Under terms reached with the Soviet Academy of Sciences, the National Science Teachers Association will publish a Soviet science magazine in the United States.
During meetings held in Moscow last month to discuss the exchange of science-education materials, Bill Aldridge, the nsta’s executive director, agreed that his group would prepare a trial issue of Quantum, the English equivalent for the magazine’s Russian title. Copies of the issue, scheduled for publication in September, will be distributed free of charge to gifted and talented children in this country.
Should a marketing study demonstrate sufficient interest, Mr. Aldridge said, regular production of the magazine would begin on a commercial basis in September 1990.
And if Quantum proves successful, he added, the nsta will eventually publish the magazine worldwide nine times a year as part of a joint effort with the Soviet academy.
The nsta will translate Soviet articles and supplement them with pieces written by American scientists, teachers, and students.
“Basically, this is an attempt to take a magazine that is very popular with young people in [the Soviet Union] and make the best of that available in this country,” Mr. Aldridge explained.
The articles will be interesting to gifted children, he said, and various challenges and puzzles will be beneficial to those who compete in academic competitions.
More information about Quantum is available from the nsta, 1742 Connecticut Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20009.
The Teacher’s Journal, an annual publication that addresses issues in teaching and teacher training from a classroom perspective, has made its debut.
Written for and by teachers, the journal is an outgrowth of Brown University’s Teaching Center, a program founded to foster greater collegiality among classroom teachers.
“Existing journals tend to be discipline-specific and theoretical,” said Joseph McDonald, a member of the publication’s editorial board and professor of English education at Brown.
“We plan not to avoid theory, but to address different subjects and aspects of teaching,” he said.
In the first issue, essays by teachers examine the profession and explore reasons why more teachers do not write about their careers.
The next issue, said Mr. McDonald, will focus on the Coalition of Essential Schools, a school-reform network based at Brown.
The journal, funded in large part by the Metropolitan Life Foundation, is currently seeking further grants to expand publication to twice a year.
Until such expansion is assured, subscriptions are available for $5 a year.
Further information may be obtained by writing The Teacher’s Journal, Education Department, Box 1938, Brown University, Providence, R.I. 02192.
The school division of the Association of American Publishers has released a guide designed to answer parents’ questions about how they can help their children get more out of schooling.
The 36-page booklet, Helping Your Child Succeed in School, offers suggestions for fostering a sound learning environment, building study skills, and resolving problem situations.
Also included are tips on such topics as taking notes and scheduling homework.
Copies of the booklet can be purchased for $1.50 each from School Division, aap, 220 East 23rd St., New York, N.Y. 10010.
Another booklet, published by the U.S. Education Department’s office of educational research and improvement, offers parents suggestions for helping their children become better readers by teaching them to take advantage of available library resources.
Helping Your Child Use the Library urges parents to expose their children to the many activities offered by local public libraries. It includes descriptions of programs designed for toddlers and school-age youngsters.
The 24-page publication is available for 50 cents from Department 465V, Consumer Information Center, Pueblo, Colo. 81009.
And helping parents encourage reading at home is the goal of a new brochure published in both English and Spanish by Reading Is Fundamental.
Helping Your Children Become Readers and its Spanish counterpart, Como Ayudar a Que Sus Ninos Sean Buenos Lectores, offer parents 10 tips to promote their children’s reading.
Suggestions include visiting the library together, asking older children to read to younger ones, and keeping reading materials around the house.
The brochures, which mark rif’s continuing observance of the “Year of the Young Reader,” were underwritten by a grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Copies of the pamphlets, which have been designed in a reproducible format to encourage further distribution at no charge, can be ordered for an initial fee of $5 each from rif’s Publications Department, P.O. Box 23444, Washington, D.C. 20026.
Beginning with its July issue, School Library Journal will become a monthly publication, marking the magazine’s third increase in publishing frequency.
Founded in 1954, the magazine originally appeared nine times a year; it began publishing 10 issues annually in 1980 and expanded to 11 in 1987.
The journal offers professional guidance to school librarians and provides information on book acquisitions and audiovisual materials.
Publishing monthly will “permit uninterrupted review services of books,” said Lillian N. Gerhardt, the magazine’s editor-in-chief.
Feature contents will remain the same, she said, but the 12th issue may have “more emphasis on issues of public-library services.”
The Children’s Literature Center at the Library of Congress has published its fifth annual list of recommended works for young readers.
“Books for Children” includes brief annotations for approximately 100 titles, categorized by reading level and genre.
The 12-page pamphlet is compiled annually by Margaret N. Coughlan of the center, with the assistance of a committee of children’s-books specialists from the Washington area.
Copies of the list are available for $1 each from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402; please specify stock number 030-001-00131-8 when ordering.
“Choosing a Child’s Book,” a brochure with advice on selecting books for children, has been reissued by the Children’s Book Council.
The 1989 edition of the brochure contains tips for selecting titles for children of various ages, from toddlers to 12-year-olds.
The six-panel pamphlet also includes a short, annotated bibliography of resources on sharing books with children and encouraging a love of reading.
The brochure can be ordered at the rate of $15 for 25 copies from the Children’s Book Council Order Center, 350 Scotland Road, Orange, N.J. 07050.
Single copies are available for free; send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to “Choosing,” Children’s Book Council, 67 Irving Place, P.O. Box 706, New York, N.Y. 10276-0706.--jw
