Resources Books

This is one of those rare books that makes it points clearly and then guides your through exercises that reinforce its key messages.

I found the book incredibly helpful in preparing realistic plans that set you up for success. I have used it extensively to help me design major projects and I am well on my way toward measurable success on those goals.

Make Success Measurable tells you how to set business goals that matter for shareholders, customers, and employees. That is good advice, and it is backed up by "workbook" exercises that help you focus on what is really important. The "mindbook-workbook" format makes room for exercises that you can work on with your colleagues at the office. I found that the "mindbook" portion held my interest as an individual reader. I started getting REALLY interested about halfway through the book when Smith introduced the concept of "working arenas" - the different groupings of people (sometimes in multiple companies) that are necessary to achieve these goals. Smith explains that you need to shape your goals and methods to fit the appropriate working arena, rather than a pre-set corporate structure. If you work in a complex organization, you should read this book and apply its lessons.

I would compare Make Success Measurable very favorably to the Kaplan and Norton book on The Balanced Scorecard. The Balanced Scorecard tends to be vague and anecdotal on the subject of how to set measurable goals, and it is hard to finish. In contrast, Smith packs his book with original analysis and specific recommendations on topics like "Vertical versus Horizontal Management Disciplines" and "Injecting Creative and Personal Tension into Goals". The Balanced Scorecard presents a four way cause and effect chain from employees through process improvements, customers, and shareholders. Make Success Measurable presents a three way performance cycle as including employees who provide value to customers who provide rewards to shareholders...who provide rewards to employees and so on. The "process" piece doesn't appear in Smith's analysis, because focusing on process measures doesn't necessarily help anyone. In fact, it is a trap that can lead to meaningless work. Smith encourages us to focus on "outcomes" - measures that matter directly to employees, customers, and shareholders. This brings us quickly to reality and hopefully to consensus with our colleagues. Get real. Get this book.

You can rarely pick up a job description in the public or private sector that does not include a statement seeking "demonstrated experience and success working with the principles of quality management and a commitment to customer service." One of the cornerstones to quality management is the ability to focus on outcomes instead of activities.

Make Success Measurable is filled with practical techniques. Even more, it is a workbook, providing opportunities to apply new concepts to real work. Whether you want to be able to create more focus within your own work unit, be able to demonstrate tangible results to your manager, prioritize your own work by aligning your day to day activities with the most important initiatives, or coach customers who are seeking your expertise in developing performance measures, this book can help.

As a result of reading this book and trying the exercises, you should be able to:

1) Convert new visions, strategies, and directions into achievable outcome-based goals that can better yourself and others in your organization.

2) Set goals that are specific, measurable, aggressive, achievable, relevant, and time bound. (SMART Goals)

3) Set goals that matter to those expecting a return on their funding dollars.

4) Set goals that matter to you personally in terms of opportunities, rewards, and skills.

5) Choose from a variety of management disciplines to achieve your goals.

6) Set goals that matter to customers who want speed, quality, and prompt service.

"I believe you will benefit from this book because the challenge of setting and achieving performance goals has become very confusing". Douglas K. Smith writes, "It has been more than 30 years since Peter Drucker wrote about the importance of managing for results. His work led to the widespread practice of management by objective. But an awful lot has happened in the past 30 years. The world of business and organizations has changed dramatically, turning many of Drucker's specifics (though not his wisdom) upside down. In the aftermath of total quality, customer service, time-based competition, strategic alliances, globalization, reengineering, core competencies, continuous improvement, innovation, teams, horizontal organization, benchmarking, best place to work, information technology, diversity, environmentalism, deregulation and reregulation, eCommerce, and privatization, those of us left standing in today's organizations are unsure about what performance goals and outcomes make the most difference and why. We know that setting performance goals is key to managing ourselves and others, but we no longer know how".

Douglas K. Smith organizes his book in four parts. In the first part (Chapters 1-4), he provides the background, concepts, tools, techniques, and frameworks you need to set specific outcome-based goals that matter to successfully navigate today's most pressing performance challenges. In the second part (Chapters 5-7), he focuses on helping you align and coordinate goals throughout your organization. In the third part (Chapters 8-10), he describes the management disciplines you need to achieve your goals and how to make choices among them. In the fourth part (Chapter 11), he concludes the book with a step-by-step design for building an outcomes management system in your organization.

In this context, in Chapter 10, he reviews the management disciplines you must understand in order to succeed in the face of change, and introduces the critical distinction between decision-diven change and behavior-driven change, and describes how to manage each successfully. Hence, he argues that most change efforts fall far short of their potential. Usually that's because leaders fail to address the deep behavioral changes they are seeking. And thus, he lists the following ten management principles as the heart of any successful change effort:

1. Keep performance results the primary objective of behavior and skill change.

2. Continually increase the number of individuals taking responsibility for their own change.

3. Make sure that each person always knows why his or her performance and change matters to the purpose and results of the whole organization.

4. Put people in a position to learn by doing and provide them with the information and support they need just in time to perform.

5. Embrace improvisation as the best path to both performance and change.

6. Use team performance to drive change whenever demanded.

7. Concentrate organizational designs on the work that people do, not on the decision-making authority they have.

8. Create and focus energy and meaningful language because these are the scarcest resources during periods of change.

9. Stimulate and sustain behavior-driven change by harmonizing initiatives throughout the organization.

10. Practice leadership based on the courage to live the change you wish to bring about.

Finally, he argues that if you expect others to change their behavior, you have to change yours. It's as simple and as hard as that.

I strongly recommend.

Make Success Measurable! is definitely becoming the Bible at work. Very well written, and Smith's ideas are well-supported. We've received positive feedback from clients, and we've expanded our client base because of this good word-of-mouth. I strongly recommend Make Success Measurable! It's as good as Guerilla PR: Wired, which focuses on techniques to getting solid public relations coverage, especially nowadays.

Fight The Good FightHaving been a member of Prestonwood Baptist Church and sat under the ministry of Dr. Jack Graham for four years, I believe that he is truly a man of God. A great leader who has served as the President of the Southern Baptist Convention for two terms. My wife and I have purchased this book to give to others.

This book is must reading for every man! It speaks of our relationship with God and how that relationship is carried over to that with our wives, children, employers, etc. Guys, God expects certain things from us. I encourage all men to read this book!

I couldn't be happier with the purchase of this book. It is by far one of the best sources on godly living for men. His style is personal, yet powerful. And just in time for Father's Day, it has inspired me to include all the essential priorities listed by Dr. Graham into my own life and family.

This book is more than your average book. It covers topics that every man wants to know more about. It digs deeps into Scripture and offers Christian men the basic essentials to living sold-out to God. I couldn't be happier with this book. On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being the highest), I give it a 12.

Jack Graham is pastor of the massive Prestonwood Baptist Church which boasts a membership of over 23,000 and is thus one of the world's largest churches. He has written several books, the latest of which is A Man of God (which releases today). To provide a clear idea of the target audience for this book, one does not need to look much farther than the list of endorsers. The list includes Roger Staubach, Gary Carter and Pat Summerall. Neil Clark Warren (founder of the online dating site eHarmony.com) is added for good measure. And Chuck Norris enters the fray to write the foreward. And if you still aren't sure, perhaps this quote will bring added clarity. "The Christian life is more important than the Super Bowl, the World Series, the NBA Finals, and the Stanley Cup all wrapped together" (page 12).

This book is obviously intended for the American "everyman" - the average guy with average interests who attends the average church. Graham intends this book to be a wake-up call. He tells us early-on that he has always firmly believed that "if revival was to come to the church, and if the Good News of Jesus Christ was to spread to the nations, it would be because men became godly and began living their faith with passion and integrity" (page 13). He seeks to encourage men to step up to the challenges offered to the faith in the twenty-first century and accept responsibility for the church.

The book is divided into four roughly-equal sections, each containing three chapters. The first, "A Man of God and His Master" challenges men to know, understand and commit to God. Graham teaches that men need to commit to maximum discipleship - discipleship that impacts the whole life. The second section, "A Man of God and His Integrity" challenges men to live upright lives marked by moral purity and free from captivity to temporal possessions. The third section, "A Man of God and His Family" speaks of the importance of prioritzing family relationships. The final section, "A Man of God and His Ministry" challenges men about in the areas of mentorship and evangelism.

The book is written in a conversational tone and is simple both to read and understand. Stories and examples abound. Scripture examples and proof-texts are also in abundant supply.

There were a couple of small theological issues I found with the book, but I can see that these arose because of my Reformed understanding of salvation. On page 201 Graham writes, "People are incredibly interested in something that will fill the void in their hearts." While this may be true, in no way does this indicate, as he seems to indicate, that unbelievers are genuinelly and spiritually interested in the gospel. But beyond such minor concerns, I found the book quite Scriptural.

I am not convinced that Graham says very much in this book that has not been said before by other authors. In fact, there are probably quite literally one hundred books that deal with this same topic in a similar way. However, judging by the churches of today it seems that plenty of men have still not accepted the challenge, so perhaps this book can serve to wake a few more from their spiritual slumber. If a man in your life is not a reader, and has not already read several similar titles, this may be the type of book that will challenge and motivate him. It is certainly more biblical and more challenging than Wild at Heart and so many others.

I've been working on geochemistry and hydro-geochemistry for the last three years and this book represent an "easy-to-follow" compendium of the most usual problems and situations that you can find on field. The author's explanations to some problems are quite ingenious and help to solve, in a practical way, most of the difficulties that you can find in real natural systems.

The authors have managed to take a subject that can be dry and intimidating and make it readable and enjoyable. I have been in the consulting business as a hydrogeologist for 20 years, and found that I needed to review "the basics" due to a career change to Water Resources. I found the book to be well organized, well written, and especially useful were all of the examples provided. I think it would be a very good book for students (those just starting out) and for those, like me, who need to review subjects, such as "aquifer hydraulics." And, the chapter "How to Get Along with Driller's" should be mandatory reading for all students of geology/hydrogeology/engineering.

Greating readers. I have a PDF files that contains all of the corrections or errors know as of Nov 10, 2003. Please email for a copy of this document at wweight@mtech.edu. Happy Reading. Willis Weight

This book should be required reading by every professional entering the field of hydrogeology - especially those with limited experience in groundwater science. the authors present the material in an easy to read format as though they were mentoring entry level geologists. A job well done.

I've been working as a geologist for an environmental firm specializing in UST remediation for about six months. Having been working in a tangentally related field for six years, I needed a quick refresher. This book is providing that refresher - it will also prove an excellent reference for years to come. I found especially useful the portion on slug testing - my old college texts discuss slug testing but in a highly theoretical and impractical manner.

Good old Amelia Bedelia! When Christmas is just around the corner, she just has to figure out which one! How can such a simple world turn out to be so complicated for America's favorite young housekeeper?

Only hoping to follow directions to the T, Amelia makes a date cake using dates -- but not the fruit kind, the numbers cut from a calendar page! And stuffing stockings for the neighbor's children is sure to be an adventure that defies description!

Merry Christmas, Amelia Bedelia is sure to be a favorite for young readers, and a wonderful opportunity to enjoy learning the wonders of word play!

Highly recommended!

I have to admit I don't quite get Amelia Bedelia's charms, but after reading this book series to countless ESOL students over the years, I have to say, it works like a charm. They love it! I am talking about beginning students in middle school as well as young children. I think that because the students are learning English and we have so many ways of using words and terms, that they identify with Amelia Bedelia. She also goes farther than they would in making mistakes so it seems safer and Ok to admit those mistakes people make when trying to understand many idioms. I think the books have always been successful to me when students are at this reading level.

This book is really good for children of all ages. It shows you that you have to explain things in detail, because someone might take you literally. The writer is comical and serious at the ssame time which is a good combonation. This book also shows that you can mess up and things can still come out right.

I think that this is a good book for little kids. It is fun for them to read. When little kids read this they always laugh at how Amelia always makes mistakes. She always seems to do something wrong.

When I was a kid, I wore Merry Christmas Amelia Bedelia out! I probably couldn't tell you much about the plot, but anybody who's ever read an Amelia Bedelia book knows that it's all about her doing everything wrong! The only thing that sticks with me is the picture of Amelia stuffing the Christmas stockings with turkey stuffing, which to this day I find hilarious. I don't know what it is about this one particular story, maybe it's because it's the only Amelia Bedelia book I ever read, but I love it just the same. I my mind, it ranks up there with Charlotte's Web and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory; it's just one of those funny, timeless books that fed my lifelong passion for reading and writing.

A very practical book to help you write a mission statement of a company or of a department. Within half an hour you will be on your way to leading a Mission Team. The book provides a comprehensive list of mission statement bingo words that will help you amaze your team members.

A good and economical buy for first time mission statement writers. The book also contains some examples of a good mission statement.

A must for managers and to people involved in leading corporations and enterprises.

I am a senior consultant with a computer-consulting firm. We used "The Mission Primer" to think through our company mission. As we went through the process I discovered the subtle genius in its design. Gast's Laws sparked invaluable dialogues with multiple points of view and unique interpretations. These differing points of view forced a sort of self-discovery, or self-examination, which eventually created a collective focus that did not exist before. You realized that everyone had different perceptions of the business. Using this system offers a great deal of flexibility. We got excellent results. "The Mission Primer" is easy to follow, and highly effective. I give it high marks and you can't beat the price.

The recent ethical problems with Enron, Arthur Anderson and other corporations highlight the need to renew our business missions and values. The Mission Primer describes an excellent system to use for doing such a review. We have found this book easy to use, effective and invaluable. We give it a five star rating. Dr. Richard Zoellner, Pharmaceutical Industry, San Diego, CA

Adams&associates, inc. is an architectural firm that's been in business for over 25 years. We recently used the book "The Mission Primer: Four Steps to an Effective Mission Statement," to help us with our mission statement. When we started, we weren't quite sure how to proceed. The "Primer" laid out simple steps to follow. The result for us is a sharper focus on our market, our work and our future. The book is short, to the point, easy to understand and effective to use. We give it a top rating. (Five Star)

I took my son out of pre-school because we were having problems at the school and I wanted to find ways to teach him at home. The thing is, most of the excersises in the book are for 2 year olds. Actually, I wouldn't buy this book if your child is more than 3. Not that it wouldn't help the mother of 4 year olds and give her ideas, but most of the excersises start with the very simple, for 2 year old, and move to the more difficult, for 4 year olds. As the mother of a 5 year old I can only use about one eight of the excersises with my son. Also this book does not cover any excersises for reading. The author covers all that in a companion book. Another thing, the author is very religious and very Christian. I am Christian myself, so I rather like that slant, but a non-Christian mother might find it difficult to deal with, so be forwarned. In the end I liked the message in the book and I think it would be great for a mother with a child of about 2 who wanted to start home schooling or even just wanted to find activities for her little one.

This book, paired with "Mommy, Teach Me to Read!" is going to become indispensable to me. I'd been overwhelmed at the thought of what to do with my 10-month-old daughter Katherine when she reaches preschool age - what activities will help her learn basic skills. "Mommy, Teach Me!" makes me feel completely equipped to be an excellent preschool teacher for Katherine.

The first part of the book goes through Barbara's history as a mom of 12, Montessori teacher, and homeschool teacher, and also explains a basic philosophy of teaching your children (God made you the perfect teacher for your kids, you can learn how to be a great teacher, your kids learn by observing you so slow down and do things carefully, etc.). The second part of the book has page after page of "work" for your young child to do (calling it "work" helps children understand that learning is an important undertaking, she says). Activities like sorting, pouring, and tweezing help children master fine motor skills and are also the building blocks for later academic pursuits like math and reading. Each activity is fully explained, and many include pictures of children doing them, submitted by readers of Barbara's blog. The instructions tell the supplies you need (mostly basic household items, so you don't have to go buy expensive manipulatives), how to teach your child the activity, what skills it teaches, and how to teach them to clean up afterward. I can't WAIT to start doing these with Katherine.

Mommy, Teach Me is a quick-to-read little book chock full of practical ideas to instill independence and a foundation for learning in toddlers and preschoolers. Barbara's writing style is personal and comfortable, and her ideas are presented in a way that is easy to implement as she has done, and still is doing, them herself--as a mom of 12! I love the child-centered, Christian approach she includes, as it is hard to find parenting books that are both.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone with young children. It not only discusses the 5 things we should be teaching our preschoolers, but it gives small beginning exercises that we can do with our kids. I went to the dollar store and got most everything I needed. I put together the first exercise and it kept my son busy and focused for hours. I don't think it's intended to keep them busy that long, but I was amazed.

As a teacher, I did not feel offended or defensive at all by the way the book was written. Most likely I will still send my children to preschool, but now I have some great ideas of things I can do at home to help prepare them for school. I'll be buying her other book also.

Buy this book!!!

I had been looking for a "curriculum" for my daughter and I'm so glad I found this book!! It's full of simple excercises and ideas to teach independence and self confidence in learning. And it gives a great insight into how children learn (things that we sometimes take for granted.) The materials required for each excercise are very common items found around the home. No big, expensive kits or toys to be purchased. It's very easy to read and understand. There's no psychology jargon to have to interpret to understand the concepts. I can't wait to read Mommy Teach Me To Read as well!!

Frank Asch is on my entering kindergartener's Summer Reading List and I (we) can certainly understand why. His stories are gentle and cute and wonderfully illustrated.

In Moongame, Bear learns how to play hide and seek. And when Little Bird goes home, he continues playing with the moon. At first, the moon finds him hiding in a hollow tree trunk. The moon then 'hides' behind a cloud, and when Bear cannot find him, he asks for Little Birds and the forest creatures help.

They look everywhere but cannot find the moon! Perplexed and a little sad, Bear suddenly thinks to say, "Okay, Moon, I give up. You win!". At which point, a breeze blows the clouds away and there is the moon. Hurray!

Five Stars. A lovely book for toddlers on up.

Of all Frank Asch's books, this is our four year old daughter's favorite. She responds very well to the humor of the situation and loves the idea of playing with the moon.

Back when we first started reading to our daughter as a baby, she was very impatient and wouldn't sit for long stories. We were limited to board books that were very short and direct. Frank Asch's titles helped us show her that sitting for a whole story was worthwhile. Now she'll sit for much longer titles, but the whole Moon Bear series are still favorite re-reads!

Little Bird teaches Bear how to play "hide and seek," complete with covering his eyes, counting to ten, and, most importantly, taking turns. Later, when Little Bird is not around, Bear asks the moon to play. When it's Bear's turn to count, the moon "hides" behind a cloud. But when Bear can't find the moon, he first enlists the help of Little Bird, then all of the animals in the forest to help search for the moon.

This delightful book teaches toddlers and preschoolers several important lessons. First, they learn the rules of hide and seek, a quintessential childhood game. They can count to ten along with Bear and practice taking turns. And they learn the importance of cooperation and asking for help when you need it. Many books for children attempt to teach such life lessons in heavy-handed ways, but this one maintains its gentle tone throughout.

Moonbear and Little Bird spend a day playing hide and seek. When Little Bird leaves, Moonbear doesn't want to stop, so he asks the Moon to play with him. In a quiet, great-for-right-before-bed book, kids can learn about playing with friends, playing on their own and cooperation. This is a gentle book and thoroughly enjoyable for my whole family.

This book tells the story of a young bear who learns to play hide-and-seek from his friend the bird. He spends all day taking turns hiding or counting to 10 before searching for his friend. At night he decides to play the same game with the moon. The natural world of the moon and the clouds astounds him. The animals of the forest come out and help. The book is charming, and a good short read before bed, with about 700 words.

I ordered this book to use as a resource to create a training presentation at my workplace. I had seen Cam Marston in person at a conference in 2005. The layout of the book is fairly good albeit not the end all.

I chose this book as a reading assignment in a management training course precisely because I was having some difficulties motivating my younger employees.

By Marston's definitions, I am just barely a Boomer (almost Gen X myself), but by looking at my own values and having some frank discussions with my younger employees, I can tell you that his observations about how generations see the world and the workplace are dead on, at least for our small sample.

I made a bullet list of the high points of this text and started treating my employees this way. One couldn't take the heat and left. The other three have responded extremely well. In short, it works!

I can't recommend this book highly enough!

Motivating the "What's In It For Me?" Workforce. Manage across the generational divide and increase profits. Cam Marston.2007. ISBN 9780470124147. This is a much needed essential book. The author is a Gen X'er who has made a career from explaining how to get the best from a multi-generational workforce. If you, like me, need to hire and inspire Gen X and Millenia workforces, then you must get this book! It will also help you understand your children! Lessons learned, you do not "suggest" how things should be done, you tell and show, with clear directions.

1. Use clear straightforward language
2. Don't assume anything
3. When an employee gets it right, celebrate!

According to some of his research the Millenia generation is on line to be a Hero generation.

Marston has a profound understanding of the generational issues in today's workforce. He captures the essence of employee challenges: Communication, then boils it down into simple to understand terms. His framework provides a useful plan for managers to apply to their own strategy in attracting and retaining the right talent. This is a must read book for anyone that wants to get the most from their employees and teams.

Like many of my late baby-boomer peers in senior management, we soon will face a workforce crisis as many of our best employees will be retiring in the next five to ten years. Replacing their experience and wisdom will not be easy and we will need to hire from a younger and smaller pool of workers. Some of the things that motivated my generation, stability, predictability and security are of low priority to many younger workers and we will have to learn new tools of management to motivate and retain these employees. Marston's book not only helps us to understand the perceptional differences in generations, but offers concrete advice as to how to adapt to the needs and wants of a younger workforce. The book has also helped me to better understand my children and the career paths they might take. Useful reading for anyone in management, particularly in high-turnover service businesses, and anyone with children about to enter the workforce.

Move Over Alice by Margo Hill sparkles with laughter! This hilarious depiction of life under a "micromanaging superviser" is mnd-boggling if you have ever worked under such conditions. But, for anyone who has found himself or herself in such a "rabbit hole", this is sure to put a BIG smile on your face, even in your sleep! Give us more, Margo!

As a teacher of many years, I found this book to be right on target in its description of the Big Brother control that has taken over our public school system - from principals that treat their teachers as knowing nothing, to superintendents that let it happen, to state and federal governments who let poeple with little or no education experience control the curriculumn and destinies of students throughout the nation. I think this should be required reading for all teacher education programs and for all those in government.

Wow...what a fun read! This hard to put down book will keep all who indulge in a great mood. It's a light-hearted story for all who are married, parents, dreamers and kids who are trapped in a grown-ups body.

Margo's view of life, work and people are wonderfully blend together with just the right amount of sarcasm and humor that makes you want more!

Well done...very well done!

A comical look at the sad state our schools are in-The Good, the bad, and the ugly of being inside the walls of an elementary school. Take a genuine and brilliant teacher, add a self serving and deceiving boss, throw in a few neurotic parents and their kids and presto- You have what really goes on in schools all over our nation. Does your boss take all the credit(&glory) for the great work you do? if so.. read the book. This story is for parents, teachers, bosses, and any breathing human being who is interested in the human side of reality. The best book I have read in many years!

This novel is one of the funniest books I have ever read. It is perfect for any demographic, everyone will find something to love in this hilarious account of the backstage actions of your local elementary school. The story is entertaining and very well written- you won't be able to put this book down!

As both an instructor of adult learners and one of the interviewees in the work (who faced many stereotypical situations growing up in New Jersey...there are Cherokees in New Jersey?!! Amazing!), I can say that a book like this should be mandatory in the school systems of America. Without it, teachers proliferate the same unintentional prejudices they have, and kids receive that and pass it on as adults.

The book was clearly laid out, with seemingly much thought into how the information could be displayed in an informative and easy to understand fashion. As an educator, I rely on such layouts to make classes easier to design, and I appreciate the work the authors did in making my job of teaching adults how to teach to diverse groups a little easier.

To Yvonne and Arlene... wado! (thanks in Cherokee)

Donada!

As a teacher concerned with intercultural realations, I was so excited to find a book that would finally tell the truth about Indians. They exist today and are involved in all kinds of things from Tai Chi to engineering. As a social studies teacher, I am relieved to finally have a book that gives an accurate picture of Indians with easy activities that I can use with any age. Although this book is a teaching guide, grades 4 - 8, it can be used with all ages and in a variety of subjects from sports to science to career exploration to current events. Not only does this book celebrate Indian culture, but it compares similiarities with other groups, finding the strength in all.

There are web sites, resources on books, films, curriculum units in the appendices and at the end of each chapter. All of the chapter titles are interesting and witty like "Where We Live" which includes a brief history of how Indians were moved about and map exercises on identifying where Indians live today. Another chapter is "Paying the Bills" which has photos and mini-biographies on Indians in a variety of professions and activities on tribal businesses. Students can learn what is offensive to Indian people and what problems confront them today in "The STruggle Continues." Art projects, writing projects and even games for the classroom are all in here! This is a fantastic book! Every classroom needs it!

I am a Cherokee New Yorker (Nuyagi Tsalagi) who volunteered for ten years working with the Native American Education Program for New York City as a member of the Parent's Committee. It was during this time that I met Yvonne Beamer and the other dedicated men and women who worked so hard to identify and help Native American children in the city. It was humbling to understand that every time we identified a new child for our program we found a damaged child, one who had been hurt by the mistaken stereotypes perpetuated in the larger population of the city. A large part of our struggle as an institution was to get appropriate information in the hands of teachers so they could be accurate and informative when they augmented their lessons with Native American materials. After too long, Yvonne and Arlene Hirschfelder have put together a book with many activities and resources for teachers grade 4-8 to use in their classrooms. The material is appropriate sociologically and pedagogically and fills a gaping void for teachers. It was always our experience that once we talked to teachers and showed them materials to use in their classrooms all their students become better, not simply the Native Americans in their midst. There is a deep hunger for accurate, relevant information about Native Americans in the youth of today. This book is a giant first step at feeding that hunger.

Native Americans Today is a sensitive comprehensive and imaginative education activity book that helps teachers and students dispel stereotypes and explore diverse realities of modern Native Americans. This book works nicely with multi-cultural studies and Native American studies for middleschoolers. Lessons are divided into 8 chapters/categories: Ground Rules, Where We Live, Growing Up, Growing Old, å Day In the Life, Communications, Arts (Walk In Beauty), Economics, and The Struggle Continues. Each lesson is carefully organized and clearly presented with grade level materials, time, objectives, activities, and enrichment/extensions plus reading and resources. The lessons on Native American terminology and stereotyping are particularly good. Field trips to the community and crafts and research projects flesh out the classroom discussion exercises. Students learn to define respect as well as racism. One of my favorite sections is the chapter on Indians in Careers/employment under Paying the Bills/Economics. There are 32 biographical sketches of Native American individuals and their employment along with black and white photos. Careers range from teaching/research, social work, casino poker dealer, computer instructor, and bank president to massage therapist, aeronautical engineer, repatriation director and osteopathic physician. The objective is that students will learn Native Americans are employed in many vocations and locations,become familiar with credentials required for certain careers, and use mapping skills. Another interesting lesson is Burial Ground Desecration and Repatriation. Students read "No Peace For Indian Burial Grounds" and discuss related issues. An energetic approach encompasses many ideas and stimulates the students. Also useful are the appendices on web sites, Native News Radio Stations, and other resources. As a teaching guide and multicultural studies resource, Native Americans Today is a rich resource, carefully and authentically created. But it is more than just effective. It is a clear labor of love.

Nancy Lorraine Reviewer

As a teacher concerned with intercultural realations, I was so excited to find a book that would finally tell the truth about Indians. They exist today and are involved in all kinds of things from Tai Chi to engineering. As a social studies teacher, I am relieved to finally have a book that gives an accurate picture of Indians with easy activities that I can use with any age. Although this book is a teaching guide, grades 4 - 8, it can be used with all ages and in a variety of subjects from sports to science to career exploration to current events. Not only does this book celebrate Indian culture, but it compares similiarities with other groups, finding the strength in all.

There are web sites, resources on books, films, curriculum units in the appendices and at the end of each chapter. All of the chapter titles are interesting and witty like "Where We Live" which includes a brief history of how Indians were moved about and map exercises on identifying where Indians live today. Another chapter is "Paying the Bills" which has photos and mini-biographies on Indians in a variety of professions and activities on tribal businesses. Students can learn what is offensive to Indian people and what problems confront them today in "The STruggle Continues." Art projects, writing projects and even games for the classroom are all in here! This is a fantastic book! Every classroom needs it!