This article discusses strategies for differentiating the curriculum for gifted students by using a creative approach to language teaching. It provides suggestions for co-operative and creative classroom language activities, including making a syllable pie, starting a dictionary of sub-cult words, cryptic crosswords, poetry, and tracing language…

Suggests that texts invite readers to read in certain ways. Demonstrates in more detail how different strategies for reading with, across and against the invited reading of a base text are transferable to writing strategies that explore alternative and oppositional views, values, ideologies and discourses within a social justice framework. (RS)

Presents lesson plans designed to enable high school students to recognize ethical issues involving the printed media and to give students practical experience in ethical decision-making using the newspaper as a learning tool. Includes 10 ethical issues and related case studies. (RS)

Describes how teachers can define and create a taxonomy for the instructional media available to them in their classroom. Explains how creating such a taxonomy not only helps teachers see the possibilities of available instructional media, but can be useful in gaining the support of administrators for requests for supplies and training. Describes…

Describes a project about lines in the environment used with 2- and 3-year olds and based on the Reggio Emilia approach. Activities included making tracks with riding toys, drawing lines on papers, seeing cloud lines, and making lines with yarn and Cuisenaire rods. Shows how young children's observations and ongoing discoveries can uncover their…

Fourth- through sixth-grade students can create drawn-to- scale classroom maps as they prepare for a treasure hunt using mathematics, map, and measurement skills. The activity involves sharing different maps and examining their features; discussing scale and its purpose; describing the in-classroom treasure hunt; making the maps; and allowing…

This collection of standards-based activities includes ideas for use in social studies, mathematics, language arts, and art classrooms. A tear-out student reproducible offers a bookmark that allows students to note unfamiliar or unusual words and phrases as they read and to jot down their thoughts and observations. (SM)

Describes 3 reading comprehension games that can be realistically implemented in mainstream settings for young students. Suggests the games provide opportunities for students with varied literacy abilities to work together, respond to story characters, develop awareness about the parts of typical stories and the relationships among those parts,…

Describes how pairing fiction and nonfiction books on the same topic, along with interactive class strategies (such as Venn diagrams, K-W-L, DR-TA, webbing, and activating prior knowledge), can boost students' understanding and enjoyment, help teach content material, and help to ease students into reading content area textbooks. (SR)

Discusses the cultural and language diversity of young adolescents. Outlines 10 steps to foster a multicultural (or macro cultural) perspective in all students at the middle school level, strategies that build on students' diversity to create a positive and cooperative learning environment. Describes a cooperative activity that promotes…

Describes how the authors taught their students to read "Hamlet" from a critical literacy perspective, analyzing how particular readings of texts and characters are constructed or produced; how they are determined by historical and cultural conventions; analyzing values that various readings support or challenge--rather than trying to…

The author reflects on how she will apply to her own middle-school classroom what she has learned from her many years of work with the National Research Center on English Learning and Achievement (CELA). Looks specifically at five important cross-cutting findings from CELA. (SR)

This study explored classroom provisions to enhance creative thinking in one Australian elementary school. The study and a literature review suggest that creative thinking is not being promoted in most schools. Although teachers' attitudes are slowly developing in favor of creative thinking, creatively talented children are still at risk of not…

Describes how a 7th-grade reading class used character journals to explore the sailing and the sinking of the "Titanic." Describes how the students took ownership of their research and enjoyed reading and writing about actual events as they became a passenger or crew member aboard the "Titanic," explored the ship, experienced…

Argues that theorists who advocate interrogation of experience in classrooms take for granted that everyone can participate in this exercise in the same way. Questions must be asked about the differential ways in which a project of identity interrogation can be taken up, including the personal and political costs to those expected to do this work…