Written by a retired kindergarten teacher with 25 years of experience, this paper presents the text for a video demonstration of at-home sensory activities to stimulate development in children from birth to age 5. The introduction notes recent research indicating that learning begins at birth, and explores the effect of early stimulation on…

This Spanish-language handbook, which was written by a retired kindergarten teacher with over 25 years of experience, is intended to help parents and caregivers prepare their child for formal schooling. It describes 260 learning activities, each based on a different developmental concept, and most requiring materials usually found in the home. An…

This paper describes mathematical modeling activities from a secondary mathematics teacher education course taken by fourth-year university students. Experiences with mathematical modeling are viewed as important in helping teachers develop a more intuitive understanding of mathematics, generate and evaluate mathematical interpretations, and…

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…

This document proposes the project approach as one element of early childhood education that can function in a complementary relationship to other aspects of the early childhood curriculum. The term "project" is defined as an extended investigation of a topic that is of interest to participating children and judged worthy of attention by…

This book examines the Navajo system of spatial knowledge and describes a culture-based curriculum for the development of an intuitive geometry based on the child's experience of the physical world. Aspects of the Navajo cosmology relevant to spatial knowledge are discussed: the structure of the world; the dynamic nature of the universe;…

The purpose of this paper is to present a brief overview of the nature of pedagogical content knowledge and to offer a list of working hypotheses concerning it for incorporation into teacher education programs. What teachers know about teaching, such as preinstructional strategies, the use of concrete examples and manipulatives, formative testing,…

This activity guide, specifically designed for Illinois classrooms but adaptable for other states, seeks to encourage primary students to make their own personal statement and responses to the environment through increased awareness of reducing, reusing, recycling, and composting of solid waste materials. The activities incorporate environmental…

Teaching critical thinking, a relatively new area and concept in physical education, can take the form of problem solving--the development and presentation of physical and mental problems that challenge students to reach a solution. Providing students with conceptually well-defined and designed problems can give physical education teachers an…

This document contains 19 lesson plans that can be used for career awareness activities in third grade. The lessons were developed by teachers and submitted as part of the Florida Blueprint for Career Preparation. The lesson plans include a topic, materials and information needed, and directions for activities. Lesson plans are designated by…

This document contains 13 lesson plans that can be used for career awareness activities in fourth grade. The lessons were developed by teachers and submitted as part of the Florida Blueprint for Career Preparation. The lesson plans include a topic, materials and information needed, and directions for activities. Lesson plans are designated by…

Heritage education is an interdisciplinary, interactive approach to examining the historical and cultural evidence of heritage that remains in neighborhoods, community, and regions. This paper seeks to answer some basic questions about heritage education, including: What is it? What are heritage educators seeking to accomplish? Is there a right…

This paper describes a project implemented in one first grade classroom to incorporate learning strategies in the process of group development of curriculum planning and development of instructional activities. The teacher used dialogue, coaching, modeling, questioning, and reinforcement with the students to make prominent the language and…

This document suggests that the main purpose of the study of current affairs in the social studies program in Alberta, Canada, is to add relevance, interest, and immediacy. It defines current affairs as the study of news events presented by the media. Because the study of current affairs must be tied to the achievement of social studies…

This article describes a teaching experiment in Finland to develop critical thinking and argumentation skills in a university course using both face-to-face and e-mail settings. Subjects (n=49) were advanced students of education and three faculty members. All students received two lectures on argumentation and packages of argumentative writings…