Describes the use of primary source letters to teach middle school students language arts skills as well as historical research. Discusses handling old documents; how old letters can be discovered; transcribing letters; learning about human nature; and comparing aspects of life in the past with present life. (LRW)

Tracking down the similarities between two beloved stories (the Wizard of Oz and Star Wars) led to a critical analysis of other tales. Through this process, students discovered why some books are classics, became more discriminating readers, and applied what they learned to their own creative writing. (Author/KC)

Presents a learning activity in which secondary students read about and analyze the legal institutions of an African tribe called the Ibo. Students compare the Ibo's precolonial system of resolving disputes with the U.S. system. (AM)

Discusses four British educational practices dealing with reading instruction, written language, copybooks, and oral language and how they differ from American practices. (HTH)

Reexamines the pros and cons of traditional basal reader and literature-based reading programs and those based on the whole language approach. Compares and contrasts classroom teaching methods, goals, and some outcomes. Includes Venn diagram showing overlap and divergence of whole language, literature-based, and traditional basal methods. (ET)

The psychological and linguistic rationales for an integrative approach to teaching reading and language that is based on the language experience and shared book approaches are presented, and the necessary changes in the Singapore educational system are outlined. Because the program is an integrated language arts approach, reading instruction time…

Discusses the differing viewpoints of a classroom teacher and a researcher on the use of small groups as a teaching technique to illustrate the conflict between the researcher/teacher perspectives. (HTH)

The Water in Africa Project was realized over a 2-year period by a team of Peace Corps volunteers. As part of an expanded, detailed design, resources were collected from over 90 volunteers serving in African countries, photos and stories were prepared, and standards-based learning units were created for K-12 students. This unit, "Water…

This lesson seeks to sensitize students to the similarities and difference between cultures by comparing the Shakespearean and the Bunraki/Kabuki dramas of Japan. In the lesson, the focus of this comparison is the complex nature of revenge explored in "The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark" and "Chusingura," or "The…

This document presents a series of 14 lesson plans in an interdisciplinary Spanish unit on "La isla del encanto/The Enchanted Island." The materials were prepared for students in grades 5 or 6 who have had basic Spanish instruction in previous grades. The students should also be familiar with basic concepts in English such as math…