Describes discouraged learners, and discusses how to work with them effectively in mathematics instruction. (SR)

Describes a communication course in organizational models and metaphors. Discusses teaching philosophy and six course units, including an exercise in organizational fieldwork. (SR)

Offers elementary math-centered recycling activities and ideas on transforming throwaways into valuable classroom resources. The math activities teach estimating, counting, measuring, weighing, graphing, patterning, thinking, comparing, proportion, and dimensions. The recycling ideas present ways to use pieces of trash to create educational games.…

Describes an approach, called "Questioning the Author," that is targeted toward getting young readers to engage with their textbooks--to really consider ideas deeply. Notes that the approach attempts to actualize the presence of an author, understand the author as a fallible transmitter of ideas, and transform author's ideas into readers' ideas.…

Class-produced newspapers are clear examples of product-driven learning, which requires a visible, though not always tangible, product; an audience other than the students themselves; whole-class involvement; and completion during normal school hours. Further examples are provided, including a first-grade circus, a fourth-grade rain forest tour,…

French cuisine offers a valuable resource for creating culture-based contexts for language use in the classroom. Suggestions and ideas are presented for incorporating food-related activities in the French class. (VWL)

The four language classroom activities described include work with verbal moods (subjunctive, conditional) by eliciting student suggestions for ways to help third-world countries; ways to practice social meeting/greeting/introduction situations; development of phonetic understanding and vocabulary through letter and sound changes; use of…

Examines acquisition of proprietary vocabulary (a collection of words over which the owner has mastery of understanding in listening and reading and mastery of use in speaking and writing). Describes a thematic approach to vocabulary development, and teachers' use of creative experiences to enhance acquisition of proprietary vocabulary. (RS)

Reviews three books: (1) "Jeux Populaires Traditionnels pour les Enfants d'aujourd'hui" (Traditional Popular Games for Today's Children) (Jacqueline Theriault and Denise Garon); "Early Childhood Education" (B. Persky and L. Golubchick, editors); and "Playing to Learn: The Young Child, Teacher and the Classroom" (Weininger and Daniel). (AC)

Describes a variety of children's books that can help elementary students explore the qualities that make good leaders. The books (fiction and biography) include stories about past Presidents, people who did inspiring deeds, people with admirable qualities, and children who ran for school office. (SM)

Describes a series of three "Newspaper in Education" projects which provided practical experience for a group of initial teacher trainees from years two, three, and four of a primary course. Suggests that the projects promoted children's literacy development and provided a welcome opportunity for teacher trainees to gain a deeper…

Describes a classroom dramatic approach (using the technique of the fictional family) that can help achieve an integration of the goals of literature instruction and multicultural education. Depicts the technique in practice and argues for its current relevance in fostering cultural diversity. (HB)

Describes "Theatre Sports," a type of improvisational theater that actively involves the audience. Presents a beginning workshop that explains the basic skills of improvisation (group cohesion and trust, movement, pantomime, spontaneity, offers and blocking, characterization and status, narrative, and endowment) and explains how to play…

Discusses the life and paintings of Vincent van Gogh, focusing on "The Road Meanders," and describes how to teach students through the painting (e.g., analyzing colors, discussing feelings it evokes, and writing poems that speak to the people in the painting). A copy of the painting is included. (SM)

A spelling study expert offers the following strategies for teaching elementary students to spell: making word-sorting games that categorize words by shared characteristics; playing letter-sequencing games; examining how root words and affixes combine to form new words; making spelling meaningful; and linking spelling study with editing and…