Presents sample writing assignments that enable students to practice social studies skills. Suggests that the use of creative writing assignments allows students to make a jump in time or place to the era and area being studied. Argues that using the imagination is a better approach to learning than memorizing facts. (DK)

Describes a written assignment designed to help students develop a framework for understanding the meaning of the concept of social imagination. Defines social imagination as a pattern of questioning and understanding the world. Suggests that students must develop a mindset that allows them to understand the intersection between personal biography…

The assumption for many college professors is that academic discourse is a hallmark of the educated, a form of communication accepted and expected both academically and professionally. Typically, academic discourse entails the conventions of a particular discipline's writing form. A writing center tutor and administrator must find ways to teach…

Combining the journal writing process with the concepts of collaboration can produce more focused writing and learning. Through the channel of collaborative situations, such as group journal writing, teachers can capitalize on the benefits achieved from the collaborative process and cultivate thinking and writing skills. A group journal writing…

A high school English teacher used her weekly Impromptu Poetry session to find out what 11th graders thought veterans had accomplished. The teacher developed a writing prompt that asked the students to describe a family member who had served in the military and to show what they understood about that person. Students who did not have a family…

Discusses the use of writing assignments for teaching social studies. Suggests that alternatives to the standard research paper may be more advantageous to students by providing increased opportunity for creativity. Describes oral history projects, diaries, letters, advertisements, monologues, brief investigations, and position papers as suitable…

Describes a series of writing assignments in which entry level graduate students in a personality theory class wrote four short papers interpreting the personality of a character from a children's story or comic strip. Explains that each paper utilized a different theoretical orientation: psychoanalytic, dispositional, phenomenological, and…

Deliberately writing badly can be an effective way to learn to write better because knowing when writing is bad is an essential element in knowing when it's good. There are distinct advantages to encouraging students to learn the rules by breaking them. Deliberately doing it wrong removes the threat of failure. Students are playing; they are…

Designed with real teachers and real conditions in mind, this booklet presents a model for a writing-across-the-curriculum/writing-to-learn program that can be used in all classrooms in all subject areas from grades 4 to 12. The model presented in the booklet defines five types of writing assignments and the outcomes expected for each--using…

Middle school teacher describes a framework that gives inexperienced, anxious writers the confidence to write. The process, called doing prompts, stems from analyzing prompts or writing assignments that outline the topic for a piece of writing. The process involves analyzing the prompt being called for, completing a graphic organizer, composing…

Argues that understanding assignments is the first step toward successful college writing. Urges instructors to support students by helping them to decode assignments. Breaks down instructions into individual tasks including (1) writing an essay, (2) examining an issue, (3) reviewing articles and books, and (4) focusing on some texts. Defines each…

Offers techniques to make book reports a more meaningful experience for students. Suggests guidelines for book selections and for what the students should look for in their reading. Lists alternatives to traditional book reports that allow an evaluative approach to reading and provide an opportunity for creativity and critical thought. (DK)

Contends that middle- and upper-income youth may indirectly be the beneficiaries of social systems that are based on policies of injustice for the sake of profit or power. Suggests using an approach that helps such young people see that the establishment of social justice is beneficial to them as well as to the victims of injustice. (CFR)

Presents a lesson plan for seventh-grade students in which they learn respect for themselves and others and apply social studies skills. Explains that the students create timelines, interview someone of an older generation, and create a Venn diagram comparing that person's life to their own. Includes suggestions for writing assignments based on…

Describes the planning and implementation of a computerized writing center that is located in a high school library. Cooperation between the librarian and the classroom teacher is discussed; various writing assignments and the role of the librarian are described; and library services to teachers that support the writing center are explained. (LRW)