Describes working with multiage elementary school students on demand writing--writing to meet deadlines. Discusses why to teach it, practical applications, what teachers need to know before beginning instruction, getting started, introducing demand writing, modeling it, teaching beginnings and endings, and revising and editing/proofreading. (SR)

Reprints a 1980 article from this journal on an experience the author had as a college freshman that aptly illustrates the adage, "Write what you know." Updates the article with an Afterword commenting on the earlier writing. (SR)

Reprints a 1986 article from this journal in which the author reminisces about his first teaching encounter with bright, agreeable, but wary freshmen writers who taught him about half of everything he knows about composition instruction. Updates the article with an Afterword commenting on the earlier piece. (SR)

Discusses the problems (and some causes) in the writing of Asian college students. Interviews college English professors who have taught Asian students. Suggests methods to help Asian students be more successful in composition classes. (SR)

Advocates the application of writing-across-the-curriculum type assignments in mass communication and journalism courses. Offers an overview of transactional and expressive writing assignments used in such courses. (SR)

Examines nine of the most widely accepted tenants of composition theory to derive approaches for teaching business communication. Discusses grammar, correcting, positive feedback, evaluation and written comments, quality versus quantity, self-evaluation, reading, planning and prewriting, and active involvement. (SR)

Describes how to use children's books as the basis for writing sessions. Focuses on having children write fiction after reading and listening to historical fiction. (SR)

States that the acquisition of writing skills and vocabulary building are especially important for minority students. Describes how the systematic study of prefixes, suffixes, and word roots; the generation of student-originated vocabulary lists; and special testing techniques were used for improving writing skills and building vocabulary in a…

Describes an exercise in which students in an editing class edit stories written by students in a beginning reporting class. Notes that the exercise focuses on coaching (rather than bullying), thus encouraging good reporting and strong writing. (SR)

Discusses microwriting activities, which focus on the problem, the process, and the product of typical communication assignments. Describes how microwriting is used in class, and types of microwriting activities. (SR)

Offers five tips for writing good feature stories. (SR)

Discusses five things which help the author (herself a reluctant writer) to push past her own doubts, and notes how they are helpful in working with students who are reluctant to write. (SR)

Describes an author's storyboard technique which elementary school students used as a prewriting strategy to roughly sketch out stories on the storyboard frames. Suggests that the technique helps students to plan and organize their stories and helps reluctant writers find the motivation to write. (SR)

Describes a shared writing program which emphasizes the connection between reading and writing in a natural setting, in which first graders and fifth graders get together to write books. (SR)

Provides a brief introduction to recent research in spelling (on the nature of English orthography and the development of spelling ability), and suggestions for further reading. Describes a writing center spelling workshop of four sessions which aims to produce successful writers who have learned to cope with being poor spellers. (SR)