Instructor (1990) articles from April 1999

Instructor (1990) archives from April 1999

(Practically) painless peer editing.(editing classmates' work)
April 1, 1999... Your students can work together to strengthen writing skills Any professional writer knows the value of a good editor. Youngsters can also learn a tremendous amount about how to write as they learn how to compliment, suggest changes, and...

Everyone has stories to tell.(using interviews as a way to promote cross-curricular learning)
April 1, 1999... Interviews - a gateway to cross-curricular learning Stephan, the father of one of my students, sat in a rocking chair, facing the class. A roomful of first graders, interview journals in hand, stared back at him. "What's your job?"...

How sweet it is!(getting children excited about mathematics)
April 1, 1999... GETTING KIDS EXCITED ABOUT MATH - PHILOSOPHIES AND STRATEGIES FROM TEACHING PROS You're a great teacher. You love what you do. So why is it that when teaching math, you sometimes find yourself with students who seem, well, less than...

Take out your No. 2 pencils.(how to help ease students' anxiety about standardized tests)
April 1, 1999... Taking the stress out of standardized tests American students may be the most tested kids in the world, taking more than 100 million standardized tests every year, according to Teachers College at Columbia University, in New York City. The...

Focus on point of view.
April 1, 1999... Everybody knows the story of The Three Little Pigs. Or at least they think they do. But I'll let you in on a little secret. Nobody knows the real story, because nobody has ever heard my side of the story." In The True Story of the 3 Little...

The army ants.(poem)
April 1, 1999... LEFT RIGHT LEFT RIGHT WE'RE ARMY ANTS. WE SWARM WE FIGHT. WE HAVER NO HOME. WE ROAM. WE RACE. YOU'RE LUCKY IF WE MISS YOUR PLACE. - Douglas Florian From Insectlopedia by Douglas Florian. Copyright[C] 1998 by Douglas Florian. Reprinted...

Spring rain.(poem)
April 1, 1999... I puddle up the neighborhood I make the mailman mad I wake the worm and spank the frog Sleeping on his lily pad And when the tulips in their beds Nod happily, it's true, I shake the petals of their hands And say, How do you dew? The Joy of...

The joy of the persona poem.(poems written from the point of view of the object being written about)
April 1, 1999... Persona poems are written from the point of view of a thing. In essence, the poet becomes the thing. Not surprisingly, persona poems are often referred to as mask poems because the poet is wearing the "mask" of an object. Your students will...

Power package!(ClassWorks Gold curriculum-management software program)
April 1, 1999... A standards-based, teacher-friendly software program - and customized classroom support Imagine being able to select from 130 award-winning software titles to support your math and language arts curricula. Even better, imagine that all the...

Creative tools.(suggested software programs for teachers)
April 1, 1999... New CD-ROMs to enrich the curriculum - and add fun to your classroom Teacher Time-Saver Based on SuperPrint, Scholastic's popular writing-and-drawing program, TeacherPrint contains such familiar features as drawing and painting tools...

I think I can!(case study on creating a supportive classroom atmosphere)
April 1, 1999... A first-grade teacher takes a successful football coach's philosophy into the classroom Sometimes, even the best teachers can find themselves in a rut. I found myself in such a predicament about five years ago, when a sequence of events...