Describes the use of literature circles, a student-led reading and discussion method that encourages students to see stories in various ways. Explains the student selection of titles, roles of group members, and collaborative projects that complete the activity. (LRW)

This paper reports on the individual student projects of 37 classroom teachers enrolled in a graduate class on multicultural arts education. Identifies points of initial resistance and relates these to patterns of change. Proposes a seven-step model with which teachers can self-educate for multicultural pedagogy. (DB)

This study examined the impact of an intervention for primary school students and their family adults that involved two science meetings at school and home-based project work in astronomy. Results in terms of enhanced interest and enjoyment of astronomy were very positive. Assessing precise learning gains posed difficulties. (Author/KB)

Discusses four teaching methods that are fundamental to social studies instruction: (1) the lecture method; (2) guided discussion; (3) reading skills instruction; and (4) project-based instruction. Explains that these methods enable teachers to vary instruction, meet the needs of diverse learners, and develop student understanding. (CMK)

Describes the use of PowerPoint software in a cooperative setting that allows inclusion students to create presentations as part of the learning process. Discusses equipment needed, audience, teacher and student preparation, and student evaluation, and includes examples of storyboards and worksheets. (Author/LRW)

Discusses the project approach in early childhood curriculum, a natural, teacher-supported companion to teacher-directed activities that develops basic skills and recognizes the child's need for hands-on experimentation to make learning meaningful. Describes the three phases of project approach: investigation, fieldwork, and display. Offers…

Describes one teacher's first attempt to understand the role of students' self-evaluations of their process and products in a science unit centered upon open-ended projects. Describes the social structure in student group self-evaluation, and explains the important role students' self-evaluations can play as part of an open-ended project learning…

Describes the curriculum of the Lake Washington School District Environmental and Adventure School which included outdoor education on the school grounds and field and overnight trips. The curriculum theme was interdependent relationships, people and environments. Also included study of local natural history and Native American tribes. (PVD)

An eastern Kentucky teacher has run the gamut of classroom challenges, from statewide educational reform to her own bout with technophobia. But through her application of the Foxfire approach, her students have engaged in active learning projects in their school and community and with other students in Nebraska and China, with lasting results.…

Describes the content of a course on material culture for undergraduate students that was separated into two sections: (1) first students read books and analyzed artifacts; and (2) then the class explored the Centennial Exhibition held in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) in 1876, applying material culture methods and constructing a Web site from their…

In this article, the author, at the very foundation of her teaching, was trying to establish an environment that would promote inquiry and create an investigative mindset in her first-grader students. First, she assessed her first-grade students' thinking about scientists by asking them to draw and write about what a scientist looks like and does.…

Project-based science (PBS) provides opportunities for students to engage in sustained inquiry in meaningful contexts. Science teachers want their students to attain scientific literacy for applications beyond the classroom. Unfortunately, many students view school, and especially school science, as disconnected from their lives and interests. PBS…

In this article, the author analyzes an inquiry-based project in order to examine students' efforts to build interpretations from evidence. This project fits within the Standards definition of scientific inquiry in several ways: (1) Students used previously learned biological concepts and principles to guide their inquiries; (2) Students relied on…

For the fourth year in a row, the author and a computer teacher have joined forces to guide students through an annual technology and research project that benefits area institutions and community members. The author presents the three key areas of the geospatial technologies curriculum at Douglas High School in Box Elder, South Dakota: (1)…

Students in instructional design (ID) courses typically propose a solution to an instructional problem without a clear understanding of the instructional problem. Often, this type of response is disconcerting to ID instructors. Owing to the way in which the ID process is managed, significant time may pass between design proposal and design review.…