Outlines a series of summary-writing assignments which focus on differences between expository and literary texts, and provide unusual opportunities for students to develop their response to literature. Maintains that such summaries increase students' facility as perceptive readers and insightful writers. (SR)

Discusses the reclusive life of Emily Dickinson, recounting the discovery of Dickinson's poems after her death. Concentrates on the problems Dickinson's sister encountered in securing an editor. Contends that Dickinson's poems were distorted by editors and critics, and includes the original version of "Because I Could Not Stop for…

Describes one high school English teacher's experiment with assigning stories instead of analytical essays. Argues for retelling and storytelling as a valuable resource in the high school curriculum. (RAE)

Describes how students can use the computer to study and create clone poems (altering original Spanish-language poems by substituting words and expressions), and how students can gain a deeper appreciation of the original poem's poetic structure and semantics. (CB)

Describes how adult students can learn to analyze fiction by writing, sharing, and rewriting stories. Suggests several activities to facilitate this analytical approach, such as rewriting a published story, examining metaphorical language in poetry, and responding to poems and short stories. (MM)

Reviews the case of Cissy Lacks, who was summarily dismissed from her teaching job after her principal went into a locked closet and found a videotape of students reading their creative compositions, which contained profanity. Discusses the effect of censorship on teaching. (TB)

Nine junior high school students with learning disabilities received instruction in story grammar elements and character development. Over a two-month period, students significantly increased the amount they wrote and mildly to moderately increased the quality of the stories produced and the number of internal responses and plans of characters.…

Thirteen intermediate-level students with learning disabilities and poor writing ability were taught how to use a prestructured story web to improve their narrative story writing ability. Students improved in the primary target behaviors of planning time and holistic (quality) score but showed inconsistent results for other target behaviors such…

Offers advice, in the form of a letter, to an aspiring teacher about the benefits of being a yearbook advisor. Reviews some of the basic skills needed to be an advisor, such as writing, photography and design skills, computer skills, budgetary and advertising skills, and public relations skills. (TB)

A former reading teacher, now a successful author of children's books, shares her own creative thoughts on how teachers can encourage children to become readers and writers. (ET)

Discusses the use of creative writing in second language classrooms, focusing on techniques that can help students construct their own poetry and poem-like creations in the target language. Maintains that student poetry can help enliven the classroom experience and allow students to express their own ideas. (39 references) (MDM)

This research attempted to identify categories of cognitive development existing in creative writing samples (written by over 5000 gifted children ages 9-18) that provide a basis for developmental analysis. Four categories with three levels of development in each were identified: (1) self, (2) others, (3) problem solving, and (4) abstractness of…

Describes the participation of a small Catholic school near Philadelphia in the AT&T Learning Circles Project, which involved networking with schools in several states. The integration of the telecommunications project with the language arts curriculum is discussed, including creative writing about local food and historic places to share with…

Presents a transcript of an interview with successful young adult author Jerry Spinelli. Describes the techniques and writing strategies used by Spinelli. Discusses ways of generating stories, and the author's concept of his audience. (HB)

This article introduces a special section of four papers featuring strategies for improving the story writing skills of elementary and secondary students who have problems with written language. It outlines the elements of story grammar, describes characteristics of students with writing problems, and notes the strategies presented in the four…