Grade 8 Fall — Multi-Source Synthesis, Formal Academic Style, and the Verbals/Voice/Mood Suite
English · WR
G8
eng.g8.f.wr.multi_source_synthesis_essay
Compose a multi-source synthesis essay integrating ≥3 sources (CCSS W.8.1; W.8.2; W.8.7; W.8.8; W.8.9)
Plan, draft, revise, and publish a 5-7 paragraph synthesis essay that integrates ≥3 sources through explicit cross-source moves (agreement, qualification, contradiction, extension). The essay reads as a CONVERSATION the writer mediates — not source-by-source summary. ≥8 MLA-cited references across the essay. Audience-aware, third-person formal academic register by default.
Mastery threshold
85%
Min instances
12
Typical minutes
75
Spaced intervals (days)
1, 3, 7, 14, 30, 60
Prereqs
-
eng.g7.f.res.synthesis_three_sources_intro
(not yet loaded)
- Construct a CEA analytical paragraph (Claim / Evidence / Analysis) (CCSS W.7.1.a-b; W.7.9.a)
Successors
- Compose a research-driven multi-paragraph capstone (~1500-2000 words) representing K-8 writing culmination (CCSS W.8.1; W.8.2; W.8.3; W.8.4-6; W.8.7-10)
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eng.g9_10.wr.research_paper
(not yet loaded)
Common misconceptions
- Treats synthesis as source-by-source summary (paragraph 2 = source A summary; paragraph 3 = source B summary; paragraph 4 = source C summary). The sources never converse.
- Cites sources but does not name them in the prose with signal phrases — the reader can't follow who said what.
- Lets one source dominate (paraphrasing 80% of one source while citing the others as window-dressing).
- Skips the 'so-what' — synthesizes but never tells the reader why the convergence matters.