Describes a pilot program at Briar Glen School in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, in which academically gifted fifth grade students are introduced to microcomputers, taught basic programing skills, and allowed to develop computer programs in BASIC after they have mastered some fundamental computer skills. (JL)

The impact of a field trip on the attitudes, behavior, and learning of 196 third- and fifth-grade students was assessed. Third grade students seemed overwhelmed by the field trip and learned more from an outdoor science activity near their school. Fifth grade students were stimulated by the trip and bored by the outdoor lesson. (Authors/PP)

Study results indicated that the TEMAS (Tell-me-a-story), a new thematic apperception test which depicts ethnic minority figures, cultural themes, and urban backgrounds, produced increased responsiveness in 76 Hispanic children to culturally relevant stimuli and may be a promising instrument for assessment of minority children. (CM)

A study of fifth-grade students showed high achieving students spent less time interacting with teachers, so their instructional cost was lower. Lower achieving students demanded more teacher and aide time, resulting in higher instructional cost. A measure of instructional cost based on productive use of time is proposed. (JAC)

Challenging problems and project ideas for mathematically able students in grades 5 and 6 are reviewed. Number patterns are viewed as a good tool to introduce inductive and deductive thinking. Applications of mathematics in sales, the stock market, opinion polls, weather prediction, and other areas are discussed. (MP)

Describes how a special education resource teacher, in collaboration with a fifth-grade teacher, changed plans and adapted to the needs of the students by implementing portfolios, student reflection and self-evaluation, and peer conferencing. Shows how portfolios allow all children (including special education students) to shine, to see their…

Describes the content of an undergraduate course called "Field Work in Applied Psychology: Teaching Mathematics." Assigns students to gain field work experience by teaching fourth-, fifth-, or sixth-grade students mathematics. Reviews the goals for the teacher, college students, and elementary schools. (CMK)

Describes changes in literacy engagement during Concept-Oriented Reading Instruction (CORI), a new approach to teaching reading, writing, and science that emphasizes real-world science observations, student self-direction, strategy instruction, collaborative learning, self-expression, and coherence of literacy learning experiences. Finds that…

Interviewed 42 children in preschool, first grade, third grade, and fifth grade to clarify questions regarding children's knowledge of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) from a developmental viewpoint. Findings suggest that children's knowledge of AIDS was associated with perceptions children had regarding illness, and that accurate…

Examines the relationship between children's reading performance and their use of cohesion in writing. Finds that good readers achieved significantly more complex cohesive harmony in their writing than poor readers, who made significantly more inappropriate use of cohesive devices. Concludes that knowledge of cohesion is related to children's…

Describes study that was conducted to determine whether Logo instruction could improve the attitudes of fifth grade students toward microcomputers and toward school in general. Differences in gender and ability groupings are explored, treatment of experimental and control groups is described, and the Computer/School Questionnaire developed for the…

Investigates effects of prior knowledge, explicitness, and clause order on fifth and sixth grade readers' ability to infer causal cohesive ties in expository text. Finds significant effects for prior knowledge for fifth and sixth grade students on all variables except the cohesion cloze task. (SG)

Bringing the practice of knowing mathematics in school closer to knowing mathematics within the discipline was studied with 18 fifth graders. Student activities in asserting and examining hypotheses were contrasted with conventional school mathematics activities. (SLD)

Results are reported from a study which examined how achievement-related beliefs (e.g., academic self-concept, causal attributions, perceptions of teacher feedback) of fifth graders (N=192) vary as a joint function of sex, achievement level, and academic area. (IAH)

Structural equation analysis of the cognitive engagement (CE) of 100 fifth and 175 sixth graders in science activities demonstrated that students who placed greater emphasis on task-mastery goals reported more active CE. Students oriented toward social recognition, pleasing the teacher, or avoiding work had a lower level of CE. (SLD)