This handbook offers teachers suggestions for ways to help students become risk-takers. Five levels of risk-taking behavior are identified: the uninhibited risk-taker, the analytical risk-taker, the cautious risk-taker, the inhibited risk-taker, and the nonrisk-taker. The importance of risk-taking for problem solving, and the teacher's role in promoting risk-taking, are discussed. The type of classroom that promotes risk-taking is described, and suggestions for scheduling and encouraging affective and cognitive development are offered. Individual chapters on mathematics, science, and the language arts include discussion of educational practices in each of the subjects and a list of ideas and activities that can be used in the classroom to encourage risk-taking in learning the subjects. A final chapter offers further ideas and activities that can be used to integrate the content of the subject areas. The whole language approach is stressed. A reference list of 60 items is included. An extrensive bibliography is divided into three sections: fun with words; poetry; and whole language. (BC)