointing to Tony Hawk and Shaun White as examples.

Pirates on the Sea of Technology

Questions the ethics of pirating music, videos, and computer software, bringing to light the regulating laws and the consequences of pirating. Where is the line between right and wrong?

Violent Video Games: Who is Raising Our Children?

Asks whether children exposed to violent video games are predisposed to violence and who is ultimately responsible for what games children play.

Hard to Be Humble

Analyzes celebrations on the football field and questions whether they detract from the sport. What is the balance between providing entertainment and displaying sportsmanship?

Conquering the Music World, Saving the Third World

Concentrates primarily on Bono and his efforts to spread information and financially support the fight against AIDS in Africa. Why is it important to look beyond ourselves to those who need help?

Building Bridges

Points to the way musician Shakira works to bridge American and Latin cultures and how she has used her fame to improve the lives of children in Colombia.

Failure and the Sweet Smell of Success: Queen Latifah and Mariah Carey

Explores the lives of two artists who experienced failure and lifts up the determination that brought them back to the top of their industry.

The Founding Fathers Never Met the Paparazzi

Discusses celebrities’ privacy rights vs. paparazzi photographers’ First Amendment rights. Is loss of privacy the price celebrities must pay for being famous?

Cyberspace Safety: As Careful As She Always Is

Examines the safety of the Internet in light of websites that are designed to lure young users into divulging personal information.

What’s the Message?

Focuses on athletes and entertainers who have made charitable contributions while they have been in trouble with the law. Should they be viewed as role models?

^PWImpact! books integrate reading, writing, text comprehension, vocabulary development, higher-order thinking, ethical dilemmas, and character development through high-interest texts, technical informational texts, and vocational informational texts. Lexile measurements are provided for all articles to aid readers and educators in determining appropriate difficulty levels.

Original Texts

Each of the 10 units has three original Lexiled texts. The heart of the unit revolves around the high-interest text, which appoints a particular focus related to current events. This text presents a topic that piques students’ interest and stirs them to think critically from a character education perspective. The technical and vocational texts are both informational and relate directly to the high-interest text. These informational texts allow students to relate to and interpret a different type of writing than the somewhat informal prose of the high-interest text.

Interpreting the Data

Each unit includes an Interpreting the Data section that directly relates to the high-interest topic. Interpreting the Data gives students practice manipulating, analyzing, and interpreting numbers, put into real-world perspective though the lens of character education. Short- and extended-response questions give students the opportunity to merge mathematical and verbal skills.

Reading Instructional Guides

Each unit includes a Reading Instructional Guide in the Teacher’s Book that supports the high-interest text. The purpose of the instructional guide is to aid students in before, during, and after reading strategies. Before Reading strategies include Front-Loading Background Knowledge through Read Aloud/Think Aloud, Looking at Words, an Anticipation Guide, and Starter Questions. During Reading strategies are addressed though a Reading Strategy Sheet/Graphic Organizer. After Reading strategies are addressed though Discussion Starter Questions based on the articles.

Text Comprehension Assessments

Each of the 10 units has two text comprehension assessments, one testing the high-interest text and one testing the technical text. The questions are consistently based on specific standards with question stems similar to those frequently used on state assessment exams. The comprehension questions cover four broad categories: Words and Phrases, Main Idea/Author’s Purpose, Compare and Contrast/Cause and Effect, and Reference and Research.

Writing Assessments

Each of the 10 units provides writing assessments that foster higher order thinking skills. Look Inside and Grow is an extended-response question encouraging students to process what they have learned from the Interpreting the Data section in relation to character education. Looking Forward and the Ethical Dilemma are extended responses based on the vocational text. Looking Forward allows students to explore areas of interest for their future, including how to prepare for a future career. The Ethical Dilemma encourages students to contemplate difficult, real-world situations and make ethical decisions. Each of these writing assessments is evaluated by a rubric found in the back of the books.

Rubrics

The rubrics in the back of the books list the criteria for each corresponding assessment. Rubrics are designed to help teachers evaluate student work and to give students advance direction and clear markers for mastering the assignment. Each rubric specifies what is expected for various levels of quality of work.

The Book on CD includes the complete teacher and student versions of the book plus some additional tools.
Order includes a hardcopy of Book 2 teacher book for reference.