Argues that young adult literature can play a significant role in the emotional and mental health of an adolescent as well as help young males become more literate. Offers a 19-item annotated list of young adult novels with male protagonists, sorted by themes: nature and adventure stories, sports stories, genre stories, historical stories, and…

Presents examples of discourse in classroom interaction that show how social relations in the classroom mirror larger societal relationships in ways that exclude students' cultural and linguistic practices as resources for meaningful literacy learning. Shows how this discourse process (called reciprocal distancing) is used by teachers and students…

Offers a brief description of the Third International Conference for Global Conversations on Language and Literacy, held in Bordeaux, France, in August 1998. Gives brief summaries of five conference presentations or sessions. (SR)

Uses examples of children's poetry to illustrate both the power of metaphor and the possibilities of poetry in the development of metaphor. Traces children's development in creation of metaphor from kindergarten through eighth grade. Looks at early demonstration of metaphor use and the expanded use of metaphor to describe complex concepts and…

Finds that with teacher scaffolding (modeling, explicit instruction, feedback, and the creation of contexts for sharing), first graders can write thoughtful, personal, and extended responses to books in their literature-response journals. Discusses teacher and peer scaffolding, and literacy development. Describes in detail the children's…

Explores the considerable benefits of reading poetry, why poetry is often neglected, and some of the ways the author brings poetry and children together, making poetry an integral part of the curriculum. Offers a list of recommended poetry volumes, as well as a list of recommended professional reading/supporting poetry-instruction in the…

Describes how the authors collaborated on a teacher research project in three elementary school classrooms (first, second, and third grade) as a means of documenting teaching and learning in "Wholistic" classrooms. Offers a skill sketch of the data collected in each classroom, documenting exactly which skills were receiving attention and practice…

Examines the effects of professional development in multimedia-based technology for 26 inservice and 14 preservice teachers on science and mathematics instruction. Focuses on three components critical to the success of this professional-development model: (1) linkage of pedagogy to technology; (2) collaborative teacher planning of instructional…

Studied relationships among achievement, self-concept, and motivation in mathematics and language arts in a longitudinal two-wave, three-variable panel study involving three cohorts of Norwegian elementary school students (n=1,005). In all cohorts, results were consistent with a skill-development model of the achievement/self-concept relationship.…

Offers a fifth-grade art lesson on lighthouses prompted by reading Arielle North Olson's "The Lighthouse Keeper's Daughter" during a language-arts lesson. Reports that the students made a two-dimensional and a three-dimensional project. States that the students were excited about conveying their ideas using two different media. Explains…

Presents an interdisciplinary unit for fourth-grade students that compares the Tokaido Road in Japan to Interstate I-75 in Michigan; students learned about the history and geography of the Tokaido Road, examined the travel prints of Ando Hiroshige, and created their own travel prints and haikus. Gives three accompanying handouts. (CMK)

Describes how students in a course on adolescent literature read one book each week from an adolescent series related to a particular theme or time period. Shows how, by reading through a historical and cultural perspective, students learn about changing cultural attitudes and expectations toward adolescents. (SR)

Describes how the author used a young adult novel as a catalyst for discussing and investigating issues of social inequity in schools in her sixth-grade advanced language arts class. Describes how, by discussing how placement in advanced classes is determined, students learn to look more carefully and critically at how schools function in society,…

Shares the author's experiences as a third-grade teacher facing the dilemma of not having multiple copies of good literature available. Tells the story of how she developed effective instructional strategies for using the limited resources she was able to find. Describes how, despite less than ideal resources, children engaged in rich, thoughtful…

Discusses six books that offer beginning and veteran teachers classroom-tested ideas to help students read and write poetry and other literature, and interact with each other as they strive to understand and appreciate classic drama and novels. Notes four websites that are good sites for teaching poetry. (SR)