A large urban California elementary school provides approximately 900 limited-English-proficient students with 3 bilingual programs: full and modified bilingual programs offering varying amounts of content instruction in the native language or sheltered English, and the "English language development" program which uses sheltered English…

Describes the successful use of the beginning reading program called Sing, Spell, Read, and Write (SSRW) in Aberdeen (Mississippi) elementary schools. Using a whole language rather than basal reading approach and emphasizing phonics and total immersion, SSRW has been instrumental in dramatically improving achievement test scores and in combating…

Describes a whole-language, interdisciplinary summer program for school and college teachers. From hands-on exploration and reading and writing about self-selected topics, participants learned to understand theory and practice of whole-language instruction and to explore implications for their own teaching. (SM)

Describes a qualitative case study of the total classroom environment created by an exemplary whole-language teacher. Emergent categories and member checks indicated that the classroom environment was organized according to three major principles (collaboration, student independence, and student self-evaluation). This classroom environment is…

Presents a case study of a nine-year-old boy's reading and writing difficulties. Notes that instruction grounded in sociopsycholinguistics, whole language, and emergent literacy helped the learner overcome his difficulties. Provides an account of alternative approaches in assessing written language difficulties; and the role of the reader's belief…

Describes the reorganization of teacher education methods courses at University of Wisconsin-River Falls. Lists whole language tenets, large group session topics, and sample integrations for prekindergarten through middle school grades. Asserts that the experience demonstrated the benefits of the whole language philosophy. (PRA)

Describes a two-year literacy project: an innovative adult basic skills class designed and orchestrated by the students themselves, where Head Start mothers and college-student volunteer tutors worked together. Attributes the project's enormous success to combining the whole-language approach with oral history and the writing process, resulting in…

Contends that becoming literate involves the socialization of attention. Discusses two modes of socialization, revealing and telling. Concludes that the final evaluation of any language theory is relevance to classroom practice. (CFR)

Describes the shift to portfolio assessment in Juneau (Alaska) schools, including teacher-developed assessment guidelines for language arts in elementary school and the use of portfolios in a special interdisciplinary high school program. Lists items that the district requires in elementary language-arts portfolios and recommendations to other…

Noting the fragile relationship between parent participation and school reform, this book tells the story of the Charquin Program, an alternative public school program in Hayward, California, dedicated to parent participation and notable for its open classroom structure and intensely democratic practice. The introduction relates the history and…

Outlines a descriptive (not prescriptive) approach for the creation of a literature-based reading curriculum. Describes the 4 steps (behaving with basals, redefining reading, revving up for reading, and letting literature loose) that took the author 14 years of teaching to complete. Argues that literature-based reading programs are fun, enjoyable,…

Describes the author's year as a volunteer in the writing workshop in her son's first-grade classroom. Discusses her experiences and reflects on the growth she saw in children as readers and writers. (SR)

Describes the Star Project in which each student was allowed to select a topic in any area of interest and then to create a project around that topic. Students selected mentors (often parents) to monitor and encourage their progress. The article describes the project's successes and failures. (SM)

According to one Canadian principal, two major educational changes are necessary: personalized instruction and constructive feedback. To make education more personal means acknowledging children as important individuals with social, emotional, and intellectual needs. Feedback in high quality nongraded classrooms can be provided through…

The whole-language approach to reading interrelates different language arts and uses children's experience as the basis for reading materials. The Success Language Arts program promotes growth of knowledge in various academic disciplines while developing students' reading and writing abilities. The program eliminates basal readers and allows…