Presents ideas for a variety of learning activities, many with a February theme. Includes such things as valentine games, word games, ideas for new uses for old books, Lincoln and Washington activities, a shapes game, ideas for how to use skill cares, and activities for teaching syllables. (JMB)

Discusses philosophies, problems, uses, and misuses of vocational agricultural contests with focus on improvement of classroom performance. (JH)

The article describes activities (such as reading and interpreting restaurant menus) designed to teach survival skills to secondary special education students. (CL)

Offered as a method of motivating students, "Articon" is described as an educational game appropriate for use in a variety of industrial arts laboratories and grade levels. Development of the game, gaming activity, and the instructor's role are discussed. (TA)

Offers ideas for classroom activities centered around a tropical deep sea theme. (SB)

A list of activities for creative dramatics work in the classroom. (MM)

Designing and building a hockey table offered upper school students at Ashbourne School in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, vocational and academic instruction, opportunities to channel aggressive and sexual impulses, experiences that enhanced self-image, healthy peer relationships, and opportunities for individual initiative and involvement. (JG)

Prevocational education for mentally handicapped students can be integrated with normal class activities if the teacher focuses on activities and values that are common to the worlds of school and work. (GW)

A classroom calendar, created and used for recording events to illustrate the passage of time and to record school experiences was particularly helpful for a student with a communication disorder who needed more structure for understanding time concepts. Spin-off activities include recreating experiences and illustrating calendar activities. (CB)

This step-by-step approach to class plays will allow students to explore literature, think creatively, and learn to work together. Discussed are how to teach acting, choosing a story, teaching the story, rehearsing, and creating costumes and sets. (MT)

Instead of confining interschool competition to athletic teams, schools should consider highlighting their students' academic prowess with academic contests. A number of national programs are reviewed, including the Academic Olympiad sponsored by Utah State University and involving seven cooperating school districts in northern Utah. (MLH)

Five software packages that can create party decorations, certificates, toys, comic strips, and other graphics are reviewed. Sources of the software are given. (MT)

A class newsletter can help students learn about each other while they gain important social, writing, and interviewing techniques. Computer programs to produce a newsletter, to do word processing, and to manage data are described. (MT)