Describes a game using synonyms designed to build students' vocabulary by developing concepts for new words and by repeating exposure to the new words. (RS)

Goals of the Children's Museum of Boston are to encourage curiosity, skepticism, and realism while providing opportunities for discoveries and new insights. The museum addresses the needs of young children through adolescents by providing a multicultural environment and participatory learning centers. (JDD)

The inquiry approach of Discovery Place of Birmingham, Inc., in Birmingham, Alabama, invites children of all ages to explore the excitement of science, technology, art, and humanities. The educational resource center provides interactive exhibits, hands-on materials, teacher workshops, and family programs. (JDD)

Argues that writing parodies of poetry is a productive, nonthreatening introduction to the creative effort of poem making. Provides several suggestions that may help in the parody-writing process. (RS)

States that writing is the one language outlet that enables a person to capture and examine thoughts. Notes the growing number of studies that help teachers evaluate writing as a learning technique. (MG)

The Policy and the Higher Literacies project reviewed state and local "thoughtfulness" mandates, interviewed appropriate administrators, and visited schools and classrooms boasting higher literacy activities. While most interviewees believed in commercial test validity, those engaged in higher literacy activities largely ignored such…

A four-week third-grade class study of the Summer Olympics is described. Activities for studying the host and participating countries were incorporated through map, social studies, art, mathematics, and language arts activities. (CB)

Presents five learning activities which are designed to enable the student of psychology to better understand the aging and the aged. Activities are concerned with current demographic data, stereotyping, perceptions of personal aging, attitudes about age found in greeting cards, and an examination of popular culture's messages about the elderly.…

Describes a board game used to facilitate the learning of theoretical principles associated with the psychoanalytic perspective on personality. Covers rules governing play and special advantages of this learning experience. Game board is reproduced. (Author/LS)

A description is given of a course project which required college students to examine presidential candidates' positions on a variety of health issues. (IAH)

A variety of activities used in a three-week summer program for 55 students, aged 11 to 16 years, to develop leadership skills are described. Significant increases in scores on the Leadership Skills Inventory appeared to result from the course. (DB)

Presents activities and poems for children that can be integrated into the science curriculum. Discussion includes how poetry helps children heighten awareness of the environment, develop a close association with it, gain a respect for nature, and develop a sense of stewardship. A bibliography of 26 works of poetry is appended. (four references)…

Presents alternative assessment tools, including concept maps, initial and summary assessments, Vee diagrams, and three types of alternative learning activities that assess different levels of understanding. (MKR)

As a dramatic arts professor's experience shows, children's lack of arts education inhibits their ability to communicate ideas spontaneously, respond with feeling, and discern quality from commercial junk. By contrast, a role-playing/research activity with 15 youngsters helped students express themselves creatively and build community in a…

Schools must consider performance or authentic assessment as a way to increase learner interest, motivation, and independence. The Mid-Continent Regional Educational Laboratory has developed a model that addresses the concerns of content-area standards and lifelong-learner outcomes. These include content-area concepts, complex-thinking processes,…