A study examined the impact of song writing, dramatization, and performance on third graders' ability to learn and retain social studies concepts. Students (n=18) were taught a unit on natural land forms and bodies of water in which they dramatized and performed songs which incorporated the main ideas of each unit. Upon completion of each unit,…

This book, for grades 9-12, contains a wealth of ideas and practical activities for studying Shakespeare's "Hamlet." The first section, "Revenge Tragedy," provides background materials to help prepare students to read "Hamlet," including a discussion of revenge tragedies, comparisons to other plays from the period,…

Author recommends activities designed to help teachers in some way become more creative, more sensitive in their responses to other people and their work, more flexible in developing environments for learning, and more confident of the value of their work in teaching and in other areas. (Author/CB)

Describes the use of drama with ten dropouts from 16 to 20 years old in a reading program at the University of Alabama. (MB)

Since children draw no sharp distinction between work and play, it is possible to link science and drama in school, integrating science learning with the rest of their education. The success of this approach is attested by descriptions of four dramatic presentations which were finalists in an interschool competition. (Author/JN)

Describes activities done to help second graders learn about spring using their imaginations, curiosity, and body energies. Includes activities in science, reading, dramatics, and movement. (MA)

Outlines a program for incorporating oral interpretation activities into an elementary school curriculum. (RL)

An antismoking program for elementary schools, using a mannikin of a thirteen-year-old boy in a skit with a doctor, reveals some of the side effects of smoking, including shortness of breath, bad breath, stained teeth and fillings, and the inability to properly taste and smell. (JMF)

Describes a pictogram system in which letters are made to look like human and animal characters as a way of teaching phonics to children; tells how teachers have imaginatively implemented the system through activities in such areas as drama, singing, and story telling. (GT)

Describes the mounting of Ionesco's "La Lecon" through a group of junior high school students, and the subsequent videotaping of the performance for viewing by a large audience. Suggestions are given for using drama and videotapes in the language classroom. (AM)

Uses role-playing, dramatic monologues, and "tableaux vivant" to interpret Robert Browning's poem "My Last Duchess" in an introductory literature class at Westchester Community College. Notes that performative strategies illustrate connections in the poem that often remain unnoticed on a first reading. (PA)

A teacher describes her use of oral family history and story telling to develop students' language skills. Guidelines for obtaining oral histories, developing a specific story, teaching acting techniques, and preparing for performance are offered. (DB)

Create Your Own is a month-long artist residency that introduces children to opera as a method of spinning a tale rather than as elitist, high-brow art. Students create their own opera company and are involved in every stage of the process from writing the story and music to building the set and making the costumes. (TD)

Evaluates the effects that environmental changes in early childhood activity centers and patterns of teacher guidance have on children's literacy behavior. Finds that the children are likely to engage in voluntary literacy behaviors during free play when literacy materials are introduced and teachers guide children to use those materials. (MG)