Reading Instruction Books

This text is invaluable. As a Title 1 teacher, I use it frequently to target those specific deficit skills. No longer must I depend upon memory or a workbook to provide key words for targeted practice. As a classroom teacher, this text provides fabulous lists of words based upon skill-specific information. It aides the targeting of deficit areas, and is intuitive in its use. This text is a must have. I would spend much more time "inventing"(read here- trying to remember words that have the ____ sound) instead of simply listing words for target areas for intensive intervention. It is also a terrific gift for beginning teachers! Worth every penny.

The Reading TEacher's Book of Lists is good for any Elementary Teacher to have and use on a daily basis. There are lists of just about anything you need to teach reading. I found myself using this constantly in the classroom, right in front of the kids. Our spelling list was based on the use of silent letters. The kids wanted to know what other words there were, so we looked it up and came up with a large list to talk about.

I found that the students were having a hard time with certain word spellings during writing and looked up in the book the spelling demons. Together we made a list on chart paper to post in the room. Their spelling improved immeadiately because they just looked up at the wall and saw the words.

The book is truly made for teachers! It is well laid out and easy to locate certain lists for your given need.

This is the best reference book! Every year I buy one for my student teacher because I think it is so great. I use it to create challenge spelling lists using the same spelling pattern we are studying that week for my high achievers plus there are lots of great ideas in here.

This is the second copy of the Book of Lists that I have purchased. My old one was so worn and falling apart after years of use that I wanted a new updated copy. I love this resource and use it almost daily in the classroom. I highly recommend it.

We use this book with our students in school regularly. I bought a copy for my home. All four of my children (ages 10 - 17) refer to it time and again. It is a must for a home library. I keep it right next to the dictionary and thesaurus.

The concept of this text is sound, but there are a lot of errors and misspellings that an advanced speaker of German would/should not have let get by in the editing process. This, for me calls the scholarship of the entire work into question.

I got this book because I wanted to read German, not speak it. It provides very, very clear explanations and emphasizes some realities of learning German that I, as a self-teacher, was trying to evade. For example: you're not going to be able to understand German without understanding noun cases.

There is an extremely helpful chapter on using German dictionaries that would have saved me many headaches if I had had it earlier. The chapters are short enough to comprehend, logically organized, and illustrated with amusing and interesting brief readings, starting in the very first chapter with one-sentence quotes and proverbs. I am not really reading German yet but I am much closer to that goal now that I am using this book rather than one of the many, many books that focus on speaking German.

Other reviewers have expressed disappointment at the lack of attention to German pronunciation. I have a shelf full of books and tapes and CD's to help me with that, but none of them taught me how to use a dictionary. I am not at all disappointed that a book on reading German doesn't spend time on pronouncing German.

The only reason I don't offer it a full five stars are the many typos, but it is mentioned elsewhere that the author will email you a list of corrections. I haven't asked yet but probably will. The price of the book is also a bit steep - I bought a copy a year ago for a whole let less. But this is probably the book to go with if you're trying to learn how to read rather than speak.

I am a PhD student at Harvard who recently used this book to study German for a language exam (for scientific reading knowledge).

I would recommend the book for independent study for the following reasons:
1. Each lesson is short and self-contained.
2. There is an answer key in the back (essential if you're studying alone).
3. The practice readings are interesting (drawn from German proverbs, philosophers, theologians, etc.).

But there are two major problems as well:
1. You will get no sense of the pronunciation of the language, which is essential for a real understanding (as opposed to a superficial reading knowledge, i.e. my understanding!) of any language.
2. The book has literally dozens of annoying and distracting typos. Example: One of the most difficult chapters (27), The Overloaded Adj. Construction, has numerous typos which certainly do not help you along the path of understanding. And for those of you who love the answer key in the back, it too contains several critical typos. So beware. But this is the publisher's/editor's fault, not the author's.

So, if you're just trying to learn a bit about another language for reading knowledge, etc., this is a good book. Viel gluck!

P.S. I did in fact pass the reading test, mostly due to the solid presentation in this book! (And also by being subsequently heckled through a semester-long reading course...).
P.S.S. And a note on the typos: The author offers a list of corrections to anyone (apparently) that will email her, which is very generous (see 'comments').

German is my sixth formally-learned language. I've used eight introductory grammars extensively.

For me, there might be too much explanation and examples, but these can be skipped over easily enough. Other students not as acquainted with language acquisition might really appreciate such commodities!

There is hardly a dull moment in any of the first 100 pages I've worked through so far. That is to say, while learning German might not be fun (!), Wilson makes the task not seem tedious.

As others have mentioned, the majority of Wilson's exercise sentences are proverbial: "Sleeping after lunch is as healthy as a rotten fish;" "Convictions are more dangerous enemies of the Truth than lies" (Nietzsche); "Other people's cows have bigger udders...."

What a refreshing change from typical translation exercises! I e-mail my wife one or two such proverbs a day.

I do a chapter every day or two, without too much pain.

Wilson is a gentle taskmaster. She attaches vocabulary reminders with the exercise sentences.

Wilson is most supremely interested in gettting her reader-client to read German. Thus, she provides sample readings of short essays which simulate the real reading world of students acquiring German for advanced humanities studies. These are designed to challenge, but again she provides sympathetic assistance to help the reader get trhough such essays.

Wilson's sympathies toward her reader-client is also reflected by her vocabulary lists. They are quite extensive. However, important words recur in these lists from chapter to chapter, giving plenty of exposure to them before finally being marked as the final chapter in which they will be listed.

Such sympathy may also be reflected in Wilson's decision not to give extended definitions in the chapter vocabularies. Instead of giving two or three different possible meanings of a word, she usually gives but one, and then introduces an alternative meaning in another chapter. For me and my brain, I'd rather have all two or three meanings altogether at once. Wilson's approach leaves me with wondering if I had learned the word wrong to begin with. Wilson's approach, however, might be well appreciated by other users.

Included is an extremely helpful three page chart designed to help English readers recognize related words in German. Thus, when the reader discovers that the German ff parallels the English p, the reader might more readily guess that the German word Affe is the English word ape. Or, since the German letter z parallels the English letter t, one might guess that the German word Zunge is the English word tongue.

Answers to about half of the exercises are provided in the back of the book. A quite thorough glossary of basic and humanities-specific words is also provided, including a list of proper names (e.g., Armelkanal--English Channel; Bundestag--German Republic; Island--Iceland).

There is an array of materials available on the web for the book. I would be happy for a specific vocabulary flash card program designed for each chapter. Maybe there is....

Wilson seems very personable. She provides her email address, and has corresponded with me a couple of times. She provided me with the answers to the exercise not included in the book.

If you're looking to learn how to read German academically, I doubt you need to look further.

I have looked at many books in my quest to learn how to read German. Most don't serve that purpose well. Wilson's book stands above the rest. It is clearly written, and has a way of getting me up to a moderate speed quickly. Her long experience in teaching German clearly shows through.

The Girl with the Brown Crayon
Vivian Gussin Paley
Review by K. Winick-Ford

I am inspired and amazed- such a treasure to American literature, Paley shares her numerous years as a kindergarten teacher with her unique insight. She is insightful, being mindful of her students, their needs and the changes our society is facing.

Although all her stories are wonderful and easy to read, the girl with the brown crayon connects well-loved stories by a well respected author and how the class connects and adapts and evolves through the days. Too often we read about the short attention span of youngsters and their self-involvement and disconnectedness. Paley revives the soul- she shares authentic stories of her children, seeing the light they bring to our culture.

My favorite quote from the book is this, "apparently I needed classroom after classroom of young children demanding to be heard before I could identify my own voice and imagine my own questions." Pg. 43

This story, with obvious connections to racial identity is an easy read for all adults. The connections between Leo Lionni's books parallel What truly inspires me is how the class, as young as they are, relate to the books and the hidden messages they reveal. The book won several awards and there's no doubt to me, well deserved.

The main character, Reeny is strong and dominate throughout the book, showing signs of great leadership. The author reveals on her birthday why she is at the school she attends rather than a more local one. The issue of race and leadership is unveiled. It reminded me not only of the racial inequalities we face each day, but also how a child will not respond internally to leadership but will react when opportunity presents itself.

The issue of sexual identity is also presented and how children respond to the characters in the stories. The author explains to the children why they were written the way they were and poses an in-depth question as to whether or not they have to be male. Again, the children respond thoughtfully.

Never underestimate children. As the book draws to a close, Paley tells how the children respond to emotional crisis in the classroom and in their lives. She also tells how they mature and develop. Their insightful connections to the stories they have heard and how they connect them to their lives is amazing! From the Polish boy back to Reeny, the story comes full circle. The closing is appropriate. Not only is it the end of Paley's school year and her teaching career, but she leaves us with the tools we may wish to use- a list of Leo Lionni books, which many must be eager to revisit. In short, this is a fantastic book that you will be a better teacher and a better person having read it.

This particular piece of writing by Palely is describing her last thoughts she will have as a teacher. Palely is going to retire at the end of the school year and keeps a diary of her last year. She barely mentions math and science or gym and music. Her main focus turns to her language arts sessions. Her class begins to focus of a series of books written by Leo Lonny. Soon, all of their lives are entangled with Leo Lionni and all of his characters.There are several themes to this book that are of importance. The main theme, however, is knowing as adults, we can learn from children. As an example, the children in this book all have their very own personalities, as well as ethnicities in this classroom. Every one of them gets along and learns to understand each other. As adults, we must wonder why is our world so corrupt? These children refuse not talk to another because of skin color or personality difference. Another example is how well the children took off on learning and digesting each piece of literature. They are so excited to read and color and act out each book as if each book touched each individual child in some spectacular way. They are excited about reading! As adults, we need to learn from that. There are many adults who don�t read or can�t read and have no enthusiasm to try. It is sad to think that somewhere along the line the fun of reading is drained from their minds and reading will strictly turn into a task for some of these children.
I support this book, particularly on how the book expresses life long learning and growing (mentally). It really redefines who we are as adults and makes me take a second look at life. There are so many things that I don�t know about myself that I think I know. I am glad I read this book. I recommend this book 150% to anyone who wants to learn more about yourself through a child/children. Buy this book today and rediscover who you really are!

Paley's purpose for writing this book consists of helping to open our minds to the insights of children. She implies in her writing that we, as adults, can learn from children. Paley wrote about events that took place in her classroom during her last year of teaching. This book has many stories within itself. The theme or topic revolves around the children and how they react to literature and each other. This book is good that it opens us up to the world of children and how they think and feel. A good portion of the book is Paley's thought and feelings about what is going on with the children. It is good that we know her thoughts, but I would like to have read more about what the children were doing. I think more details about how the other children reacted and behaved would have been nice, other than concentrating a good deal on Reeny. Also when Paley writes about the stories she read to the class, I think she should have given a little bit more detail about the stories. Some people, including myself, may not have read some or any of Leo Lionni's books. Overall, it is a fun book to read.

The Girl with the Brown Crayon is a book that displays a journey through a kindergarten classroom which can only be described as a unique adventure of self discovery. Vivian Paley is the author as well as the kindergarten teacher of this very classroom. During her last year of teaching, she meets an interesting child named Reeny who leads Paley as well as the rest of the class on an exploration through the books and illustrations of Leo Lionni.
The Girl with the Brown Crayon is a book which covers important topics that cannot be learned in any college course. It discusses issues of identity and acceptance seen and felt through a child. I enjoy Paley's excessive use of dialogue. It aides in capturing the emotions felt by the characters and allows experiences to become more realistic in the readers eyes.
Overall, I recommend this book to future educators. It will teach you to become more open to your students thoughts and ideas rather than constantly focusing on certain curriculum. It will allow you to see the vastness of opportunities education can hold for you and your class!

The Girl with the Brown Crayon is a non-fiction book that is also an autobiography. It does not describe the complete life of the author, but it does explain a year in her life and in her classroom. This book is intended for any one interested in becoming a teacher. I would recommend this particularly a lower elementary teacher, because it would help them to understand the wonderful things children and comprehend and accomplish at such a young age. Ms. Paley has a simple, straightforward writing style that is easy to read.
There is one sentence that sums up Ms. Paley's last year as a teacher. "...I resist the uninvented classroom." (p. 50) Throughout the year, Ms. Paley and her students are books of Leo Lionni. It is through these books that the students and Ms. Paley discover themselves. One student in particular plays a major role in the development of the class. Reeny "sees" things before any one else does. She also brings new interpretations to the class.
I would say that The Girl with the Brown Crayon was an interesting book. At the beginning the author warns us that it might not seem like a true story. She is right, the events to seem incredible. It takes a very special class full of very special students to have a year such as they did. Throughout the book the author is very analytical of herself. She keeps finding traits of herself that the characters in the books also posses. Due the fact that this is her last year of teaching, she is very reflective, and rightfully so. Ms. Paley is also a good teacher in the sense that she is constantly reviewing what she is doing with her class. It has become stereotyped that older teachers follow the same exact curriculum from their first year. Ms. Paley fights that, and is always inventing something new and creative for the class she is teaching that year, not the class she taught the previous year.
There is a common theme of a person versus society. Throughout the book the students discuss the feeling of the characters and whether what they did was appropriate or not. While the students were looking at the books with a very high intellectual level, it should have also been brought down to their level. For example, would they give into the peer pressure of giving up the golden wings? The key words in that sentence are peer pressure. Through out the entire book, this idea was never brought up. The students could think higher, but only when they were talking about wings. What about issues in their lives.
Overall, this was a very good book and I would recommend it to anyone that is looking to teach in the near future. Ms. Paley has wonderful ideas, which she brings into her teaching. Ms. Paley makes her children excited about what they are doing.

This book is a must for any serious guitar player. I use this book for teaching my own students and I used it whilst studying guitar at University. I am now a Professor of Guitar at one of Japan's top Universities which is linked to Berklee School of Music. Like most things, its 1% talent, 99% hard work and a touch of creativity that makes a great player!! www.travisleewhite.com

I can read music now!!!! This book REALLY helps, it explains everything so clearly. Anyone can learn to read music with this book!!

The author is a cool guy. One of the best music instructors I've ever had. His book is amazing. If you want to learn to read, just click 'buy now'. The only things this books can't provide for you is daily practice (YOU have to provide that) and a practice partner. Having a reading buddy will help a lot but not entirely needed.

This book is very good for a beginner. Just about everything you need to know is in there. The reason I say "Just about everything" is because with the guitar there are many tricks and methods but this book covers what you need.

This book deals with learning how to read music on many levels. It starts with basic concepts and ends with advanced sightreading.

It is not written for casual reading, you will need to spend time with guitar in hand. Bring along a metronome as well.

This book assumes that you have been playing the guitar for a while (2 years) and that you have never given serious thought to learning to read music.

The music presented is mostly classical and not familiar to most players.
It would really benefit from an accompanying CD which it does not have.

Good luck.

This book is both informative and entertaining.

The sheer amount of research and effort that Dave Pelz has put into the project gives tremendous credibility to his findings.

One disappointment is that I am yet to find anyone who is prepared to build the teaching/training aids that I believe are essential if the reader is to get the most out of the book. Notwithstanding this I believe the book is well worth the investment.

The only other criticism I have relates to the percentage of space devoted to what I would call the mechanics of making consistent contact as compared to how to read greens. I would have liked more information on reading the slope, pace and level of greens.

I have no hesitation in recommending the book to golfers who believe their putting can do with a helping hand.

2 Top Books, delivered very quickly and in excellent condition. Plays Mind games with your golf successfully.

I remember buying this book over a decade ago. It is a truly amazing book.

Putting is simple in concept. (On the putting green, use putter to hit ball into hole. Repeat on next golf hole until round is done). The author's main mechanical points could probably be made into a one page "recipe" sheet as one reviewer seemed to suggest. What makes this book amazing is that it established a scienitific basis for putting improvement. This book arms the reader with fundamental putting principles in the same way that a good cookbook provides background rather than just a list of recipes. This book is more than just about the how. It is about the why.

The author's newer putting book may supercede this book, but that does not take away from this book's historical importance.

This is a very good book, but we must leave room at the top for better books (by Dave Pelz, of course :-) Since his "Putting Bible" came out, there is no longer any need for this book. "The Bible" has everything this book has and then some. If you are looking for a used book in paperback to save a lot of money off the hardcover bible, then this represents an excellent value, since the basic ideas are here.

Note - this is not for those looking for a few tips, band-aids, or just some feel-good words to make you feel better about yourself. This is serious game-improvement stuff. If you just want to daydream about being a better putter, get a putting book by one of the other guys. If you REALLY want to be a better putter, get this and get to work!

I was quite dissapointing by this book as it contains lot of pages but only a few important messages. If Mr Pelz would put these on one A4 sheet, it would be more appropriate. If you look for organised and clear putting teaching book, do not buy this book!

i don't get it... all these glowing reviews and i just can't get through this book for anything! i think the cover states that anyone can read through this book in an evening... something like that. well, maybe i have adult adhd because i couldn't stay interested. it served me best as a prelude to sleep.

This product helped me to identify and read musical notes in the simplest form. I have learned to identify a whole note from a half and quarter notes,etc.This product is good to have if your serious in your quest to learn how to read musical notations.

I already had a very simple understanding of music theory, so some of this stuff I skimmed over, but within the first few pages I learned things that immediately opened my eyes and my mouth in amazement. I found myself several times saying aloud, "So that's what that means!" I was ready to give up on singing in my church choir, but now I feel much more confident and am ready to resume with more vigor.

This book was a well thought out approach for learning to read music for the absolute novice. I used the approach with great succcess in teaching my church choir to read music quickly. I highly recommend it!

This is an interesting, complex, detailed, authoritative, little book that promises 1. In two hours you can read it through and understand the principles involved in reading music and 2. In an evening you can learn to read practically any melody and pick it out on the piano. Amazingly, 1. and 2. worked for me. What worked for me might also work for you. Why not give it a try? Howard Shanet, the author, is more than qualified to teach music as he was a professor of music at Columbia and the conductor of that university's orchestra. But more than music, he knows the ropes through years of experience teaching this subject and actually makes learning easy and fun. In part I, he deals with the all-important and often neglected topic of rhythm and in part II, the important elements of pitch. It all boils down to when to play and what to play. Right? In parts III, IV, & V he puts rhythm and pitch together and introduces the elements of tonality. Along the way, we get brief asides on music history that help fix our memory. Since he explained the bass clef, I shall never forget where it came from and why in shows where F is on the written sheet. Can you guess why ¾ time was considered the perfect time in the middle ages? Something to do with the trinity? You bet. For better results, you should do as I did: work the problems and exercises with a piano so that you can see, feel, and hear what the text is talking about. Actually touching the keys makes all the difference and works lots better than the author's suggested tapping and singing. Despite some key signatures that are blurred and poorly printed, and two mistakes in the answer key on page 169, and the failure to give out the quick and dirty secret for reading any key signature (explained in Piano for Dummies)+, this little gem of a book is highly recommended for novices who need to learn the basics and previously experienced people who need to refresh their memories after a long absence from the keyboard. Also suggested: Paul Hindemith's Elementary Training for Musicians and Blake Neely's Piano for Dummies.

As someone who is in the midst of wedding planning, this book was a really nice change. I am going for a much more low key affair than the "traditional" wedding and none of the wedding books I pick up address the things I am looking for. Except this one... It has basic information about the different parts of the wedding ceremony and what they mean and some ideas on how to incorporate them or why it's ok to ditch them. It gave me a lot of ideas about the type of ceremony I want to have and ways to include those people important to me. It is generally Protestant Christian in nature and talks about pieces of various Protestant wedding ceremonies.
I was very glad to finally be able to buy a wedding book that didn't tell me I needed tons of flowers, bows on the pews, a ring bearer and other things we had opted not to have.

I hardly write reviews but I felt the need to as it cast a negative shadow at a time of joy.
I was very excited for my upcoming wedding and the thought of a book that would remind me to focus on the more heartfelt aspects of this important commitment sounded wonderful.
I got something totally different than I had expected. This book has so many things that sounded like mocking, negative judgements of the "wrong way" to do things that it literally hurt my heart to read it.
After reading half the book I had to put it down.
I hope that you will enjoy your wedding planning with a warm and open heart and make a choice based on what it right for you.

This book is based on Christian traditions (which is what I wanted, so if you are looking for that viewpoint this is perfect for you). What I love about it is that it tells where wedding traditions came from and possible alternatives if you decided you did not want a completely traditional wedding. It gives a lot of different reading options if you are tired of hearing the same thing at every wedding you go to. I am not engaged, but I buy this book for every couple I know that gets engaged and I hope someone will pass it on to me when it is my turn. :)

This book is an excellent way to help couples discuss the details of their wedding in a way that draws them beyond the pretty, the petty and the grandiose values that sometimes drive their decisions. It helps them ask the right questions, and gives lots of examples and wise reflections. A great engagement gift.

This well-written guide is a must for all prospective brides and grooms and for their families as well. The authors take a refreshing and decidedly spiritual, yet nonsectarian, approach to the institution of marriage. While generally Christian in their viewpoint, they are careful to include attitudes, traditions, and writings from other religions and from the secular world as well. The reader is lovingly taken through each of the events that surround the wedding ceremony and step by step through the ceremony itself, and the meaning of each portion is given clearly and concisely. The authors emphasize the inclusive nature of the wedding ceremony. Like a good mystery novel, the book is difficult to put down once it is started. The one risk is that the reader, once having absorbed the authors' lessons and values, may decide to jettison some of the supposedly traditional, yet superfluous, outdated, and costly, trappings that seem to have accreted onto many present day weddings. The result, however, will be a marriage ceremony, pared of nonessentials, which will be both more meaningful and moving for all who are present. My wife and I found this book invaluable as we, our daughter, and her fiancé prepared for their wedding, and I truly wish that it had been available for our own.

The program presented in this book is better than the others because it is pure phonics. The kids learn to read and then memorize sight words by reading them in context without even realizing it. The backbone of the program is a fun little game that encourages children to practice decoding words. They play the game for tokens, stickers, treats, or privileges. I had to limit it for my kids they liked it so much. The book also encourages puppets as fellow students to add humor. Both of these tactics made the program a blast. I made a list of the 32 sounds to introduce, hung it on the wall and we started playing the game. We added a new sound whenever my child got really confident on the old ones.

How fast does it work?

In three and a half months my 5 year old daughter went from knowing most of the alphabet and sounds to being able to read like a second-grader. She spent an hour a day the first three weeks and about 20 minutes a day thereafter. I never taught her sight words, but she passed all the kindergarten sight words off the first day only struggling on "said" and "been", she had inadvertantly memorized the rest from reading so much.

In three and a half months my just-barely 4 year old son who knew only one letter and no sounds has graduated from level one of the Sidney Ledson program, He can read 120 words easily and has the building blocks for hundreds more if they were presented to him. I think that puts him at late kindergarten or early first grade reading level. He spent about 5 minutes a day about 5 days a week. At this rate, (5 minutes a day) he will be reading on a second grade reading level when he starts kindergarten.

Pros of this method

*Don't have to memorize a single sight word (my kids can't/won't do that).

*Kids never think of learning to read as any more difficult than learning the alphabet song.

*Kids don't develop dislexia (disordered reading), this is one of only two methods I have found that addresses this issue and what to do about it.

*This method helped me spot reading problems that had been invisible with my daughter while she tried whole word method unsuccessfully and tearfully.

*When kids graduate from this program they don't have to read boring repetitive books that insult their intelligence. Repetitive books are whole-word method, my kids can really read and aren't limited to books with 30 or less words.

Cons of this method

*you use treats and candy to get them started, which have to be weaned away eventually (not too hard).

*because it is easy, it is soooo tempting to rush a child through the program too fast, keep telling yourself "easy and fun, don't push too fast"

*the program doesn't have lesson plans. That is because you don't need one, the program is really simple and basic, but some people see this as a negative.

Sidney Lesdon is a master teacher of very young children. His Institute in Canada has for many years helped young children reach their full potential. This is a very well thought out program that teaches step by step phonics to very young children. The programs starts out using capital letters because they are easier for the young child to distinguish and because they effectively destroy the word configuration outline that causes many students to read from the word shape instead of the letters: squeal is often confused with squirrel, but there is no such tendency with capitals: SQUEAL versus SQUIRREL. Students starting with this program will never develop whole-word dyslexia. The fun games are an especially delightful and helpful feature of the program.

My daughter's name is Ada Cirlia, and I am writing about this book because Ada attended "The Sidney Ledson Institute" in Toronto for 4 years.
She learned to read using this method in less than 6 months through a part time program; and the most amazing thing is that she was only 4 years old!
Even today we still talk about the school- how good our choice was at that time and how kind and amazing the principal Mr. Sidney Ledson was.
As of today, Ada is a brilliant student among her peers- she is a very fast reader, can absorb a lot of information, and she can read up to 700 pages a day if she really likes the book! She proved this when reading, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" in less than a day. Because of such a love for reading, she now has a very good memory, fine grammar, and she is a great writer with an excellent vocabulary!
Ada is now in 7th grade and she was awarded "Student of the Year" for overall achievements from "The North Hills School", which was ranked the 12th best collage-prep school in the U.S.A.
We think that after seeing Ada's performance, that it's worth trying to teach your child using this book. It will change their life!

If you want a fancy program with alot of pretty colored pictures this may not be for you. If you want to educate yourself and give your children the correct foundation to open their eyes to a life long love of reading this is it!! I am now teaching my 4th child to read using this book and I am here reordering another copy because my first copy is wearing out after using it with the others! My 4th and 5th grade boys are sitting in the living room each reading a 400 page novel as I write this. I have found this solid program has kept us from the pitfalls of "sight words" and has helped them both with speech and spelling. I only used the games the book suggested if my child was either very young or was a little stubborn and needed encouragement! Check this out at your library, read it and you will find it makes sense!

I bought this book after checking it out from our library. My son is 5 and I am teaching him how to read using the methods described in this book. What I liked about it was that it uses the phonics system and is very systematic and logical in its approach, so that even the youngest preschooler can start to learn to read. For example, it starts with teaching the letter U, then P, then how to put them together to make UP. It builds gradually from there until eventually the child is reading sentences. It has lots of suggestions on games and activities to make it fun and motivating for the child who may be resistant to learning to read. It can be used for older children as well who may be struggling with reading. My son picked it up very quickly and made it through the first 100 words quite easily. It gets progressively more challenging with the sentences, so for my son, it is taking him longer to progress through those, and he gets frustrated at times, so I have to back off and give him more review time so he feels more successful. He is in an advanced reading group in his class in kindergarten and I feel like this book has made all the difference. Early literacy is such an important skill. I'm very glad I found this book. My only disappointment is that I was led to believe that by working with your child just 10 mins a day, they would be reading in 45 days. Well, after 45 days, my son is reading basic sentences, but has only made it about 1/2 way through the book. I think it really varies with each child and it is still a very good method to use.

I am a reading specialist at a K-8 school. I found this to be an excellent resource to put into practice myself and to share with classroom teachers. The writing style makes it easy to read and there are very practical strategies to put to use right away. This should be required reading for every teacher to know how to effectively approach teaching comprehension stategies to their students.

Up-to-date research on what works when teaching reading in an easy to read format. Personal experiences.

During my credential program, I heard and read about think alouds and comprehension strategies, but didn't get to see those in practice in the classroom. I knew they were important, but didn't know how to implement them. This book offered practical advice (for multiple grade levels) that will help me begin to teach these strategies in the fall. The authors describe a clear structure for teaching comprehension, and offer real world narratives of teachers using the strategies. There was a lot to think about in this book, and I'm sure I'll be reading it again!

I did not care for the writing style of this book. (Too chatty and conversational.) The "think-aloud" and "questioning" examples sounded forced and patronizing.

Ellin Keene has added a lot more depth and practicality in her second edition. All teachers of reading should read this book!

Paul Hindemith is probaly the greatest teacher, composer, and author of the 20th Century. This Book gives insight to many students (such as myself). It is a great source of help for music theory and composition, history and literature majors. Buy the Book and I gurantee you will not regret it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Paul Hindemith should have a more prominent place in the minds and repertoire of musicians. However, he was also a music professor at Yale during and after the war. He returned to Europe in 1953 and taught at a university in Zürich. As a pedagogue and even as a theorist, he was very interested in the practical applications of music. He saw absolutely no use of learning abstractions from a book that you lacked the ability to apply. Makes sense, doesn't it?

This book provides activities at a basic level. He is correct that if you can learn and do all of the activities in this book, you will inevitably get a solid grounding in basic theory. You will not only learn about rhythm, pitch, and notation, you will also learn to write down what you hear (an ability called dictation).

The material here is fairly easy for a well trained musician, but very difficult for a beginner, and probably impossible for a beginner without a good teacher. The main thing to note is that this is a very activity oriented approach and was put together by a fine musician who was an important composer, theorist, and teacher.

Paul Hindemith is probaly the greatest teacher, composer, and author of the 20th Century. This Book gives insight to many students (such as myself). It is a great source of help for music theory and composition, history and literature majors. Buy the Book and I gurantee you will not regret it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I first encountered "Elementary Training for Musicians" when I was a teenager, several decades ago. It was recommended by a couple of professional musicians whom I admired as role models. They must have had a grudge against me. I approached the book with an open and eager mind, as if it were the Bible, and by the fifth page it had absolutely dashed my hopes and dreams. This book would have represented a major setback for me, had I not had the courage to say, "Hindemith, you're full of [it]," and moved on with my life.

As I got to know my musician friends better, I could see that what made them good had little to do with the torturous training in this turgid tome. I suspect that the same is true of Hindemith, who probably wrote his music with his right brain, and wrote this book with his left. I think he secretly penned this particular monument to obtuseness to dumbfound his professor peers, as if to say, "You see? This is what is 'elementary' to a genius like me."

You probably won't take to this book unless you happen to have perfect pitch and an appetite for unmusical exercises. Even if the latter description fits you, you would probably find the layout boring and confusing, a relic from the pre-War era, when pools of type swam in undifferentiated masses on the page. In this case, the pools are notes. The type enshrines an authorial voice that is professorial and pedantic. There is little sympathy on Hindemith's part for the "beginner's mind" -- yours, presumably -- so if you are really a beginner at music, seek your elementary training elsewhere. I would suggest going to the bookstore of a major university and seeing what is available now in music fundamentals. Avoid all texts that do not have at least one accompanying CD. Why be cruel to yourself? Your progress will be easier and faster if you can hear what the symbols mean.

One other recommendation: David Lucas Burge's Relative Pitch Ear Training Course (I have no financial interest in Burge's courses). Burge seems to be a bit of a showman, but this course is indeed meticulously worked out. I think there are some drawbacks to it, but it is truly Elementary Training for Musicians, and it will serve you well for a lifetime. As for his Perfect Pitch course, there may be something to it, but I haven't seen (or heard) any confirmation.

Good luck!

This is by far the best book on its subject that I've ever worked with. For some reason it wasn't used until the second year second semester of Ear Training where I went to school, and I wonder why the college made us waste time and money on previous texts when this one had it all.

That being said, it's definitely written without self-teaching in mind. From Hindemith's mindset, and that of many pedagogues both living and deceased, the idea of teaching oneself musicianship is about as nuts as teaching oneself surgery or carpentry. Even if it were possible, the same results could be achieved with less time and effort through proper instruction, which Hindemith sought to facilitate with this text. So if you're looking for a self-teaching text, look elsewhere - you are outside the scope of this book.

My only concern about this book, and this could be simply the edition I have, is that it's in desperate need of a facelift. Taking advantage of computer layout techniques could make the exercises easier to read and the pages easier to navigate. Other than that, it's a teacher's dream for working on the nuts and bolts of musicianship.