Graduate Research Papers

Availability

Open Access Graduate Research Paper

Keywords

Combination of grades; Friendship--Study and teaching (Elementary); Children's literature--Study and teaching (Elementary);

Abstract

A literature-based thematic unit, friendship, has been developed for a multi-age classroom (grades three and four). This thematic unit can contribute to a major goal of a multi-age classroom: to provide students with a learning community in which they can find meaningful learning experiences, thus strengthening their personal-social and thinking-language abilities. The strands for the unit not only included friendship among peers, but also they extended the horizons of friendship to young children through mentoring, to peers at a distance through pen pals, and to the elderly through visitations to a retirement home.

In developing a print-rich learning environment for the unit, experiences with the different genres of literature and many options for related expressive activity were developed. Such a learning environment provides students with many opportunities to create meaning (Harms & Lettow, 1998; Langer, 1995; Routman, 1991).

Year of Submission

2000

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Education

Department

Department of Curriculum and Instruction

First Advisor

Jeanne McLain Harms

Comments

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Date Original

2000

Object Description

1 PDF file (14 pages)

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

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