As part of its proposal to the U.S. Department of Education, the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) committed to developing model content frameworks for English language arts/literacy (ELA/Literacy) to serve as a bridge between the Common Core State Standards and the PARCC assessments. The Model Content…

The newspaper is an excellent tool for use at home to reinforce reading and writing skills. Suggestions for celebrating holidays and special occasions using newspapers are offered. (MT)

The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) Practice Guide, "Effective Literacy and English Language Instruction for English Learners in the Elementary Grades" addresses the challenge of providing effective literacy instruction for English learners in the elementary grades. The Guide offers five specific recommendations for district…

Preschoolers are passionate about learning, and a high-quality preschool program offers rich learning experiences in the areas of language and literacy. This engaging book gives teachers and other professionals fresh ideas, inspiration, and practical tools for integrating age-appropriate literacy instruction into the preschool curriculum.…

This article contains ideas for turning a language arts center into an imaginary underwater playground. Activities involving poems, riddles, and word play are suggested, as are questions to investigate and art projects. (MT)

This Tasmanian handbook for teachers describes a handwriting program that helps children develop a technique that enables them to easily produce a legible and fluent personal handwriting style. An initial overview of the program is followed by sections that focus on activities for development of handwriting skills, the process of planning the…

Examines over a dozen poems by William Carlos Williams. Notes that these poems can be incorporated easily into an elementary reading/language arts/literature program. Shows how Williams' poetry can help children see others, themselves, and the world in a more imaginative and multiperspective manner. (MM)

"Teaching for Joy and Justice" is the much-anticipated sequel to Linda Christensen's bestselling, "Reading, Writing, and Rising Up." Christensen is recognized as one of the country's finest teachers. Her latest book shows why. Through story upon story, Christensen demonstrates how she draws on students' lives and the world to teach poetry, essay,…

Ways in which to use "picture talk" (proverbs, similes, idioms, and witcracks) in language arts activities for elementary school students are described, including: writing and illustrating expressions; changing expressions; and interpreting expressions. (CB)

States that 30 million people currently access the Internet, the international electronic superhighway linking thousands of individual computer networks. Offers information about terms used on the Internet; accessing the World Wide Web; language arts, writing, and literacy resources available on the Web; and educational sites, specific databases,…

This summary paper, the result of an ongoing collaborative process, presents an extended policy statement for English Language Arts K-12 in Saskatchewan, Canada. The paper is in five major sections: (1) Introduction; (2) Foundations and Principles (outlining the value of language--both dynamic and rule-governed--as a foundation for the English…

This paper presents a list of 154 Internet resources (listservs, freenets, telnet sites, gophers, etc.) dealing with language arts. Each entry in the list includes the name of the resource, and subscription and electronic mail addresses. Some of the entries in the list include a brief description of the resource. The paper lists 17 language arts…

This book explains how teachers can use practical classroom techniques for combining science and language literacy at different grade levels ranging from elementary to high school. The book defines "literacy in science" to include speaking, listening, and media analysis. In chapters devoted to each of these literacy skills, specific metacognitive…

The author introduces 10 articles on language arts and learning disabilities (LD) and presents evidence for her contention that reading should be viewed within the context of a general model of language. For related information see EC 132 759-768. (CL)

Review New Zealand's language arts assessment practices at all grade levels. Suggests alternative approaches to student evaluation. (MM)