Educational Books

This book is a fairly complete compendum of the history of teacher supervision, theories and recent practices. It is very well organized and informative for the researcher and practitioner alike. A good reference for experienced and novice field-supervisors and their mentee teachers.

I used this book to teach prospective supervisors of student teachers at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. This book has many features I found inviting to the learner. It has biographies of leaders in education--generally 1-2 pages in length followed by great reflective question. It has an introduction and a summary for each chapter that gains reader interest and reviews learnings as well. It has contemporary issues presented in a way that allows the reader to draw professional judgements--I did not feel I was being "told" what to think, nor did I feel "preached to". Great text!!

I used this book as a resource in a graduate level course on mentoring. It proved to be a comprehensive text on adult learning and learning theory in general. The case studies were poignant and highlighted the theories being discussed. The book does point out the need to reflect on one's practice which is often forgotten in the education field. This book comes highly recommended as an excellent textbook for mentoring classes at the graduate level in education. Even though it is comprehensive and therefore lengthy, the text is well indexed and can be easily used as a topical reference.

This book has a fairly complete background and history about teacher supervision and mentoring. Its academic and practical approach allows access for the classroom setting, field supervision scenario and practical tips for mentors and their mentees. It is both a research tool and practical tool for learning how to supervise, be a mentor and what the current thinking is on participatory action research & mentoring. The authors have brought together a workable blend of insightful case studies with theory. The result is a useful reference for field supervisors and their induction phase teachers.

This book serves better as a handbook or manual for mentors or those interested in becoming mentors. It is not necessary to read the entire book unless you want to know more about the history and background of teacher development and its trends.

What I liked most about this book was that you can refer to any given part of the book that was of interest for guidelines and suggestions in mentoring. The authors provide you with various Development Activities to use with your mentees. Also, things that you can put together in your professional portfolio as a teacher or mentor.

There's a great move to using the Coaching Plan in supervision. There's a sample plan included. A plan of action is included along with follow-ups with dates. You can also assign special assignments or readings for mentees as a suggestion to improve certain skills.

The use of journal writing is highly encouraged and promoted. Various formats are provided. It is suggested that at the end of the month, you go back to reread your entries to look for ideas, themes or feelings that surface from these entries. It's a good way to reflect on your practice through this type of analysis of your journal entries.

This book provides teachers with many useful student-centered activities. Authors Harvey Daniels and Marilyn Bizar of National Louis University show progressive approaches that engage students in even the most difficult schools. Among their useful methods are integrative units, representing-to-learn, classroom workshop, and small group activities. The authors show how to use these methods by describing their application at Best Practice High School, an alternative public school in Chicago's inner city. Students at Best Practice are almost all low-income Blacks and Latinos, yet the school boasts far higher graduation rates than most city high schools - in part due to methods found in this book. As an "inner city" high school teacher who taught one semester at Best Practice (and much enjoyed it), I've used many ideas from this book over the last few years. The result? These methods work fairly well, although perhaps not to the level promoted by the optimistic authors. Still, good teaching ideas are always welcome, and educators will find several in this concisely readable book.

At this writing, Best Practice High School has lost many top staff members and arguably part of its character, apparently as a result of political conflicts with the Board of Education. Still, educators will benefit from the many solid teaching ideas in this very practical book.

I don't usually take the time to write reviews for Amazon, but this education book inspired me enough to 'sell' it to you...

One of the reasons why I enjoyed this book was because of the wonderful layout and content presented in the text. It is cleverly divided into six fundamental strategies upon which "Best Practice" ideals are based. These activities (integrative units, small group activities, representing-to-learn, classroom workshop, authentic experiences and reflective assessment) are explained to the reader, one by one, then different teachers contribute activities which were effective for them. Their suggestions were innovative and useful in the classroom.

This book does not only focus on the language arts, but also spans across the math, science, art and phys ed curriculum. It discusses and explains how you can integrate several subjects into a lesson or workshop.

The activities can be used for primary students up to high school students, although I found it to be really useful for my junior/intermediate students. The activies are flexible and can be adapted for any grade level.

This book GAVE ME IDEAS right away. I highly recommend it. Read it, and you too might be inspired to write a review!

This is one of the most thorough books on how Best Practices works. Mariyln Bizar and Harvey Daniels explain the theory behind Best Practice and then explain how to implement it. We used this book in my Methods Class at National Louis University, where Marilyn and Harvey teach. I have also been to best Practice High School in Chicago and observed classes. Their theories hold up in the actual classroom. Students that you would not neccessarily have expected to do well,, do so with Best Practice Methods. Each and every child at Best Practice High School comes from the inner city , mostly from the West Side of Chicago. 80% of all graduates from Best Practice High School go on to college. Can your school say that?

Anyone who wants to teach or to change their teaching methods and get students involved in the process of their own education needs this book as a part of their library. When you do so, study it well and ask questions. Your students will love you for it and will buy into education. And isn't that worth every penny?

This book is an excellent overview of what it takes to be a teacher for today's world. Gone are the days of children sitting silently in rows while the the "sage on stage" lectures endlessly on facts and figures. In the year 2000, teachers need to be willing to share responsiblity for learning with their students, and present subject matter in relevant, engaging, collaborative ways. Daniels and Bizar do a masterful job presenting the "basics" for today. Teaching with integrated themes, the value of response projects, student conferences in their various forms, and creating a workshop atmosphere in the classroom are just some of the "methods that matter" presented in this highly readable, jargon-free book. If you are looking to to move toward stepping out of the spotlight in your classroom, to become a more child-centered facilitator of learning, this book is an excellent place to begin.

An added bonus: this book is not "pie-in-the-sky" idealistic, as many professional development books tend to be. Daniels and Bizar come across as "real", and acknowledge the realities that we as teachers face in the day to day politics that is American education today.

A practical guide for teachers wishing to employ student-centered methods of teaching in their classrooms. The authors provide six step-by-step structures (integrative units, small group activities, representing-to-learn, classroom workshop, authentic experiences and reflective assessment) for implementing best practices in the classroom. Readers are given concrete examples of how to cross disciplinary boundaries through the development of integrated unit plans, engage students in exercises that promote deeper learning, and assess their effectiveness as teachers by comparing their experiences with case studies written by instructors who have used these methods in their own classrooms. Assessment guides and activities that can be adapted to any age group, are especially helpful for both novice and experienced teachers.

This book will remain within arms reach throughout my teaching career. I expect to
use it as a companion guide and reference to assess my own development as a teacher and to guide me in implementing best practice methodology in my classroom. I found it especially helpful to have the experiences of teachers who have employed the lessons included with each chapter.

It was a new book, so the condition were perfect!
It looks like Im getting an A on my class...

This book helped me to get an A in Microeconomics since my professor didn't have a formal textbook just a Power Point presentation that I couldn't refer to when I needed it. The book is not only great but they have a website to take quizzes or review the material. I recommend it!

This book is the standard for Microeconomics. Simple, good graphs and charts. I've seen other books and they just don't compare.

The author makes concepts that have historically been over mystified highly accessable to the reader. The use of current economic scenarios helps cement concepts and brings life to essential economic theories.

This book is a pretty good, straightforward, intro to microeconomics. It is sort of simplistic, yet the main points are crystal clear, and chapters are easy to read.

A lively, engaging book on a topic that won't go out of style: Money Sense for Kids! helps youngsters develop the financial savvy to be smart consumers and wise investors. The book is filled with amusing "case studies" and fun reinforcement activities that explain money concepts in age-appropriate ways. An excellent gift for budding entrepreneurs and piggy-bank prisoners alike, Money Sense for Kids! should be on everyone's bookshelf!

I have to tell you I was so impressed with this book; I was practically quivering; I read the first 30 pages and I don't think I've ever seen anything better. I could take that book and teach with it for a year. It would serve as a base to go in just tons of directions: math, history, just everything. I was really impressed.

An "EXCELLANT" very informative plain english book. At 3/4 of a century old I learned details about our currency for the first time. Very interesting and it is a "good to go" on other subjects.

Moms, Dads, grandparents and kids have all sent me emails to the book's companion website, www.kidsfinance.com. I am delighted to have refreshed the first edition; this is the 2nd ed (2004). Revisit the book for updated features of our bills and coins, plus a comparison of the three major stock exchanges. In this edition we look at three different companies: eBay, Nike and Berkshire Hathaway. I encourage you to email your thoughts and questions; I look forward to hearing from you.

THIS EASILY UNDERSTANDABLE BOOK PROVIDES YOUNG READERS WITH ALL THEY NEED TO KNOW ABOUT SAVINGS AND INVESTMENTS .

THE "RISK " ANALOGY TO BICYCLE RIDING IS READILY UNDERSTOOD BY ALL GENERATIONS.

THE EXPLANATION OF THE CURRENCY IS FASINATING AND ENTERTAINING

I just stumbled across this mini-board book for my son and after 2 times of watching me slide the characters in and out of the pages with a finger tip he had it down!! This sturdy book is constructed to withstand lots of reading & use plus the animals all slide very easily. My son spent 20 feverish minutes last night working each and every page over and over!! I'm buying the other two books in the series as well: munch munch tap tap & bang bang knock knock

We love this book so much at our house that we have multiples of it. We have worn through several copies and each child wants their own. Very cute, durable and fun.

My 17 month old son has been reading this book since he got it at a book swap last Christmas. He reads it so much that it started to fall apart. I did not have the heart to throw it out so it is now in a ziploc to go in his box - so he can know that for a full year he had to read this book every night.

My 7 mo old son loves to see the little animals pop out, this is a great book for babies!

I haven't read this one yet, but I have read Tap! Tap! Who's There? to my 6 month old daughter. If it's as good as that one, then it's a must have. I'm going to buy the whole series. The books are so cute and charming. You really can't miss.

We used Volume 1 last year and loved it. We have just started Volume 2 and have the same opinion. This volume has a little more "meat" to the reading---with more details and insight into various places/events. It also has highlighted words within the text and this helps my son (and me) find important information. We do not do all the activities listed as this would be too overwhelming. We also do our own version of the memory cards in addition to a timeline book. It is a very flexible curriculum and gives you a good starting point for digging deeper into various topics.

This is one of the best history books we have used in 6 years of home schooling. It is very thorough, well planned, covers information and activities appropriate to a variety of age levels. I wish I had used this text all along.

This is an impressive history book! It is a tome to be sure, even a bit intimidating for the younger grades, but it is easily adaptable to a wide range of age and ability levels. My 8-year-old son enjoys history, so he loves it, but I think the activities are interesting enough to engage less enthusiastic students, as well. It is also appropriate for much older students; the author, in fact, recommends going through the book in its entirety at different stages of a student's development. If you're looking for a great history series (this volume covers A.D. 29 through the Middle Ages)written from a Biblical worldview, you'd be hard-pressed to do better than this!

When I was looking for a history program to use with my son, I asked several families what program they used. Nine out of ten told me Mystery of History. When I asked why, I received a number of answers, but all said because it was so enjoyable and had such easy but interesting activities for elementary, middle school and high school students. My son never complains about history now. He looks forward to our daily reading and the easy activity that we do with it. We decided on making history cards rather than a timeline, which he can do on his own. He even looks forward to the tests and pretests at the end and beginning of each section. Everything that we need in one text, including maps.

I went through Volume I with my 7th & 4th graders and found it to be interesting, thorough enough without being overwhelming, and offering the opportunity to do as much or as little as you want on a daily basis with the addition of extra activities and projects. This volume surpasses the first volume, which was great.

My favorite aspect of her history courses are the pre- and post- tests scattered throughout the book. Never before have I seen a subject reviewed so constantly in such a fun way. My girls love to do the tests together as a form of competition to see who can remember the answer first in the post-tests and who can guess what the answer might be in the pre-tests. She whets their appetites for what is to come and keeps what has been fresh on their minds. In fact, the post-tests keep the subjects so fresh that by the end of the last topic in the book they still remember the first topic they studied. They are short and fun but require them to remember past lessons. What a joy!

My own complaint is that Volume 3 is not ready yet!! I will need it next year!!!

I wandered through the kid's section of a book store and stumbled upon this book. It was the beautiful imagery on the cover that first caught my eye. I flipped through to see that these wonderful images are carried throughout as well. I turned back to the beginning and read the tale of Ignis as he tries to find himself and his flame and fell in love with this little dragon. His journey to find his flame is fun to read and fitting for the age this book targets (4-8). Simply put, I found the tale endearing and the artwork captivating to explore. Very enjoyable indeed!

I have read this book and really enjoyed it. I have also read this book to a grade 1 class and they really enjoyed it. I feel that this book is great for all ages. I love the story-line and the fabulous illustrations. This will be a great addition to any collection.

One of the most delightful books I have ever come across!

No other book I have ever seen has illustrations that bring dragons to life like this one. As an artist, I had searched everywhere to find examples of expresive, interesting dragons that had a benevolent and inquisitive nature, and at the same time retained their reptilian appearance. The fact that the drawings are accompanied by such a well written story is a bonus!

This is my daughter's most-requested book, and it is so enjoyable I truly don't mind reading it five days in a row. I can't say that for any other book we own. The illustrations are beautiful, the text is very inspired, and I like the theme of perseverance. Ignis's personality seems so real, as does the little girl Cara's. With two children, I've bought or borrowed countless children's books, and this goes at the top of my favorites list. I wish Gina Wilson and P.J. Lynch would team up for another story.

"Ignis" is fabulous dragon book. The inspirational story is all the better due to the enchanting, beautifully drawn illustrations on each page. I love reading this book to my 5-year old son as much as he loves to hear it. This is a must read and must have book for all dragon lovers: both young and old. I highly recommend the purchase.

This book was wonderful! It has in it:the tsar and tsaritsa,wedding clothes,coronation costumes,matching fur-trimmed outfits,the tsar and tsaritsa again (older),traditional Russian clothes,an opera gown,traveling clothes,their 5 children,court costumes for the latter,traveling clothes for the girls,and two strange-looking attendants. The best was the girls. I agree with a fellow reviewer of this book that Olga and Marie were blonds. All in all,this a great book. Buy it,by all means,BUY IT!!!!!!!!!

This was a beautifully drawn and colored book and had excellent colors and selections!It was fun to cut out to!!I recommend this book to any one who likes the Romanovs or OTMA!!

This was a very good paper doll book. I reccomend it.It includes the tsar and tsaritsa at two different ages,their children,Olga,Tatiana(I like her best),Marie,and Anastasia,and hemophilia-stricken Alexei,as well as two attendants.There is only one problem:Olga and Marie were blonds,NOT brunettes.However these are fun and my sister and I fight over Alexandra!Do not give these to little children.If you cut them out,I have found that the book cover makes a good house for them to live in!

This set of paper dolls are wonderful. With beautiful clothes full of detail it is easy to relive the life of the ill-fated Romanovs. The set includes the Tsar Nichols and the Tsaritsa Alexandra. There is a younger verison of the two (when they were married) and an older version of the two. Also there are the beautiful Grand Duchesses Olga,Tatiana,Marie, and Anastasia. Also the tsarvitch is included.With easy to understand and informative notes I highly recommend this book to paper doll lovers or people who are fans of the Romanovs.

How does Mr. Tierney do it? I have yet to be disappointed with ANY of the collections of paper dolls that he has illustrated, and this one is no different. He has captured the nobility of the doomed Tsar, and the regal beauty of his Tsarina. He has not neglected any detail in costume and brings these tragic figures to life again in this collection. A must for history buffs, fashion afficianadoes and those who love well done paper dolls.

This book, with its two companion volumes on Egyptian Art and American Art, helps create a fun and focused visit to a specific collection. The reader learns what to look for in the paintings, and also learns entertaining facts about the various artists. The introduction is particularly helpful. For example, it explains basic concepts about colors and perspective, and sets reasonable expectations about what children can absorb. The section about "museum feet" is very pertinent. Obviously the authors know children as well as the art.

This book, with its two companion volumes on Egyptian Art and American Art, helps create a fun and focused visit to a specific collection. The reader learns what to look for in the paintings, and also learns entertaining facts about the various artists. The introduction is particularly helpful. For example, it explains basic concepts about colors and perspective, and sets reasonable expectations about what children can absorb. The section about "museum feet" is very pertinent. Obviously the authors know children as well as the art.

It is a thoroughly engrossing overview of the artists and their artistic accomplishments written in a manner so easy to read aand remember. It really could be for any age tii use in any museum in the world which has Impressionist paintings. Fascinating! Informative!

If you don't have children, but have a number of them on your holiday list, these three Off the Wall Museum Guides for Kids by Ruthie Knapp and Janice Lehmberg are truly a find. They'll delight everyone - the kids will love them, their parents will be thankful for something that is both mind-expanding and great fun, and, you'll be thankful for pleasing both parties. Every child on my list will be receiving them this year. What's more, if you need some brushing-up in American art, Egyptian art, or French Impressionism, take a look before you wrap them up or, better yet, get a set for yourself. ART 101 was never so much fun! (Make sure to order all three books.)

This is a wonderfully entertaining and a very informative book for kids, parents, school volunteers and teachers! There's something for everyone. I've used it as a parent and art volunteer in the classroom for our kids and the other presenters. My eight year old daughter reads from this and their other book on American Art. Wish there were more in the set besides, Impressionists, American and Egyptian Art guides!

This book is one of a number of books that have a Dr. Seuss rhyme to them but that teach some aspect of nature or the world. This one goes into Dynasaurs, others are on the human body, insects and other animals. Whereas the rhymes don't always work it does keep a childs attention and they can't help but learn something.

My daughter loves it and I love to read it to her. One of our favorite Cat-in-the-hat books!

My son who will soon be five years old, loves this book. We read it three times in a row when I first purchased it and we have read it many times since. It's clever and fun and informational, too. A great addition for the dinosaur book collector.

I bought this book for my three year old and was delighted to find that it is a book that will also grow with my son. He loves the ryhmes and the illusrations. The book holds his attention while also teaching him.

Let's put it this way, my 4 year old can now accurately pronounce the names of the dinosaurs and knows a fair amount about them. This book is wonderful. If your child is into dinosaurs this is the one book that you should get. It even gives a list of other dinosaur books that you can turn to for further reference. I'd have given it 6 stars or more.