Describes an exercise in learning about persuasion using a NASA exercise in group decision-making centered on a theoretical crash landing on the moon. Students experience the power of the authoritative voice, the persuasive power of facts, the bandwagon approach, and group manipulation. (TJ)

Suggests motivating writing apprehensive students by asking them to "remodel" passages from novels, magazines, or newspapers that have been stripped of details, descriptions, and compound sentences. (HTH)

Discusses some engaging, occasionally earthy, lines from poetry that can be used to capture students' attention and interest in the form. (HTH)

Describes an exercise to develop students' vocabulary using the more complex language on popular television programs. (HTH)

Describes a method for helping students see the importance of a topic sentence to achieve unity in written paragraphs. Students note all red items in the classroom. Parallels are then drawn between the way concentrating on red limits notice of other details and the way topic sentences limit and focus the details in a paragraph. (HTH)

An approach to generating enthusiasm for writing through a writing contest is described in this brief article. AUTHOR'S COMMENT (excerpt): Why would a librarian sponsor a writing contest for more than eleven hundred students in an elementary school? I wanted to provide a writing experience for my students that would be a positive one; I hoped to…

Describes an assignment that urges expository writers to pursue their own interests and create a fully developed prose project that they will be eager to share. (HTH)

Presents eight writing assignments designed to help students write reports and letters for their future jobs. (HTH)

Proposes a method of teaching literature that not only leads students to understand and enjoy a poem or story but also helps them to relate personally to the work they are reading. (FL)

Describes a method for sparking interest in classic literature by having students develop a table of comparison of the major similarities in plot, character, theme, and structure for a young adult novel and a classic work. Illustrates with a comparison of "The Catcher in the Rye" and "The Stranger." (HTH)

During a visit to a local library archives, many old photographs were discovered which turned out to be useful teaching tools for an English class. Copies of a few of them were brought to class where students were asked to choose one and write about it. The responses were exceptional. Students were writing about their town; some of them were…

An approach to writing for high school and college students is presented in this brief article. AUTHOR'S COMMENT (excerpt): The science fiction course I teach is an elective that enrolls about fifty students per class. Ninety percent or more of the students are not English majors and have done little writing in the recent past. Assigning frequent…