Offering an alternative to traditional language arts methods textbooks, this collection of 20 essays by master teachers is grouped into 4 main sections. Following an introduction, essays in the book are: (1) "Walter" (Vivian Gussin Paley); (2) "Children Become Writers: A Conversation with Two Teachers" (Cyndy Hoffman and Carol E. Sharp); (3) "Putting Ourselves on the Line" (Pat McLure and Linda Rief); (4) "Rethinking Literature Discussions" (Penny Silvers); (5) "Story Time as a Magical Act Open Only to the Initiated: What Some Children Don't Know about Power and May Not Find Out" (Karen Gallas); (6) "Stepping Stones: Literature in the Classroom" (Cecilia Espinosa and Julia Fournier); (7) "Inquiry in the Kindergarten" (Patti Seifert); (8) "Finding Our Way: A Year of Learning with Maps" (Mary Kenner Glover); (9) "Fueled by Surprise" (Phyllis Whitin); (10) "Getting Real with Students" (Mary M. Kitagawa); (11) "'I Can Hear You Thinking': Talking and Learning in a Multiage Classroom" (Kathryn Mitchell Pierce); (12) "Letters Home" (Rebecca King); (13) "Ownership for the Special Needs Child: Individual and Educational Dilemmas" (Cora Lee Five); (14) "Time on Our Side" (Mary Mercer Krogness); (15) "The Teacher as Listener" (Dorothy M. Taylor); (16) "Building Common Ground" (Renee Bachman and Julia Fournier); (17) "Communicating with Parents: One Teacher's Story" (Lynne Yermanock Strieb); (18) "On the Road to Cultural Bias: A Critique of 'The Oregon Trail' CD-ROM" (Bill Bigelow); (19) "Leaving My Thumbprint: The Journey of a First-Year Teacher" (Abigail Foss); and (20)"An Open Letter from a Principal to New Teachers" (Fredrick R. Burton). Two appendixes group the essays by theme and activity. (Each essay contains references.) (NKA)