A practicum project emphasizing critical thinking skills was undertaken in an eighth grade history class to make students aware of the nature and seriousness of plagiarism. The 10-week unit was preceded by a reading comprehension test and an essay assignment on a major Civil War battle. Plagiarized portions of the essays were highlighted and the percentage of plagiarism was determined and recorded at the top of each essay. The students were then taught skills to help them decrease plagiarism. An integrated approach incorporating notetaking skills, reading comprehension, paraphrasing skills, writing skills and several summarizing techniques was used. During writing assignments, students were also allowed to use an informal reference page in any form and style they chose to encourage them to give credit when credit was due. At the end of the unit, students were again given a reading test and a writing assignment. Results revealed improved reading comprehension and significantly reduced instances of plagiarism. (Thirteen references and two appendixes containing the results of the reading and writing tests are attached.) (KEH)