The Teachers and Writers Collaborative at Teachers College, Columbia University, was established in 1967 to involve teachers, children, and writers in the creation of an English curriculum stimulating to the students. Three interrelated programs were developed: (1) the presence of professional writers in the public school classrooms, (2) teacher-training seminars led by the writers, and (3) the development of relevant curriculum materials. In a related pilot project, college undergraduates developed a unit on contemporary poetry that they taught at a vocational high school in Baltimore. Findings of the Collaborative suggested that professional writers inspire students to write in ways that their teachers do not envision; that all children have an intense inner life and an awareness of sex, violence, power, and other strong emotions; and that many teachers are willing to change to less authoritarian teaching styles. (Samples of children's writing are included.) (JS)