Elementary Education and Teaching Commons^™

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 …

Reading: The Conferences, Kathryn Kinnucan-Welsch

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

The theme of this issue of Reading Horizons is exemplary practice, and as I recall, several of the sessions from the annual conference of the International Reading Association it becomes clear how central the concept of teacher as professional is to exemplary practice. One session in particular — Teacher Preparation and Staff Development: Lessons from New Zealand — presented by Debra Elliot and colleagues provided some food for thought in considering the teacher as professional. In discussing current models of student teaching, which is of course a critical component to the development of the teacher as professional, Stephanie Steffey from …

Reviews: Professional Materials, Kathryn Kinnucan-Welsch, Sherry R. Myers, Paul Bright, Jeanne M. Jacobson

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Reviews of the following:

• Basic Reading Inventory (Jerry L. Johns)
• Merry Christmas, Amanda and April (Bonnie Pryor)
• Chicken Man (Michelle Edwards)
• All the Lights in the Night (Arthur A. Levine)
• Jack and the Beanstalk (Steven Kellogg)
• The Swineherd (Hans Christian Andersen)
• The Worst Person’s Christmas (James Stevenson)
• That’s Exactly the Way it Wasn’t (James Stevenson)
• An Auto Mechanic; A Carpenter; A Potter (Douglas Florian)
• Meredith’s Mother Takes the Train (Deborah Lee Rose)

In The Classroom: Poetry In Motion (May '91), Michael P. French, Kathy Everts Danielson

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Presents a look at several special projects designed by various teachers to foster learning in young children. Includes using a body movement to respond to poetry, creating a `Book-a-Mania' week of instructional and entertaining events, and using logos and street signs to teach reading awareness.

In The Classroom: Building Self-Esteem Through Poetry (April '91), Michael P. French, Kathy Everts Danielson

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Describes the instruction programs devised by various teachers across the nation and the benefits of the programs. Includes building self-esteem through poetry, fostering the connection between art and poetry, and using Caldecott Medal books to motivate independent reading and creative writing.

In The Classroom: Details, Details, Details (Nov. '90), Michael P. French, Kathy Everts Danielson

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Recounts how several teachers came up with their own solutions to teaching problems involving diverse areas like reading diagnosis, writing workshops, and peer conferencing.

In The Classroom: Vocabulary (April '90), Michael P. French, Kathy Everts Danielson, Maureen Conn, Willa Gale, Charlene Lueck, Mona Manley

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Vocabulary knowledge is one of the most critical elements of comprehension. Helping students to expand their own vocabularies and to become more interested in words is a challenge for all teachers. The following techniques provide teachers various ways to enhance students' vocabulary development. To read more about vocabulary instruction, see: Heimlich, J.E., & Pittelman, S.D. (1986). Semantic mapping: Classroom applications. Newark, DE: International Reading Association. Johnson, D.D. (Ed.) (1986). Vocabulary [Special issuel. Journal of Reading, 29 (7). Johnson, D.D., & Pearson, PD. (1984). Teaching reading vocabulary (2nd ed.). New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Marzano, R.J., & Marzano, J.S. (1988). …

In The Classroom: Strategies For Poor Readers (Mar. '90), Michael P. French, Kathy Everts Danielson, Maureen Conn, Willa Gale, Charlene Lueck, Mona Manley

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

All readers need successful learning experiences. Recent research suggests that poor readers benefit from using the same whole language reading and writing strategies as more successful readers. In her introduction to the April 1988 themed issue of Vie Reading Teacher on what works with poor readers.

Irene West Gaskins stated: The research I was doing supported the current view that reading is a process in which an active and strategic reader gains meaning through an interaction between background knowledge and information in a text. Since I have adopted this definition, the way I teach has changed and students in the …

In The Classroom: Reading And Writing In The Content Areas (Dec. '89), Michael P. French, Kathy Everts Danielson, Maureen Conn, Willa Gale, Charlene Lueck, Mona Manley

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Students comprehend content material by reading, discussing, writing, questioning, investigating, exploring, and organizing. Reading and writing in the content areas relates prior knowledge, classroom interaction, cooperative learning, vocabulary instruction, and questioning techniques. Children practice research skills by organizing information in a meaningful and practical manner. This month's In the Classroom column presents ways in which teachers can enhance their students' comprehension of content area topics by involving them in various classroom activities. Additional resources for content area reading and writing activities follow :

Dupuis, M.M. (1983). Reading in the content areas: Research for teachers. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Graves, …

In The Classroom: Using Children's Literature (Oct. '89), Michael P. French, Kathy Everts Danielson, Maureen Conn, Willa Gale, Charlene Lueck, Mona Manley

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Lists children's literature in reading instruction. "Children's Literature in the Reading Program"; "Literature-based Reading Programs at Work"; "Children's Choices: Teaching With Books Children Like"; "Transitions: From Literature to Literacy".