Classroom areas organized into centers for specific study purposes are discussed. These centers are used for individual or small group work. The physical arrangement of the area used for a study center is described, including the organization of furniture, materials, and preferred locations. Suggestions are made for the management and stocking of…

This booklet is one in a series designed to bridge the gap between theory and practice by suggesting specific classroom activities based on current educational theory and research. Designed for elementary school teachers, it is divided into two sections. The first section discusses such topics as providing a healthy classroom environment for free…

The value of laboratory activity to provide insight into various kinds of careers should be utilized. (Author)

Presents 80 quick activities that elementary teachers can use to get to know their students, reward good work, communicate with parents, brush up on basic skills, spruce up the classroom, pamper themselves, or publicize the school. (SJL)

Intended for teachers and administrators of early childhood programs, this publication is designed as a guide for developing learning environments for children in prekindergarten through the second grade. The approach advocated is based on research and on teacher experience with the way the young child learns. Contents of the guide include…

This handbook provides information on establishing and running learning centers in an elementary school classroom. A learning center is a station containing instruction and materials for one particular project. Every center should include multimedia and manipulative materials that support the topic or skill that is being focused upon. Students use…

Comments of experienced teachers suggest that writing may be avoided in school not simply because of its inherent difficulty, but because its undertaking typically lacks connection to anything else in the lives of students or teachers. It is possible that teachers can best serve the acquisition of writing skills by structuring the social occasions…

Twenty ideas to motivate reluctant young readers in kindergarten and elementary school classrooms are presented. The ideas include reading contests, prizes, classroom decor, and community involvement. (PP)

Uses careful observations in Reggio Emilia preschools, and three of Thelma Harm's environmental checklists and questions, to identify and analyze the strengths in Reggio Emilia's centers that can be used to assess classroom settings in the United States. Focuses on concepts and practices American teachers can use to improve the teaching-learning…

This three-part paper describes the development of a software program called "The Growth Curve of Microorganisms" for a tenth-grade biology class. Designed to improve students' cognitive skills, the program enables them to investigate, through computer simulations, the impact upon the growth curve of a population of three variables: temperature,…

This handbook is a supplement to district-developed kindergarten teaching guides in Arizona. The history of kindergarten in the U.S. and Arizona and Arizona laws and regulations pertaining to kindergarten are related in the first section of the handbook. Subsequent sections offer basic information on: (1) children's intellectual, social/emotional,…

Project VIII is an innovative behavioral science oriented educational program, funded under Title VIII Elementary Secondary Education Act, designed to attack the personal, social, and educational problems of children whose previous record of school failure and frustration has indicated high dropout potential. The program is operated as a…

Provides specific guidance to teachers planning activity areas and storage spaces to create an environment that supports children and how they learn. Areas of consideration include order, independence, comfort, materials, and boundaries. Hints for discovering unused space, including small and large storage projects, are provided. (SD)

This two-part article discusses the role of the physical environment in adult learning. In the first part, two activities--environment introduction and visualization--are discussed as ways to develop an awareness for improving the learning environment. In the second part, two planning activities--mapping and geometric coding--are discussed as ways…