Recently, the author has been fortunate to be a visitor in a number of classrooms in the United States, England and Europe. On one such visit to an Elementary School in Columbia, Missouri, the teachers accepted him into their normal classrooms for their normal lessons. He moved between three classes: Grade 1, Grade 2 and Grade 4. A snapshot…

This article describes a unit of instruction designed to promote algebraic thinking in second graders. Students examined second- and fourth-grade students' ages and heights on a table and graph and described the patterns that they observed in the data.

This study examines the achievement outcomes accompanying the implementation of a Grade 3 laptop or so-­called "ubiquitous computing" program in a Quebec school district. CAT­3 reading, language, and mathematics batteries were administered at the end of Grade 2 and again at the end of Grade 3, after the first year of computer…

In this technical report, the authors describe the development alternate forms of Word and Passage Reading Fluency measures as part of a comprehensive progress monitoring literacy assessment system developed in 2006 for use with students in Kindergarten through fourth grade. They begin with a brief overview of the two conceptual frameworks…

President Bush says that the No Child Left Behind Act is working, pointing to student-achievement results from a single subsection of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and tentative Reading First data. But the evidence available to support his claim is questionable. The data Mr. Bush cited are from just the "long-term…

The ways boys and girls (N = 119) at different grade levels rated and explained their potential for improvement in mathematics and the mother tongue were compared in order to examine their subject-specific notions of the malleability of their academic ability. The findings indicate that children perceive their potential to improve their…

The methods and findings from a program evaluation of a forestry field visit for second grade students are detailed in this article. A pretest, posttest methodology was used to determine changes in students' (n = 133) attitudes and knowledge before and after the field experience(s). Interviews and surveys were conducted with students, teachers (n…

Elementary school-age children are particularly vulnerable to infections. While handwashing is the best method of preventing infections, many elementary schools are housed in buildings that have barriers to effective hand hygiene. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of an alcohol gel as an adjunct to handwashing in…

This study unpacks the inherent tension that arises when any school adopts a particular model for reform--how to mesh a model with the reality of daily life in the classroom. In the field of bilingual education, programme models abound, and the literature reflects a great diversity among them, as well as efforts to evaluate their relative…

The current study investigated the extent to which considering instructional time and student learning rate affects academic treatment decisions. Five second-grade students with difficulties in spelling were exposed to three spelling interventions (traditional drill and practice, interspersal training, and high-p sequencing). Using an alternating…

With archaeologists continually finding new pieces of the past, students will undoubtedly see and hear of new discoveries in the media. By using archaeology as a context for investigating past cultures and using science methods, teachers can capitalize on students' interests while still addressing concepts recommended (or required) for their…

History is alive! That is one of the important messages that teacher Barbara Knighton communicates to her students as she develops engaging stories about changes in farming, government, clothing, or transportation, using timelines as her basis. In this article, the authors describe how Knighton constructs social studies units for her first and…

The authors conducted an experiment during the 2003-2004 school year to determine whether "On Our Way to English" ("OWE"), a product to help elementary students learn to read and speak English, was more effective in a California and a Texas school district than materials already in place. In the California study, 384 English…

Kenya has introduced policies to promote universal primary schooling at least three times since independence. Analysis of enrolments over four decades shows how these initiatives have resulted in gains in participation which have not always been sustained. This study illuminates the dynamics of efforts to increase access to education and acts as a…

This exploratory study examined the contribution of the "RC" Approach over a two-year period. The "RC" Approach integrates social and academic learning in order to produce classroom environments that are conducive to learning by integrating social and academic learning. Two questions are addressed. First, how does teachers' use of "RC" practices…