Provides some ideas that change the pace and get students ready for learning. (Editor/RK)

To encourage students to do routine homework assignments, teachers might occasionally assign silly homework assignments (such as "Brush your teeth with the hand you usually don't use"). Class discussions and parent reactions provide feedback. A list of suggestions and a reproducible page are offered. (JL)

A lull before you're off to lunch? Here are activities to sop up those extra minutes by reinforcing what you're taught. (Editor)

Presents the results of the Best Teaching Idea contest that sparked a response that flooded the editors with entries. Here are the 20 adjudged the best ranging all the way from self-made computers to games made by kids to be played with parents. (Editor/RK)

Based on the philosophy that children learn best in functional, natural settings when a desire for learning persists, this book provides classroom-tested strategies for teaching children how to monitor and improve their own comprehension as they read a variety of texts. The goal of the book is to empower students to become successful, independent…

One typewriter or many--a typing program delights students and helps improve language skills. (Editor)

Four groups (elementary principals, special education administrators, classroom teachers, and special education teachers) were surveyed concerning attitudes toward mainstreaming, focusing on the effects on academic, social, emotional, and behavioral development of handicapped students and effects on nonhandicapped peers, teachers, and…

A fourth grade teacher examines the ever-changing and developing student teacher relationship. As students move on each year, past teachers still feel some degree of responsibility, and students learn about changing relationships. (SM)

Children find great joy during this season playing with new toys. And more and more often parents consult with teachers about toy buying. Here's a guide to help you answer questions. (Editor)

Describes the peace-oriented instructional materials and classroom activities developed by Pat Feller for use in her sixth-grade class. Discusses the adoption of these techniques in another Oregon Catholic school. (LAL)

This brochure is intended to be a useful tool for assessing students' development along a continuum of oral language growth as well as for providing information about the competencies that students are expected to learn in second-fifth grades. On the continuum in the brochure, descriptors list specific behaviors that detail students' development…

Over the years there have been different terms for the idea of educating for character. Some of these are moral education, moral reasoning, values clarification, and ethics. But the basic idea of using schools to produce people of good character has been around for many generations. This volume explores the importance of including character…

Defines and describes the fantasizing motif in children's literature and explains how teachers can use this motif to help children learn to live in society. (JL)

Describes portfolio assessment, recommending it as a means of dynamic and ongoing student evaluation. For students, portfolios stimulate thinking and promote independence. For teachers, they provide a multidimensional view of each child's development. The article explains how to get started, customize portfolio contents, collect notes, and manage…

Successful elementary teachers have long recognized that the ability to ask questions effectively is an important part of independent learning behavior. Discusses four basic types of questions students should be encouraged to employ in their search for understanding. Also gives eight essential procedures for carrying out a questioning session.…