Based on survey responses from over 900 adult readers and classroom feedback, Reading in the Wild offers solid advice and strategies on how to develop, encourage and assess key lifelong reading habits, including dedicating time for reading, planning for future reading, and defining oneself as a reader.Includes advice for supporting the love of reading by explicitly teaching lifelong reading habits. Contains accessible strategies, ideas, tips, lesson plans and management tools along with lists of recommended books co-published with Editorial Projects in Education, publisher of "Education Week" and "Teacher Magazine"Packed with ideas for helping students choose their own reading material, respond to text, and build capacity for lifelong reading.

    This book, which calls for the top 10 percent of America to step up and take an active role in our government and our businesses, presents a revolutionary approach to lift us out of the economic doldrums and make us fully engaged with the freedoms we take for granted. The storyline focuses on David Mersher, the successful CEO of Indytech who, at the end of his career, is trying to find out why the United States had lost its edge as a world economic power, and what he can do to help the US lift itself out of its financial malaise. Mersher gathers his trusted advisers to see what they can do to rally Americans to lead -- be it economically, financially, or politically. Their conclusions are powerful and unexpected and will generate tremendous debate.

    We call this imprisonment schooling, yet wonder why kids become bored and misbehave. Even outside of school children today seldom play and explore without adult supervision, and are afforded few opportunities to control their own lives. The result: anxious, unfocused children who see schooling—and life—as a series of hoops to struggle through.In Free to Learn, developmental psychologist Peter Gray argues that our children, if free to pursue their own interests through play, will not only learn all they need to know, but will do so with energy and passion. Children come into this world burning to learn, equipped with the curiosity, playfulness, and sociability to direct their own education. Yet we have squelched such instincts in a school model originally developed to indoctrinate, not to promote intellectual growth.To foster children who will thrive in today’s constantly changing world, we must entrust them to steer their own learning and development. Drawing on evidence from anthropology, psychology, and history, Gray demonstrates that free play is the primary means by which children learn to control their lives, solve problems, get along with peers, and become emotionally resilient. This capacity to learn through play evolved long ago, in hunter-gatherer bands where children acquired the skills of the culture through their own initiatives. And these instincts still operate remarkably well today, as studies at alternative, democratically administered schools show. When children are in charge of their own education, they learn better—and at lower cost than the traditional model of coercive schooling.A brave, counterintuitive proposal for freeing our children from the shackles of the curiosity-killing institution we call school, Free to Learn suggests that it’s time to stop asking what’s wrong with our children, and start asking what’s wrong with the system. It shows how we can act—both as parents and as members of society—to improve children’s lives and promote their happiness and learning.

    Established coaches will find numerous ways to deepen and refine their coaching practice. Principals and others who incorporate coaching strategies into their work will also find a wealth of resources.Aguilar offers a model for transformational coaching which could be implemented as professional development in schools or districts anywhere. Although she addresses the needs of adult learners, her model maintains a student-centered focus, with a specific lens on addressing equity issues in schools.Offers a practical resource for school coaches, principals, district leaders, and other administrators Presents a transformational coaching model which addresses systems change Pays explicit attention to surfacing and interrupting inequities in schools The Art of Coaching: Effective Strategies for School Transformation offers a compendium of school coaching ideas, the book's explicit, user-friendly structure enhances the ability to access the information.

    K” – the fierce, foot-stomping Ukrainian-born music teacher who rehearsed them until their fingers almost bled, and who made them better than they had any right to be. Away from the classroom, though, life seemed to conspire against him at every turn. Strings Attached takes you on his remarkable journey, from his childhood on the run in Nazi Germany, to his life in America caring for his two young daughters and his disabled wife, to his search for his younger daughter after she mysteriously disappears - a search that would last for seven years. His unforgettable story is lyrically told in alternating chapters by two childhood friends who reconnected decades later: Melanie Kupchynsky, his daughter, and Joanne Lipman, a former student. Joanne recalls the intimidating teacher who nevertheless "had such absolute confidence—faith, really—in my ability to do better.” Melanie tells of a father who gave heart and soul to his family and students, who loved music and open skies, and who in spite of everything believed hard work would result in great beauty.Heartbreaking yet ultimately triumphant, Strings Attached is a testament to the astonishing power of hope--and a celebration of the profound impact that one person can have on the lives of others._______________________To hear the music from STRINGS ATTACHED, please visit StringsAttachedBook.com

    Yet even though children with dyslexia may have trouble reading, they don’t have any problems learning; dyslexia has nothing to do with a lack of intellect. While other books tell you what dyslexia is, this book tells you what to do. Dyslexics’ innate skills, which may include verbal, social, spatial, kinesthetic, visual, mathematical, or musical abilities, are their unique key to acquiring knowledge. Figuring out where their individual strengths lie, and then harnessing these skills, offers an entrée into learning and excelling. And by keeping the focus on learning, not on standard reading the same way everyone else does, a child with dyslexia can and will develop the self-confidence to flourish in the classroom and beyond. After years of battling with a school system that did not understand his dyslexia and the shame that accompanied it, renowned activist and entrepreneur Ben Foss is not only open about his dyslexia, he is proud of it. In The Dyslexia Empowerment Plan he shares his personal triumphs and failures so that you can learn from his experiences, and provides a three-step approach for success: • Identify your child’s profile: By mapping your child’s strengths and weaknesses and assisting her to better understand who she is, you can help your child move away from shame and feelings of inadequacy and move toward creating a powerful program for learning.• Help your child help himself: Coach your child to become his own best advocate by developing resiliency, confidence, and self-awareness, and focusing on achievable goals in areas that matter most to him.• Create community: Dyslexic children are not broken, but too often the system designed to educate them is. Dare to change your school so that your child has the resources to thrive. Understanding your rights and finding allies will make you and your child feel connected and no longer alone. Packed with practical ideas and strategies dyslexic children need for excelling in school and in life, this empowering guide provides the framework for charting a future for your child that is bright with hope and unlimited potential.Praise for The Dyslexia Empowerment Plan“A passionate and well-articulated guide . . . This extremely practical and motivational book will be welcomed by parents of dyslexic children.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)“Accessible and reassuring.”—Library Journal“This step-by-step guide will become a go-to resource for parents.” —James H. Wendorf, executive director, National Center for Learning Disabilities “I study dyslexia in the lab and am a parent of a wonderful daughter who fits this profile. Ben Foss’s book should be considered essential to any collection on the subject. It was extremely useful, especially for a mom.”—Maria Luisa Gorno Tempini, M.D., Ph.D., professor of neurology, UCSF, Memory and Aging Center “As someone with a learning profile that made school tough, and as a parent, I know kids need the right support. Ben Foss knows how to get access to education because he’s been through it. I was thrilled to read this book. It offers a wise collection of insights that are both practical and touching.”—James Gandolfini, actor, The Sopranos

    But just reading as many books as the best leaders isn't enough. In face, top leaders read differently than most people. If more of us knew how to read the way leaders do, we'd be much more able to emulate their success.

    Is your aim good enough to guarantee your family’s safety? How to Shoot Like a Navy SEAL teaches gun owners and their families the same deadly effective techniques the author used to create the world’s deadliest snipers. The book is designed to give you the most powerful methods in easy-to-follow instructions. When the book temporarily went out of print, new paperback copies were selling for as much as $3495.00! Now you can save over $3,475.03 on this life-saving knowledge, with the security of knowing that it works -- for both Navy SEALs and responsible gun owners like you. A retired US Navy SEAL and bestselling author, Chris Sajnog was hand-selected to develop the entire US Navy SEAL Sniper training program. Now, you can use these world-class techniques to master your weapon and protect your family. How to Shoot Like a Navy SEAL also comes with exclusive access to 12 online instructional video lessons filmed just for this book – no other shooting book offers you this! Watch Chief Sajnog show you his proven methods, and read detailed explanations in this book packed with Navy SEAL training in just 114 easy pages packed with crucial weapons knowledge. Chief Sajnog doesn’t waste time showing you “cool moves” or “fancy footwork.” He gets down to the fundamental skills that separate US Navy SEALs from everyone else, and shows you how to use them in simple, step-by-step instructions. Here’s what you’ll learn: ● How to find the right positions for you -- not the cookie-cutter methods that only work for some people -- so you can maximize your aim with as little effort as possible. ● Simple training exercises you can do right now, at home, without having to spend 1,000’s of dollars at the shooting range. ● How to boost your accuracy by up to 95% -- using the “Navy SEAL focus” technique that you can master in just minutes. ● Chris Sajnog’s “SEAL 7”: 7 super-simple steps that will completely change the way you shoot… so you can hit your mark every time. ● The SEAL Sniper Trick that you can start using today, allowing you to instantly hit targets at twice the distance. ● Why the aiming technique you were taught is completely wrong -- and how you can fix it instantly. ● Plus… how to do all of this safely, without risking harm to your family. Protect your loved ones, your country, and yourself, with the firearms techniques developed by the mastermind behind the US Navy SEAL Sniper training program and one of the most respected firearms trainers in the world, Chris Sajnog.

    At nine he started working on an original theory in astrophysics that experts believe may someday put him in line for a Nobel Prize, and at age twelve he became a paid researcher in quantum physics. But the story of Kristine’s journey with Jake is all the more remarkable because his extraordinary mind was almost lost to autism. At age two, when Jake was diagnosed, Kristine was told he might never be able to tie his own shoes. The Spark is a remarkable memoir of mother and son. Surrounded by “experts” at home and in special ed who tried to focus on Jake’s most basic skills and curtail his distracting interests—moving shadows on the wall, stars, plaid patterns on sofa fabric—Jake made no progress, withdrew more and more into his own world, and eventually stopped talking completely. Kristine knew in her heart that she had to make a change. Against the advice of her husband, Michael, and the developmental specialists, Kristine followed her instincts, pulled Jake out of special ed, and began preparing him for mainstream kindergarten on her own. Relying on the insights she developed at the daycare center she runs out of the garage in her home, Kristine resolved to follow Jacob’s “spark”—his passionate interests. Why concentrate on what he couldn’t do? Why not focus on what he could? This basic philosophy, along with her belief in the power of ordinary childhood experiences (softball, picnics, s’mores around the campfire) and the importance of play, helped Kristine overcome huge odds. The Barnetts were not wealthy people, and in addition to financial hardship, Kristine herself faced serious health issues. But through hard work and determination on behalf of Jake and his two younger brothers, as well as an undying faith in their community, friends, and family, Kristine and Michael prevailed. The results were beyond anything anyone could have imagined. Dramatic, inspiring, and transformative, The Spark is about the power of love and courage in the face of overwhelming obstacles, and the dazzling possibilities that can occur when we learn how to tap the true potential that lies within every child, and in all of us.

    Many of the documents emphasize America’s uniqueness and contributions to the world, but they also present different views on some of the major issues and disputes in American history and government, especially on the meaning of liberty, the injustice of slavery, and the demands of progress. Taken as such, the documents reveal a kind of political dialogue to readers, an ongoing and profoundly consequential conversation about how Americans have agreed and often disagreed on the meaning of freedom and self-government. 50 Core American Documents invites teachers and citizens alike to join in this American political dialogue.The Ashbrook Center restores and strengthens the capacities of the American people for constitutional self-government. The Center teaches students and teachers across our country why America is exceptional and what America represents in the long history of the world. Ashbrook is the nation’s largest university-based educator in the enduring principles and practice of free government in the United States, offering programs and resources for students, teachers, and citizens.

    Tips, quizzes, and checklists help girls understand and express what's happening to their bodies--and their feelings about it.

    Many of the best novels, plays, poetry, and films in the English language produced since Shakespeare’s death in 1616—from Jane Austen to The Godfather—are heavily influenced by Shakespeare’s stories, characters, language, and themes.  In a sense, his works are a kind of Bible for the modern world, bringing us together intellectually and spiritually.  Hamlet, Juliet, Macbeth, Ophelia, and a vast array of other singular Shakespearean characters have become the archetypes of our consciousness. To know some Shakespeare provides a head start in life.  In How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare, acclaimed playwright Ken Ludwig provides the tools you need to instill an understanding, and a love, of Shakespeare’s works in your children, and to have fun together along the way.Ken Ludwig devised his methods while teaching his own children, and his approach is friendly and easy to master. Beginning with  memorizing short specific passages from Shakespeare's plays, this method then instills children with cultural references they will utilize for years to come. Ludwig’s approach includes understanding of the time period and implications of Shakespeare’s diction as well as the invaluable lessons behind his words and stories.  Colorfully incorporating the history of Shakespearean theater and society, How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare guides readers on an informed and adventurous journey through the world in which the Bard wrote.This book’s simple process allows anyone to impart to children the wisdom of plays like A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Twelfth Night, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet. And there’s fun to be had along the way. Shakespeare novices and experts, and readers of all ages, will each find something delightfully irresistible in How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare.

    You’ll learn how to set up an art space, how to talk to children about their artwork, how to choose the best art supplies (without breaking the bank), how to repurpose and organize the piles of art created, and even how to use kids' art activities to soften everyday transitions.  The more than sixty engaging kids' arts and crafts projects included here are accessible and developmentally appropriate for one- to eight-year-olds, and they’re a far cry from the cookie-cutter crafts many of us did in school as kids. From bubble prints to musical chairs art, these kids art activities allow children to explore art materials, techniques, and ideas as they grow more creative every day. With activities for downtimes, action art for releasing energy, and recipes for making your own art materials, this book is your guide for raising an artful family.

    Instead, this booklet describes the liberal arts as a central part of a larger and more robust paradigm of classical education that should consist of piety, gymnastic, music, liberal arts, philosophy, and theology. The booklet also recovers the means by which classical educators developed more than just intellectual virtue (by means of the seven liberal arts) but holistically cultivated the mind, body, will, and affections. A must-read for educators wanting to take a second big step toward recovering the tradition of classical education.

    Based on the popular blog, Smart Classroom Management, the book progresses step-by-step through 45 time-tested strategies, showing you how to manage your classroom in a way that inspires students to want to behave. Binding these strategies together is a little-known secret shared by the most exceptional teachers, those remembered and beloved for a lifetime. By the end of the book, you'll have the knowledge to free your classroom of misbehavior and disrespect, build easy rapport with your students, and teach with a spirit of joy and passion that you've always longed for.

    Kim has taught more than 2,000 students, and each has shown her something about the world and the abundant capacity for love, resilience, and appreciation that we all possess. By sharing her students’ stories, she teaches their inspiring lessons to us all.Throughout the ups and downs of her professional and personal life, Kim found that her students were the light that illuminated her path; they were her sanctuary in the storm. From her challenges as a first year teacher, to her triumphs as the cofounder of the highly acclaimed Ron Clark Academy, Kim shares how children can teach each of us the importance of building relationships, abandoning fear, embracing one’s unique gifts, and living with passion.Full of honesty, humor, heartbreak, and humanity, Kim’s experiences show how children can help any one of us, despite life’s obstacles, find the joy and significance in both our personal and professional lives.

    Unfortunately, 70% of kids drop out of organized athletics by the age of 13. Most of these children quit because our youth sports culture has taken the ‘play’ out of ‘play ball.’ A shift in values, the rise of expensive youth sports models, and the myth of abundant athletic scholarships has led parents and coaches to focus on wins instead of enjoyment, and trophies at the expense of development. As a result, every day increasing numbers of children quit playing sports that are no longer enjoyable. Conventional wisdom is wrong. In Changing the Game, John O’Sullivan draws upon three decades of high level playing and coaching experience to take us behind the scenes of competitive youth sports, and demonstrates how they have changed from being a fun pastime to an ultra competitive, adult centered enterprise that is failing our children. He then teaches parents that the secret to raising happy, high performing children begins by helping them attain a positive mindset, and an enjoyable youth sports environment. By following seven actionable principles of high performance, parents can give their children a competitive edge, while at the same time making youth sports a positive experience for their family, their community, and their country. “The romance is gone, the fun has disappeared, and children no longer simply ‘play’ sports,” says O’Sullivan. Changing the Game is a call to action to reverse this trend. It will change how you think about youth sports. It will teach you the secrets of high performance. It will help your children to perform better. And it will put the “play” back in “play ball” for all of our young athletes. Are you ready to take action? Are you ready to change the game?

    This is the original text with the addition of personal stories from both the 1st and 2nd editions. NEW LINKED TABLE OF CONTENTS ADDED FOR GROUP MEETING USE.Also included: A current study guide of notes from the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous.

    Drawing on her recent experience of teaching in challenging schools, she shows through a wide range of examples and case studies just how much classroom practice contradicts basic scientific principles. She examines seven widely-held beliefs which are holding back pupils and teachers:- Facts prevent understanding - Teacher-led instruction is passive - The 21st century fundamentally changes everything - You can always just look it up -We should teach transferable skills - Projects and activities are the best way to learn - Teaching knowledge is indoctrination.In each accessible and engaging chapter, Christodoulou sets out the theory of each myth, considers its practical implications and shows the worrying prevalence of such practice. Then, she explains exactly why it is a myth, with reference to the principles of modern cognitive science. She builds a powerful case explaining how governments and educational organisations around the world have let down teachers and pupils by promoting and even mandating evidence-less theory and bad practice.This blisteringly incisive and urgent text is essential reading for all teachers, teacher training students, policy makers, head teachers, researchers and academics around the world.

    Amazing new tools, materials and skills turn us all into makers. Using technology to make, repair or customize the things we need brings engineering, design and computer science to the masses. Fortunately for educators, this maker movement overlaps with the natural inclinations of children and the power of learning by doing. The active learner is at the center of the learning process, amplifying the best traditions of progressive education. This book helps educators bring the exciting opportunities of the maker movement to every classroom. Children are natural tinkerersTheir seminal learning experiences come through direct experience with materials. Digital fabrication, such as 3D printing and physical computing, including Arduino, MaKey MaKey and Raspberry Pi, expands a child’s toy and toolboxes with new ways to make things and new things to make. For the first time ever, childhood inventions may be printed, programmed or imbued with interactivity. Recycled materials can be brought back to life. While school traditionally separates art and science, theory and practice, such divisions are artificial. The real world just doesn’t work that way! Architects are artists. Craftsmen deal in aesthetics, tradition and mathematical precision. Video game developers rely on computer science. Engineering and industrial design are inseparable. The finest scientists are often accomplished musicians. The maker community brings children, hobbyists and professionals together in a glorious celebration of personal expression with a modern flare. When 3-D printing, precision cutting, microcomputer control, robotics and computer programming become integral to the art studio, auto shop or physics lab, every student needs access to tools, knowledge and problem solving skills. The maker movement not only blurs the artificial boundaries between subject areas, it erases distinctions between art and science while most importantly obliterating the crippling practice of tracking students in academic pursuits or vocational training. There are now multiple pathways to learning what we have always taught and things to do that were unimaginable just a few years ago. Making for every classroom budgetEven if you don’t have access to expensive (but increasingly affordable) hardware, every classroom can become a makerspace where kids and teachers learn together through direct experience with an assortment of high and low-tech materials. The potential range, breadth, power, complexity and beauty of projects has never been greater thanks to the amazing new tools, materials, ingenuity and playfulness you will encounter in this book. In this practical guide, Sylvia Martinez and Gary Stager provide K-12 educators with the how, why, and cool stuff that supports classroom making.

    assistant secretary of education, "whistle-blower extraordinaire" (The Wall Street Journal), author of the best-selling The Death and Life of the Great American School System ("Important and riveting"--Library Journal), The Language Police ("Impassioned . . . Fiercely argued . . . Every bit as alarming as it is illuminating"--The New York Times), and other notable books on education history and policy--an incisive, comprehensive look at today's American school system that argues against those who claim it is broken and beyond repair; an impassioned but reasoned call to stop the privatization movement that is draining students and funding from our public schools.​In Reign of Error, Diane Ravitch argues that the crisis in American education is not a crisis of academic achievement but a concerted effort to destroy public schools in this country. She makes clear that, contrary to the claims being made, public school test scores and graduation rates are the highest they've ever been, and dropout rates are at their lowest point.​She argues that federal programs such as George W. Bush's No Child Left Behind and Barack Obama's Race to the Top set unreasonable targets for American students, punish schools, and result in teachers being fired if their students underperform, unfairly branding those educators as failures. She warns that major foundations, individual billionaires, and Wall Street hedge fund managers are encouraging the privatization of public education, some for idealistic reasons, others for profit. Many who work with equity funds are eyeing public education as an emerging market for investors.​Reign of Error begins where The Death and Life of the Great American School System left off, providing a deeper argument against privatization and for public education, and in a chapter-by-chapter breakdown, putting forth a plan for what can be done to preserve and improve it. She makes clear what is right about U.S. education, how policy makers are failing to address the root causes of educational failure, and how we can fix it.​For Ravitch, public school education is about knowledge, about learning, about developing character, and about creating citizens for our society. It's about helping to inspire independent thinkers, not just honing job skills or preparing people for college. Public school education is essential to our democracy, and its aim, since the founding of this country, has been to educate citizens who will help carry democracy into the future.

    Not what was fashionable, not what political and educational vested interests wanted to champion, but what actually produced the best results in terms of improving learning and educational outcomes. It became an instant bestseller and was described by the TES as revealing education's 'holy grail'.Now in this latest book, John Hattie has joined forces with cognitive psychologist Greg Yates to build on the original data and legacy of the Visible Learning project, showing how it's underlying ideas and the cutting edge of cognitive science can form a powerful and complimentary framework for shaping learning in the classroom and beyond.Visible Learning and the Science of How We Learn explains the major principles and strategies of learning, outlining why it can be so hard sometimes, and yet easy on other occasions. Aimed at teachers and students, it is written in an accessible and engaging style and can be read cover to cover, or used on a chapter-by-chapter basis for essay writing or staff development.The book is structured in three parts - 'learning within classrooms', 'learning foundations', which explains the cognitive building blocks of knowledge acquisition and 'know thyself' which explores, confidence and self-knowledge. It also features extensive interactive appendices containing study guide questions to encourage critical thinking, annotated bibliographic entries with recommendations for further reading, links to relevant websites and YouTube clips. Throughout, the authors draw upon the latest international research into how the learning process works and how to maximise impact on students, covering such topics as:teacher personality;expertise and teacher-student relationships;how knowledge is stored and the impact of cognitive load;thinking fast and thinking slow;the psychology of self-control;the role of conversation at school and at home;invisible gorillas and the IKEA effect;digital native theory;myths and fallacies about how people learn. This fascinating book is aimed at any student, teacher or parent requiring an up-to-date commentary on how research into human learning processes can inform our teaching and what goes on in our schools. It takes a broad sweep through findings stemming mainly from social and cognitive psychology and presents them in a useable format for students and teachers at all levels, from preschool to tertiary training institutes.

    Beginning with an introduction to array formulas, this manual examines topics such as how they differ from ordinary formulas, the benefits and drawbacks of their use, functions that can and cannot handle array calculations, and array constants and functions. Among the practical applications surveyed include how to extract data from tables and unique lists, how to get results that match any criteria, and how to utilize various methods for unique counts. This book contains 529 screen shots.

    In Falling in Love with Close Reading, Christopher Lehman and Kate Roberts show us that it can be rigorous, meaningful, and joyous. You'll empower students to not only analyze texts but to admire the craft of a beloved book, study favorite songs and videogames, and challenge peers in evidence-based discussions.Chris and Kate start with a powerful three-step close-reading ritual that students can apply to any text. Then they lay out practical, engaging lessons that not only guide students to independence in reading texts closely but also help them transfer this critical, analytical skill to media and even the lives they lead.Responsive to students' needs and field-tested in classrooms, these lessons include: strategies for close reading narratives, informational texts, and arguments suggestions for differentiation sample charts and student work from real classrooms connections to the Common Core State Standards a focus on viewing media and life in this same careful way."We see the ritual of close reading not just as a method of doing the academic work of looking closely at text-evidence, word choice, and structure," write Chris and Kate, "but as an opportunity to bring those practices together to empower our students to see the subtle messages in texts and in their lives." Read Falling in Love with Close Reading and discover that the benefits and joy of close reading don't have to stop at the edge of the page.

    Rather than using novels simply to teach basic literacy skills and comprehension strategies, "Whole Novels" approaches literature as art. The book is fully aligned with the Common Core ELA Standards and offers tips for implementing whole novels in various contexts, including suggestions for teachers interested in trying out small steps in their classrooms first.Includes a powerful method for teaching literature, writing, and critical thinking to middle school studentsShows how to use the Whole Novels approach in conjunction with other programs Includes video clips of the author using the techniques in her own classroomThis resource will help teachers work with students of varying abilities in reading whole novels.

    

    

    When normal childhood behavior is viewed as normal instead of something to be corrected and controlled, communication creates the bridge to guide children toward developmentally appropriate growth, maturity, and independence. Written by best-selling parenting and children's book author and mother of six, L.R.Knost, 'Whispers Through Time: Communication Through the Ages and Stages of Childhood' is a rethinking of mainstream parenting's perception of normal childhood behaviors coupled with simple, practical approaches to parent/child communication at each stage of development from tots to teens.Other books by L.R.Knost include her best-selling parenting guide, 'Two Thousand Kisses a Day: Gentle Parenting Through the Ages and Stages' as well as her children's picture books, 'Petey's Listening Ears,' 'A Walk in the Clouds,' and the soon-to-be-released 'Grumpykins' series which are humorous and engaging tools for parents, teachers, and caregivers to use in implementing gentle parenting techniques in their homes and schools.

    ... and the world! 80,000 registered members worldwide, 3,000,000 YouTube views, 10,000,000 pages of free ebooks downloaded from WholeBrainTeaching.com, one of the world's largest, free, education websites! If your rambunctious kids are driving you batty, read this book. Guffaw with delight as your class, guided by the Guff Counter, halts back talking students in their tracks! Weep with joy at the power of the Independents that turns rebel cliques against each other. Gasp in awe as you discover Mirror, the simple technique that makes every lesson magnetically engaging. Chortle with merriment as the magical Scoreboard transforms classroom management into a living video game. Whole Brain Teaching, a grass roots, education reform movement, begun in 1999 by three Southern California teachers, has attracted an astonishing following among educators across the U.S. and in 30 foreign countries. Based on cutting edge scientific research, Whole Brain Teaching recognizes that students learn the most when they are engaged in lessons that involve seeing, hearing, doing, speaking and feeling. Join the revolution! Transform your students from passive receivers of information to dynamic creators of high energy lessons. "In my 38 years in education, I have never seen a more successful classroom management system than Whole Brain Teaching. It's simple, effective and powerful. Chris Biffle and his colleagues have developed a strategy that works for all students." Dominic F. Mucci, Superintendent of Schools, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey

    The main difference is that our lessons put student curiosity and engagement first. -Harvey Smokey Daniels and Nancy SteinekeIn this highly anticipated follow-up to Texts and Lessons for Content-Area Reading, Harvey Smokey Daniels and Nancy Steineke share their powerful strategies for engaging students in challenging, meaningful reading of fiction and poetry using some of their favorite short, fresh texts-or, as they put it, full-strength adult literature that gives us English majors a run for our interpretive money- but is still intriguing enough to keep teen readers digging and thinking. Use the 37 innovative, step-by-step, common-core-correlated lessons with the reproducible texts provided, with selections from your literature textbook, or with your own best-loved texts to teach close reading skills and deep comprehension strategies. Give students opportunities to read and synthesize across texts with the 8 thematic text set lessons provided, or use the model unit outlines for using the lessons with The Giver, To Kill a Mockingbird, and The Great Gatsby as springboards for planning your own novel studies. Better Together! Used together, Texts and Lessons for Teaching Literature and Texts and Lessons for Content-Area Reading give you all the lesson ideas you need for all text types. Save 15% when you buy them together in a Texts and Lessons Bundle.

    Martin Luther King, Jr.'s essential writings for high school students and young people—with eighteen selections including "I Have a Dream," "Letter from Birmingham Jail," and "What Is Your Life's Blueprint?" “[Students] are in reality standing up for the best in the American dream. . . . One day historians will record this student movement as one of the most significant epics of our heritage.” —from “The Time for Freedom Has Come” A Time to Break Silence presents the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s most important writings and speeches—carefully selected by teachers across a variety of disciplines—in an accessible and user-friendly volume for students. Arranged thematically in six parts, the collection includes eighteen selections and is introduced by award-winning author Walter Dean Myers. Included are some of Dr. King’s most well-known and frequently taught classic works, like “Letter from Birmingham Jail” and “I Have a Dream,” as well as lesser-known pieces such as “The Sword that Heals” and “What Is Your Life’s Blueprint?,” which speak to issues young people face today.   Teachers guide and companion curriculum developed by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University available online through www.thekinglegacy.org/teachers

    He carefully describes the challenges that students in poverty face and the resiliencies they and their families draw upon. Most importantly, this book provides specific, evidence-based strategies for teaching youth by creating equitable, bias-free learning environments. Written in an appealing conversational tone, this resource will help teachers and school leaders to better reach and teach students in poverty. This book features: A conceptual framework for creating equitable educational opportunities for low- and middle-income youth, instruction strategies based on analysis of more than 20 years of research on what works (and what doesn't work), a depicition of teachers, not as the problem when it comes to the achievement gap, but as champions of students, activities such as a Poverty and Class Awareness Quiz.

    Capitalizing on observations and conversations with educators who have used the Studio Thinking Framework in diverse settings, this expanded edition features new material, including:The addition of Exhibitions as a fourth Studio Structure for Learning (along with Demonstration-Lecture, Students-at-Work, and Critique). Explanation and examples of the dispositional elements of each Habit, including skill, alertness (noticing appropriate times to put skills to use), and inclination (the drive or motivation to employ skills). A chart aligning Habits to the English Language Arts and Mathematics Common Core. Descriptions of how the Framework has been used inside and outside of schools in curriculum planning, teaching, and assessment across arts and non-arts disciplines. A full-color insert with new examples of student art. Studio Thinking 2 will help advocates explain arts education to policymakers, help art teachers develop and refine their teaching and assessment practices, and assist educators in other disciplines to learn from existing practices in arts education.Praise for the First Edition of Studio Thinking --Winner and Hetland have set out to show what it means to take education in the arts seriously, in its own right. -- The New York Times This book is very educational and would be helpful to art teachers in promoting quality teaching in their classrooms. -- School Arts Magazine " Studio Thinking is a major contribution to the field. -- Arts & Learning Review The research in Studio Thinking is groundbreaking and important because it is anchored in the actual practice of teaching artists ...The ideas in Studio Thinking continue to provide a vehicle with which to navigate and understand the complex work in which we are all engaged. -- Teaching Artists Journal "Hetland and her colleagues reveal dozens of practical measures that could be adopted by any arts program, inside or outside of the school....This is a bold new step in arts education." --David R. Olson, Professor Emeritus, University of Toronto"Will be at the top of the list of essential texts in arts education. I know of no other work in art education with this combination of authenticity and insight." --Lars Lindstr�m, Stockholm Institute of Education"The eight studio habits of mind should become a conceptual framework for all preservice art education programs; this book should be read by all early and experienced art educators." --Mary Ann Stankiewicz, The Pennsylvania State University

    Cheryl is an advocate of classical Christian education for special-needs students. The love of history, music, literature, and Latin instilled in her own children has created in Cheryl the desire to share the message that classical education offers benefits to any child.- Increase your child's academic success- Restore your child's love of learning- Regain confidence to teach any child- Renew your vision of hope for your special-needs child- Receive help navigating the daunting process of receiving a diagnosis- Learn how to modify existing resources for your child's needs- Find simple stategies any parent or teacher can implement immediately- Appreciate a spiritual context for bringing truth, goodness, and beauty to any child

    Designed to help you reach the top of your profession, this new book is considered must-read material for anyone who is ready to step up and lead!

    Khayat writes about his childhood days in Moss Point, Mississippi, the state s segregationist policies that prevented his SEC championship baseball team from playing in the College World Series, and the sadness of experiencing his father s arrest and guilty plea. These seemingly disparate events worked to prepare him to battle the vestiges of racial strife that continued to haunt the university s culture as he accepted the honor of becoming the university s 15th chancellor. Khayat s story gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at how a university moved from mediocrity to excellence. We relive, along with Khayat, the courting of an eccentric donor, as well as private conversations with a sitting U.S. President, governors, coaches and celebrities. We also see how a man worked to make amends for past mistakes. The Education of a Lifetime is a funny, touching and insightful memoir. And it is proof that one man a man dedicated to respecting the dignity of every individual can make lasting change.

    This wild, uncertain world is bursting with crazy characters you're about to meet-you're gonna love them!

    By helping students celebrate each stage of the writing process and applauding success, we help our students persevere through what can be an extended and challenging process.In their innovative new book, Celebrating Writers, Ruth Ayres and Christi Overman discuss dozens of ways to respond, reflect, and rejoice along the journey to a finished project. This type of celebration nurtures students, makes them better writers, and helps them recognize that writing is a process filled with notable moments, not simply a result where publication is the only marker of success. From traveling notebooks to lunch-table writing, from author interviews with a writing partner to silent reflection, from swapping stories around a "campfire" to tweeting favorite lines, Ruth and Christi share dozens of fun and effective ways for you and your students to commemorate their progress as writers. As the authors write, "It's time to expand the idea of celebration to include the process of writers and the products they create. Let's build an approach that weaves celebration into the heart of all writers. Be ready to learn to refuel the writers in your classroom, even on the tough days."

    Jennifer SerravalloThe aim of The Literacy Teacher's Playbook, writes Jennifer Serravallo, is to help you collect data that is helpful, analyze the data correctly, and make plans based on that data.National and state standards set learning goals, and it's up to you to help each student find his or her path to meeting them. That's why Jen opens up her thinking on assessment in this workshop-in-a-book. Her four-step protocol leads you toward goal-directed instruction:collect the data that will be the most useful to you analyze the data to understand deeply what kids know and can do synthesize data from multiple assessments to create learning goals develop instructional plans and follow-ups to monitor progress. What you can pull out of a student's messy desk is actually data, Jen writes. So she provides downloadable assessment packets from real students representing two puzzling types of learners. Spread Joana's packet out and let Jen model her protocol. Next try a guided practice with Alex's work. Then you'll be ready to try it with your own students.Trust The Literacy Teacher's Playbook to discover that assessment isn't about numbers and letters. It's about relying on an assessment procedure that helps you know each and every one of your students, so you can teach with confidence and make a difference. Read a sample chapter from The Literacy Teacher's Playbook.NEW Printable Materialsword pdf Blank Reading Log Levels D-Iword pdf Blank Reading Log Levels J-Mword pdf Blank Reading Log Levels L+word pdf Blank Re-reading Log Levels D-Iword pdf Blank Reading Interest Survey K-2word pdf Blank Reading Interest Survey 3-6word pdf Blank High-Frequency Word Listword pdf Blank Engagement Inventory

    a word continuously thought of when reading this memoir. Upon the release of The Freedom Writers Diary and film adaptation starring Hilary Swank in 2007, New York Times bestselling author Darrius Garrett realized that both book and movie tell the Freedom Writer Story as a whole, but not on a personal level. During speaking engagements, the same questions always surface: 'Did Ms. Gruwell change you? How did you make it out of the gang life? What stopped you from killing yourself?' Darrius's answers are inside.Diary of a Freedom Writer takes you on a journey beyond the classrooms to the treacherous streets of Long Beach, California. An innocent little boy born in poverty and raised in a violent environment, Darrius became a product of the streets, written off by the school and judicial systems alike, growing up in an environment full of gangs and drugs. He spent his life searching for a father figure until he became a Freedom Writer, motivational speaker, bestselling author, and finally a father himself. His story is that of a man realizing his experiences are what made him the man he has been seeking to be all his life. Upon beating the odds, Diary of a Freedom Writer serves as proof that Darrius's story of struggle, life, change, and hope will uplift, educate, encourage, and inspire.

    This is an antithesis that cuts across all areas of human life, including education. Christian parents are left with only two options for the training of their children: faithful education or unbelieving education. Though the right choice seems obvious, many Christian parents do not see the antithesis. In this little book, Douglas Wilson presents the case for providing a faithful, Christian education for all Christian kids, and explains why we even have to make that case to begin with.

    And not just for kids who read well. They also work for kids who struggle in reading, who don't respond to abstract concepts. -Tanny McGregorInside, every kid wants to love reading-sometimes they need our help to see it.That's where Tanny McGregor's memorable, sensory-driven lessons come in.The chapters in this book, she writes, are a collection of ideas about how to launch genres, how to introduce your students to the personalities of each, and how to build a curiosity and appreciation for what each genre has to offer. Use the seed ideas suggested in this volume with a genre of your choice and see how it grows!Genre Connections makes learning achievable, accessible, and incremental for all readers-including struggling readers. Tanny's lessons use everyday objects, works of art, music, and her much-loved anchor charts to help readers get acquainted with seven commonly taught genres and to discover what makes them unique.Her launching sequences gradually release responsibility for learning about text types, and they can be adapted for any genre. They help readers weave creative, sensory threads into a tapestry of understanding by taking them from a fun introductory object lesson to an immersive experience.Looking for the perfect partner for Tanny's Comprehension Connections? Or for a new way to bring the inner reader out in any student? Let the ideas in Genre Connections inspire you to help your students get to know genres quickly, confidently, and effectively.

    Specially designed for in-service teachers, each volume of the series focuses on the content relevant to a specific grade band and provides additional information on creating an effective classroom environment, engaging families, and aligning teaching to the Common Core State Standards. Additional activities and expanded lessons are also included. The series has three objectives: 1. To illustrate what it means to teach student-centered, problem-based mathematics 2. To serve as a reference for the mathematics content and research-based instructional strategies suggested for pre-kindergarten to grade two, grades three to five, and grades six to eight 3. To present a large collection of high quality tasks and activities that can engage children in the mathematics that is important for them to learn Volume I is tailored specifically to pre-kindergarten to grade 2, allowing teachers to quickly and easily locate information to implement in their classes. The student-centered approach will result in children who are successful in learning mathematics, making these books indispensable for Pre-K-2 classroom teachers!

    Instead of offering a doorway to opportunity, the college process presented endless obstacles for students who already battled poverty, violence, and low expectations. It caused Steckel to reexamine his assumptions about college.Every single one of the graduating seniors he has worked with in urban public high school has been accepted to college. To Steckel’s surprise, that turned out to be the easy part. Getting In, Getting Out follows ten of his students through the application process and college experience. At a time when the idea of “college for all” is both embraced and challenged, their stories defy all of the traditional assumptions about the meaning and value of higher education. This important book gives human faces to statistics about low college attendance and graduation rates among low-income students of color, and shows how a counselor’s belief in the potential of every student can transform futures.

    Harper slowly began to teach more and more yoga classes, and eventually recruited other yoga teachers with education backgrounds to continue growing what had become a flourishing program. Little Flower Yoga for Kids offers this fun and unique program combining yoga and mindfulness in an easy-to-read format. Written specifically for parents and kids, the book aims at teaching children to pay attention, increase focus, and balance their emotions—all while building physical strength and flexibility. Based on a growing body of evidence that yoga and mindfulness practices can help children develop focus and concentration, the simple yoga exercises in this book can easily be integrated into their child’s daily routine, ultimately improving health, behavior, and even school achievement.The book details the five main components of the program: connect, breath, move, focus, and relax. Drawing on these components, Harper shares practical activities that parents can use with their children both on a daily basis and as applied to particularly challenging issues. And while this book is targeted to parents, teachers may also find it extremely useful in helping students achieve better attention and focus.For more information about this innovative program, visit www.littlefloweryoga.com.

    It enables you to test and evaluate individuals to prescribe effective exercise programs tailored to their particular needs and based on the latest evidence.Highlights include:· A new chapter on behavior strategies to help keep clients motivated and committed to lifelong exercise· Expanded coverage of special populations· As always, the latest guidelines and recommendations from ACSM and other professional organizations

    Chronicling the negative consequences of forced assimilation and the failure of current educational policies to bolster the social and economic conditions of Aboriginal populations, Battiste proposes a new model of education. She argues that the preservation of Aboriginal knowledge is an Aboriginal right and a right preserved by the many treaties with First Nations. Current educational policies must undergo substantive reform. Central to this process is the rejection of the racism inherent to colonial systems of education, and the repositioning of Indigenous humanities, sciences, and languages as vital fields of knowledge. Battiste suggests the urgency for this reform lies in the social, technological, and economic challenges facing society today, and the need for a revitalized knowledge system which incorporates both Indigenous and Eurocentric thinking. The new model she advocates is based on her experiences growing up in a Mi'kmaw community, and the decades she has spent as a teacher, activist, and university scholar.

    See the earliest documented use of invented spelling, the earliest attempts to guide young children through a writing process, the earliest conferences. This collection allows you to see this revolutionary shift in writing instruction-with its emphasis on observation, reflection, and approaching children as writers. Read Chapter 3: Follow the Child

    The correct diagnosis is PANDAS or PANS. In Ms. Maloney's straightforward and clear writing style, she explains: what is it, how it makes your child sick, available treatment options, finding and working with the right doctors, dietary interventions, finding personal support, arranging the correct therapy, hospitalization, your child's legal rights to obtaining an education, and how your child will recover. Top medical experts in the field offer their insights and share their approaches to treating the disorder. This book offers a roadmap to recovery with all the answers you and your doctor need.

    This book provides a unique structure of choice; shared and guided reading that rigorously prepares students for lifelong reading habits and high level literacy achievement that helps readers get to and through college. Structured in,"mild" "medium," and "spicy" steps, teachers and school leaders can mix and match the tools presented in order to fit individual needs that can sustainably be put in place in their classrooms as soon as tomorrow.All strategies presented are given from the perspective of what is most immediately helpful, practical, and sustainable.Offers a practical guide for fostering a love of learning and thinking in studentsEach chapter includes: assessments options; incorporating choice; options for special needs studentsAligns with Common Core state standards and includes a chapter on standardized testing"Reading Without Limits" is written for real teachers (who work late hours grading tests, making bulletin boards, attending basketball games, and getting phone calls about homework) who need to keep things practical!

    It's time to set the bar higher. Until we make school the best part of every student's day, we will struggle with attendance, achievement, and graduation rates. This timely resource will help you take immediate action to revitalize and enrich your practice so that all your students may thrive in school and beyond.

    Leslie Montgomery and Margot Holmes Smith weave vocabulary into each school day using multisensory instruction that includes music, art, literature, movement, games, drama, writing, test-taking skills, and technology. Along the way, they turn every student into a lover of language.With support from literacy specialist Brenda Overturf, Leslie and Margot have developed a five-part plan—introducing new words in context, adding related synonyms and antonyms, engaging students in several days of active learning, celebrating new words, and assessing vocabulary development—that teaches all students to learn and love vocabulary.This easy-to-read reference explains how to plan, teach, and assess based on the latest research in vocabulary instruction and learning. Forget copying definitions from the dictionary and completing boring worksheets! Word mastery comes from intimate knowledge of language. From prediction to practice to performance, students from all backgrounds can discover how to make words their own. After incorporating Leslie's and Margot's vocabulary plan into your daily instruction, you and your students can become word nerds, too!

    Either way, Mentoring Matters has the answers you need. They have to be learned. But learning them doesn't have to be hard. Educate yourself on all of the key targets, techniques, and tools for becoming a great mentor with this easy-to-apply manual. Your leadership success will be forever increased!

    Without the help of an expert, it could take months of experimentation to learn how to use the advanced mechanisms and numerous programming features. In The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Laboratory, author Daniele Benedettelli, robotics expert and member of the elite LEGO MINDSTORMS Expert Panel, shows you how to use gears, beams, motors, sensors, and programming blocks to create sophisticated robots that can avoid obstacles, walk on two legs, and even demonstrate autonomous behavior. You'll also dig into related math, engineering, and robotics concepts that will help you create your own amazing robots. Programming experiments throughout will challenge you, while a series of comics and countless illustrations inform the discussion and keep things fun. As you make your way through the book, you'll build and program five wicked cool robots:ROV3R, a vehicle you can modify to do things like follow a line, avoid obstacles, and even clean a room WATCHGOOZ3, a bipedal robot that can be programmed to patrol a room using only the Brick Program App (no computer required!) SUP3R CAR, a rear-wheel-drive armored car with an ergonomic two-lever remote control SENTIN3L, a walking tripod that can record and execute color-coded sequences of commands T-R3X, a fearsome bipedal robot that will find and chase down preyWith The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Laboratory as your guide, you'll become an EV3 master in no time. Requirements: One LEGO® MINDSTORMS EV3 set (LEGO SET #31313)

    Georgia HeardHumanity and warmth are the cornerstones of quality nonfiction writing. But how can students create them in genres that at first seem more informational than intimate? In Finding the Heart of Nonfiction, Georgia Heard shows how mentor texts can help students read for seven essential craft tools and then use them to create inviting nonfiction that keeps readers' interest.Lyrical and practical, Finding the Heart of Nonfiction describes how to choose mentor texts, use them, and mine them for exemplary instruction. Between these suggestions and the instructional ideas, Georgia shows how students can write nonfiction that informs and inspires. You'll find thoughtful, immediately useful support as you:introduce nonfiction with her handpicked, reproducible mentor texts get students writing with the instructional ideas in Georgia's Try This sections familiarize writers with nonfiction craft and text features connect nonfiction work to the Common Core State Standards collect mentor texts tailored to your students. My hope, writes Georgia, is that you and your students will be inspired by the mentor texts I've chosen-but also inspired to seek out your own mentor texts and continue to explore the world through nonfiction. Trust Finding the Heart of Nonfiction and help your students write with purpose, voice, and passion.Preview the book. Download and read a sample chapter.

    Written by a former paramedic with a PhD in alternative healthcare, this in-depth reference shows that the subtle shifts in awareness commonly observed in cannabis-using patients vastly contribute to these compounds' therapeutic potential. The Cannabis Health Index is organized into condition-specific chapters, with eye-catching ratings of cannabis efficacy for each symptom, along with recommendations for use, and sidebars that suggest related mindfulness-based practices that enhance the body's own ability to heal. Organized alphabetically from aging to wound care, with sections on a variety of conditions including infections, cancer, cardiovascular health, eye diseases, inflammatory diseases, neurological diseases, and much more, the Index reveals that the huge body of scientific studies focused on cannabis is a tremendously under-utilized repository of knowledge. In synthesizing the findings of these studies, Blesching brings clarity to the process of making informed decisions about cannabis as a valid treatment. Informative, user-friendly, and practical, The Cannabis Health Index presents striking evidence that cannabis is remarkable safe and effective when used within the proper therapeutic window, especially compared with the risks of managing chronic symptoms with pharmaceuticals.

    Through their adventures, Ripley discovers startling truths about how attitudes, parenting, and rigorous teaching have revolutionized these countries’ education results.In The Smartest Kids in the World, Ripley’s astonishing new insights reveal that top-performing countries have achieved greatness only in the past several decades; that the kids who live there are learning to think for themselves, partly through failing early and often; and that persistence, hard work, and resilience matter more to our children’s life chances than self-esteem or sports.Ripley’s investigative work seamlessly weaves narrative and research, providing in-depth analysis and gripping details that will keep you turning the pages. Written in a clear and engaging style, The Smartest Kids in the World will enliven public as well as dinner table debates over what makes for brighter and better students.

    Kids who are advanced intellectually often let their imaginations ruin wild and experience fears beyond their years. So what can you do to help?In Why Smart Kids Worry, Allison Edwards guides you through the mental and emotional process of where your child's fears come from and why they are so hard to move past. Edwards focuses on how to parent a child who is both smart and anxious and brings her years of experience as a therapist to give you the answers to questions such as:-How do smart kids think differently? -Should I let my child watch the nightly news on TV? -How do I answer questions about terrorists, hurricanes, and other scary subjects?Edwards's fifteen specially designed tools for helping smart kids manage their fears will help you and your child work together to help him or her to become more relaxed and worry-free.

    With his guardian, Xena the hummingbird, at his side, Bob sets out to seek guidance from the wise and happy creatures of the sea. From the joyful secrets of Al the dolphin to the insightful advice of Doc the turtle, Earl the clam, and Wallace the walrus, Bob uncovers great wisdom.  But to complete his journey, he’ll need to overcome his fears and Xena’s doubts and prove himself to Mary Marine, the Island of Roses’s leading marine biologist.The Adventures of Blue Ocean Bob: A Journey Begins is the first episode of a colorful, early chapter book series that provides children with an introduction to timeless principles of achievement derived from the teachings of Bob Proctor, Earl Nightingale, Napoleon Hill, Wallace D. Wattles, and others.

    The expert authors unveil the Kinetic Scale: a visual map of the active learning needs of infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and primary graders that fits each child’s individual timetable. Teachers, parents, and caregivers will find a wealth of information, actionable tips, and games they can use to support children’s healthy development—all presented in a lively, full-color format with demonstrative diagrams and photos. A final section offers easy-to-implement activities geared to the Kinetic Scale.Downloadable digital content includes printable charts, games, and activities from the book plus a PowerPoint presentation for professional development, parent handouts, and bonus activities. An ideal tool for coaches, mentors, and trainers.

    And if you work with children or adolescents, you know that kids today need these skills more than ever. The pressures they face in the classroom, on the playground, in their extracurricular activities, and at home can sometimes be overwhelming. So how can you help lay the groundwork for their success?A Still Quiet Place presents an eight-week mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program that therapists, teachers, and other professionals can use to help children and adolescents manage stress and anxiety in their lives, and develop their natural capacities for emotional fluency, respectful communication, and compassionate action. The program detailed in this book is based on author Amy Saltzman’s original curriculum, which has helped countless children and adolescents achieve significant improvements in attention and reduced anxiety.One of the easiest ways to find the still quiet place within is to practice mindfulness—paying attention to your life experience here and now with kindness and curiosity. The easy-to-implement mindfulness practices in this guide are designed to help increase children and adolescents’ attention, learning, resiliency, and compassion by showing them how to experience the natural quietness that can be found within.The still quiet place is a place of peace and happiness that is alive inside all of us, and you can find it just by closing your eyes and breathing. For more information, visit www.stillquietplace.com.

    Responding to advocates of the 'code-switching' approach, this book makes the case for 'code-meshing' - allowing students to use standard English, African American English, and other Englishes in formal academic writing and classroom discussions.

    The explanations, examples, activities, and suggestions are intended to guide you to a deepened understanding of the Practice Standards so your classroom is filled with students who reason, apply, and truly understand mathematics. Susan O'Connell and John SanGiovanniThe Standards for Mathematical Practice promise to elevate students' learning of math from knowledge to application and bring rigor to our math classrooms. But how can we incorporate the Practices into our teaching and ensure that our students develop these critical skills? Sue O'Connell and John SanGiovanni unpack each of the eight Practices and provide a wealth of practical ideas and activities to help you quickly integrate them into your existing math program. Putting the Practices Into Action breaks each standard down to address:why the standard is important how to interpret and understand the standard how to bring the standard into your current teaching. The authors show the true power of the standards by describing how they intermingle, blending together to empower students to use math and think mathematically. With classroom vignettes, sample activities, and helpful teaching tips, Putting the Practices Into Action brings the standards to life by illustrating what they look like in real classrooms. Discover how to integrate the Practices into your teaching, and let the journey of implementation begin.

    The text contains new photos, new case studies and evidence-based breastfeeding management information. Barbara Wilson-Clay and Kay Hoover have over 50 years of combined expertise as lactation consultants, educators and photographers. The Breastfeeding Atlas taps into their broad experience as clinical practitioners. This is a must-have book for students and practitioners alike!

    The early formal years of education are the key to reversing the reading gap and setting up children for success. But K-4 education seems to widen the gap between stronger and weaker readers, not close it. Today, the Common Core further increases the pressure to reach high levels of rigor. What can be done?This book includes the strategies, systems, and lessons from the top classrooms that bring the habits of reading to life, creating countless quality opportunities for students to take one of the most complex skills we as people can know and to perform it fluently and easily.Offers clear teaching strategies for teaching reading to all students, no matter what levelIncludes more than 40 video examples from real classroomsWritten by Paul Bambrick-Santoyo, bestselling author of "Driven by Data" and "Leverage Leadership""Great Habits, Great Readers" puts the focus on: learning habits, reading habits, guided reading, and independent reading.NOTE: Content DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of the e-book file, but are available for download after purchase

    

    The readers will discover what are the basic characteristics and counseling skills effective with Third Culture Kids (those who have spent the majority of their developmental years outside of their passport country). Because of the rapid growth of the expat community, counselors must look at the uniqueness of working with children who grow up as a Third Culture Kid, the common presenting issues for adults TCKs and what often lies hidden beneath the surface. The book is filled with practical examples, interesting stories, tips, charts, resources, theories, techniques and discussion questions for further study.

    Jim Burke has created a Common Core Companion for you, too. This time positioning the grades 9-10 standards alongside 11-12, it's every bit the roadmap to what each standard says, what each standard means, and how to put that standard into practice across subjects. Jim clearly lays out:Key distinctions across grade levels Different content-area versions of each standard Explanations of each standard, with student prompts Content to cover, lesson ideas, and instructional techniques Glossary and adaptations for ELL students

    Colorado's multihued rocks from white and red sandstones to green shales and pink granites are vividly splashed across the pages in stunning color photographs. Detailed color maps and diagrams clearly distill the state's complex bedrock geology. Updated text includes information about new discoveries, such as the mastodons and other Pleistocene fossils found at Snowmass, and new parks, such as Chimney Rock National Monument. Roadside Geology of Colorado is a must-have for any Colorado rock enthusiast.

    This Microsoft Official Academic Course is mapped to the 70-410 Installing and Configuring Windows Server 2012 exam objectives. This textbook focuses on real skills for real jobs and prepares students to prove mastery of core services such as Active Directory and networking services. In addition, this book also covers such valuable skills as:- Managing Active Directory Domain Services Objects- Automating Active Directory Domain Services Administration- Implementing Local Storage- Implementing File and Print Services- Implementing Group Policy- Implementing Server Virtualization with Hyper-V

    The 9th edition focuses on evidence-based recommendations that reflect the latest research and clinical information. This manual is an essential resource for any health/fitness and clinical exercise professional, physician, nurse, physician assistant, physical and occupational therapist, dietician, and health care administrator. This manual gives succinct summaries of recommended procedures for exercise testing and exercise prescription in healthy and diseased patients.

    Kaye had a short childhood. When she moved away from home at age eighteen, she began to grow into herself, overcoming her lack of guidance and her insecurities. Her life experiences became her teachers, and she learned from the mistakes and choices she made along the way, plagued by the guilt she carried for her mother.Conflicted Hearts is a heartfelt journey of self-discovery and acceptance, an exploration of the quest for solace from emotional guilt.

    

    During the training, participants will experience the TRTW approach as learners themselves, and receive step-by-step instructions for how to implement the approach using actual classroom examples. Other training topics include: how to facilitate structured conversations, how to hold students accountable for active participation, how to move students toward successful independent reading and writing, and how to troubleshoot common roadblocks to reading, writing and talking in secondary classrooms. Participants will leave knowing how to give students consistent opportunities to orally process what they are learning, to make meaning in the company of their peers, and to read and write for an authentic purposes, all while mastering academic content.

    Join 150+ makers as they share the stories behind their beautiful and bold work—and use the special conductive ink on the cover to do some tinkering yourself!Brought to you by the Exploratorium’s Tinkering Studio.

    It focuses on practical issues such as how to teach listening, speaking, reading, and writing; how to teach pronunciation, spelling, grammar, vocabulary, and discourse; how to design lessons and courses; and how to solve teaching problems like large classes, a wide range of proficiency in a class, unmotivated students, and misbehaving students.

    But we are not doomed by our genes or our past. Neuroscientific discoveries of the last decade have provided an optimistic and revolutionary view of adult brain function: People can change. This revelation about neuroplasticity offers hope to therapists and to couples seeking to improve their relationship. Loving With the Brain in Mind explores ways to help couples become proactive in revitalizing their relationship. It offers an in-depth understanding of the heartbreaking dynamics in unhappy couples and the healthy dynamics of couples who are flourishing.Sharing her extensive clinical experience and an integrative perspective informed by neuroscience and relationship science, Mona Fishbane gives us insight into the neurobiology underlying couples’ dances of reactivity. Readers will learn how partners become reactive and emotionally dysregulated with each other, and what is going on in their brains when they do. Clear and compelling discussions are included of the neurobiology of empathy and how empathy and selfregulation can be learned. Understanding neurobiology, explains Fishbane, can transform your clinical practice with couples and help you hone effective therapeutic interventions.This book aims to empower therapists— and the couples they treat—as they work to change interpersonal dynamics that drive them apart. Understanding how the brain works can inform the therapist’s theory of relationships, development, and change. And therapists can offer clients “neuroeducation” about their own reactivity and relationship distress and their potential for personal and relational growth. A gifted clinician and a particularly talented neuroscience writer, Dr. Fishbane presents complex material in an understandable and engaging manner. By anchoring her work in clinical cases, she never loses sight of the people behind the science.

    Specially designed for in-service teachers, each volume of the series focuses on the content relevant to a specific grade band and provides additional information on creating an effective classroom environment, engaging families, and aligning teaching to the Common Core State Standards. Additional activities and expanded lessons are also included. The series has three objectives: 1. To illustrate what it means to teach student-centered, problem-based mathematics 2. To serve as a reference for the mathematics content and research-based instructional strategies suggested for pre-kindergarten to grade two, grades three to five, and grades six to eight 3. To present a large collection of high quality tasks and activities that can engage students in the mathematics that is important for them to learn Volume II is tailored specifically to grades 3-5, allowing teachers to quickly and easily locate information to implement in their classes. The student-centered approach will result in students who are successful in learning mathematics, making these books indispensable for 3-5 classroom teachers!

    Its accessible, step-by-step style acquaints you with the key skills needed to become a successful coach and, with its focus on the applied side of coaching, the book is an essential text for anyone starting out on their coaching voyage. From the 'how to', through to practicalities and challenges and honing existing skills, this book covers: - Definitions of coaching- How to become a coach- Key coaching skills- Current coaching models- Practical tools and techniques- Reflective practise and how best to help othersWith evidence-based research, activities and suggestions for further reading, this is a clear and practical, all-you-need guide to becoming a coach.

    The Gentle Parenting Workshops from award-winning author, L.R.Knost are companions to her best-selling parenting books, 'Two Thousand Kisses a Day,' 'Whispers Through Time,' and the newest release, 'The Gentle Parent.' The first workshop in the series, 'Gentle Parenting Workshop 1: Getting Started on Your Gentle Journey,' will help you set your gentle parenting goals, identify specific parenting problems, and target practical solutions to help you along on your journey to gentle parenting.

    After ten years of teaching piano, Matt had become completely disillusioned with his career choice. Teaching was increasingly more frustrating, students were more difficult to motivate and coping with the stress had become much more challenging. He was on the verge of quitting and looking for a new career, until he decided to have a cup of coffee at a café suggested by his GPS. That’s where he met Ray and that’s when everything started to change. An engaging, funny and thought provoking parable, written, as creative non-fiction, Coffee With Ray will introduce readers to revolutionary ways of communicating that will help make students become more accountable and teachers more skilled at facilitating learning. Whether you’re a teacher, student or parent, after reading Coffee With Ray, your understanding of and your approach to learning and success will never be the same.

    Innovative and challenging, Joy Schaverien offers a psychological analysis of the long-established British and colonial preparatory and public boarding school tradition. Richly illustrated with pictures and the narratives of adult ex-boarders in psychotherapy, the book demonstrates how some forms of enduring distress in adult life may be traced back to the early losses of home and family. Developed from clinical research and informed by attachment and child development theories ‘Boarding School Syndrome’ is a new term that offers a theoretical framework on which the psychotherapeutic treatment of ex-boarders may build. Divided into four parts, History: In the Name of Privilege; Exile and Healing; Broken Attachments: A Hidden Trauma, and The Boarding School Body, the book includes vivid case studies of ex-boarders in psychotherapy. Their accounts reveal details of the suffering endured: loss, bereavement and captivity are sometimes compounded by physical, sexual and psychological abuse. Here, Joy Schaverien shows how many boarders adopt unconscious coping strategies including dissociative amnesia resulting in a psychological split between the 'home self' and the 'boarding school self'. This pattern may continue into adult life, causing difficulties in intimate relationships, generalized depression and separation anxiety amongst other forms of psychological distress. Boarding School Syndrome demonstrates how boarding school may damage those it is meant to be a reward and discusses the wider implications of this tradition. It will be essential reading for psychoanalysts, Jungian analysts, psychotherapists, art psychotherapists, counsellors and others interested in the psychological, cultural and international legacy of this tradition including ex-boarders and their partners.

    For a start, there’s the sheer range of worthwhile blogs out there, all of which compete for our attention in real time alongside news and entertainment sites, social networking platforms and – what’s that word again? – oh yes, work.Even when we subscribe to a favourite blog, a week can flash by without us reading the latest post. If we do try and catch up, there can be so much comment to read through that we feel left behind.Is there another way to experience a great blog – less hurried, more contemplative? One of the first ideas behind the round was to create a bridge between blogs and conventional publishing, and we’re delighted to be doing just this with a new e-book based on Scott Thornbury’s ‘An A-Z of ELT’.It isn’t just an e-book version of the blog – the original blog will remain online, hyperlinked to the book. Instead, Scott has reshaped a selection of key posts as Big Questions In ELT. Each selected post has been framed as a critical issue for teachers, such as ‘What makes an activity communicative?‘, or ‘How do you achieve ‘flow’ in your teaching?’ The rewritten text is followed by a series of new Questions for Discussion, so each chapter can be used for personal reflection or teacher training.As Scott says in his introduction: ‘in my teaching and in my training, I favour dialogue over transmission, and dialogue – almost by definition – entails asking questions.’ This resonates not only with Scott’s work in Dogme ELT, but also with the online format that gave birth to this e-book: he sees the questions as ‘a means of re-activating, and continuing, the online conversations that the original blog posts triggered’.There’s an additional feature that exploits the visual potential of e-pub formats: a series of specially commissioned, colour illustrations by Piet Luthi.

    They abducted children and forced them to commit atrocities against their own families and communities. Girls as young as thirteen were degraded to sex slaves for Kony's officers. Now, the war is over, but the decades of brutal conflict have deeply scarred the people of Uganda. Child soldiers return to the very communities they committed violent crimes against, and the girls carry with them a constant reminder of their abuse: their captors' children. These girls and their children are often ostracized by their communities, and most lack the skills they need to provide for their families. Sewing Hope tells the story of one woman's fight to bring hope back to her nation. Sister Rosemary Nyirumbe presides over Saint Monica's Vocational School in Gulu, Uganda. She lived through the horror created by Kony's LRA and now works to heal the wounds he inflicted on her people. She invites formerly abducted girls to Saint Monica's where they learn skills to provide for their families. Through vocational training, these young women gain independence. Through community with their fellow students, they find forgiveness. Through the restoration of their lost futures, they find hope.

    

    Simple yet powerful words illuminate the joy to be found in everyday activities. The book ends with a meaningful, age-appropriate expression of gratitude, and a fun opportunity to connect each "thank you!" with its related activity earlier in the book.

    In 1999, at the age of thirty-five, Wood quit a lucrative career to found the nonprofit Room to Read. Described by the San Francisco Chronicle as “the Andrew Carnegie of the developing world,” he strived to bring the lessons of the corporate world to the nonprofit sector—and succeeded spectacularly. In his acclaimed first book, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World, Wood explained his vision and the story of his start-up. Now, he tackles the organization’s next steps and its latest challenges—from managing expansion to raising money in a collapsing economy to publishing books for children who literally have no books in their native language. At its heart, Creating Room to Read shares moving stories of the people Room to Read works to help: impoverished children whose schools and villages have been swept away by war or natural disaster and girls whose educations would otherwise be ignored. People at the highest levels of finance, government, and philanthropy will embrace the opportunity to learn Wood’s inspiring business model and blueprint for doing good. And general readers will love Creating Room to Read for its spellbinding story of one man’s mission to put books within every child’s reach.

    From the very first conception and collaborations with crew and cast, through rehearsals and technical production all the way to the final performance, Joe Deer covers the full range.Deer's accessible and compellingly practical approach uses proven, repeatable methods for addressing all aspects of a production. The focus at every stage is on working with others, using insights from experienced, successful directors to tackle common problems and devise solutions. Each section uses the same structure, to stimulate creative thinking:Timetables: detailed instructions on what to do and when, to provide a flexible organization templatePrompts and Investigations: addressing conceptual questions about style, characterization and designSkills Workshops: Exercises and 'how-to' guides to essential skillsEssential Forms and Formats: Including staging notation, script annotation and rehearsal checklistsCase Studies: Well-known productions show how to apply each chapter's ideas Directing in Musical Theatre not only provides all of the essential skills, but explains when and how to put them to use; how to think like a director.

    To do this, it provides practical examples and guidelines for team members, and it creates interaction and reflection opportunities through questions and journaling.With eight units, six of which are built around free online video content, this book equips teams to avoid harming materially poor communities and to translate their experience into lasting and mutual engagement with missions and poverty alleviation. In conjunction with the separately available Leader’s Guide, it is an ideal resource for churches, Christian colleges, mission agencies, and missionaries.

    Renowned theoretician and philosopher Zeus Leonardo surveys the dominant race theories and, more specifically, focuses on those frameworks that are considered essential to cultivating a critical attitude toward race and racism. The book examines four frameworks: Critical Race Theory (CRT), Marxism, Whiteness Studies, and Cultural Studies, with a critique following each one in order to analyze its strengths and set its limits. The last chapter offers a theory of "race ambivalence," which combines aspects of all four theories into one framework. Engaging and cutting edge, Race Frameworks is a foundational text suitable for courses in education and critical race studies.Chapters:Introduction: Critical Frameworks on Race1.; Critical Race Theory in Education: On Racial State Apparatuses2.; Marxism and Race: The Racialized Division of Labor 3.; Whiteness Studies and Educational Supremacy: The Unbearable Whiteness of Schooling4.; Cultural Studies, Race Representation, and Education: From the Means of Production to the Production of Meanness5.; Race Ambivalence and a Multidimensional Theory of Racism and Education

    Catch the Fire is a complete guide to using arts and empowerment techniques to bring greater vitality and depth to working with groups of youth or adults. Based on the premise that you don't have to be a professional artist to use the arts in your work, this unique book invites group leaders into the realm of creativity-based facilitation, regardless of previous experience.Including over one hundred stimulating activities incorporating storytelling, theater, writing, visual arts, music, and movement, this detailed guide uses the Creative Community Model to:Bridge gaps and unite people across generations and culturesBuild vibrant, creative learning communities with youth and/or adultsFully engage participants and volunteersDevelop social and emotional intelligenceTake a deeper, more meaningful approach to learningDrawing on nearly two decades of experience providing transformative programs to empower youth and adults across North America and around the world, Catch the Fire is a powerful and valuable resource and a much-needed reminder that art is for everyone!Peggy Taylor and Charlie Murphy are co-founders of PYE Global: Partners for Youth Empowerment and developers of the Creative Community Model, a process for building creative, heart-centered learning communities with youth and adults from diverse cultures and socio-economic backgrounds. Peggy is co-author of Chop Wood, Carry Water: A Guide to Finding Spiritual Fulfillment in Everyday Life which sold over 250,000 copies worldwide.

    Now she brings together twelve spiritual habitseach illuminated by the story of a Catholic saintthat help administrators find spiritual meaning in their work.

    With expert tips, clear instruction over 100 photos, you will gain the understanding on how to fine-tune your guitar to play it's best. Makes an excellent starter book or reference for budding professionals. ***Now updated and expanded with additional content including a section on restringing, neck shimming, scale length determination and new images!*** Included in the Book: An 8 step method on setting up your electric or acoustic guitar; How to adjust Fender-style tremolo's, Gibson hard-tails, Floyd Rose and other floating bridge types; How to adjust the saddle on your acoustic steel string or nylon string guitar; How to file nut slots; Setup spec's for electric, acoustic, classical and bass guitar; Manufacturer's setup spec's from Fender, Gibson, Ibanez, Jackson, Gretsch and others; Exclusive setup specifications from the Author's best playing guitars; A handy measurement conversion chart.

    Presenting Montessori principles in clear and eloquent prose, Stephenson's legacy will be a tremendous service to generations of parents to come.- -Angeline Lillard, PhD, Professor of Psychology, U. of Virginia, author of Montessori, The Science behind the Genius

    This atlas is packed with unique insights into Christian history makers and amazing landmarks. One will explore the design of ecosystems and biomes, great civilizations, and discoveries found around the world. The full-color, visually engaging book provides a dual purpose as an elementary curriculum and a valued reference tool.

    And The Knitted Slipper Book is an everything-you-need-to-know guide to making this exciting variation on the sock. Whatever your preference—moccasins, mukluks, clogs, ballet flats, boots, booties, or Mary Janes—you’ll find all of the instruction you need. This eclectic collection of 30 designs is meant to satisfy the slipper styles of everyone in the family, young and old, male and female. In addition to the knitting instructions, techniques covered include felting; shaping; sizing; attaching soles, linings, and insoles; and finishing with tassels, pom-poms, and other trims. Step-by-step photos assure beautiful, hard-wearing, and well-fitting results.Praise for The Knitted Slipper Book: “It’s impossible to flip through without smiling. The color, the photography, the projects are imbued with joy.” —Knitty.com“I really like the range of sizes . . . I love, love, love the Genie Folk Slippers!” —Knit Knit Café Blog“Fireside booties are genius shoes because they warm the feet and the ankles. The sleepy friends slippers are super adorable. The photos of each slipper are fantastic.” —Sweetly Made"This book is a lot of fun, offering options both whimsical and practical. But beware: looking at it might inspire you to want to knit slippers for everyone in your family. Or everyone on your Christmas list. Or to institute a no shoes in the house rule and knit a basket of slippers to leave by the door for guests.” —About.com“We’re super psyched to offer you a free knitting pattern . . . (You’ll definitely want to check out the trailer for the book. It’s unbelievably adorable!) Katie suggests whipping up several of these clogs for house guests—but of course, a couple of pairs for yourself would be nice, too.” —Craftsy.com“I love this book! You will too. And so will Mom, and Grandma! A perfect gift for every knitter on your Holiday gift list.” —Gingerbread Snowflakes“You can have all your gift knitting done from one book! Such a smart, fun yet functional collection of knits.”  —Petite Purls“The Knitted Slipper Book provides magic, along with a hefty dose of practicality.” —Shelf Awareness“It’s a wonderful, multi-faceted book—and once I’ve finished knitting my way through it, I’ll be looking for the sequel!” —Kangath Knits“We’re in the time of year when crafters seek out patterns and ideas for handmade holiday gifts. There’s a winner on each page of The Knitted Slipper Book.” —Cleveland Plain Dealer“Patterns range from baby to large adults sizes, making this book of 30 designs especially appealing to those who have plans to make handmade holiday gifts this year.” —Grand Rapids Press“Everything you need to know about how to make these warm and cozy beauties is all in one book, hooray for that!” —Smashed Peas and Carrots“Because everyone needs cute house shoes, right?” —DallasNews.com

    This user-friendly text is your guide to all units of the Award and is the key text for this course. Structured around the teaching, learning and assessing cycle, it includes full coverage of all units and information relevant to the Learning and Development units. Examples, activities and checklists help you link theory to practice. Written for all learners and all awarding organisations.A key text for the new Award in Education and Training.Contents specfically follow the teaching and learning cycle and match the qualification requirements.Readable, relevant and easy to understand.Provides valuable support for prospective teachers and trainers with little or no previous experience.An excellent foundation for those considering or progressing to further teaching qualifications.

    This is the love of a God who chose to give His life for ours, even carefully retaining His scars into the throne room of heaven and telling us in His very body, "I have gone to great lengths and great costs to say that I forsook all comforts for the love of you." Join Jim in his exploration of life in God's unconditional, redeeming, amazing grace. Endorsements: So often we turn our faith in Christ into a forcing mechanism, which doesn't work in any event; and if anything, produces disillusionment or hypocrisy. The Romance of Grace is a prophetic book. I believe that unless we heed its call, to put grace absolutely without condition and frontally as the be-all and end-all of the Good News, we will lose completely, and not just in "the eyes of the world" but in the failure of well-intentioned religious lives that tried to love and never knew how. -Paul F. M. Zahl, author of Grace in Practice: A Theology of Everyday Life It is time, as Robert Farrar Capon put it, to get drunk on grace. Two hundred-proof, defiant grace. That's what you get here in Jim's book. You won't see a list of qualifications, and you'll get no "footnotes." What you'll encounter is grace unmeasured, vast and free. It will frighten you and free you at the same time. -Tullian Tchividjian, Pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church and author of Jesus + Nothing = Everything In The Romance of Grace we are confronted with a truth that we may have previously rejected. It seemed too easy to embrace. It lacked obligation on our part and contradicted accusations we have given credence to for the majority of our lives on earth. Yet herein lies the truth-"Not that we loved God, but that God loved us." This book will help to right the plumb line in your life. -David Collins, author of Out of the Box, founder of Canadian Food for the Hungry International The radical, scandalous, real grace of Jesus Christ shines from this book. McNeely drills down to the core of Christian living and finds the incredible love of a God who alone is good. The Gospel in our lives is not only a treasure experienced at conversion but a gift for daily living, altering desires and restoring hearts. Grounded in Scripture and rich in contemporary illustrations, grace is revealed as bringing assurance and restoration and relationship. How refreshing, true, and needed in a Christian culture that has lost the romance of grace. Take in this book to breathe the air that love breathes, and rejoice with grateful freedom in the wonder of grace. -Dax Swanson, Pastor of Grace Church Bellingham in Bellingham, WA McNeely's ideas in The Romance of Grace are inspired, and the way he makes the point creative. One technique in particular stands out-at times, the book almost seems like it's enacting a Law-Gospel dialectic. He speaks unflinchingly about our need or duty to do something as humans, and the language of these sections is always quite demanding, such as the idea that God wants ALL of us, and we must surrender to Him. Then he immediately makes the point that we can't do it ourselves, that it's not about us, and that God loves us unconditionally. Exploring how a theology of grace relates to love, beauty, and aesthetics is a wonderful enterprise, and The Romance of Grace is a serious contribution both to Protestant thought as a whole and, for us, to the way we approach Christianity. -David Zahl, Mockingbird Ministries, editor of The Mockingbird Blog

    Janine Robinson, an English teacher and professional writer who has tutored college-bound students on these essays for years, acts as a personal writing coach to guide and cheer students through this dreaded process.College admissions "experts" tell students to "Tell a story," or "Make the essay about you!," or "Be an individual." And this is all correct. But no one ever explains exactly HOW they can do this. Until now.In her motivating guide, Janine takes students through 10 simple steps to find engaging topics and then craft compelling essays using storytelling writing techniques. Students will learn how to identify their unique defining qualities, write engaging mini-stories called anecdotes, and use a powerful Show and Tell writing formula.Escape Essay Hell! can help students write personal statements and respond to prompts for The Common Application, public university, private college, supplemental, graduate school and scholarship essays.By following these informative and inspiring steps, students will escape Essay Hell in no time at all--and have their best shot at landing in their dream school!(For more help on how to spin topics for specific prompts, check out Janine's other helpful guide: "Essay Hell's 2013-14 Prompts Primer: Strategies for The Common App, UC and Other College Application Essays.")

    Doug Robertson takes all the creative energy and zany antics he uses to inspire the students in his classroom and has channeled it into a fun to read, irreverent, but deeply meaningful guide to teaching.