Describes an English teacher's struggle to improve her writing instruction by improving her own writing process, incorporating a commentary or reflection step. The teacher used journal writing with her high school students to help them reflect upon their writing of short stories. (KS)

Undergraduate teacher education students participated in the Foxfire instructional approach by developing field trip packages for elementary students visiting a farm and a garden/greenhouse. Describes problems with group dynamics among students and efforts to resolve problems. (KS)

A middle school teacher reflects on her year-long experience of applying the Foxfire approach to a language arts class, on student successes and disappointments, and on the difficulties of carrying out meaningful research on this process. Student comments are included. (SV)

Three brief articles by teachers in Foxfire's East Tennessee Teachers' Network discuss developmentally appropriate practices for high school students and young adults, and describe the use of group work in a high school English class and class projects concerned with local history and wetlands ecology. (SV)

A teacher describes using the Foxfire approach in an exploratory class on study skills for sixth graders. The students brainstormed about activities that would meet curriculum objectives, completed miniresearch projects that sharpened their library skills, and evaluated each others' projects. (SV)

Two seventh and eighth grade teachers, trained in the Foxfire approach, describe class projects related to their rural school's 50-year history--oral history interviews with former students and teachers and the local historian, writing a book of school reminiscences, and organizing a school reunion. (SV)

A teacher discusses her transition to a new school and an innovative program based on Foxfire practices. Journal entries reflect the frustrations, self-doubts, and personal growth that resulted from her teaching experience. She attributes her personal growth to reflective journal writing, a core practice of Foxfire. (LP)

Teachers in the southern Maine teachers' network comment on dilemmas they have faced when implementing the Foxfire approach, including realizing their own strengths and weaknesses, achieving a balance between content and process, appropriate teacher intervention, developing student decision-making skills, applicable assessment and evaluation,…

A teacher of gifted elementary school students reflects on her experiences using the Foxfire approach and on its value in involving students in experiential learning and facilitating higher level critical and creative thinking skills. Seven of her sixth grade students describe the projects they've completed over the years. (SV)

An experienced high school teacher describes how exposure to John Dewey's educational philosophy and Foxfire teaching methods changed his attitudes and classroom techniques. Discusses the relationship between process and product in the Foxfire classroom and the relationships among teacher, student, and subject in a democratic learning environment.…

A resource room teacher of elementary students with mild disabilities and behavior disorders describes student successes in running the school store, telling Appalachian folk tales to primary classes, and carrying out other Foxfire-inspired projects. Student comments are included. (SV)

Two teachers discuss their experiences implementing Foxfire practices in an alternative high school. One teacher was apprehensive about changing from the "traditional" approach to "student-initiated learning." The other teacher also experienced moments of doubt, but both teachers realized the benefits of the Foxfire approach…

A Catholic-school teacher of grades five and six reflects on her first year of teaching and describes how Foxfire training led her to introduce group decision making and planning into her classroom. Resulting class projects including a newspaper, a play, and a booklet of ghost stories are described. (SV)

A fifth grade teacher in a rural Kentucky school discusses three years of classroom experiences applying the Foxfire approach, focuses on the democratic decision-making process and the importance of student self-esteem, describes student-project problems and successes, and lists student accomplishments. (SV)

Describes the beginnings of the Foxfire instructional approach; its spread in eastern Kentucky, supported by the Eastern Kentucky Teachers Network; and its special relevance for rural and Appalachian children. Includes comments by teachers and students about their educational experiences and class projects. (SV)