A B S T R A C T
In this article we explore similarities and differences between two school subjects,
Norwegian and mathematics, taking a phenomenological perspective and a didactic metaperspective (literacy perspective). Our argument is presented on three levels which
together build on the perspective of meta-language. First we consider the level of
discourse primarily concerning cultural relations and communities of meaning, for
example subject-related communities. The next level is genre, concerning both common
cultural texts and practices and how meanings are framed in linguistic forms. Finally, we
consider arguments regarding the modes of thought which underpin subject-specific
learning. Substantiated by data from own classroom research, we argue that crosscurricular work needs to understand both differences and similarities between subjects,
and the relationships between them