This book addresses the role of literacy instruction in enhancing content area learning and fostering student motivation and success well beyond the primary grades. The unique literacy needs of middle school and secondary students are thoroughly examined and effective practices and interventions identified. Reviewing the breadth of current…

This book presents Concept-Oriented Reading Instruction (CORI), a research-supported framework for integrating curriculum with instruction and fostering long-term engagement in reading. According to the book, CORI is a practical model that helps K-6 teachers plan integrated units of instruction based on their own interests and strengths as well as…

The key to learning is student involvement! This American Association of Physics Teachers/Physics Teaching Resource Agents (AAPT/PTRA) manual presents examples of two techniques that are proven to increase student involvement in your classroom. Based on the "5E" model of learning, exploratories are designed to get your students excited about the…

This book provides teaching models, classroom organization schemes, and management practices that can quickly improve a teacher's capacity to reach unmotivated and disengaged students. Examples are drawn from elementary, middle, and secondary schools. After Chapter 1 (Part I) introduces the problem and describes the characteristics of at-risk…

This book is designed as a resource for educators who want their students to read, write, share, build, communicate, and contribute using telecommunications. The book is divided into six chapters. Chapter 1--"How To Use the Internet...Real Fast" gives an overview of top educator, parent, and kid sites on the World Wide Web. Chapter 2--"What's…

This book provides research-based, concrete strategies for creating a student-centered curriculum in which every student can learn. It breaks down the Natural Human Learning Process (NHLP) into six stages, providing guidelines and models showing educators how to create learning experiences at each stage of the process for individuals, small…

This book offers strategies to help teachers and curriculum coordinators strengthen student interest through meaningful and purposeful learning. The 15 chapters are: (1) "Introduction: Planning a Connected Curriculum"; (2) "Children, School, and Community"; (3) "On Connections"; (4) "Making Connections: An Interdisciplinary Approach"; (5) "Making…

This book aims to motivate children to learn about history and social studies by beginning with what they already know--from home life, family life, ethnic/cultural life--and then building on that personal knowledge by adding information from family and community resources. The book includes activities that can help the teacher show students that…

This concise volume offers educational leaders key concepts and strategies for framing discussions about closing the equity gap and ensuring high achievement for all learners. As the first volume in "The Soul of Educational Leadership" series, this unique collection presents: (1) Pedro Noguera and Alan Blankstein on essential questions and themes;…

This book, written by a father of school-aged children, challenges the idea that school reform must be based on raising test scores. Rather, it asserts that school reform should start by deciding what kind of students it wants to produce and then designing schools that will allow students to develop accordingly. The book advocates a child-centered…

Seven articles present exercises and techniques to counteract weaknesses and deficiencies in social studies textbooks. Authors of the articles are William E. Patton, Donald O. Schneider, Mary Jo McGee Brown, Thomas N. Turner, Martin W. Sandler, and Jean Dresden Grambs. The authors are involved in various aspects of education, including curriculum…

Knowing how to interest and motivate pupils is a skill, which separates the "great" teachers from the mediocre. This book will inform and inspire staff and give them confidence in dealing with pupils who are not naturally "teacher pleasers." The book explains: (1) how personality affects learning styles; (2) suggests assessment tools and…

This collection is intended to help teachers encourage active learning by involving students in classroom learning and to encourage teachers to cultivate critical thinking through thought-provoking questions. The readings include: (1) "The Dreaded Discussion: Ten Ways To Start" (Peter Frederick); (2) "Classroom Structures Which Encourage Student…

This curriculum guide is all about otters and provides information on both sea and river otters. Included are activities related to the diet of sea otters, the adaptations sea otters have made to live in the sea, their tool-using abilities, where they live and how to spot them, comparative anatomy of sea and river otters, and otter movement. The…

This curriculum guide is all about wolves and provides information through the telling of a story about wolves and their history and folklore. The 14 activities contained in this guide employ an interdisciplinary approach and use mazes, puzzles, model-building, and board games to motivate students. Activity topics include building a wolf,…