This thematic unit involves kindergarten and 1st grade students in the production of a theatrical performance based on the folktale, "The Little Red Hen." The interdisciplinary unit connects knowledge related to theater arts, art, language arts, music, applied mathematics, social studies, and science. Students visit a local theater and…

This study examines indigenous models for the integration of science and culture into curriculum and instruction and was conducted in 13 Native American Indian schools over an 18-month period. In the summer of 1996, the Four Directions Challenge in Technology Project brought together teams of teachers, administrators, community members, and…

This curriculum guide provides teachers with materials on Asian-American history and culture that include some of the most recent scholarship in the field. Although it is not a comprehensive treatment of history and culture, it examines many important topics and events. The guide is organized by theme. The themes, each of which is introduced by…

This book is a collection of 10 teacher-developed instructional units at the elementary/middle grade level which are compatible with the principles and theories of the North Carolina Curriculum Framework for Gifted Education. The units can be used in a variety of settings, are designed to develop basic competencies, and include specific strategies…

Problems such as poor test performance and low student motivation require that those in the educational system seriously consider restructuring the way they teach. For many years, content has been taught in periods of isolated time units; however, this Carnegie unit is an anachronism that needs to be eliminated. The alternative to the Carnegie…

This book presents nearly 50 interdisciplinary strategies to link social studies and English classes around common themes. The book is designed for the changing classrooms of middle school and high school learners. The strategies are designed to offer a continuum of student-centered activities for a one day lesson to a semester's length. Each…

This paper presents a rationale for using an integrated thematic unit with elementary and middle level social studies classes and provides examples of working units. Steps in the developing the thematic unit are itemized with product outcomes to show for the process. Efficacy assignments allow the students to feel they have addressed a social…

This teacher's guide accompanies a packet of five art reproductions based on the theme: shapes, colors, and stories. The guide offers suggestions for engaging children's attention and curiosity about art and artists, and encourages exploration of the issues these works present through art activities, discussions, learning centers, field trip, and…

This teacher's guide accompanies a packet of five art reproductions based on children as a theme. The guide offers suggestions for engaging children's attention and curiosity about art and artists, and encourages exploration of the issues these works present through art activities, discussions, learning centers, field trips, and other experiences…

This briefing paper discusses integrated curriculum, an approach to curriculum that educators believe will help students draw upon their school learning when facing everyday challenges. Integrated curriculum refers to the fusion of knowledge from different disciplines; the approach to learning and teaching from a variety of world views,…

Six thematic activity booklets are presented for implementing Project EAGLE, an enrichment program for gifted and talented primary-level children. "Animals 3" introduces endangered animals and locates their home areas on maps or globes, using nine learning activities involving science and creative writing. "Magnets" discusses…

These learning resource units are based on the philosophy and goals for early childhood education which have been established for the school district of Pittsburgh. They are intended to assist teachers in planning for preschool children's educational experience. Activities in the learning resource units should be selected in response to children's…

A study addressed the relationship of culturally related schema to comprehension and examined the effect of instruction using thematic units upon the development of background knowledge. Subjects were 25 pupils (aged 8 to 10 years) enrolled in a primary school in Scotland and 21 students enrolled in a 3rd-grade class in Texas. Subjects listened to…

Addressed to teachers from upper elementary to adult level as well as to writers, this book gives teachers and students an entirely new way to learn about American history--by reexperiencing it from the vantage point of the imaginative writer. The book maintains that students will thus gain both a deeper understanding of the issues and conflicts…

Judy Harapiak is a teacher who provides her middle years students with many opportunities to respond to stories in different ways, to reflect on their responses, and to link their reading to their own experiences as well as to other areas of the curriculum. She teaches a grade four-five-six class in the Elementary Alternative Education Program…