UpDate - Vol. 15, No. 37, Page 6
July 18, 1996
New book on fine arts, learning

     Nancy King of Ardentown, professor of symbolic learning in the
University of Delaware Honors Program, is author of a new book,
Playing Their Part:  Language and Learning in the Classroom, which
examines using fine arts such as drama, poetry, imagemaking, movement,
storymaking and music to help students learn in the classroom.
     The book is published by Heinemann of Portsmouth, N.H.
     Designed for kindergarten through eighth grade teachers and
others who work with children, King's book discusses the process of
"making" (painting, sculpting, etc.) and how it enables students to
become active learners and to create a classroom environment of
excitement and discovery, as opposed to the memorization of sometimes
isolated facts.
     "It is a book of stories," King says in her introduction.
"Telling stories has not only been the most effective way for me to
communicate feelings, ideas and experience in the classroom, it has
also proven to be a powerful method to help people appreciate and
honor the knowledge, insights and experiences of people from other
cultures and countries."
     The book is divided into four major sections on introducing
techniques and experiences; discussing how teachers develop their own
capabilities; designing a comprehensive language arts experience; and
dealing with the place of evaluation in the educational process. An
afterword and bibliography provide resources.
     King has written six books, as well as essays and other
publications.
                                                          -Gerry Elter