Presents five excerpts from student essays (resulting from extensive in-class coaching and computer lab time) that were based on an article from the December, 1991, issue of "English Journal." (HB)

Discusses back-to-basics emphasis on writing skills and describes thematic approach of a five-week session for high school seniors with little writing experience. Student pre- and posttest essays are appended. (KC)

Tells how students in a journalism class learn copyreading skills through reading and editing each other's work. (GT)

This booklet is one of a series of teacher-written curriculum publications launched by the Bay Area Writing Project, each focusing on a different aspect of the teaching of composition. Introductory sections discuss writing fluency and the goals and procedures of a high school writing workshop for noncollege preparatory students. The work of three…

Discusses how powerful the letter is as a form and vehicle for writing, particularly because the language of letters is the closest to natural speech and represents casual spontaneity associated with conversation. Suggests practical ways of including letter writing in the classroom and provides sample letters as illustration. (KEH)

Describes a writing assignment in which students rewrite literary classics or fairy tales from a new perspective (i.e. making an originally minor character the protagonist, or putting the original story into a different century). (MM)

Asserts that the "Advice to Writers" project, encouraging students to articulate what they do when they write and to share those perceptions with fellow student writers, is an effective way for students to reflect on the writing process. (MM)

Discusses a technique for helping students see the value of revision by using a previously written and revised composition as an illustration. (TJ)

The purpose of a five-week pilot project in composition at a Manhattan inner city high school were to test a methodology for teaching the nonnarrative essay and to determine if students could provide informed editorial guidance to other students in regular peer criticism sessions. The assumptions underlying the approach are that the central…

Presents a high school student's story about fishing, analyzes the story, and provides study guide questions for students intended to amplify the reading. Invites "English Journal" readers to use this story and study guide in their own classrooms. (JG)

A teaching strategy has been devised to teach students how to value their own thoughts and experiences. Secondary purposes of the strategy are to help students deal with their own identities, to improve their general language and essay writing abilities, and to heighten their appreciation of the writing of others. The seven steps of the teaching…

A method for stimulating and facilitating organizational writing in the secondary school is described in this paper. Pictorial sequences are coordinated and arranged to typify the four major styles of writing: narrative, descriptive, expository, and persuasive. These sequences both portray a meaningful event in keeping with the writing style and…

The purpose of this paper is to present a new approach to teaching a creative writing sequence for high school students. During the first 45-day course, over 30 papers are to be written. Students begin with a paper titled "I Am" and proceed through a series of self-discovery papers. The papers give the students a chance to understand…

Describes an approach to literacy instruction for immigrant students based on two novels. Focuses on the immigrant experience and teaches both cultural and "school" literacy. (MM)

A teaching strategy is described that provides controlled support to hearing-impaired high school students through teacher-led "helping circles" to encourage elaboration and exploration in their writing. It enables students to share their written work in class, have an audience for their work, and provide and receive helpful criticism. (VW)