Uses examples from the author's experiences writing books for young adults to show the power of literature to see through someone else's eyes and feel through their skin. Offers suggestions for teachers for ways students can take part in the life of the language, shape it, and discover the vitality of the printed page. (SR)

Describes a unit for the final nine weeks of a senior English class which helps seniors say goodbye. Discusses how reading Sandra Cisneros'"The House on Mango Street" and writing their own versions of excerpts of it (along with other class activities) helps students define what they are leaving and come to terms with it. (SR)

Describes an in-class exercise in which students listen to a piece of music (without lyrics), and then write about their responses. Notes that students learn that responding to literature is as natural as responding to music, and that they all have valid and unique reactions and connections to literature. (SR)

Asserts that Alice Walker is one contemporary writer whose voice deserves to be heard in secondary English language arts classrooms. Suggests a number of class activities (dealing with imagery, organization, literary techniques, and writing and identity) for Walker's essay "In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens." (SR)

Reading biographies will acquaint students with the contributions of African Americans in science, invention, and exploration. This article provides annotated bibliographies of collective and individual biographies; identifies sources of bulletin board and teaching materials and videotapes; and suggests class activities for individual and groups…

Describes a class writing exercise for high school and college English classes (which functions well early in the first semester), which emphasizes a basic idea (that close inspection of a subject will reveal that there is a lot to say about it) by having students describe in detail a person's face, first as a class and then individually. (SR)

Describes how one teacher uses news articles to teach connections between the present-day real world and the books that her students read. Notes that her intent is to help readers transfer concepts from one domain (their reading) to another (real life). Offers the example of how this was done with the book "The Giver" by Lois Lowry. (SR)

Describes using AM-FM, shortwave, and scanner radios in the classroom; suggests class activities integrating the curriculum, including radio logs, geography, social studies, letter writing, and career exploration; and lists related Internet resources and ERIC articles. A sidebar highlights the "Shortwave Classroom" newsletter. (PEN)

Investigates whether parent participation could improve student achievement in one of the author's ninth-grade sheltered English classes. Describes how parents wrote essays with their children, participated in a goal-setting conference, and took part in a literary correspondence discussing "Romeo and Juliet." Discusses the benefits for the…

Describes a castle-building exercise in which students first learn about castles and then, using a map of the school, show on paper how they would convert the school into a castle. (TB)

Presents creative ways to integrate social studies and language arts while teaching content and examining historical personalities. Students can read biographies then deliver first person reports while standing behind billboards, write letters in the character of famous people, read poetry with historical perspective, and keep journals from…

Argues that students develop new reading strategies in order to construct meaning from electronic text. Discusses why reading electronic text is different, and argues that there is historical precedence for this shifting role of the reader. Outlines strategies for helping students reflect on the differences between hypertext and traditional text…

Describes a three-week project in an English classroom in which students in small, mixed-ability groups used PowerPoint to enhance a unit on British literature. Outlines the lesson itself and discusses its positive results, including peer-teaching and learning, improved student motivation to understand themes in poetry, positive socialization, and…

Discusses three award-winning novels for young adults that are very popular with school teachers: "The Giver" by Lois Lowry, "Out of the Dust" by Karen Hesse, and "Holes" by Louis Sachar. Examines the quality of plots, characters, and themes but also considers the artistry in details and emotional impact. Offers…

Argues that, especially in the intermediate grades, keying into students' personal interests is a powerful motivator for learning. Illustrates this with the story of a formerly excellent student who became disillusioned with school in fifth grade, becoming resistant and disruptive. Describes how a project approach to reading and writing that…