On November 17, 1995 the following news item appeared in "Time Magazine": "Long-lost cave reveals burial tombs of Maccabees." You (the student) are a journalist who has been asked by your editor to follow up that news item with an in-depth feature a two page spread with text and graphics entitled "The Life and Times of…

California State Standard 5.5 is delineated as: Students explain the causes of the Revolutionary War. The Revolutionary War is a great central drama in U.S. history and in the evolution of nationalism and democracy throughout the world. Students should perceive the worldwide impact of the colonies' triumph over British imperial power and its…

Coursebooks are an indispensable tool of the language arts instruction in elementary schools across California State. They are designed for teachers with precise indications of instructional practices, classroom social and participatory structures. However, these pre-designed practices are hardly evaluated for their appropriateness to meet…

This appendix accompanies "Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better. A Large-Scale Study of Middle Grades Practices and Student Outcomes. Initial Research Report." This appendix focuses on the findings and domain comparisons of the study. This appendix contains the following: (1) Decision Rules; (2) Full Set of…

A study of whole language teaching in urban heterogeneous classrooms was undertaken to identify teacher student classroom discourse patterns. Using the Gutierrez Index of Coding Schema researchers identified three discourse scripts in the 14 bilingual and multicultural classrooms in Southern California under investigation. These were: the…

Motivated by the discouraging fact that only 7 percent of the local high school graduates were proceeding on to college or university education, a group of teachers, junior high through university, involved in the California Academic Partnership (CAP) Project, decided to analyze what was being taught and the methods being used. Collaborating with…

This Spanish-language version of a booklet intended for parents offers information about how reading instruction is changing and is now only one part of an integrated language arts curriculum. The booklet urges parents and educators to work together to help meet students' needs. Section titles include: Important Facts About Integrated Language…

Intended for parents, this booklet offers information about how reading instruction is changing and is now only one part of an integrated language arts curriculum. The booklet urges parents and educators to work together to help meet students needs. Section titles include: Important Facts About Integrated Language Arts; What to Expect in Your…

The recently enacted California legislation commonly referred to as the Hart Bill (AB3408) requires that local district governing boards establish high school graduation requirements and standards of proficiency in basic skills. The educational system which places emphasis on the specification, learning, and demonstration of these proficiencies is…

You (the student) have been selected to be the school librarian's helper today. You are going to help her shelve books about moose. But you will have to read the books before you shelve them to decide if they are fictional storybooks about moose or nonfictional books about moose. You will decide if the books are real (nonfiction) or make believe…

California State Standard 5.7 is delineated in the following manner: "Students describe the people and events associated with the development of the U.S. Constitution and analyze the Constitution's significance as the foundation of the American republic." Students answer six questions about the Constitution and present suggestions for…

In this colorfully illustrated kindergarten activity, students read (and re-read) "My Blue Suitcase" (Sharon Katz), as an introduction to traveling. The book uses all of the basic forms of transportation and forms the transportation lesson outline. The activity gives the students the task of learning about each mode of transportation:…

Beginning with a simple test that parents can conduct at home, this book presents a comprehensive and holistic program that any parent or teacher can use to help dyslexic children improve their reading, writing, and spelling. After an introduction that answers parents' questions about dyslexia, chapters in the book are: (1) Is Dyslexia Real?; (2)…

The purpose of this guide is to provide teachers and other educators with classroom lessons and instructional techniques that build a fundamental understanding of the environment. The guide is aimed at grades kindergarten through sixth and consists of eight instructional units and six action projects. Each unit is organized around a theme and the…

Designed for use with students in grades nine through twelve, the model curriculum standards in this guide were developed in response to Senate Bill 813 (Chapter 498, Statutes of 1983) of the California Legislature that focused on the reestablishment of high expectations for the content of courses taught in secondary schools and for the level of…