Talking Points, Vol. 20, No. 1, October 2008

Table of Contents

• From the Editors

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  Abstract: Abstract for this article is currently not available.

  Keywords: Elementary, Middle, Secondary, College

• A Marvel in the Making: Composing a Shakespearean Comic Book in a High School English Class

  Adrienne M. Costello

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  Abstract: High school students working in small groups create Shakespearean comic books to bring the text of Romeo and Juliet alive for themselves and their classmates. The students work on paper rather than online.

  Keywords: Elementary, Middle, Secondary, College

• Making Magic: Bringing Words and Pictures Together

  Beth Olshansky

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  Abstract: First graders learn the power of transmediation—recasting meaning from one sign system to another—as they create meaningful texts in a very dynamic artists/writers workshop. Students study picture books to identify story elements, conveyed in both pictures and in words, and then infuse their new understandings into their own carefully crafted picture books.

  Keywords: Elementary, Middle, Secondary, College

• Improvised Classroom Drama in a Fictional Book Company: Urban Fifth Graders Learn about Colonial America by Reading, Sketching, and Writing in Role

  Esther Cappon Gray

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  Abstract: Fifth-grade students take on the identities of adults in a fictional book publishing company, then research and write their own book about Colonial America. The improvised classroom drama of the publishing company brought a new dimension to student inquiry, and the pictures the students created to illustrate their book helped to reveal their comprehension of the information they were researching.

  Keywords: Elementary, Middle, Secondary, College

• Book Review: High Praise for the Power! A Review of The Power of Pictures: Creating Pathways to Literacy through Art by Beth Olshansky

  reviewed by Claudia E. Cornett

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  Abstract: Claudia Cornell reviews Beth Olshansky’s new book, The Power of Pictures: Creating Pathways to Literacy through Art, which uses an innovative arts-based alternative to tap into the source of all good writing—the pictures inside and outside your head.

  Keywords: Elementary, Middle, Secondary, College

• Talking TAWL

  David P. Schultz , editor

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  Abstract: Reports from various TAWL groups around the country discuss each group’s activities.

  Keywords: Elementary, Middle, Secondary, College

• WLU on the Move!

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  Abstract: News from the WLU president and board.

  Keywords: Elementary, Middle, Secondary, College

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