Writing is an essential skill for participating in modern American society. Although it is crucial to careers and civic engagement, student writing falls far short of national expectations (College Board, 2004; NCES, 2012; Persky, Daane, & Jin, 2003). The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) seek to increase the rigor of writing instruction…

An economics program designed for junior high and senior high school students indicates that learning economic content tends to improve a student's ability in social studies skills and, indirectly, also improves language arts and quantitative skills. (Author/RM)

To determine whether a comprehensive, cooperative learning approach can be used effectively in elementary reading and writing instruction, a study evaluated the Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (CIRC) program. Experimental subjects, 11 third- and fourth-grade CIRC classes, worked in heterogeneous learning teams for all reading,…

Intended to be used by administrators, professional staff and community representatives, this set of criteria provides a schematic assessment of elementary language arts programs. Possible uses for information generated from the instrument are: (1) establishing program goals; (2) validation of exemplary programs or promising practices; (3)…

The Lafayette Parish Compensatory/Remedial Program for 1985-86 involved remedial teachers in 31 schools serving 1,022 students in grades 2 through 6 who had previously failed the state Basic Skills Test (BST). A minimum of 70 hours instruction was provided to the children in the area(s) in which each was deficient. Focus was on assessing the…

Through a comprehensive review of various afterschool programs across the United States, this resource provides a practical overview of the research and best practices that can be easily adapted and applied in the development of highly effective afterschool programs. chapters focus on: (1) "Why Afterschool Programs?" (benefits, challenges, and…

This Digest reviews the literature on the subject of teaching English and language arts to gifted and talented students. It discusses how to identify gifted students, outlines some key principles for developing effective programs in English and language arts for the gifted, and suggests possible methods of evaluating gifted students and programs.…

This monthlong interdisciplinary, award winning project was designed to help kindergarten children in Kentucky understand basic economic principles that affect their daily lives. The children study about the poverty-stricken people of the Appalachian mountain area of the state. Through the operation of a classroom coal mine and company store, the…

Public criticism of the quality of education implies that teachers need a legal mandate to teach students to read and write. But while teachers may sometimes forget that transmitting knowledge of the English language is their most important function and that every child has the right to learn the language regardless of preconceived notions,…

Intended for administrators and policymakers as well as teachers, this digest explores issues related to teaching English to the gifted student. The digest begins by examining the criteria used for identifying gifted/talented students, noting that some successful programs for the gifted in English and language arts do not restrict admission…

This book is intended to help preservice and inservice reading specialists, supervisors, and administrators understand how to organize and supervise reading programs, pre-kindergarten through grade twelve. Each of the major parts of this book concerns some of the knowledge areas necessary for administering reading programs. Titles of the chapters…

In the fall of 1981 Kendall Demonstration Elementary School issued to its teachers new curriculum guides in four areas: Language Arts, Social Studies, Science, and Mathematics. In Language Arts the implementation was more comprehensive than in the other areas. This report describes curriculum evaluation activities conducted at Kendall during…

Reporting on a doctoral practicum that examined children's literary works and developed related expressive language activities, this document contains a description of the practicum--including its purpose, goals, procedures, and results--and a guide for primary teachers to use in language arts instruction. The expressive language activities…

The evaluation of the Portland (Oregon) Public Schools' Summer Program focused on academic achievement of its students, grades K-8, who participated in 1985. Courses included arts and crafts as well as basic and remedial instruction in reading, mathematics, and language. The achievement gains of summer school students were compared to the whole…

Describing the numerous changes that have occurred in language arts instruction within the past few years, this book explains these changes, as well as modern concepts, materials, and instructional techniques to assist language arts teachers. The books describes several innovative approaches to instruction, such as how to teach phonics and…