Frequently, when assigned to read, intermediate and middle grade students engage in a mindless encounter with the text. Or, try as they may to focus and gather information, they're mostly confused and not sure how to repair the breakdown in their meaning-making. With the new focus on close reading--and on engaging students with more rigorous…

For over three years, University of Arizona staff have been reviewing middle school curricular materials in various content areas to identify exemplary models. Study disclosed only 1 exemplary mathematics curriculum (18-year-old Real Math series by Open Court) and only 1 superior science curriculum (Canadian Science Plus series). No comprehensive…

About four years ago, a rural Maine middle school abandoned its computer classes and integrated computers into its curriculum. Now, instead of using educational software or spending lots of time on training, students are writing stories with word processors, illustrating science diagrams with paint utilities, creating interactive reports with…

Summarizes results of a pilot study to determine how eight moral values stated by former Education Secretary William Bennett are learned by students in classrooms. According to students, teachers must follow the rules themselves to teach character education effectively. Respect is best taught through a hidden curriculum of modeling and quality…

A program at the Thompson Island Outward Bound Education Center in Boston (Massachusetts) supplements the traditional program of ropes and rocks with community service, giving urban students opportunities to try out new leadership skills in local neighborhoods. (MLF)

Analyzing the ways newspapers cover different racial and cultural groups can stir provocative discussions among middle school students, as one teacher found. In one day's news, students unearthed mostly negative images and citations involving blacks; few references to Hispanics, Indians, Greeks, or Native Americans; and unrealistically favorable…

Massachusetts middle school's Classroom-by-Committee program is based on town council model of subcommittees. Students briefed in self-management techniques choose committees that meet their needs while helping them develop critical thinking skills, set goals, identify problems, and generate solutions. Teachers facilitate learning, guide students…

For the past five years, Andover, Kansas middle-schoolers in an amateur radio club and class have sent and received Morse code messages, assembled and soldered circuit boards, designed and built antenna systems, and used computer programs to analyze radio communications problems. A successful bond issue financed a ham shack enabling students to…

According to 1995 National Science Education Standards, "inquiry into authentic questions generated from student experiences is the central strategy for teaching science." Effective classroom questions promote relevance, encourage ownership, help students interpret their observations, and link new learning to what students already know. Two…

An El Paso middle-school teacher and her barrio students corrected each other and learned from each other daily. Her most difficult challenge was convincing kids to become more assertive when they felt they were mistreated by other teachers. Students wanted others to respect them and to refrain from prejudging them, laughing at their English, or…

Inspired by Miep Gies's selfless hiding of Anne Frank, a class of urban middle schoolers came up with definitions and characteristics of "ordinary," nonglitzy heroes. One student suggested that the school create its own ordinary hero hall of fame; students then researched possible nominees and held an induction ceremony for those…

To gain insight into her students' natural styles of writing, one middle school teacher attempted to discover which students wrote notes, which developmental styles were being practiced, and how writing teachers could help. Capitalizing on students' notes to improve writing can succeed if teachers officially ban note writing and practice…

Contradicting Johnsons' observations, 15 gifted sixth and eighth graders complained cooperative learning in heterogeneous groups tends to promote some arrogance, lack of trust in classmates, tendency to take over the group, and ignorance about working with other students. Gifted students must be allowed to work together with each other; teachers…

Authors of "The Roller Coaster Years" (1997) advise how middle-level educators can turn wary, disinterested parents into allies. Teachers should welcome parents, advertise their own expertise, implement an early-warning system, portray children positively, convey shared values, reassure parents about children's safety, demonstrate insider…

Teachers are receiving mixed messages about assessment. Encouraged to use alternative assessment practices, they are expected to express a student's progress in a single letter grade. Interviews with eight urban middle school teachers participating in the QUASAR (Quantitative Understanding: Amplifying Student Achievement and Reasoning) Project…