Schools and Instruction Books

A bit dry - - - - but hits the mark on the historical "math wars" and where we need to go with student understanding in 2008.

Originally published in in 1941 Dover released this paperback edition in 1989 in their line of Art history books. Dover does a nice job of reviving important works at affordable prices. Granted this edition may not be as grand as the original published by Harper & Lee but it serves as a sort of everyman's introductory guide that is transportable. The author, Mackinley Helm has first hand knowledge of his subject as he rubbed shoulders with the Big Three, Orozco, Siquieros & Rivera. Many items featured in print are from his oown collection. Of these the drawings are most notable. Besides being an art collector himself he knew these individuals which provides his discourse with insight and first hand knowledge. However Helm goes way beyond just exploring the greater known Mexican artists as he ties all aspects together for a seemless vision which includes including social and political influences. There are ten chapters and he aptly begins with the '"grandfather " of Mexican Art Dr. Atl or as he calls him theSaint John the Baptist of Mexican Art. Christened Gerardo Murrillo, Dr. Atl adopted his own name from the Nahuatl language meaning water. Working in the shadows of the volcano Popocatepetl or "Popo" he feathered his legend living simply and looking like Biblical figure with long beard and by painting natural vistas usually with Popo in the background. He later established an art school where notable Mexican painters studied. In the first chapter Helm also explores the influence of another master, Guadalupe Posada, who influenced the more well known muralists who came to be known as the Big Three. Posada was known for drawing calveras or skeletons, he created caricatures of political figues in the newspaper during a time of upheaval prior to the Mexican Revolution. All of these early influences are explored that would be the foundation for the flourishing renaissance in Mexican Art. Although much of the book is dedicated to the Big Three Helms does explore many lesser known artists and includes 82 plates and 95 illustrations. The prints are adequate but not spectacular as they are in black and white. When compared to the colorful originals or plates found in other books it is a little disappointing . However the pencil and ink drawings do translate well although the size is limited to the smaller size(see dimensions) of the book. I think the strength of this book is the text itself which is full of historical information and personal recollections. Artists covered include , Rivera, Siquiros , Orozco, Kahlo, Tamayo, Posada, Escobedo, Morado, Meza, Romero, Lazo, Montenegro, Merida, Goitia, Ruiz, Izquierdo, Lozano, Cantu, Lozano and Galvan.This is an excellent introduction to Mexican Art book but also serves well someone more well versed in the subject matter. Recommended for Mexican Art enthusiasts.

I bought this one and two others in the series and have used them consistently. There are some lessons that are too labor-intensive for my time, but students regularly learn from those that I tweak a bit. This is a very helpful series.

Take the input of 57 of today's most outstanding music educators from across the country, each assigned to concisely address ONE topic of their choice (1 - 3 pages maximum) for which they are especially passionate, and the result is an absolute treasure chest of practical tips and conducting/teaching strategies for public school and college music educators. The topics addressed are especially relevant for band directors. I've also found this 124 page "gem" to contain valuable readings for my college instrumental methods and conducting students. I highly recommend this text.

This title works well for younger students to play with the more accomplished students. "Twinkle," for example, uses only A, D, and first. However, please note that the book only contains the 3rd violin part (tiny letters in upper left corner). For the 2nd violin part, which does not come up on Amazon's search engine, you must click the "Also available in...paperback" button, and you will be directed to that page (which I realized only after purchasing it from another store that tagged on $5.95 in shipping!).

This book provides useful advice for teachers from elementary school to high school. There are many ideas for how to develop independence and educational curiosity in students. In particular, it places emphasis on group work and Socratic questions. The key to education is for students to think for themselves. They must do this through critical thinking. Check out this book for some ideas on how to encourage this in the classroom.

The premise above works with this program. As part of a prison reading lab program, we were able to obtain this book of lesson plans and purchased the books in the core book lists for the lab and the visiting room. At the time I was involved we were just launching the program along with other reading programs for the inmates...which included becoming aware of one's visual difficulties. We found that inmates could develop their own programs for their visiting children, or could pass that information on to their family, and it helped the inmates with their own poor reading by getting motivated to help the children. Within weeks using visual tests, exercises and the program outlined we had inmates excited about teaching reading to others and changed their own attitudes in there GED classes.

We used the paperback version of this textbook in a graduate level Emergent Literacy course. Great organization of information for emergent, early, and fluent stages of oral language, reading and writing. The text is full of educational best practices, activities, tables of benchmarks and ready-to-use assessment tools. My copy started out brand-new, but it definitely has that "well-loved" look to it now. It is one post-secondary text that I plan on keeping.

My daughter began to play the violin since last yr and this book make her want to practice very day.

I've been playing for 6 months and this is very difficult. Challenging but good practice.