English Journal, Vol. 94, No. 4, March 2005

Table of Contents

• Call for Manuscripts

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  Abstract: Abstract for this article is currently not available.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• From the Editor

  Louann Reid, Editor

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  Abstract: Abstract for this article is currently not available.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• From the Secondary Section: The Graying of Our Profession

  Jackie E. Swensson

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  Abstract: Members of the Secondary Section Steering Committee comment on topics of importance to English language arts educators.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Snapshots: The Thank-You Letter

  Rebecca J. Poole

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  Abstract: “Snapshots” offers insights about teaching and learning through teacher stories about a particular classroom event.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Speaking My Mind: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Standardized Testing

  Tim Moxey

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  Abstract: “Speaking My Mind” invites readers to speak out about controversial issues relevant to the teaching of English language arts.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• In Her Own Words: Remembering Louise M.Rosenblatt, 1904-2005

  Louise M. Rosenblatt

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  Abstract: Abstract for this article is currently not available.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Fifty-Five Teachers, Poems in Hand, Approach the Cruelest Month

  James Brewbaker

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  Abstract: In anticipation of National Poetry Month, James Brewbaker presents a collection of lessons for teaching poetry, all utilizing the same group of five poems. Various educators provide the lessons, demonstrating the value of diverse approaches to the same material.

  Keywords: Language, Middle, Secondary

• The Paradox of Structure and Freedom: An Experiment in Writing Poetry

  Deborah Womelsduff

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  Abstract: Using a traditional African poem as a model, Deborah Womelsduff helps ninth-grade students find their writing voices. She has learned through teaching this poetry project that having a well-defined structure allows students to think and write creatively.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Learning to Listen, Listening to Learn: Teaching Poetry as a Sensory Medium

  Lewis Cobbs

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  Abstract: Arguing that analysis of the musical qualities of poetry is often avoided, Lewis Cobbs presents strategies teachers can use to help students understand how these elements contribute to constructing meaning. He relates the musical qualities of poetry to similar features of popular music.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Using Poems for Multiple Voices to Teach Creative Writing

  William P. Bintz and Trisha Henning-Shannon

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  Abstract: Finding it difficult to get students excited about writing authentically, teacher-researchers William P. Bintz and Trisha Henning-Shannon took a risk. They used Fleischman’s books of poems for two voices as models, and high school students responded with moving poems of their own. The authors cite a number of factors that led to the students’ success and include examples of the poems that resulted from this innovative assignment.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Teaching Works We Love: Hazards of the English Classroom

  Rebecca Hayden

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  Abstract: When students reject or ridicule our favorite work of literature, it is easy to take the rejection personally. High school teacher Rebecca Hayden relates what happened when she taught the novel she credits with turning her into an English teacher.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Feeding Reading: Writing from an Information-Processing Perspective

  John T. Crow

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  Abstract: Using examples of successful classroom activities, John T. Crow shows how he helps his students become better writers by first helping them to understand how we construct meaning as readers.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• TBI: Our Teachers Are Not Prepared

  Kelly V. Bouldin

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  Abstract: As a high school student, Kelly V. Bouldin suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) that resulted in partial amnesia and learning disabilities. Now a graduate student preparing to teach, she describes the difficulties she faced in returning to school and recommends strategies educators can use to help similar students they encounter in their classrooms.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• The Mouse That Roared: Teaching Vocabulary with Source-Based Lessons

  James Blasingame Jr. and Alleen Pace Nilsen

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  Abstract: Since current research suggests that the best way to teach vocabulary is to group related words, James Blasingame Jr. and Alleen Pace Nilsen present a lesson focusing on the names of muscles but relating them to more common words. Students create visual representations of word groups and teach the words to the class.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Teacher as Machine: The Cost of Objectivity

  David Narter

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  Abstract: Objective grading techniques and disciplinary procedures are increasingly employed in schools to provide a safe and fair educational environment. However, high school teacher David Narter argues that such mechanistic procedures can never be truly objective and that they will result in more harms than benefits.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Forgiving Ourselves and Forging Ahead: Teaching Grammar in a New Millennium

  Susan Losee Nunan

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  Abstract: While studies show the ineffectiveness of direct grammar instruction to produce better writers, high school teacher Susan Losee Nunan finds that explaining grammar rules provides students with tools for building complex thoughts and expressing themselves more elaborately.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Liberating the Student's Voice: A Teacher's Story of the College Essay

  Mark Holding

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  Abstract: High school teacher Mark Holding created a unit to help uninspired seniors write personal essays for college applications. The carefully developed steps help students move away from formulas to regain their freedom and voice in writing.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Continuing the Classroom Community: Suggestions for Using Online Discussion Boards

  Vivian Jewell

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  Abstract: Thoughtful use of technology to supplement classroom instruction can improve student learning. High school teacher Vivian Jewell shows how the use of online discussions of literature assignments increases student participation by extending dialogue beyond the physical space and time of a single class.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Fighting Forward: Why Studying Standardized Tests with Our Students Is Important

  Don J. Kraemer

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  Abstract: Don J. Kraemer argues that helping students intelligently critique standardized tests is a necessary form of test preparation. His detailed analysis of typical questions reveals what students are truly asked to do on the tests.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Research Matters: Culturally Responsive Frameworks for Teaching

  Rick VanDeWeghe, editor

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  Abstract: “Research Matters” provides teachers with review and application of research that illuminates the daily concerns and activities of English language arts teachers and classrooms.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• New Voices: Teaching People

  Tiffany J. Hunt and Bud Hunt, Coeditors

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  Abstract: “New Voices” raises questions, offers insights, and provides a forum for novice teachers to engage in the professional conversation surrounding the teaching of English.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Teaching English in the World: The Post-9/11 English Teacher

  Kenneth Lindblom, editor

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  Abstract: “Teaching English in the World” examines the teaching of English in a global context.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• English in the City: Reconsidering Teaching—In the City

  Greg Hamilton, editor

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  Abstract: “English in the City” focuses on the particular challenges, choices, and celebrations relevant to teaching in an urban setting.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Stepping Into the Classroom: We Believe in the Individual

  Terry Patrick Bigelow and Michael J. Vokoun, editors

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  Abstract: Abstract for this article is currently not available.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Personal Reading: Finding Truth in the Deep Heart's Core

  Suellen Alfred and Linda Null, editors

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  Abstract: “Personal Reading” contains reviews of fiction and nonfiction books, with a special interest in multicultural works.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Bold Books for Teenagers

  Don Gallo, editor

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  Abstract: Abstract for this article is currently not available.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

• Poetry

  James Brewbaker, editor

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  Abstract: “Poetry” features poems by teachers and professional poets.

  Keywords: Middle, Secondary

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