Wikibooks:WikiProject Classroom-usable texts

Millions of dollars are spent every year on textbooks by educational institutions at the primary and secondary level, money perhaps better spent elsewhere. Wikibooks could, in concept at least, help to relieve that burden. However, the creation of classroom-usable texts is complex, involving adherence to standards, writing with language and syntax appropriate to the age of children in question, and the inclusion with the text of instructional activities aimed at the explicit teaching of vocabulary and reading strategies. The vast majority of Wikibooks texts are written in such a way as to only be useful at a collegiate level of instruction, and most would fail any textbook approval process in their current state. There is a need for a WikiProject to coordinate efforts to meet the goal of classroom usable texts.

Goal
This WikiProject takes as its goal the creation of a series of texts that can replace or improve upon traditional corporate-produced instructional textbooks for primary and secondary schools.

How to Write Usable Classroom Texts
Educators speak of the importance of creating kid-friendly text for their students. In practice, this is very difficult. In any given classroom, you may have students reading at a very broad range of reading levels. Most teachers, however, use a basic text pegged to the average assumed reading level of students they teach.

For a book to be kid-friendly at a specific reading level, its grammar, vocabulary, syntax, and the difficulty of ideas contained within it need to be accessible for students with an approximate level of skill in reading comprehension. Educators worldwide use many different systems to measure the level of skill required to read and understand a particular text. In the United States, one of the most common systems is called the lexile system. An external link with more explanation is located |here.

More information about writing usable classroom texts will arrive soon. Or you can write it yourself. Be bold in your editing.

Links to Standards on Specific Topics
In the United States, the California state content standards become the basis for most textbooks, simply because of the size of the California market. Links below point to content standards from the California Department of Education as well as relevant national authorities, if their standards are publicly accessible in a free version.

English Language Arts

 * California Standards
 * National Council of Teachers of English

English for English Language Learners

 * California Standards

Science

 * California Standards
 * National Science Teachers Association

Social Studies

 * California Standards

Mathematics

 * California Standards
 * National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Standards

Visual and Performing Arts

 * California Standards - Link goes straight to .pdf

Textbooks Under Production

 * Ancient and Medieval History (U.S. 6th Grade Social Studies to Content Standard)

Members
Please add your name alphabetically, and give a description of what content areas you are interested in.


 * 1) Luedtke 01:28, 20 February 2007 (UTC) - middle school social studies