Addressing the expressed needs of the writing community, this book presents writing lessons for intermediate, middle school, and secondary school students that incorporate the 5-step writing process into content areas as a natural part of the curriculum. The 30 lessons in this book involve students in large and small groups and in individual…

Stressing that learning to write is learning to think, a series of workshops showed teachers in the content area how to use writing in their classrooms. Following a brief introduction to the program, workshop participants developed eight guidelines for creating effective writing assignments: (1) make all assignments worthwhile, (2) make them…

Activities and background information on Greek and Roman mythology are presented. The unit is designed for eighth graders, but many of the activities can be modified for other grade levels. The unit includes: (1) a content outline; (2) a list of instructional materials including suggested textbooks, teacher-prepared materials, and resource…

An introductory course assignment for writing in English as a second language consists of four steps: (1) in a survey, students assess their own writing skills in both their native language and English; (2) each student interviews two people, one who writes frequently in the student's native language and one who writes frequently in English, about…

By providing definitions of key concepts, outlines of major models, and practical suggestions for classroom implementation, this pamphlet gives teachers access to current research on the interactive model of reading. The topics covered include: Vygotsky's learning theory, metacomprehension, prior knowledge, chapter mapping, cooperative learning,…

Students in college basic writing courses need to consider their own written language and to compare it with other students' work before they can develop a sense of the symbolic relationship between language and experience. Because of a lack of previous writing experience, basic writers have no sense that the "facts" about which they…

Discusses a method for involving students in topics so that research evolves from a desire to know. Describes using response group discussion about real life problems to find topics, freewriting loops, and class presentation before and during research. Reports positive atmosphere and interest. (JG)

Decribes one poet's experience in a writing residency in a Brooklyn intermediate school. Discusses collaboration with teachers, and collecting and publishing an anthology of student poems. Comments on the positive atmosphere and teaching philosophy of this particular school. (JG)

In this curriculum unit, students will explore fiction writing in three lessons--characterization, setting, and plot. The unit intends for them to learn how to use characterization, dialogue, point of view and other literary devices in fiction writing. Each of the lessons offers an overview; suggests length and grade level; lists subjects and…

Based on James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier's novel "My Brother Sam Is Dead," this lesson plan presents activities designed to help students understand that one way to learn about the past is to read historical novels; and that some people take one side or another in a war or other conflict, and some find themselves caught in the…

This packet includes the syllabus of a trimester-long senior elective course on India, designed to begin with two writers of Indian descent, Salman Rushdie and Bharati Mukherjee. The packet contains the daily assignments for the first half of the trimester, which include all of the reading assignments from Rushdie and Mukherjee, as well as the…

Presents a lesson plan that uses subordinating conjunctions and prepositions as "magic words." After a lesson or unit of study, students write content specific sentences using the "magic" conjunctions and prepositions. This activity serves as a unit review, helps with concept formation, and increases writing skills. (MJP)

Reviews the computer simulation, "Civilization," and asserts that it offers exciting possibilities as an interactive introduction to world history and historical thinking. Includes a course syllabus in which "Civilization" serves as a central feature and two writing assignments based on the simulation. (CFR)

Provides fully developed library media activities, most of which are designed to be used in connection with specific curriculum units: home economics (grades 6-7); geometry in architecture (grades 7-12); word games (grades 6 and up); writing instruction (secondary school); the Civil War (grades 6-9); and social studies (grades 7-8). (SD)

Describes the University of California (Irvine) one-year humanities core course as hermeneutically and contextually oriented. Explains course development, structure, and organization and provides the reading list. Students assignments include essays and a dialectical notebook. Provides a three-day fall seminar for the teaching staff. Finds course…