Discusses six professional resources and three classroom resources that can help practitioners decide what they should be doing and what they need to understand to function in a literature-based language arts classroom. (RS)

Discussing the "Whole Language and More '93" meeting, this paper presents a series of helpful how-to's (and some valuable caveats) for those involved in conference planning. The first part of the paper presents a discussion of 10 steps the conference organizer would take again, including: promoting the conference; organizing various…

Describes a summer reading enrichment program that used whole language methodology and represented a collaboration between the Learning Institute of the Jewish Community Center on Staten Island, New York, and the Staten Island Children's Museum. Discusses getting started at the exhibit, program format, program evaluation, and recommendations for…

This paper considers the status and potential of researcher-practitioner collaboration toward higher literacy through a restructured curriculum based on the whole language philosophy. Specifically, it examines the status, contribution, and potential of the dialogue in a whole language topical session on the School Renewal Network, an electronic…

Describes the development and implementation of meaning-based reading instruction for a group of sixth-grade students with special learning needs. Provides details as to program design and describes a sample session. (SR)

Describes the ways key issues in whole-language implementation were handled in Tennessee's pilot program. Offers a framework for encouraging teachers to look closely at the advantages of whole language without squeezing them between a rock and a hard place. (RS)

An elementary school located in a predominantly black neighborhood on the south side of Chicago decided it was time to restructure the curriculum (scores lagged behind the national average and interest in reading and writing had waned). The principal, parents, and teachers were given extra encouragement to use the process of team building, shared…

Examines a whole language "school" run by 14-year-old Bryan Sans of New Rochelle, New York, describing the after-school and weekend activities that he organized for his younger siblings and neighborhood children. (MDM)

During school year 1991-92, the Whole Language Network (WLN) expanded to include 90 teachers in grades kindergarten through six in three school districts participating in the New York City Board of Education's Comprehensive Instructional Management System-Communication Arts project. The Network assisted teachers in using the whole language…

Discusses the goals of Project Family Initiative for English Literacy (FIEL) and the rationale for the model on which it is based. Describes the curriculum and the content of the five-step lessons. Provides an example of one family's literacy growth within the project. (MG)

This booklet presents a description of Making Connections, a multicultural core curriculum program, and a list of recommended literature for interdisciplinary units. The first section discusses materials, using the Making Connections program, integrating relevant content areas, the stages of the research process, assessment, and making connections…

The argument between advocates of the whole language approach and the phonics approach threatens to become so polarized and politicized that agreeing on a middle ground seems at times impossible, and the voices of reason and experience are drowned out. The debate erupted anew in California after alarming news stories about reading scores ranked…

Meant to be adapted by the K-4 classroom teacher to best meet the needs of students, this book describes Children's Own Stories, a program in which young children dictate their ideas and thoughts to adults, and develop a sense of community with their peers as they talk together, share their stories, collaborate on stories, and read and enjoy works…

A practicum was designed to increase the instructional options chosen by classroom teachers in order to create meaningful connections between reading and writing for elementary students. Teachers in the target school were experiencing difficulty in translating theory into effective classroom practice. In response to a teacher needs assessment,…

Describes the reorganization of teacher education methods courses at University of Wisconsin-River Falls. Lists whole language tenets, large group session topics, and sample integrations for prekindergarten through middle school grades. Asserts that the experience demonstrated the benefits of the whole language philosophy. (PRA)