Presents three short essays designed to stimulate teachers in their approaches to teaching literature and writing as the school year draws to a close. (TB)

Describes the structured internalization spelling method, which uses a series of small, graduated steps to teach students with learning disabilities to transcribe phonological sounds (phonemes) as alphabetic letters (graphemes) onto paper. The implementation of the program and the benefits of structured internalization are presented along with a…

Describes an activity in which students apply the scientific method as they explore each step of crystal growing. Students select variables, record daily observations, and participate in discussions about the differences in crystal formation. Crystal recipe and procedures are provided. (DDR)

Explains Gateway to Educational Materials (GEM), http://www.thegateway.org/ an online indexed database of lesson plans designed for teachers. Evaluates GEM and explores characteristics of teachers who use it to determine whether teachers possessed the technological skills needed to use GEM and if they were successful in their search for…

Describes the process two teachers went through to develop the best use of African American children's literature in the classroom, chronicling how they planned a lesson using the literature, then enacted the lesson using pedagogy relevant to students' cultural background. A framework that focused on students' cultural patterns helped guide the…

Presents an activity on chemical changes and experimentation with testing the roles of various reactants in accomplishing the changes. (Author/KHR)

Describes a science activity that employs the egg as the focus of a discussion about similarities between different cultures and objects in a science demonstration. (KHR)

Introduces an inquiry-based lesson plan on evolution and the Galapagos Islands. Uses the 5E instructional model which includes phases of engagement, exploration, explanation, elaboration, and evaluation. Includes information on species for exploration and elaboration purposes, and a general rubric for student evaluation. (YDS)

Introduces an inquiry-based laboratory experiment in which students identify an unknown bacterial species by using techniques such as Gram staining. Uses an authentic problem solving approach in a scenario entitled, "What poisoned the apple juice?" (YDS)

Reacts to recent curriculum changes in Texas and California by offering a facetious teaching plan for reading whereby all the teacher's work is to be done for them in the form of workbooks and worksheets on skills. Suggests that children can read the same book for all six years of elementary school. (TB)

Describes four open-ended activities for students in grades 4-12 designed to encourage thought, discussion, and decision making in classes dealing with issues in ethics and technology. Provides teacher directions, describes activities, and outlines debriefing sessions for lessons in copyright infringement, network security, artificial…

During three discussion sessions, two groups of five teachers each developed a shared lesson plan, one for each group, for the teaching of a difficult economic concept. Differences in learning outcomes are interpreted in light of observed differences in how the concept was dealt with in the different classrooms. (Author/AEF)

Describes a way of using multiple representations to help students learn data analysis and make sense out of a large amount of data. Includes an activity for a group-learning environment. (KHR)

Describes a lesson plan on alien invasions to introduce students to the principles of genetics. Discusses the history of Gregor Mendel, dominant and recessive traits, offspring, and mutations. (YDS)

Describes activities for K-12 students, most of which are adapted from "The Lewis and Clark Expedition: Scientific Discovery Educator's Resource Guide" created by the partnership of Fort Clatsop National Memorial and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. (Author/KHR)