Reviews "Thematic Units: An Integrated Approach to Teaching Science and Social Studies" (Fredericks, Meinbach, and Rothlein); "Using Poetry across the Curriculum: A Whole Language Approach" (Chatton); "Getting Down to Cases: Learning to Teach with Case Studies" (Wassermann); "Phonic Phacts" (Goodman); and "English As a Second Language: 25…

Describes one school's annual celebration of Harriet Tubman, 19th-century African-American heroine of the Underground Railroad. Children ages 4-11 engage in multisensory and cognitive learning activities designed to help them understand the rich traditions of early African Americans and the abolitionist movement to end slavery. Activities…

Describes one school of education's response to the call for reform, and outlines the qualities unique to institutional change experienced in its evolution from a four-year undergraduate program to a fifth-year graduate teacher preparation program featuring thematic cohorts of students. Profiles of four of the cohorts are presented. (SM)

Presents a hands-on approach to developing connections between mathematics and other subject areas by using thematic webbing. Includes a sample brainstorming aid plus a sample web and thematic unit on teddy bears. (Contains 36 references.) (MKR)

Describes the organization of a multidisciplinary unit on inventions and inventors. Teachers can use journals, quotations, classroom museums, and learning centers to help develop their students' language, mathematics, science, social studies, and science skills. Includes a list of books for students and teachers on inventions. (MDM)

Describes instruction in language arts, mathematics, computers, physical education, sciences, and social studies at O'Farrell Community School. Notes that students are taught by interdisciplinary teams of six teachers. (PRA)

Contends that future citizens will be required to understand and interact with people, cultures, and ideas throughout the world. Argues that this goal can be achieved only through an integrated approach to the social studies curriculum. Reviews the Texas social studies curriculum guide and points out how it exemplifies this approach. (CFR)

Examines six dilemmas endemic to teacher education: coverage versus mastery emphases; evaluative versus affective emphases; emphasis on current versus future needs of candidates; thematic versus eclectic approaches; emphasis on current practices versus innovative practice; and specific versus global assessment criteria. (SM)

Notes that much of the new instructional software has been disappointing in terms of its appropriateness for young children. Reviews several programs notable for their developmental appropriateness in the areas of creative arts, language arts, thematic approaches, and computer accessibility. (HTH)

Recounts teaching mathematics to junior high school students in France in the context of seventeenth-century mathematics history. Examines extracts of original works by Leibniz on the origin of calculus and of Huygens on continued fractions. Investigates historical puzzles and a variety of mathematical problems arising out of the texts. (MDH)

Science teachers in secondary schools in Dade County, Florida were surveyed to investigate the extent and effectiveness of the infusion of environmental topics into the science curriculum. While the experience of a teacher in using environmental topics had some positive effect in increasing student interest, success of this method depended more…

Compares the ability of teaching history thematically to excite students with traditional chronological approaches to history instruction. Argues that immigration provides an excellent model for learning thematically because it is one of the most personal and engaging topics. Presents a brief history of immigration to the United States along with…

Discusses the use of jackdaws, collections of artifacts generating a visual representation of a time period, and historical fiction in the classroom to bring history alive for students. Reports on the success of jackdaws in an early-childhood classroom and in a university setting with preservice teachers. Includes jackdaws and related historical…

Criticizes the use of a conceptual matrix in an undergraduate history of economic thought course. A conceptual matrix is a visual display advocated by John Bean and Dean Peterson that cross references normative and economic issues with their historical contexts. Argues that this promotes rote learning and stifles critical thinking. (MJP)

Describes the new Advanced Placement (AP) world history course, which has a global and thematic focus and emphasizes global interactions and comparative issues. Discusses the chronology used and its emphasis on global forces and developments within civilizations. Believes that world history courses should assist students in understanding how the…