The author proposes a design for science instruction in the middle school years, ages 9-13. (SJL)

Examines the Schooldisc program developed jointly by the American Broadcasting Company and the National Education Association and compares Schooldiscs with "ThinkAbout," an instructional television series produced by the Agency for Instructional Television. (IRT)

Suggests that the implications of the conclusions of another article in this issue are critical to writing instruction, in that they relate to the nature of craft in writing and its relationship to current views of language development and learning. Offers specific instructional processes to address students' differing capabilities in processing…

This paper proposes that the manner in which academic information is delivered to students with severe behavior disorders may be aversive. A case study illustrates how a 12-year old's disruptive behavior can be decreased concurrent with an instructional sequence which provides the information needed to complete a task prior to asking the student…

Describes fourth graders' observations and hypotheses about the sun and moon and how the three-dimensional reality gradually replaced the inadequate two-dimensional models of textbooks. Discusses implications for instruction of this progression from concrete to abstract. (HTH)

One teacher's method of teaching at-risk middle school students is the phenomenological platform, a powerful theme for becoming. The process involves exploring real-life situations, considering community and world problems and solutions, and translating this into action. (JOW)

Describes how a fourth-grade teacher applied Nancie Atwell's "formula" for teaching writing via writing workshops. Notes that, a year later, the teacher realized that nobody else's approach could work in her classroom, after which she developed her own structure. (SR)

An overview of theory and research in memory as it relates to developmental differences is offered in this paper, which is intended to provide background information for the staff of the Skills Essential to Learning Television Project (a multi-level series of video and print resources for classroom use). A model for viewing information processing…

Explores how dialog writing, in which two participants "converse in writing," incorporates the interactive aspects of oral communication and the self-directed aspects of essay writing. Includes passages written over a year's time by a sixth grade student in a "dialogue journal" showing the development of his writing. (HTH)

Describes how the author, a fifth-grade teacher, found the desire, the inspiration, and continuing motivation and rewards to break out of her traditional teaching practices and implement the Reading Workshop in her class. (SR)

Deals with the text patterns commonly found in social studies books. Explores the expository text pattern and offers a teaching pattern to help guide students through the transition from narrative to content area texts in the upper elementary grades. (MG)

This account of teaching regular and gifted students is based on a university education professor's return to the classroom. Discussion covers: the value of teaching without textbooks, compacting the curriculum to allow students to pursue their talents, and combining affective and cognitive content within the curriculum to promote student growth.…

Teachers who recognize the value of working together can put their belief into practice through the use of collaboration and cooperative learning methods. Lists 19 characteristics of a well-functioning and collaborative team. (MLF)

Participating in a transition to a middle-level school provides the most potential for professional growth within a given school culture. In this article, a former middle school principal shows how a content-oriented, somewhat inflexible veteran seventh-grade social studies teacher reluctantly embraced middle-school teaming and eventually…

Children's picture books, for example Allan Say's "Grandfather's Journey," can provide fresh materials and approaches to teaching reading to students in intermediate grades. One approach for preservice teachers learning to use children's literature might be to begin by planning possible uses for one or more literature selections and then…