Asserts that integrating music with core curriculum subjects can improve student achievement in production, perception, and reflection in general music classes. Describes the Arts PROPEL approach, based on the philosophy that students learn best when they are active constructors of their own knowledge. (CFR)

A Dutch teacher presents reading, film viewing, and writing activities for "Empire of the Sun," J. G. Ballard's autobiographical account of life as a boy in Shanghai and in a Japanese internment camp during World War II (the subject of Steven Spielberg's film of the same name). Includes objectives, procedures, and several literature,…

Describes four methods to structure estimation activities that enable students to make connections between their understanding of numbers and extensions of those concepts to estimating. Presents activities that connect estimation with other curricular areas, other mathematical topics, and real-world applications. (MDH)

A new classification of rocks that requires no tools other than a hand lens and that is both comprehensive and informative is described. Each of the three main rock groups is treated in two-dimensional, rectangular charts with additional appended boxes that provide optional mineralogical and textural terms that can be used in rock names. (PR)

Compares recent educational assessment policies of the United States and England. Asserts that the two nations are moving closer in their approach to educational assessment and student evaluation. Contends that U.S. social studies educators should follow closely the ramifications of national assessment in England. (CFR)

Presents an interdisciplinary unit designed for fifth-grade students that focuses on Puerto Rico and Puerto Rican-American culture. Explains that poetry and the novel, "Felita," are used to provide a sense of Puerto Rican culture. Describes activities such as journal writing, geography webs, and exploring culture through food. (CFR)

Describes the Earthmobile Project, a tractor trailer educational exhibit that contains a working model of a Native American archaeology site. Explains how the Project appeals to both student and teachers. Outlines how teachers can develop instructional activities that would replicate the Earthmobile experience. (CFR)

Describes a primary-level field geography program in which students explore the geography and archaeology of their rural community. Presents a set of mapping activities to help students understand cardinal directions and use locational skills. Concludes that the program has successfully involved students, parents, and community members in…

Discusses the concept of social mathematics in which numerical information is connected to the people and issues of social studies. Maintains elementary students can learn that data represent information from the real world. Includes class activities using historical timelines, data collection, and database computer programs. (CFR)

Asserts that understanding cross-cultural issues has become one of the most important concepts in multicultural education. Presents two pairs of artworks that each juxtapose African and European religious traditions. Includes four full-page, color depictions of the artworks and teaching suggestions. (CFR)

Describes a classroom activity in which students develop recruitment materials designed to encourage eighteenth-century Europeans to become colonists in North America. Includes instructions for developing assignment sheets and suggests student resources. Contends that this activity always enhances student motivation and enthusiasm. (CFR)

Asserts educators have argued about meaning and purpose of social studies since the field's inception in the early 1900s. Contends that reform efforts associated with the America 2000 program focus on teaching factual information from history and geography. Maintains that the proper content of social studies must be persistent and contemporary…

Describes a unit on demographics for a high school world-history course that addresses questions of uneven population growth and the "problem of global overpopulation." Provides a detailed outline of the two-day unit including unit and daily goals and objectives, daily activities and questions, and ideas for further student research. (DSK)

Outlines the rationale for a course designed to deliver key spatial skills to a large cohort of students using computer-aided learning methods and the World Wide Web. Examines the results in the context of using technology to enhance learning. Follows up by noting and assessing subsequent changes to the course. (DSK)

Five ideas for English-as-a-Second-Language classroom activities are described, including a geography pronunciation drill, a project in which students design retail stores, a real-life business role-playing exercise, student-designed coats of arms, and use of prizes for student motivation, followed by prize-related assignments. (MSE)