Presents two writing activities. Gives a brief description of an activity of personal reflection for composition students. Describes a composition classroom activity for writing effective introduction lead-ins. (SG)

Provides a list of Patricia Polacco's books that feature her signature artwork. Includes ideas for activities to extend the books into the classroom or library media center. Also lists related information sources about Polacco's life and work including Web sites. (LRW)

Offers practical suggestions to help children learn their multiplication tables. (Author/CCM)

Argues that academic study about religion is an essential part of a complete education, especially in social studies classes, since religion and faith play a significant role in people's motivations and actions. Discusses the legality and appropriateness of teaching about the role of religion. Describes specific activities that integrate the…

Offers brief descriptions from seven English teachers of how and for what purpose they have used an unusual film in their English classroom. (SR)

Discusses childrens books about money dealing with the recognition of coins, bills, and their value; counting and calculating; minting and printing; meaning of words, symbols, and pictures on money; history; and money from around the world. Describes activities and provides a bibliography. (PEN)

Discusses a teacher's experiences teaching poetry using the Magnetic Poetry Kit. Notes the fun of fridge poems is in the limitation: there are only a certain number of words to choose from. Contains 11 fridge poems. (RS)

Presents unique ways to create special rituals that recognize individual students' achievements and milestones. Ideas include throwing a send-off party for a student who is moving; holding monthly birthday luncheons; choosing an ambassador to accompany new students around school; and making a lost tooth container that students can use to safely…

Discusses the value of toys as tools to aid children's development within Montessori education. Presents a history of toys from ancient civilizations to modern corporations. Discusses the role of toys in cognitive development, their importance in providing an enriched environment for children's play time, and the relationship between work and play…

Explains how television programs such as "Seinfeld" illustrate the organizational behavior concepts of the social psychological contract and the interdependence aspect of systems thinking. Describes to use "Seinfeld" in the management classroom. (Contains 18 references.) (SK)

Notes that most English-language haiku are not written in the 5-7-5 syllable format. Discusses the nature of haiku. Describes a three-day lesson plan for teaching haiku. Appends hints for writing haiku, and lists books and Internet sites concerning teaching haiku. (RS)

Describes how a high school English teacher taught herself how to use hypertext in her classroom. Discusses how she used it in her creative writing classes and then moved on to use it in her other classes. Notes the positive responses of her students to the activities. (RS)

The author describes a classroom game demonstrating the process of adjustment to long-run equilibrium in a market consisting of price-taking firms. This game unites and extends key insights from several simpler games in a framework more consistent with the standard textbook model of a competitive industry. Because firms have increasing marginal…

In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, this month's featured book is "Martin's Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." The book was written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Bryan Collier (Jump at the Sun, 2001. 40p. ISBN 0786807148). This pictorial biography of the world-renowned civil rights leader has one of the most striking…

Teachers usually enjoy the first day of class, regardless of students' perceptions coming into the course. The author has found a technique that makes even difficult courses exciting for both teachers and students. For the past several years, the author has included a celebration exercise on the first day. It works great across disciplines and is…