Describes a writing assignment that uses metaphors to encourage students to rethink their assumptions about writing and about themselves as writers. Discusses metaphors of process and speed, fear and courage, control, silence, and metaphors as invitations. (PRA)

Offers three writing activities in the areas of language arts, life science, and visual arts. (MG)

Assists students in recognizing rhetorical situations and in participating actively by instituting semester-long anonymous correspondences between unacquainted students in separate sections of freshman composition. Notes that students achieved greater sensitivity to rhetorical situations and an awakening of resistance. (MG)

Responses from 77 of 125 home economics teachers and 105 of 129 agriculture teachers showed students used writing most often for notetaking and copying information, less for analytic or creative thinking. Teachers did not view writing as a whole process and rarely evaluated style and content; there was little use of self-evaluation, peer review,…

Describes an assignment for high school or college literature classes in which students focus on a particular character, answer a list of questions about that character, and eventually write an imagined yet realistic dialog with that character. Notes that this helps students grasp a character's complexity and depth. (SR)

Reviews "Great Debate" over code emphasis versus meaning emphasis in reading instruction, concluding incidental instruction provided by writing activities of whole language do not guarantee alphabetic understanding. Attempts to disassociate instruction in alphabetic coding from criticism of components of whole-language instruction and challenges…

A nursing college compiled data on the number, type, and length of writing assignments required of students in bachelor's and associate degree programs. Information was used by faculty to collaborate on development of assignments and to identify ways to facilitate reflective practice. (SK)

Presents guidelines for introducing secondary students to "King Lear" before and during engagement with the text. Includes providing opportunities to (1) improvise, (2) examine specific speeches in depth, and (3) speed write about a character's thoughts. Presents questions used during auditions and explanations of characterization in…

Offers a writing exercise intended for college English classes, which offers a hypothetical case to be considered (along with directions for papers and additional leads) that prompts students to consider ceremonial uses of language (such as the "Pledge of Allegiance") and various issues related to it. (SR)

Addresses students' writing that often requires special attention. Considers this in relation to violent fantasies. Discusses censorship in relation to student writing. Recommends finding out whether the law requires educators to report any evidence of illegal activity to the police. (SG)

Presents and explains a framework that can be used to determine the potential authenticity of teaching practices. Describes the potential for authenticity offered by thematic literacy instruction. (SR)

Discusses five ideas for writing projects designed for high school students, including the church story, the house story, the newspaper story, and teaching the library "our" way. (PA)

Describes how Frederick Douglass's "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave" can be used to explore differences between biography and autobiography, and how a personal account can be used to change attitudes of others. Presents poems written by 10th- and 11th-grade students composed after reading Douglass's…

Suggests that acquaintance with nurses' writing would help instructors design assignments for nursing students in basic technical writing courses. Investigates the importance of writing tasks for nurses and describes the most common documents nurses generate, since good writing skills for nurses improve health care delivery and promote…

Considers how business writing class instructors generally assign reports that require source notations in a specific format. Discusses developing questions to be asked with middle or senior level managers at several different businesses. Presents a discussion of the interview results. Provides strong support for requiring students to reference…