The construction of the double dactyl form of poetry, the value of creating double dactyls as a learning experience, and guidelines for instructing students in writing double dactyls are discussed. (RW)

The article discusses the rationale for adopting a seemingly unrelated vehicle, such as cooking, for teaching gifted and other children such diverse subjects as geography, history, and language, and relates this to the concept of synectics (which holds that all subjects are interrelated). (Author/DLS)

Scavenger hunts, collecting bottle caps, observing shadows, and other outdoor activities can be developed into a mathematics unit that motivates students to acquire basic mathematical skills. A variety of natural ways to collect data are offered to help foster learning. (DF)

Presents ideas to help elementary educators teach their students thinking skills through word splashes (collages of words and pictures that help students think and make connections). A student page offers a word splash activity. (SM)

This list of practical and useful ideas is compiled from veteran teachers for motivating students, making a dull subject more interesting, or making a difficult subject easier to understand. (MT)

Presents activities to help elementary students learn to interpret history. Using the voyage of Columbus, students can learn how history is written, what a historian's job is, and why it is important to analyze more than one point of view. The activities also teach students to understand historical symbols. (SM)

Presents math activities, problems, and games for teaching elementary students to recognize the world's natural symmetry and understand the mathematical qualities it represents; suggests activities with construction paper, blocks, and calculators. Instructions for using the calculator to create palindromes are included. (SM)

Describes how a teacher challenged her students' smug conviction that poetry is a waste of time. (JL)

Teachers should turn the pervasive influence of television into a tool for developing critical thinking and media literacy in children. Promoting critical television viewing skills can also contribute to the achievement of other, more traditional, instructional goals. (SK)

Explores the value of Mark Twain's "Life on the Mississippi" for the middle-school geography classroom. Examines the genesis of the book, investigates the authenticity of Twain's experiences, analyzes the book's content, and suggests teaching strategies. Finds the detailed geographic observations in the book quite useful for the…

Presents a group of 24 innovative social studies activities from teachers nationwide designed to bring the world to the classroom. The article is part of a package of 100 creative ideas for keeping elementary students enthused about learning in language arts, math, science, and social studies. (SM)

Describes a project in which elementary school students create a computer-generated time line of milestones in their lives, noting such an activity can give them a good start on writing autobiographies. (SM)

The importance of thinking suggests the need for learning activities which promote this ability of man if he is not to be totally dependent as a learner and a thinker. Four examples of the kinds of activities which might stimulate student thought, both intuitively and cognitively, were provided. (Author/RK)

This book offers countless practical ideas for student activities in the areas of literature, reading, writing, and thematic units, from the exploration of ghostly themes, to the writing of resumes for heroes, to devising yearbook entries or Web pages for famous literary characters. The book provides the middle school or secondary school classroom…

Elementary teachers offer their ideas for enhancing the final days of school. They help students review material, highlight achievements, fill spare time, and create summer plans. Suggestions include making class diplomas, producing action news, making friendship trees, writing letters to their future selves, and preparing summer activity guides.…