Digital Commons Network^™

Using Motivational Theory With At-Risk Children, Rachel M. B. Collopy, Theresa Green

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Rawsonville Elementary is a neighborhood school near Detroit, where the automotive industry is the major employer. Recent layoffs have affected many families in the area, and more than half of the school's 480 students receive reduced or free lunch. Of the district's six elementary schools, Rawsonville has been identified as most in need of Chapter 1 services. For years, the school improvement team had worked hard to improve student motivation and learning. Yet, something was still missing. The number of at-risk and underachieving students entering the school continued to increase.

At the same time, a group of researchers at the …

Using Storybooks To Acquaint Children With The Continent Of Africa, Mary J. Lickteig, Kathy Everts Danielson

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

I learned so much about Africa. I learned countries, cities, villages, mountains, deserts, rivers, languages. Have you ever been to Africa? I wish I could go.

This comment, by a third-grade student, was typical of the responses from students who participated in a project designed to help children learn about Africa by offering them books with African settings. In this article, we share the methods we used to acquaint students with the continent of Africa. We have also included students' responses to a questionnaire, information gathered by an observer, and quotes from students' letters.

Use Children's Books To Link The Cultures Of The World, Mary J. Lickteig, Kathy Everts Danielson

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Global education is a timely and important emphasis in schools today. In this article, we consider the goals of global education, present a rationale for providing global education experiences at the age children are most responsive to instruction, explore the ways that children's trade books can provide links among cultures, and consider goals of geography and ways trade books can be used to meet these goals.