Stevenson and James W. Stigler compare United States elementary education practices with those in Asia (specificall Japan and China) and comes to some surprising conclusions.

    In this remarkable resource, Maria Walther shares two-page read-aloud experiences for 101 picture books that tune you into what to notice, say, and wonder in order to bolster students' literacy exponentially.A first-grade teacher for decades, Maria is a master of "strategic savoring." Her lesson design efficiently sparks instructional conversations around each book's cover illustration, enriching vocabulary words, literary language, and the ideas and themes vital to young learners.Teachers, schools, and districts looking to energize your core reading and writing program, search no further: The Ramped-Up Read Aloud delivers a formula for literacy development and a springboard to joy in equal parts.

    The Friels examine the seven most ineffective and self-defeating behaviors that parents display again and again. Working from the ideas that even small changes can have big results, the authors give parents concrete steps they can take to end these behaviors and improve the quality of their parenting. Whether you're contemplating starting a family, have children who haven't entered school yet, are struggling with rebellious teenagers, or are empty-nesters wondering how to be better parents to your grown children, you can't afford not to read this book. With the same clarity and concrete examples that have sold over 350,000 copies of their books, the Friels offer readers forty years of combined experience as practicing psychologists, and fifty years of combined experience as blended-family parents. The material in "The 7 Worst Things Parents Can Do" has been field-tested in the authors' own household, with hundreds of their clients, and with thousands of their workshop and Clearlife Clinic participants. It will cause immediate changes in your behavior, in your child's behavior and will improve the lives you share together.

    There are more than seventy games here, 50 of them all new, plus many more recommendations, and they cover the full gambit, from old-fashioned favorites to today’s high-tech games. The book offers a gold mine of creative, constructive fun: intricate clapping games, bike rodeo, Google Earth challenges, croquet golf, capture the flag, and the best ever apps to play with Grandma, to name only a handful. Gaming is a whole culture for kids to explore, and the book will be complete with gaming history and interviews with awesome game designers. The lessons here: all games can be self-customized, or hacked. You can even make up your own games. Some could even change the world.The original UNBORED has taken its place as a much beloved, distinctly contemporary family brand. UNBORED Games extends the franchise—to be followed by UNBORED Adventure—in a new handy flexibound format, illustrated in full color throughout. Soon, there will be a whole shelf of serious fun the whole family can enjoy indoors, outdoors, online and offline.

      Alternating between site visits and brief historical narratives, this guide tells the story of Washington, DC, from its origins to current times. From George Washington’s Mount Vernon to the Kennedy Center, trek through each era of the federal district, on a tour of America’s most beloved sites. Go inside the White House, the only executive home in the world regularly open to the public. Travel to President Lincoln’s Cottage and see where he wrote the Emancipation Proclamation. And visit lesser-known sites, such as the grave of Pierre L’Enfant, the city’s Botanical Gardens, the Old Post Office, and a host of historical homes throughout the capital. This is the only guide you’ll need to curate an unforgettable expedition to our shining city on a hill.

    In his extensively revised fourth edition, Frank Smith brings teachers and teacher educators up to date on how reading should not be taught. It is a necessary reminder that reading and learning to read are natural activities.There is a massive assault on the independence of teachers of reading, mandated under the No Child Left Behind legislation, which regards reading as an unnatural act requiring contrived systematic instruction. Now more important than ever, Reading Without Nonsense, Fourth Edition provides the evidence and arguments that teachers need to resist this mechanistic view. As Frank Smith emphasizes, the act of reading has never changed despite all the changes in materials, procedures, and methodology proposed by people with an interest in how reading is taught.Reading Without Nonsense remains one of the most authoritative, influential, informative, and accessible texts on reading and learning to read. This bestseller is popular with classroom teachers and university professors as well as administrators, parents, and everyone concerned with literacy and education.

    Why, he wondered, do we inflict a full menu of mathematics—algebra, geometry, trigonometry, even calculus—on all young Americans, regardless of their interests or aptitudes?The Math Myth expands Hacker’s scrutiny of many widely held assumptions, like the notions that mathematics broadens our minds, that mastery of azimuths and asymptotes will be needed for most jobs, that the entire Common Core syllabus should be required of every student. He worries that a frenzied emphasis on STEM is diverting attention from other pursuits and subverting the spirit of the country.In fact, Hacker honors mathematics as a calling (he has been a professor of mathematics) and extols its glories and its goals. Yet he shows how mandating it for everyone prevents other talents from being developed and acts as an irrational barrier to graduation and careers. He proposes alternatives, including teaching facility with figures, quantitative reasoning, and understanding statistics.The Math Myth is sure to spark a heated and needed national conversation not just about mathematics but about the kind of people and society we want to be.

    By exploring the science behind the iconic television program, the book reveals what Fred Rogers called the “tools for learning”: skills and mindsets that scientists now consider essential. These tools—curiosity, creativity, collaboration, and more—have been shown to boost everything from academic learning to children’s well-being, and they benefit kids of every background and age. They cost next to nothing to develop, and they hinge on the very things that make life worthwhile: self-acceptance; close, loving relationships; and a deep regard for one’s neighbor. When You Wonder, You're Learning shows parents and educators the many ways they might follow in Rogers’ footsteps, sharing his “tools for learning” with digital-age kids. With insights from thinkers, scientists, and teachers—many of whom worked with Rogers himself—the book is an essential exploration into how kids and their parents can excel at what Rogers taught best: being human.

    The Talk is a series of 7 studies, all anchored in the Scriptures, that helps parents to talk meaningfully with children about sexuality. The Talk was written for parents to read with children ages 6 to 10 years old. The study supplies elementary-age children with foundational truths about sexuality at a level they can understand.

    

    This breakthrough book demonstrates how parents and teachers can join forces to inspire kids to be self-directed, self-disciplined, and responsive to the wonders of learning.

    Open your students' minds to the wonders of philosophy. Allow them to grapple with the questions philosophers have discussed since the ancient Greeks. Questions include: "Who are your friends?," "Can computers think?," "Can something logical not make sense?," and "Can you think about nothing?" Young minds will find these questions to be both entertaining and informative. If you have ever wondered about questions like these, you are well on the way to becoming a philosopher! "Philosophy for Kids" offers young people (ages 10 and up) the opportunity to become acquainted with the wonders of philosophy. Packed with exciting activities arranged around the topics of values, knowledge, reality, and critical thinking, this book can be used individually or by the whole class. Each activity allows kids to increase their understanding of philosophical concepts and issues and enjoy themselves at the same time. In addition to learning about a challenging subject, students philosophizing in a classroom setting, as well as the casual reader of "Philosophy for Kids," will sharpen the ability to think critically about these and similar questions. Experiencing the enjoyment of philosophical thought enhances a young person's appreciation for the importance of reasoning throughout the traditional curriculum of subjects. The book includes activities, teaching tips, a glossary of terms, and suggestions for further reading. Grades 4-12

    The first three years of life are too important for experiments, but the Montessori guidelines presented here have held true all over the world, no matter what the culture of the child, for over 100 years. It is the goal of this book to help parents look for, discover, appreciate, and support the mental, physical, and emotional needs of the child in the first three years of life. There are over 180 black and white pictures from the author's work around the world with children from birth to three years of age. "The Joyful Child" is used in Montessori teacher training centers, middle school human development classes, birth preparation classes, and it is of interest to anyone studying education and child development. It has been translated into several languages and is often used as a text for parenting classes. Chapters: The First Year-The senses: Before birth; music and language; crying as communication; seeing and processing; the absorbent mind; materials The First Year-Reaching Out and Grasping: The development of movement; toys that aid the natural development of movement; natural materials for toys The First Year-Sitting up and Working: The child's Work; eating and working while sitting up; safety concerns with new movement abilities; number of toys available at any one time, and learning to put them away; suggested toys The First Year-Freedom of movement; a safe and natural environment; crawling, pulling up, standing, and walking; toys and equipment that aid movement development The End of the First Year-Unique Development and the Child's Self-Respect: Each child's path of development is unique; aiding the beginning of a good self-image; preparing the home to welcome the newborn; clothing that supports free movement; attachment and separation, preparation for weaning and toilet learning; sign language and elimination communication (EC); materials that support optimum growth and development; unconditional love; the end of the first year Age 1-3-Care of Self, Others, and the Environment: Participating in the real life of the family; kinds of practical life activities; the work environment and concentration; materials; undressing and dressing; a place for everything and everything in its place; The child's purpose; the needs of the parents; adults and children working together; the child's research of the rules of society; teach by teaching, NOT by correcting; offering choices Age 1-3-Toys and Puzzles: Selecting toys; organizing and rotating toys; learning to put toys away; respecting concentration; visual discrimination and eye-hand control; puzzle toys; open-ended toys Age 1-3-Music: Dancing and singing; percussion instruments and other music materials Age 1-3-Language: Listening comes first; a second language; listening and including the child in conversation; vocabulary, words, pictures, and books; formal language; storytelling, reading and writing; biting; imagination? lying?; materials; supporting language development Age 1-3-Art: Art is more than drawing; art materials; art appreciation; art work Age 1-3-People: Daily life of people of the world; materials Age 1-3-Plants and Animals: A natural love of nature; experiencing and naming plants; gardening; observing and caring for animals; materials Age 1-3-Physical Science and Math: The beginnings of physicals sciences; the beginnings of math Age 0-3-Preparing the Environment: What do we need for a new baby? safety; general environment principles; the environment and the absorbent mind; the outside environment; materials; conclusion Age 0-3-Parenting and Teaching: A gentle birth; gentle family togetherness in daily life; clothing and materials; developing trust in the world; a gentle beginning, the role of the father; a sense of order; the changing environment; the child's needs; modeling, setting limits, and time out; educational materials for 0-3; conclusion

    Text, illustrations, and suggested activities offer a common-sense approach to mathematic fundamentals for those who are slightly terrified of numbers.

    She offers deeply-held thoughts and convictions, formed out of a life of books and reading in the Clarkson household, about the mind- and soul-shaping influence of good books, reading, and the power of story on children. She writes as a twenty-six-year-old woman looking back on the many books she read growing up as the first wholehearted child in the Clarkson home and how they have shaped her life, mind, and spirit. She reviews hundreds of whole and living books for children 4-14, and includes additional lists of books to help parents choose the best literary food for their growing children's hearts and minds.