Surveyed more than 900 students in the rural northwest at the 4th-, 6th-, 8th-, and 10th-grade levels for alcohol and drug use. Measured self-reported usage of 17 substances. Reports descriptive statistical results by gender and grade-level usage rates. Discussion includes targeting drug prevention programs for specific grade and gender levels…

Examines whether selected nonmusical attributes of 20 sixth-grade pianists would affect ratings of their performances by 123 musically trained evaluators. States that the visual group evaluators viewed a videotape, without the sound, rating the pianists on appropriateness of dress, stage behavior, and physical attractiveness. The audio and…

Many children read mathematics word problems and directly translate them to arithmetic operations. More sophisticated problem solvers transform word problems into object-based or mental models. Subsequent solutions are often qualitatively different because these models differentially support cognitive processing. Based on a conception of problem…

Recently, the authors engaged in a collaborative inquiry with a sixth grade science class to explore mind mapping, a graphic organizer that can be used to generate ideas, take notes, develop concepts and ideas, and improve memory (Buzan 1979). With a very limited body of research available on how to best use mind maps in the classroom, the authors…

The purpose of this investigation was to assess the factors that lead to success in transitions of giftedness among a middle school student cohort. As part of the Yale University (PACE Center) Transitions in the Development of Giftedness evaluation plan, qualitative data were collected via a semistructured interview protocol. A total of 63…

A questionnaire was distributed to 81 sixth-grade students in an effort to find out the reasons why they chose one book over other books. The 2-item questionnaire was also used to compare reasons given by male and female students to see if there were differences in their responses. Subjects were from 4 classrooms chosen at random from 7 classrooms…

A study examined the effect of three different prereading vocabulary development strategies on sixth grade science test results. Subjects, 81 sixth-grade students from a suburban, middle-class school in Union County, New Jersey, were divided into four heterogeneous science classes and given a pretest of 40 vocabulary words taken from the science…

Examined extent to which sixth and seventh grade students' (n=133) preference for outdoor activity changed during middle school. Found that boys', compared to girls', preference to play outdoors existed only in sixth grade. Factor analyses indicated three factors describing students: Teachers' Choice, Active Female Oriented, and Outdoor Male…

Describes an instructional program designed to promote scientific literacy among middle grade students. The program used a collaborative group instruction approach and focused on the development of tasks that provided students with opportunities to solve problems and to employ concepts useful to scientific problem solving. (PAM)

The purpose of this study was to describe the social interactions of students with and without disabilities in a general physical education (GPE) program. Participants were a girl with Down syndrome and mental retardation, a boy with severe juvenile scoliosis, and their 16 classmates (9 females, 7 males) without disabilities at a rural middle…

A study examined middle grades students' learning of concepts related to the use and interpretation of graphs. Subjects of the study were 76 sixth-grade students in 3 different mathematics classes in a central North Carolina middle school. The first two parts of the written instrument were administered as both a pretest and a posttest, using line…

This report describes a program designed to increase students' knowledge in the science content area utilizing reading comprehension strategies. The targeted population consisted of grade 6 middle school students in a growing urban community in eastern Iowa. The students demonstrated poor comprehension of their science textbook. Data also revealed…

A study conducted in the Orange County Public Schools in central Florida investigated the reading interests of sixth-grade students. The study also gathered information from teachers regarding the nature and source of reading materials used for independent reading in their classrooms and on the implementation of sustained silent reading practices.…

This action research project implemented and evaluated a curriculum designed to help students with varying degrees of emotional intelligence improve their social adeptness. The targeted population consisted of sixth-grade students in a large urban setting in central Illinois. The students' levels of social ineptness were determined and documented…

The story of John Henry provided the setting for sixth-grade class to participate in a John Henry Day of mathematics experiments. The students collected data from experiments where students competed against machines and technology. The student analyzed the data by comparing two box plots, a box plot of human data, and a box plot of machine or…