Synectics, the making of analogies, was used with learning disabled high school seniors to provide them with a creative process that aids in developing a deeper understanding of literature. After studying Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner," the students completed a six-step process and produced a short writing assignment. (VW)

Describes an activity in which students must invent graffiti that might have been written by one of the characters studied in the class's literature assignments. (HTH)

Describes an approach for teaching "The Diary of Anne Frank" to secondary school students, focusing on historical and emotional preparation, and writing prompts for the play. (MM)

It is possible to reconcile two supposedly warring viewpoints toward composition pedagogy: that writers know what they want to say before they begin writing (a viewpoint that stresses the communicative function of writing), and that writers discover what they have to say in the act of saying it (a viewpoint that focuses on the heuristic value of…

Teachers teach literature to help students expand and develop their image-making powers, "to imagine, conceive, fancy, picture," to think. To get students involved in literature, especially poetry, Robert Frost's poem, "The Witch of Coos," is particularly useful because it is so immediately accessible. In order to help engage…

Describes an eighth-grade teacher's decision to heed innervoices and make time for poetry in her classroom. The class began by reading fun-filled, picture-book poetry; enlisted the help of school and town librarians in finding compelling single-author works and anthologies; and finally wrote "recipe poems" together. (Contains 27…

This article begins with a rationale for using "great" poems with children and the justification for linking the reading and writing of poetry. First, the author provides tips for teachers to use when selecting adult poems and offers a brief bibliography of classic poetry collections and anthologies appropriate for children. Next, suggestions for…

Suggests teaching characterization in literature classes by having students write an advertisement similar to the Dewar's scotch advertisement, based on each of the characters in the novel "Ordinary People." Examples are included. (HTH)

Deals with teaching a Walt Whitman unit in a high school American literature course. Discusses ways of making the poet's work relevant to the current generation of students. (RBW)

Discusses well-written, moving children's stories that can be used to promote children's writing. (RL)

Describes the use of "poemakers," sheets of white paper with special drawings pre-printed on them that have blank lines where words go. Describes using these poemakers as springboards for writing in poetry workshops for students from first grade through twelfth, as well as with college students. Includes one finished example, followed by four…

Describes an exercise for basic writers which encompasses reading, listening, and writing. Finds that Edgar Allan Poe's "Tell-Tale Heart" has an effective vocabulary, a first-person conversational tone for the "mad" voice, and a second-person direct address that makes it easy to follow. Notes that inexperienced readers can…

This workbook contains ten short stories by modern masters aimed at young adult readers, with each story followed by a concise lesson on a basic element of literature (such as plot, setting, or mood) clearly illustrated in the story. Some of the authors represented in the book are John Updike, Isaac Bashevis Singer, Carson McCullers, and Ray…

Explains how to involve students in a composition unit that requires them to complete writing assignments from various points of view. (DF)

Suggests giving literature/composition students a set of declarative statements that enable them to define a thematic statement and then write a focused, fully developed analytical essay. Includes such declarative statements from the novel "Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant" by Anne Tyler. (HTH)