In Kathleen Loomis's preschool classroom at the Bennington College Early Childhood Center, the goal for children is not to produce beautiful and expressive artworks or to learn specific methods of working with art media--although those things do happen. Here, the curriculum is built around the philosophy that learning to think and create with art…

This Research Report summarizes various strategies that have been found to help struggling students succeed without having to repeat a grade. They include aligning instruction with standards, providing "early warning" assessments, multiage grouping, accelerated learning, increased professional development for teachers working with low-performing…

The teaching of digital literacies is regarded as an important facet of literacy teaching in the 21st century. With many literacy tests continuing to indicate that students' levels of achievement tend to be differentiated along socioeconomic lines, it seems timely to consider the connections between home and school and how these play out in…

Examined elementary principals' views of combination classes. Interviews indicated they preferred single-grade classes, believing that combinations led to diminished curriculum and parent and teacher concerns. They assigned effective, experienced teachers and high-ability, independent students to these classes. Few viewed combination classes as…

Much credit for the tangible feeling of caring at an Idaho elementary school is due to partnerships that faculty, families, and students have forged across grade levels. These cross-grade buddy systems have put the brakes on bullies, fostered student friendships, and resolved personality conflicts among staff members. (MLH)

In this article, the author profiles Charles Dickens Elementary School in Vancouver, British Columbia, a school that dares to be different from the rest. This elementary school operates on a child-centered, multi-aged framework that is based on belief in an orientation towards continuous progress, appropriate evaluation of progress, schoolwide…

Describes the mixed-age group implementation of the Everyday Mathematics program, which contains many open-ended components that are easily adaptable to the developmental nature of the mixed-age setting. Notes that students can benefit from games, explorations, projects, math messages, and math boxes in mixed-age settings. Team-teaching is used…

The number of multiage educational programs in the United States is relatively small, though they are very popular in many other countries. This paper presents arguments in favor of multiage groupings (e.g., student-teacher continuity, alternatives for special needs students, and viable alternatives to retention), offering advice from the…

A grade one through two teacher describes how her class created and shared original hardcover books. Highlights include how to put the books together, a source for ordering blank books, handwritten vs. typed books, and a "literary luncheon" to share the books with families. (PEN)

A two-year study of a multiage classroom (ages 7 to 9) that used whole-class inquiry centered on a topic or theme found that students lacked ownership of learning. A more theoretical understanding of inquiry was encouraged by letting students pose personally significant questions. (SK)

An elementary teacher planning to teach a multiage class decided to make monthly phone calls to parents to discuss student problems and progress. She called one-quarter of her class's parents every Saturday afternoon, sometimes leaving messages. The process had its drawbacks but kept the teacher up-to-date on her students' lives. (MLH)

Multi-class teaching is a common phenomenon in small schools not only in Fiji, but also in many countries. The aim of the present study was to determine the teaching styles adopted by teachers in the context of multi-class teaching. A qualitative case study research design was adopted. This included a school with multi-class teaching as the norm.…

In response to the rise of collaborative learning within education, two teacher educators redesigned their courses to explore the complexities of pedagogy within a New Learning framework. Multi-age grouping provided opportunities for pre-service teachers to work with others from different year levels on an interdisciplinary assessment task. As a…

Discusses the problems associated with having people from four generations in the training classroom. Offers tips for training people from age 20 through 70. (JOW)

Provides tips and ideas for making the Everyday Mathematics curriculum work in a multiage setting, including suggestions for classroom and curriculum management and home/school communication. (ASK)