Examined the mechanisms of peer influences on fifth-grade children's drawings. Observed the socio-collaborative processes by which children influence each other's artistic styles; found gender differences in content, technical quality, and meaning. (JPB)

Describes an interdisciplinary project incorporating both geography and mathematics for fourth and fifth grade students. Focuses on reading a map with lines of latitude and longitude, learning about climatic regions, and using statistical measures to analyze data. Suggests additional activities to accompany the project. (CMK)

Examines the effects of text practice and prosodic modeling on the reading rate, accuracy, expressiveness, and comprehension of disabled readers. Each subject read the first half of a set of stories three times under one of four experimental conditions. While reading performance improved across all conditions, substantial additional gains were…

Examined the efficacy of an automated reinforcement device, the Attention Training System (ATS), in decreasing off-task behavior in an 11-year-old, fifth-grade student who had been diagnosed as being affected with ADHD and had been placed in Special Education Resources Room programming. Results indicated success in three subject areas. (JBJ)

Tests the effectiveness of CONTACT-2, a revision of CONTACT strategy, which uses continuous, computer-assisted activation of learner conceptions in text processing. CONTACT-2 was found to be more effective as a process-oriented instructional strategy. Student subjects in grades five and six with the CONTACT-2 condition constructed better…

Mountain School, run by North Cascades Institute, is a camp in North Cascades National Park, Washington, where elementary school students spend 48 hours living and learning about science and the environment. In addition to science and nature, responsibility and teamwork are taught. Describes innovative instructional methods used, such as…

Describes how to incorporate a game into teaching the Dewey decimal system to elementary students in grades three, four, and five. Provides ideas for a nine-week session that includes five weeks of instruction on the Dewey decimal system, card catalog, and Boolean searching; and four weeks of competition. (LRW)

Examines fourth and fifth graders' ideas about historical evidence through a year-long qualitative study of two classrooms. Discusses the results, focusing on understanding the reliability of sources, evaluating evidence and reconciling conflicting accounts, and using evidence to reach conclusions. Addresses the implications for instruction. (CMK)

Explains the author's organized yet reflective approach to getting her fifth-grade students to read in literature circles. Discusses her slow and thorough process of building a community, and teaching students to respond to literature. Discusses resources for literature circles, and describes the first literature circle in her classroom (after…

Describes a curriculum design approach, "the ill-structured problem," based on real life situations, that was used for a summer gifted foreign language program for fifth- and sixth-grade students in the Chesapeake Public Schools, Virginia. Elements of problem-based learning are described, including the problem comes first, the problem is…

The purpose of this study was to develop a videodisc-based computer-aided multimedia-anchored instruction for Chinese students and to examine its effects on student attitudes toward mathematics and anchored instruction. Participants were 74 fifth graders. Results indicated that anchored instruction improved students' attitudes toward mathematics…

Describes a study of fifth-grade Taiwanese students that examined the instructional effects of two grouping methods, cooperation with or without inter-group competition, on student academic achievement and pro-social behaviors in a computer-based science learning environment. Discusses implications for cooperative learning. (Author/LRW)

Discusses an art project for students in grades 4 to 6 (but that could be adapted for older students) who attend the Old Donation Center for the Gifted and Talented in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Explains that the students created mixed-media boxes that interpreted and synthesized the folklore and arts of a culture. (CMK)

Recommends using children's literature as a means for introducing social problems and their possible solutions to elementary students. Offers different trade books on homelessness and the elderly along with descriptions of each book. Provides guidelines and teaching resources for creating a service project where students interact with their…

Assessed readiness to be or stay physically active among 5th and 6th graders using the Stage of Change paradigm. Student surveys indicated that 40% were in the precontemplation stage and 60% were in post-action stages. Significantly more boys than girls were in maintenance, and more girls than boys were in contemplation. Attitudes toward physical…