The Secrets of Polyglots


Konrad Jerzak vel Dobosz - 2014
    Are you also struggling with the same problems as other people who learn languages? Do you recognize any of these? Many of us have families, a full-time job, and problems finding enough time to study. It’s difficult to ensure that we study regularly and make progress in the new language. We try to force ourselves to study regularly, so we register for language courses and pay for access to Internet apps, but this artificial motivation becomes quickly a flash in the pan. When we try to study we don’t know how to do it efficiently. What techniques should we use? How can we remember the vocabulary? How do we deal with the grammar? We try different solutions, but none brings the desired results. Why is it that some people are able to master more than ten languages? How do the polyglots find the time? What do they do to learn any language in a matter of months? As a teenager, Konrad Jerzak vel Dobosz wanted to become a polyglot, but like most of us he needed to deal with the same challenges: lack of time, lack of an efficient method of learning, difficulties memorizing the vocabulary, lack of motivation and the fear of making mistakes. He decided to analyze the methods of well-known polyglots, including Heinrich Schliemann, Emil Krebs and Giuseppe Mezzofanti. He took a close look at the approaches proposed by modern language learning experts Richard Simcott, Luca Lampariello, Moses McCormick and Benny Lewis. This book, The Secrets of Polyglots is the result of his analysis of the methods developed by the greatest polyglots. You can find here the description of the techniques used by the biggest experts, and also a step-by-step method, which Konrad Jerzak vel Dobosz used himself to learn more than ten languages. The Secrets of Polyglots was written especially for people who: - Need to learn a foreign language, but don’t have much time to study - Have registered for language courses, but aren’t happy with the results - Learn by themselves, but want more efficient techniques - Want to learn several languages simultaneously, but don’t know how to - Desire to be able to master any foreign language in a couple of months The first part is a description of 17 extremely efficient techniques and concepts that will improve your language learning process. The second part explains, step-by-step, the learning system used by the author, including a practical example of how to apply all the “secrets” described in the first part. Testimonials: “I need to say that I skip all kind of self-help guide type of books. But ‘The Secrets of Polyglots’ grabbed immediately my attention and, after reading just a couple of pages, I knew that I needed to buy this book. And it was worth it, because it opened my eyes to many different aspects of language learning that I had ignored previously. The great advantage of this book is lack of catchy slogans promising us language fluency just after a month of study. Instead, the author delivers reliable and very useful knowledge on how to gradually learn vocabulary and grammar, and also how to find motivation and develop our linguistic skills. I myself used the advice from Konrad’s book, and I can proudly say that after 1.5 years of studying Portuguese, I began communicating fluently in this language.

Barron's IELTS with Audio CDs: International English Language Testing System


Lin Lougheed - 2006
    IELTS test scores are used as a measure of English language proficiency by educational institutions, government departments and agencies, and professional organizations. This revised and updated test preparation manual for ESL students covers all parts of the IELTS and all of its question types: multiple-choice, short answer, sentence completion, flowchart completion, graphs, tables, making notes, summarizing, labeling diagrams and maps, classification, matching, and selecting from a list. The manual also offers four practice tests that reflect the most recent actual tests. The book’s tests come with audio for all four tests, answers, and listening and reading modules with answer keys.

Silent Spring


Rachel Carson - 1962
    The book documents the adverse environmental effects caused by the indiscriminate use of pesticides. Carson accused the chemical industry of spreading disinformation, and public officials of accepting the industry's marketing claims unquestioningly.The book appeared in September 1962 and the outcry that followed its publication forced the banning of DDT and spurred revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air, land, and water. Carson’s book was instrumental in launching the environmental movement.

Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice


Wayne E. Wright - 2010
    S. schools; language and literacy education; program models; instruction and assessment approaches, methods, and strategies; Common Core and English language proficiency standards and accountability requirements. Includes a companion website.

Music, the Brain, and Ecstasy: How Music Captures Our Imagination


Robert Jourdain - 1997
    In clear, understandable language, Jourdian expertly guides the reader through a continuum of musical experience: sound, tone, melody, harmony, rhythm, composition, performance, listening, understanding—and finally to ecstasy. Along the way, a fascinating cast of characters brings Jourdian's narrative to vivid life: "idiots savants" who absorb whole pieces on a single hearing, composers who hallucinate entire compositions, a psychic who claims to take dictation from long-dead composers, and victims of brain damage who can move only when they hear music. Here is a book that will entertain, inform, and stimulate everyone who loves music—and make them think about their favorite song in startling new ways.

iGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy--and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood--and What That Means for the Rest of Us


Jean M. Twenge - 2017
    Born in the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s and later, iGen is the first generation to spend their entire adolescence in the age of the smartphone. With social media and texting replacing other activities, iGen spends less time with their friends in person—perhaps why they are experiencing unprecedented levels of anxiety, depression, and loneliness. But technology is not the only thing that makes iGen distinct from every generation before them; they are also different in how they spend their time, how they behave, and in their attitudes toward religion, sexuality, and politics. They socialize in completely new ways, reject once sacred social taboos, and want different things from their lives and careers. More than previous generations, they are obsessed with safety, focused on tolerance, and have no patience for inequality. iGen is also growing up more slowly than previous generations: eighteen-year-olds look and act like fifteen-year-olds used to. As this new group of young people grows into adulthood, we all need to understand them: Friends and family need to look out for them; businesses must figure out how to recruit them and sell to them; colleges and universities must know how to educate and guide them. And members of iGen also need to understand themselves as they communicate with their elders and explain their views to their older peers. Because where iGen goes, so goes our nation—and the world.

504 Absolutely Essential Words


Murray Bromberg - 2005
    It presents 42 brief but effective word-building lessons. Each lesson introduces twelve new words contained in sample sentences and short articles. Fill-in-the-blanks exercises help students gauge their word-building progress.

In the Mind's Eye: Visual Thinkers, Gifted People with Dyslexia and Other Learning Difficulties, Computer Images and the Ironies of Creativity


Thomas G. West - 1991
    Some of our most original intellects--Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Lewis Carroll, and Winston Churchill--relied heavily on visual modes of thought, processing information in terms of images instead of words or numbers.Thomas G. West examines the learning difficulties experienced by both famous and everyday people, and he explores how recent neurological research shows an association between visual talents and verbal difficulties. In the Mind's Eye probes new data on dyslexics to see how computers enhance the creative potential of visual thinkers, as well as interactive computer applications at all levels of education and work. Updated with a new preface, epilogue, and expanded notes, this volume could be the clarion call for educators and corporations to mine this untapped resource of highly creative talent in our midst.

Everything You Need to Ace Math in One Big Fat Notebook: The Complete Middle School Study Guide


Altair Peterson - 2016
        Everything You Need to Ace Math . . . covers everything to get a student over any math hump: fractions, decimals, and how to multiply and divide them; ratios, proportions, and percentages; geometry; statistics and probability; expressions and equations; and the coordinate plane and functions. The BIG FAT NOTEBOOK™ series is built on a simple and irresistible conceit—borrowing the notes from the smartest kid in class. There are five books in all, and each is the only book you need for each main subject taught in middle school: Math, Science, American History, English Language Arts, and World History. Inside the reader will find every subject’s key concepts, easily digested and summarized: Critical ideas highlighted in neon colors. Definitions explained. Doodles that illuminate tricky concepts in marker. Mnemonics for memorable shortcuts. And quizzes to recap it all. The BIG FAT NOTEBOOKS meet Common Core State Standards, Next Generation Science Standards, and state history standards, and are vetted by National and State Teacher of the Year Award–winning teachers. They make learning fun and are the perfect next step for every kid who grew up on Brain Quest.

Mathematics: The Core Course For A Level (Core Course)


Linda Bostock - 1981
    Worked examples and exercises support the text. An ELBS/LPBB edition is available.

Disaster by Choice: How Our Actions Turn Natural Hazards Into Catastrophes


Ilan Kelman - 2020
    We hear that nature runs rampant, seeking to destroy us through these 'natural disasters'. Science recounts a different story, however: disasters are not the consequence of natural causes; they are the consequence of human choices and decisions. we put ourselves in harm's way; we fail to take measures which we know would prevent disasters, no matter what the environment does.This can be both hard to accept, and hard to unravel. A complex of factors shape disasters. They arise from the political processes dictating where and what we build, and from social circumstances which create and perpetuate poverty and discrimination. They develop from the social preference to blame nature for the damage wrought, when in fact events such as earthquakes and storms are entirely commonplace environmental processes We feel the need to fight natural forces, to reclaim what we assume is ours, and to protect ourselves from what we perceive to be wrath from outside our communities. This attitude distracts us from the real causes of disasters: humanity's decisions, as societies and as individuals. It stops us accepting the real solutions to disasters: making better decisions.This book explores stories of some of our worst disasters to show how we can and should act to stop people dying when nature unleashes its energies. The disaster is not the tornado, the volcanic eruption, or climate change, but the deaths and injuries, the loss of irreplaceable property, and the lack and even denial of support to affected people, so that a short-term interruption becomes a long-term recovery nightmare. But we can combat this, as Kelman shows, describing inspiring examples of effective human action that limits damage, such as managing flooding in Toronto and villages in Bangladesh, or wildfire in Colorado.Throughout, his message is clear: there is no such thing as a natural disaster. The disaster lies in our inability to deal with the environment and with ourselves.

The Art of X-Ray Reading


Roy Peter Clark - 2016
    In THE ART OF X-RAY READING, Clark invites you to don your X-ray reading glasses and join him on a guided tour through some of the most exquisite and masterful literary works of all time, from The Great Gatsby to Lolita to The Bluest Eye, and many more. Along the way, he shows you how to mine these masterpieces for invaluable writing strategies that you can add to your arsenal and apply in your own writing. Once you've experienced X-ray reading, your writing will never be the same again.

Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism


Barry M. Prizant - 2015
    This perspective leads to therapies focused on ridding individuals of autistic symptoms. In Uniquely Human, Dr. Barry M. Prizant suggests a major shift in understanding autism: Instead of classifying "autistic" behaviors as signs of pathology, he sees them as strategies to cope with a world that feels chaotic and overwhelming. Rather than curb these behaviors, it's better to enhance abilities, build on strengths, and offer supports that will naturally lead to more desirable behavior and a better quality of life. In fact, argues Dr. Prizant, attempts to eliminate autistic behaviors may actually interfere with important developmental processes.Including inspiring stories and practical advice drawn from Dr. Prizant's four-decade career working in universities, schools, hospitals, and in private practice, Uniquely Human offers a compassionate and insightful perspective that parents, professionals, and family members will find uplifting and hopeful.

Psychology of Learning for Instruction


Marcy P. Driscoll - 1993
    Psychology of Learning for Instruction, Third Edition, focuses on the applications and implications of the learning theories. Using excellent examples ranging from primary school instruction to corporate training, this text combines the latest thinking and research to give readers the opportunity to explore the individual theories as viewed by the experts. Readers are encouraged to apply "reflective practice," which is designed to foster a critical and reflective mode of thinking when considering any particular approach to learning and instruction. Provides readers with the practical knowledge needed to apply learning theories to instruction. KEY TOPICS: This text addresses learning as it relates to behavior, cognition, development, biology, motivation and instruction. MARKET: Pre-service and in-service teachers, and educational psychologists.

Students at the Center: Personalized Learning with Habits of Mind


Bena Kallick - 2017
    The way to do this, argue authors Bena Kallick and Allison Zmuda, is to increase the say students have in their own learning and prepare them to navigate complexities they face both inside and beyond school. This means rethinking traditional teacher and student roles and re-examining goal setting, lesson planning, assessment, and feedback practices. It means establishing classrooms that prioritizeVoice--Involving students in "the what" and "the how" of learning and equipping them to be stewards of their own education.Co-creation--Guiding students to identify the challenges and concepts they want to explore and outline the actions they will take.Social construction--Having students work with others to theorize, pursue common goals, build products, and generate performances.Self-discovery--Teaching students to reflect on their own developing skills and knowledge so that they will acquire new understandings of themselves and how they learn.Based on their exciting work in the field, Kallick and Zmuda map out a transformative model of personalization that puts students at the center and asks them to employ the set of dispositions for engagement and learning known as the Habits of Mind. They share the perspectives of educators engaged in this work; highlight the habits that empower students to pursue aspirations, investigate problems, design solutions, chase curiosities, and create performances; and provide tools and recommendations for adjusting classroom practices to facilitate learning that is self-directed, dynamic, sometimes messy, and always meaningful.