Describing the numerous changes that have occurred in language arts instruction within the past few years, this book explains these changes, as well as modern concepts, materials, and instructional techniques to assist language arts teachers. The books describes several innovative approaches to instruction, such as how to teach phonics and compare/contrast strategies in an integrative, whole language based program; how new middle school language arts programs can be built; and how to build students' higher level thinking and creativity through language arts instruction and real-world assessments. After introductory comments, each chapter is divided in three sections: Theoretical Foundations; Putting Theory into Practice; and Strategies That Teach. Chapters in the book are: (1) Language and Thinking Development in the Elementary School; (2) Putting Your Philosophy into Action: Designing Your Student Communication Center; (3) The Students Arrive: Developing Students' Oral Communication Abilities; (4) Listening: Beginning to Build the Student Communication Center; (5) Reading Instruction in a Student Communication Center, Part I; (6) Reading Instruction in a Student Communication Center, Part II; (7) Writing to Communicate and Think; (8) Revising: Using Grammar, Rewriting, and Rephrasing as Tools to Clarify Meaning; (9) Editing: Teaching Spelling and Other Writing Conventions; (10) Integrating Language Arts across the Curriculum; (11) Creative Expression: One Step Beyond Integration; (12) Teaching Students to Communicate with High Level Thinking; (13) Special Needs of Kindergartners and Middle School Students; (14) Students with Special Language Needs: Meeting the Challenge of Diversity in the Classroom; and (15) Assessing Your Language Arts Program. (RS)