Social Studies and ELA
Investigate context, geography, and civic questions. Read closely, compare accounts, discuss interpretations, and write from evidence.
Annual classroom license
New RST purchases cover one educator and their own students for 12 months and require annual renewal. School licensing for one RST title is $100 per year. District discounts apply. Read the annual terms and request a school or district quote. Previously accepted purchase terms remain applicable.
The RST Method · Terrence Knox
Inquiry. Collaboration. Evidence.
Collaborative Student Reasoning in Social Studies Education
Make student thinking visible through Research Simulation Tasks. Learners investigate questions, interpret sources, reason together, and explain what the evidence supports.
A culturally grounded approach
Students build understanding through inquiry.
The RST Method by Terrence Knox connects historical understanding, student collaboration, and critical thinking. African and Indigenous perspectives, cultural responsibility, and Amistad Act implementation inform the work. Students examine sources, consider perspective, distinguish evidence from inference, and support their conclusions.
Mathematics
Calculate quantities, ratios, distances, or change. Explain what the result reveals and what the data cannot establish.
Science
Ask a testable question, identify a measurable outcome, compare conditions, and acknowledge a limitation.
A Five Day Inquiry
A flexible sequence for the interdisciplinary RST model. Teachers adapt scaffolding and extensions to the grade band and selected resource.
- Day 1 · Frame the Question
Activate prior knowledge with a Do Now, introduce context, and examine the first sources.
- Day 2 · Compare Sources
Read and map evidence, identify perspectives, and discuss agreements and differences.
- Day 3 · Connect Disciplines
Use calculation and scientific investigation to deepen the shared inquiry.
- Day 4 · Develop a Claim
Collaborate, evaluate evidence, and explain which conclusions the sources support.
- Day 5 · Demonstrate Understanding
Complete the assessment and a RACE response, then reflect on the reasoning.
Daily Do Nows introduce the related reading or activity. Quick Writes follow it. I Do, We Do, and They Do guidance belongs in the separate teacher notes.
See a Grade 6 Civics RST.
Preview a limited student sample from Why Government? Explore civic reasoning and source analysis, then review the complete weekly offer.
Explore the Free Limited SampleIllustrative inquiry · Geography of Africa
How does water access shape human choices?
This example illustrates the method. It is not an excerpt from the paid book.
Investigate
Compare a map of rivers and settlements with a reading about trade. Identify patterns and ask what additional evidence would help explain them.
Reason Together
Use a map scale to estimate travel distance. Design a controlled comparison of how two soil samples retain water, using equal amounts of water and a measured outcome. Discuss the limits of using a classroom model to explain historical settlement.
Write With Evidence
Develop a claim about water access and settlement. Cite the map and reading, explain how each supports the claim, and identify one limitation.
From the Method to Classroom Materials
Ma’at’s interdisciplinary RST model includes print and fillable student PDFs, separate teacher guidance, daily Do Nows and Quick Writes, source work, assessment, and RACE writing. Resource pages identify their grade bands, NJSLS and Common Core State Standards (CCLS) pathways, and included materials.
Digital written response fields allow 1,000 characters per field. Objective questions may be scored through the included Google Forms setup where offered. Written responses and RACE are teacher scored.
Read the framework
The RST Method
Collaborative Student Reasoning in Social Studies Education
By Terrence Knox · 110 page PDF edition · $49.99
Explore the framework, classroom examples, and strategies behind collaborative student reasoning.
One reader license. Schoolwide sharing requires separate permission. Purchased downloads become available after payment is confirmed.
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Intellectual Property of Ma’at Cultural Curriculum Consultants LLC Est. 2017.