Reviews 12 nonfiction books submitted for the Carter G. Woodson Book Award that deal with the experiences of African Americans. Argues that many benefits can be reaped from the use of culturally pluralistic tradebooks in the language arts classroom. (RS)

Shares reading activities--using cereal boxes as reading material--which will energize knowledge and use of vocabulary, fortify comprehension skills, enrich understanding of critical reading, promote use of organizational skills, and encourage improved reporting and writing. (MG)

This article suggests activities which utilize Halloween as a theme for teaching analytical reading of fairy and folk tales. A reproducible activity sheet is included. (IAH)

Describes questions, games, and activities which promote critical reading as early as kindergarten by encouraging critical thinking. (MM)

The research on the relationship between critical thinking and verbal ability is reviewed, with emphasis on research on tests of critical thinking. The article concludes that neither critical thinking nor critical reading exist as constructs separate from verbal ability and that verbal ability accounts for test variance in these areas. (Author/DB)

Analyzes the literary thesis papers (based on voluntarily selected books and required of all 675 seniors in a comprehensive, academically superior high school). Finds that young adult literature is perceived by older adolescents as worthy for literary analysis, but their teachers may not fully share their belief. (RS)

The paper describes various epistemological assumptions underpinning three accounts of action research (technical, practical, and emancipatory) found in the physical education literature. It examines the problematic nature of language and meaning-making and recognizes that what stands for action research has been interpreted differently by many…

Describes how a high school English teacher's belief that text contains a single, unchanging meaning evolved to an understanding that students create their own meanings through their own experiences. Discusses ways he tried (with mixed success) to provide students with the opportunity to bring their own experience to their reading. (SR)

Describes the Junior Great Books program used by many Catholic schools to improve reading and critical thinking skills, as well as stir students' interest in reading. Explains the shared inquiry method of learning utilized to stimulate discussion about excellent literature. Offers examples of the ways in which the program operates at six different…

A series of articles provides suggestions on using classroom libraries. One article suggests filling the library with genre books to inspire critical reading, critical thinking, and learning across the curriculum (folktales, fairy tales, tall tales, historical fiction, biographies, and autobiographies). Another article presents information on…

Story grammar is a recent area of research related to an interactive conceptualization of reading. A study of 70 sixth-grade students studying English as a foreign language (EFL) suggests that direct instruction in story grammar helps students abstract a story's episodic sequence and metastructure. Sample texts are appended. (Contains 21…

Studies the relationship between adolescent fiction and nonfiction and the attainment of critical reading skills. Outlines a teaching method focusing on social issues discussed. Outlines the contents of a number of adolescent novels used. Claims that this approach fosters critical reading and thinking skills. (HB)

Describes a modified method of reader-response used as a core activity in a literature classroom in which students write a short written response at the beginning of every class to the reading due that day. Describes the procedure, its relationship to effective writing, and its benefits, including reading more critically, writing more effectively,…

Progress files represent a major policy initiative involving the use of Personal Development Planning (PDP) aimed at the production of autonomous learners who are capable of planning for their own career and personal futures. The paper is organized in three parts and argues for a more critical approach, which locates PDP as part of broader shifts…

Starting in March 2005, the SAT, taken annually by more than 1.4 million college-bound students, will undergo its most significant change since 1994, when the College Board, which sponsors the test, first allowed calculators into test rooms, added open-ended math questions, and eliminated antonyms and added more critical-reading passages in the…