Presents seven mini-lessons on chaos theory and fractal geometry for use in a high school setting. Examples include the Sierpinski Triangle and Julia Sets. (MM)

In this article, the authors talk about the family and how students think of a family. They discuss a family defined in a law and various styles of families in reality. A lesson plan about "What is a Family?" is presented. (Contains 1 note.)

Recent remarks by Maryland's governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. referring to multiculturalism as "bunk" have rekindled the debate on multicultural studies as "soft" history and social science. Richard Vatz of Towson University, as reported in The Washington Times (23 May 2004), noted that "People support it (multiculturalism) without knowing what it…

Careful planning of lesson plans and units of study is important. Good planning does not mean success in teaching, but it certainly is salient to be well prepared each day for teaching pupils. It is unfortunate if teachers enter classrooms with little to show in the way of being prepared for teaching. Pupils do notice if a teacher is ill prepared…

In this article, the author relates how she and other art teachers developed a "living painting" lesson, an art lesson that incorporates art history and painting. The lesson was developed also in part to help new student-teachers plan a memorable lesson. With the living painting lesson, students will have to choose and recreate famous paintings…

A continuing debate in the field of education asks whether music should be taught as a separate discipline, having value in and of itself, or in conjunction with other subjects, valued only to the extent that it complements the learning of other material. Many contend that music is a frill and that its inclusion in a high school curriculum can be…

This research study examines the instructional practices of 10 middle grades teachers related to their use of manipulatives in teaching mathematics and their control of mathematics tools during instruction. Through 40 observations of teaching, 30 interviews, and an examination of 67 written documents (including teachers' plans and records),…

Paulo Freire developed critical pedagogy in Brazil in the 1960s to teach illiterate adults (or, as Freire calls them, "the oppressed") to read. Freire believed that teaching was a conversational exchange of information between the teacher and the student. He posed questions and problems to his students that caused them to take what they already…

Homophobia and gay-related teasing are already present among young children. This lesson introduces the term "prejudice" and places the concept of homophobia within the context of bullying and teasing with which 8-11 year olds are already familiar. The lesson builds empathy as children think about and discuss how they have felt when they have been…

There is great variety in the numerous mathematical lesson ideas that can arise from browsing through the newspaper. Since they depict recent, topical material that is constantly changing, newspapers provide an endless supply of new ideas with each new day. In this article, the author provides numerous suggestions as to how the newspaper can be…

This lesson uses a text about the houseboats of Kashmir to give students practice with descriptions, compound words, and participles. The lesson plan could be adapted to tourist destinations familiar to the students. Students are asked to write a description of their homes and create a tourism brochure for their own cities or towns.

In situations where it is not possible for trainees to practice teaching in local schools, teaching short lessons to their peers--called microteaching--can provide beneficial experience and feedback to teachers-in-training. The article includes guidelines for presenters, observers, and teacher trainers as well as a sample practicum class schedule…

These two story-based lesson plans were designed to address the lack of motivation and interest by students in a sixth grade English class in Greece. The lessons appeal to young learners who want to be creative and imaginative by making learning entertaining. The animal stories are authentic texts, not graded readers, with helpful visuals. They…

Informed by theories about the use of pleasure-reading to develop students' overall English ability, this demonstration encouraged teachers to use manga (Japanese comics) in their classes. Manga and related comics from Korea, Taiwan, etc., are popular throughout the world for their emotionally-involving stories and high-quality art. Since these…

The need to integrate culture and its teaching into foreign language education is not a new debate, and has long been highlighted in countless studies. Yet, it seems to be common practice that foreign language textbooks and classrooms frequently overlook the conclusions drawn in such studies and neglect the essential information about the target…