Describes an outdoor summer science program for Seneca Indian children in grades 5-7 that featured weekly outdoor topics integrating science, traditional Native American/Seneca culture, and skills in reading and language arts. Daily activities included field trips, community guests, storytelling, and individual and group projects. (LP)

Presents a dialogue between a university faculty member and an elementary teacher. Explores the rich relationship afforded by collaborative efforts. Demonstrates how the connections of methods courses to classroom settings can strengthen preservice training for beginning teachers. (HB)

A checklist is provided for assessing common reading problems. Columns list matched sets of target skills, related skills, and possible problem behaviors. Skills are divided into sections on prereading, word recognition, and comprehension. An additional checklist can be used to note facilitative factors observed to aid a student's progress. (PB)

Examines elementary literature instruction in Stanford University's Teacher Assessment Project (TAP). TAP candidates carried out exercises assessing their classroom instructional abilities. A study used data from the exercises to discuss best practice in teaching literature, noting that certain exercises were amenable to professional growth and…

Describes instruction in language arts, mathematics, computers, physical education, sciences, and social studies at O'Farrell Community School. Notes that students are taught by interdisciplinary teams of six teachers. (PRA)

Demonstrates how a real first grade teacher in a real classroom covers district objectives for reading and language arts within the context of a whole language philosophy. Illustrates how the teacher recognizes the needs of the students and encourages them to participate in making decisions about what activities are included in the unit. (MG)

Notes that much of the new instructional software has been disappointing in terms of its appropriateness for young children. Reviews several programs notable for their developmental appropriateness in the areas of creative arts, language arts, thematic approaches, and computer accessibility. (HTH)

Provides an annotated list of 10 items from the ERIC database about integrated curriculum and instruction. (CFR)

Discusses how gifted students can experience the musical and pictorial magic of language through storytelling. Techniques and activities to be used in the general classroom or gifted pull-out programs are presented for sharing personal expression, the joy of language, and new styles of thought and expression. (CR)

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…