Chinese characters are used in both Chinese and Japanese writing systems. When literate speakers of either language experience problems in finding or understanding words, they often resort to using Chinese characters or "kanji" (i.e., Chinese characters used in Japanese writing) in their talk, a practice known as "brush talk" ("bitan" in Chinese,…

Student-dictated word portraits used in teaching language are discussed. (DB)

During the summer of 2005, a longtime Japanese teacher at a K-8 school in southwestern Pennsylvania unexpectedly resigned. The school, unable to recruit a new teacher for the 2005-2006 school year, chose to suspend the teaching of Japanese and to establish a committee to examine the foreign language program within the overall school curriculum. In…

Reviews recent ERIC resources for creating integrated learning environments. (DD)

Ways are outlined in which the elementary school teacher can develop a program to improve the writing skills of students. (JD)

Describes an elementary school program that uses Latin to enrich students' learning in literature, language, and writing. (HTH)

Discussed is how strange words frequently reveal their meanings through contextual use, similarity to known vocabulary, by their sounds, or by analysis of their parts. Twelve words from the discipline of biology are analyzed using analysis of their parts. (KR)

This paper presents a guide to the selection and use of finger plays with children. Finger plays are defined as brief stories that rhyme and can be dramatized by fingers. After touching briefly on the origins of finger plays, the paper lists several uses for this activity, including motivating students, introducing new themes or units, and…

Containing numerous vocabulary-building activities and exercises, this guidebook is designed to help elementary students learn to manipulate language as they gain concrete experiences with words, increase their "word power," and have fun. The activities described involve dictionary games, synonyms, "saidonyms" (alternatives for…

The relevance of poetry as a component of language teaching is argued and ways to incorporate poems into English as second language (ESL) lessons are suggested. Literature is valuable as a language learning experience because the language of literature is interesting and memorable and serves as a link with English speaking culture. The study of…

This paper describes a form of teacher-student interaction, incidental teaching, which works to elaborate oral language within everyday classroom activities. The research basis of the methodology, an overview of the method of incidental teaching, and examples of its applications for the classroom are given. (Author/AM)

Provides a brief review of the history of New York's Workshop Center for Open Education as it relates to the science learning of young children. Describes the Center's language enriched inquiry/exploration approach to science education and explains why it is appropriate for non-dominate groups throughout the world. (JDH)

This article explains the use of the origins of American English and the dictionary to teach multiculturalism to elementary school students. It suggests classroom activities that help students explore the cultural roots behind words and appreciate the ways words have been created. Esperanto and the development of an international language are also…

Urges educators to utilize metaphors in language instruction. Two experiments support this position. The results of the first experiment reveal that students learn lexical items more efficiently if presented in metaphors. The results of the second experiment indicate the usefulness of metaphors in developing students' critical thinking. (CFM)

Better results in language teaching require that teachers assume positions of responsibility, cooperation, and mutual understanding. (Editor)