First in a series of columns on helping children develop content area literacy. Promotes the 3W3H strategy, a framework of "what" and "how" questions to help students approach content-area assignments. (ET)

Explores the importance of play in the cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development of young children. Functional, constructive, and dramatic play, and games with rules, are examined. Suggests that play is a powerful curricular tool for the kindergarten and primary classroom. Investigates ways to integrate play into the curriculum and to…

An elementary school teacher changed his teaching approach to one based on John Dewey's philosophy that science should be taught as a method of inquiry, not as a fixed body of knowledge. Students were encouraged to formulate scientific questions and work together in establishing experimental procedures. (LP)

Symbiotic relationships exist between language, culture, and poetry. Successful classroom teaching acknowledges these relationships. Teaching poetry to children up to age 12 may be improved by addressing these relationships in initial teacher education. A research project involving teachers, student teachers, and children has explored these…

Examines academic performance in American Indian children, discussing elementary-age developmental tasks and students' conflicts with school, cultural identity development, weakened self-concept, and academic performance which easily lead to failure in a traditional Anglo educational setting with non-Indian teachers. Eight recommendations for…

Advocates the implementation of the same developmentally appropriate principles and practices that govern good preschool programs in elementary school programs as well. These practices involve understanding children and their levels of development, working with the whole child, fostering integrated learning, and encouraging parent participation.…

Identifies and examines ethical issues involved when teachers conduct research involving their own students, exploring the movement to increase the relevance of research on and for teachers, discussing specific issues in teacher research, describing dual-role conflicts, and relating those problems to the difficulties of deciding what is research…

This multicultural feminist critical narrative inquiry examines how one Dominican Spanish and English speaking poor immigrant first grader, Pam, utilizes her critical literacies to intervene against inequitable teaching practices and affirm her cultures. Implications for early childhood educators to develop culturally responsive practices that…

This paper outlines a range of ways that technology education can be incorporated into existing curricula without compromising those programs, the technological skills and knowledge advocated in the 1994 technology statement of the Curriculum Corporation of Australia, or the children and teachers themselves. A case study of a year-two teacher is…

This paper discusses some of the potential benefits and hazards that virtual reality holds for exceptional children in the special education system. Topics addressed include (1) applications of virtual reality, including developing academic skills via cyberspace, vocational training, and social learning in cyberspace; (2) telepresence and distance…

The curriculum guide presented in this paper promotes a nurturing environment that facilitates the development of the total child. The program is designed to be used by teachers, administrators, and parents in both public and private school settings. The philosophy of the program is experimentalist-cognitive. A number of proposals relevant to…

Several topics centering on children in self-care, or latchkey children, are discussed. Initially presented are demographic and background data related to the emergence of domestic situations in which children spend substantial amounts of time at home unattended by adults. In subsequent discussion, the incidence of unsupervised children at home is…

A theory concerning low achievement of student that applies to adult education is developed, based on an interconnection between cognitive and affective domains. A holistic picture of what happens to students may be gained from Piaget's theory of intellectual development, Bloom's hierarchy of cognitive abilities, theories proposing that what…

Summarizes the NAEYC position statement on developmentally appropriate practice in the primary grades serving students aged 5 through 8 years. Uses a comparative format of appropriate and inappropriate practice related to curriculum goals, teaching strategies, integrated curriculum, guidance of social and emotional development, motivation, and…

Though performance assessment has its place, it is not always appropriate. Standardized testing is sometimes preferable. The paper describes states' roles in shaping statewide student testing, discusses state assessment to compare schools and school systems, and suggests that improving teaching environments and increasing the value attached to…