Traditionally, schools have often made decisions about instruction, discipline, and other schoolwide policies without youth involvement. And yet, research suggests that when students have choice, control, and leadership opportunities, their motivation and engagement increase, which in turn is linked with better educational outcomes. This new guide…

Project WILD's new high school curriculum, "Science and Civics: Sustaining Wildlife", is designed to serve as a guide for involving students in environmental action projects aimed at benefitting the local wildlife found in a community. It involves young people in decisions affecting people, wildlife, and their shared habitat in the community. The…

Steps for organizing and implementing a program that involves elementary students in beautifying their school with large-scale wall graphics are outlined. Sources of design, drawing hints, painting methods, application techniques, and follow-up activities are discussed. (RM)

A rationale is presented for developing gifted education projects that are differentiated from the regular curriculum. A specific activity, called "Let's Build a Sailboat," is described to illustrate guiding principles for success in student project development. The project taught planning and management skills to junior high school gifted…

This guide for 4-H leaders and volunteers offers information to help integrate youth with disabilities into various 4-H programs. After an introduction, a section on 4-H and mainstreaming reviews the mission of 4-H; considers what 4-H has to offer youth; defines mainstreaming; notes the benefits of mainstreaming; and distinguishes among the terms…

Presents an eight-step plan for implementing technology integration. Describes a sixth-grade social studies class that used hypermedia software to complete a research project about the Renaissance. Discusses software selection, teaching computer skills, and the CD-ROM map project. Benefits include positive group interaction, self-expression, and…

This booklet examines the theory and practice of projects that involve secondary students in community services. Through such involvement, young people will develop positive attitudes toward community participation that will persist throughout their adult lives. Community service projects represent an important and exciting way to bring democracy…

This handbook combines in a single publication several sets of guidelines for separate competitive events sponsored by the Virginia Association of the Distributive Education Clubs of America (VA DECA). The handbook is organized to promote understanding of the relationships between the competitive events held on the national level and those…

This handbook provides an experience-based career education (EBCE) program director with guidelines and a structure for planning and conducting staff development activities with a minimum of assistance from outside the district. General principles are discussed to offer guidelines to present a staff development program to meet needs. A discussion…

This handbook provides overall guidelines for the secondary division of the Virginia Association of the Distribtive Education Clubs of America (VA DECA). The handbook was written to clarify and promote the educational value of DECA activities; to outline procedures and provide material for local chapter improvement and development; to provide for…

This guide is designed for use by advisors, officers, and other members of local chapters of the Young Homemakers of Virginia. It contains recommendations and suggestions to help local chapters conduct their programs and work toward their educational purposes in a professional, effective manner. The guide is organized in two sections. The first…

A guide for college and university educators who manage service-learning programs, or programs that support student involvement in the community, is presented. A systematic approach to planning and managing service-learning programs is presented, management functions for supporting a service-learning system are identified, and ideas on…

This booklet provides information on implementing the Landscapes for Learning (LFL) program, which was conceived to bring children, youths, and communities together to learn about landscaping while beautifying local schools and communities. The booklet begins with a discussion of the concept of environmental stewardship. Described next are the…

This document provides a framework for academic and career/technical teachers who want to raise students' achievement through real-life projects reflecting the rigorous academic and technical standards needed for further learning in the workplace and postsecondary education. The document begins with definitions of the six A's of project-based…