Ideas for spring arts activities include a whimsical play about royal dragons, a skit on an April fool, and a song. Instructions for making brightly colored birds from boxes, a happy day hat, decorated eggs, and other art projects are given. (PP)

Survey results indicate (1) steady growth of college and university theater departments doing "something" for children or offering courses in child drama; (2) once a department offers courses and productions, it tends to develop more comprehensive programs; and (3) increasingly, programs reflect the growing breadth and depth of the field. (PD)

Discusses three issues relevant to adolescent heroines in high school theater productions: the need to consider the role model presented by the character being portrayed; the need to focus on the sociodramatic issues of the production; and the need for consciousness-raising among teachers. (JMF)

Recounts the difficulties and ultimate success of a production of Chekhov's "Uncle Vanya" by fifth-and sixth-grade students. (RL)

In San Rafael (California) a series of assembly programs and art shows exposes students to cultural events. (JM)

Provides a model for teaching listening comprehension through the use of soap operas. (AM)

Describes a senior elective course in Western Civilization which focused on an original play written by the teacher and produced by the students. (DD)

The article describes C. Taylor's "multiple talent" approach for gifted children which states that schools have traditionally tapped only one type of talent, academic, and that many more children would have a chance to excel if schools increased emphasis on other areas. (PHR)

Children's Environmental Theater is part of an environmental education package for lower elementary students. Materials actively involve the students' environment (indoor and outdoor) and the program is by definition experiential. Included in this article are two plays and discussion guides and related activities for each play. (JC)

Suggests use of dramatic sketches and conversation sequences for introducing new language material. With situational and stage material, the teacher can avoid the fragmentation of language knowledge, and also join imitative with cognitive learning. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Described are the background and educational program at the North Carolina School for the Arts, a tax supported high school and college for artistically talented students. (CL)

Contains an annotated bibliography of African American literature (published between 1989 and 1994), including anthologies, fiction, poetry, drama, criticism, cultural studies, biography, interviews, and letters. (TB)

Offers suggestions to help teachers handle controversial topics (such as sex and nudity, violence, language, and other questionable issues) when using novels, plays, and their film adaptations in English-as-a-Second-Language and literacy classrooms. (SR)

Describes the summer program at St. Agnes School, in Kentucky, which puts on musicals about social issues. Focuses on the theme of this summer's musical, which is the futility and danger of violence. Discusses the awareness that the summer program musical has brought to the children. (AJL)

Evaluates the use of drama to assess children's knowledge of scientific concepts. Describes a case study of 7-year-olds and the study of magnetism. By taking science concepts out of the context of practical science activities, teachers could assess student knowledge without simply seeing what was expected, and students could explore ideas and…