Describes how one middle school teacher was inspired by Janet Allen's book, "Words, Words, Words: Teaching Vocabulary in Grades 4-12," to significantly change the way she thought about and taught vocabulary. Describes several strategies and activities that engaged students in activating background knowledge; making meaningful connections; learning…

Notes and discusses resources on the World Wide Web that deal with grammar and that may be useful to teachers. Lists traditional grammar websites, including online handbooks and style guides, but warns that the isolated teaching of grammar has little impact on student writing. Concludes that websites are needed that actually show teachers how to…

Discusses four books that will be useful to teachers who are rethinking how and why they teach grammar, and who want to connect and imbed the study of grammar in students' thinking and writing. (SR)

Presents brief annotations of 11 articles that consider the place of young adult literature in the classroom. Notes that these 11 are judged the best of Hipple's compilation (published in "The ALAN Review") of 99 fine articles about young adult literature, articles that were written across several decades and published in a variety of journals.…

Explains that plot and structure, character, setting, point of view, style and language, symbol, and theme are the building blocks of fiction. Contends that these elements of literature provide readers with the tools they need for navigating difficult texts. Concludes that when teachers determine that a novel's setting is too foreign or the point…

Describes how the author, in his seventh-grade English class, taught "little grammar" (sentence structure, parts of speech, and usage) and "big grammar" (such as essay structure, points of an argument, and rhetorical devices) through reading meaningful texts drawn from their history class. Discusses successes and difficulties with this approach,…

Argues that what really matters in vocabulary development is that students come to love words, know that words have power, and develop for themselves a range of language choices. Argues that this can be brought about in classrooms with effective practice for vocabulary instruction: extensive reading, meaningful word study, and diverse…

Describes how two teachers approach poetry writing with at-risk high school students over a 12-week period, structuring activities to initiate poetry as language play, selecting model poems that are developmentally appropriate, and organizing writing assignments that encourage students to draw on their individual experiences. Discusses conducting…

Offers brief descriptions of 23 mysteries that will appeal to adolescent readers. Notes that further lists of excellent titles in the category of juvenile and young adult mystery are available on the Edgar Allen Poe website at http://www.mysterywriters.org/awards.html. (SR)

Describes the author's experience as a student teacher facing an angry parent who challenged a book choice (a young adult novel by Chris Crutcher) that caused otherwise bored and disinterested students to read with interest and passion. (SR)

Describes how a seventh-grade teacher introduced her students to poetry by having them create performances of rhythmic poems. Describes how her students created moving performances of poems and responded to poetry with deeper and more personal insights than she had ever seen. Describes students' public poetry performances. Offers examples of…

Describes how an eighth-grade language-arts teacher teaches poetry via performance. Describes how she introduces poetry, performance, and audience. Shows how students (even non-readers and non-achievers) quickly show great eagerness to do poetry with enthusiasm, excitement, and energy; and now perform locally. Includes a poetry portfolio outline…

Argues that, taught in the context of writing, grammar can enhance and improve students' writing. Offers classroom examples showing how: good preparation for writing fosters good grammar and detail; students can use grammatical and syntactic constructions used by professional authors as models for their own writing; and how to help students learn…

Describes how the author has her students create "found poems" and use them in conjunction with the students' own Readers/Writers Logs to help students make more of a text, own it, and discover the power of effective language. Includes instructions, student samples of found poems, and samples of the entire process. (SR)

Offers brief annotations of 18 books for young adults which are the author's favorites: books that break new ground with unusual styles and formats; that discuss hitherto taboo topics; and present fresh distinctive new voices for readers. (SR)