Describes a "lunch theater" project implemented at Hampstead Central School in Hampstead, New Hampshire. Groups of first through fourth graders rehearsed and performed songs, dances, magic, comedy, gymnastics, and student-written skits during their respective lunch periods for an audience of fellow students, staff, and teachers. Students…

Describes the Eakin School Project, developed in collaboration with the Nashville (Tennessee) Institute for the Arts (NIA), a five-year project begun in 1991 to make the arts and aesthetic education central to the kindergarten through grade six curriculum at the Eakin School. Students view performances in and around Nashville and are taught by…

It is well known that developing a love of language helps children become successful readers and writers, and one way to teach children to love words is to introduce them to poetry. This article describes the Sallye B. Mathis Elementary School, a challenged urban school in Jacksonville, Florida, is full of children who love words because they love…

Describes the use of generative curriculum in a first-grade class, whereby students pursue their own topics of interest and ways of learning as they engage in meaningful inquiry. Outlines demonstrations that teachers can use to help students develop their own topics. Areas covered include composition, visual arts, notetaking, interviews, surveys,…