by Ernest Capraro

Created on: June 22, 2009

The written word is a powerful means of expression, and an excellent tool for learning, relevant to any topic under the sun. How ironic, then, that writing was traditionally confined to only one subject area in school - English. The relatively recent push for "writing across the curriculum" seeks to remedy this situation, but implementation is often a challenge for teachers who were trained to teach their subjects by traditional means. Bringing writing into the classroom alone is a marvelous step, but even better is the opportunity to connect multiple disciplines through a writing activity.

An early question that will often arise when trying to build writing into the curriculum is: "What kind of writing should I use?" For the inexperienced, it isn't unusual to consider old traditional stand-bys like book reports and outlines. Taking it to an extreme, there is also the much-feared research paper. Granted, all are forms of writing, but so much more is available, with the promise of creative outlets and intellectual stimulation. Consider journals, magazine-style articles, play/movie-scripts, opinion and evaluation essays, short stories, poems, grant proposals, advertisements, and most anything else that the imagination produces. Used properly, each one can develop thinking, evaluative, and creative skills - skills useful not only to the particular subject addressed, but throughout life as well.

The second and often more challenging question is: "How do I bridge this assignment to include other disciplines?" Many teachers are experts in their own subject area, but not so knowledgeable in other fields. One easy way to get started is by communicating with teachers in other departments. Some schools do this regularly (and bravo for doing so), but in other districts the idea of a math teacher trading ideas with the history teacher is ludicrous. This is unfortunate, since mathematical concepts did evolve along with historical patterns, even defining segments of society (as in Greek culture). Many historical battles relied heavily on mathematical principles as well. Consider projectiles (like cannon) and firing angles, for instance. Then too, regard the math required in the architecture of great historical wonders, from pyramids to cathedrals. Combining forces, these teachers could create their own wonders in written assignments.

Other sources of interdisciplinary material are readily available, even when fellow teachers aren't handy.

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