This publication explains how to teach students to produce well written and analytic work, offering essays, lesson plans, and a collection of student writing, all rooted in a focus on language arts teaching for social justice. The eight chapters look at: (1) "Building Community out of Chaos" (e.g., inviting students' lives into the…

The goal of this lesson plan is for second-grade students to understand the steps in how food is made and delivered to the grocery store. Students create a play where each person plays a part in the production and distribution of food. The lesson suggests that the class perform the play on parents' night. It provides five activities for students…

This guide, in English- and Spanish-language versions, shares with parents information about the South Carolina Curriculum Standards. The standards outline state requirements for children's learning and what students across the state should be able to do in certain subjects. The guide lists seven key reasons parents should be aware of the new…

Annually in May and June, grade 3, 6, and 9 students in Alberta (Canada) take provincial achievement tests. This guide, in both English and French versions, explains the achievement tests. The tests are designed to indicate how well students meet the province's standards, to support teachers in planning instruction, and to inform the public about…

The 40 activities contained in this book were designed to persuade students to think both critically and creatively. The activities call for the use of all 18 of E. Paul Torrance's creative thinking abilities. The theoretical underpinnings for this collection are based upon philosophical and pedagogical beliefs that experiences be positive: if…

Focusing on multiple ways in which learners gain access to knowledge and skills, this handbook explores the possibilities of broadening current conceptualizations of literacy to include the full array of the communicative arts (reading, writing, speaking, listening, viewing). The handbook pays particular attention to the visual arts of drama,…

Based on the idea that parents are their children's first and most important teachers, this book gives practical suggestions for how parents can best nurture the qualities of initiative, thoughtfulness, curiosity, resourcefulness, perseverance, and imagination that are fundamental to all that children will do and become in their lives. Drawing…

This collection, with contributors from Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, addresses three important themes in the literacy learning of preschool children: children are active constructors of their own learning; families provide invaluable support in the early literacy learning of children; and preschool settings should reflect…

This guide is designed to provide teachers with instructional strategies and techniques to enhance the content area and language achievement of intermediate and advanced bilingual/English-as-a- Second-Language (ESL) learners in New York City (New York) public schools. Its content is geared to recently-developed city standards for curriculum design…

This practicum was designed to increase the use of computer technologies, which would enhance student learning outcomes. The primary goal was to improve the language arts skills of third, fourth, and fifth grade students by using specific software and related activities. A secondary goal was to raise teachers' computer comfort levels and skills.…

Through the development and use of a computer databased bibliographic cataloging system, this practicum aimed to improve the organization and management of the non-print media collections housed in a Native American Indian reservation's high school language arts department and library in order for the teaching staff to gain better access to the…

This packet consists of 10 learning activities related to the communications area of language arts career skills. Each activity is self-contained and provides all necessary material or information. The activities include a communication skills table; career acrostics; a questionnaire for use in an informal interview with an employed person; a…

This paper discusses the evolving Professional Development School (PDS) partnership between the University of Alabama and Holt High School by illuminating an interdisciplinary civil rights unit developed by school- and university-based faculty. The study investigated how using young adult literature affected students' perspectives during the unit…

"Boys Will Be Boys," the television program featured in this videotape and teaching guide, explores the turmoil experienced by a young woman, a high school sophomore, who becomes the victim of sexual harassment at school. The program can be a springboard for discussing the larger issues of sexual harassment and women's rights today and…

"The Writing on the Wall," the television program featured in this videotape and teaching guide, focuses on three suburban teenagers who deface with anti-Semitic graffiti, the property of a rabbi, a holocaust survivor, and the Jewish community center and synagogue. The teenagers, tried and convicted, are spared a harsh sentence when the…