Math games bring out kids' natural love of numbers. Yet in the waning days of school, students can't wait for that final bell to ring. Each summer, most students lose about two months of mathematical computation skills. So how do teachers keep their students focused on math up till the end? Before sending them off for the summer, get them hooked…

The key to challenging talented, advanced students and keeping them engaged and motivated within the regular classroom, says the author, is to spend time each day focusing on students' strengths and interests, and to remember that the classroom is a place for developing all sorts of talents in all students. Seven strategies are proposed to help…

Not so many years ago, comic books in school were considered the enemy. Students caught sneaking comics between the pages of bulky--and less engaging--textbooks were likely sent to the principal. Today, however, comics, including classics such as "Superman" but also their generally more complex, nuanced cousins, graphic novels, are not only…

Tips to keep students interested during the final weeks of school include: work outside (studying bubbles and writing poetry about nature); put on a show about one subject; play social studies Jeopardy; devote entire days to one subject area; have a teach-the-teacher day, where students and teachers trade roles; and create a video keepsake…

Activities to enhance reading with listening, thinking, writing, and fun are suggested. Topics include celebrate Reading Week, superbowl reading, book buddies, biography binge, laughing and learning, oral reading, reading sweepstakes, idea lists, fairy tale showdown, and parent reading tips. (MT)

A teacher describes how she uses storytelling in her fifth grade classes, because storytelling combines listening skills and imagination with the nuances of language, history, culture, and values. Resources are listed. Two insets discuss the benefits of storytelling and offer tips on becoming a storytelling teacher. (MT)

Bulletin boards can be "vertical activity centers" when students create them as learning activities. Suggestions are offered for developing stimulating and creative boards that are also educational. (DF)

Presents primary and intermediate level activities that use predictions to help students think deeply about books. The primary activity uses a prediction chart to encourage thinking and enthusiasm about reading. The intermediate activity uses prediction book reports to change writing about books from merely retelling, to higher-level thinking. A…

This article presents 15 activities designed to motivate students to engage in creative writing. Also given are ideas on how to reinforce and maintain student interest in writing. (IAH)

Short, creative thinking sessions can help fill the time between classes while encouraging students to develop all of their thinking processes. Activities are offered that require organizing, imagining, observing, patterning, and questioning skills. (DF)

Ideas for art and drama projects that will help students celebrate the meaning of December traditions and feasts are offered in this article. (DF)

Ideas for teaching children about creativity and its importance are offered in this article. Ingredients for developing creativity skills are presented and suggested projects are discussed. (DF)

Three assessment strategies to help elementary teachers gather information about their students' reading (and thus direct their teaching) include keeping running records of students' oral reading, requesting retellings of stories to determine students' comprehension, and talking seriously about reading with students to determine their overall…

To motivate students to read, it is important for teachers to teach the reader, not the reading. This article presents three strategies for accomplishing this: studying the child, not the book; focusing on students' reading lives and knowing them as readers; and thinking of students as readers. (SM)

Presents a collection of inexpensive, nonsugary rewards for students who demonstrate extra effort and fine achievement. They include a skip-a-spelling-test pass, a skip-homework pass, special lunches with the teacher, first place blue ribbons, big-goals celebrations, and a special, comfortable chair that students can use on a rotating basis. (SM)