Education Teaching Books

The author said that this book wass designed for 4th graders with reading problems. My kid had no reading problem and was about to enter 3 grade. I thought this book might be of the right level. But I was wrong. This book may be good for 2nd graders.
But if the level is good for your kid, the book itself is not bad. The articles are interesting. But still, I think "wordly wise 3000" is a better choice. The "wordly wise 3000 book A" is about the same level.

I've been assigning these readings weekly to my fifth graders for a few years now.
The parents and students love them as a quick, manageable, helpful activity they can do together in about 20 minutes.
They just return it, signed, at the end of the week, and I give them credit towards their reading grade.
Some parents don't take time to read with their children until it is assigned; so it's good to give them a reason to do it!

I am surprised other reviewers have not mentioned inaccuracies and errors in this book. For example, in the first story Mary Rose refers to the Arawak Indians as both the Arawak and the Arawaks. I consider this a big error considering the passage is only a few paragraphs long. The second story on the Pilgrims contains inaccuracies and many of the points she chooses do not support her thesis that parents are strict. Requiring children to stand at the dinner table is an example of parental strictness. Other examples were not at all related to strictness but instead to conditions of poverty.

The text is also fraught with typographical errors, some of which could be very confusing to a beginning reader. E.g. :"Then he returned home and happily at his dinner" (p. 32). Obviously this should read "ate" his dinner.

Additionally, many stories are overpunctuated. Some stories even have a double exclamation point in the title (e.g. Bananas!!).

Slang (improperly used at that) is another troubling element... a story on astronauts' water sources warns "Don't gross out!"

There are some inaccurate explanations. Rose's explanation of the use of italics is misleading. She italicizes words of foreign origin the first story. This use is correct, but her explanation of the use of italics does not correspond to the way she uses it.

There are positive aspects to this book, however. It clearly states the objectives for each section and has good questions to go with the passages. I also appreciated how the author related the content of the book to standardized assessments.

I bought this book last summer and used it with my 5th grade language arts students this past year. It contains some helpful usage and assessment ideas. The passages are divided into sections, all of them "kid-interesting" content. Each assignment features a particular reading skill and tips to the parent on how to help his/her child with the assignment. There is a place at the bottom of each assignment for both child and parent to sign. Certainly I recommend it to teachers, but I would also recommend it to parents who would like to help their children's reading skills but might be at a loss as to how to help them.

I absolutely love this book for both teachers or parents looking to improve reading skills. My daughter first came home with these stories from her 4th grade teacher and I loved them so much I bought a copy to use with the students I tutor. Now I'm teaching basic skills to fifth graders and do these stories one-on-one. Each story is intelligently written with a touch of humor and jam-packed with interesting facts. Topics include American History ("Thomas Jefferson and the Big Cheese"), fiction, biography, poetry, science (Star Trek!"), and popular culture. There is one reading skill to work on per story such as using context clues, italics, or main idea/supporting details. I've just ordered Mary Rose's other similar books for math and other reading levels. One word of caution: the vocabulary may be too advanced for a struggling third grader--best for grades 4-6 unless the child is already a fluent reader.

This is one in a series of workbooks, each of which offers an abundance of learning activities, exercises, and games that are presented with superb production values. Appropriate to the given age level, much of the material focuses on basic subjects such natural science, mathematics, history, and social studies while enabling children to strengthen their reading, reasoning, and writing skills. The editors of Brain Quest believe that:

"All kids are smart - though they learn at their own speed

All kids learn best when they're having fun

All kids deserve the chance to reach their potential - given the tools they need, there's no limit how far they can go!"

I agree, while presuming to add that children will learn more and have more fun meanwhile if, when completing various exercises, adults are involved. As a parent of four and a grandparent of ten, I can personally attest to the pleasure an adult will also have. Each volume in the series is a WORK book. Exercises are completed with crayolas or pencils on the page on which it appears. Correct answers are provided. One caveat: Resist the temptation to control the learning process as a child completes an exercise.

This volume, Pre-K (ages 4-5), was written by Liane Onish, with Jane Ching Fung serving as consulting editor. It is worth noting that Fung is a past winner of the Milken Foundation National Educator Award. The material consists of organized curriculum-based exercises that help children to gain an understanding of ABCs, 123s, phonics, vocabulary, shapes and colors, sorting and matching, "My World," science, and "Fun and Games." Also included are more than 150 stickers, an all-new Brain Quest Mini-Card Deck, and a fold-out "Alphabet Letters" poster.

Here is a representative selection of exercises:

Find the cars with e and color them purple. (Page 15)
Touch and count the objects in each group. Circle the groups of 10. (145)
Say Fish. Fish begins with the F sound. Circle the pictures that begin like Fish. (65)
These animals are small. Say the name of each animal. Then color each picture. (189)
Color the sun yellow. Color the flowers yellow. Color the bees yellow. (208)
Draw an X on all the silly things that do not belong in the house. (263)
A habitat is where animals live. Draw a line from each animal to its matching habitat. (278)
Help Madison find the magician. (300)

Each of the volumes in this series (pre-K through Grade 4) would be an excellent book for parents, grandparents, and others to purchase and then share with a child at an appropriate stage of her or his development. No doubt there are precocious children who will prefer more challenging material associated with later grades but I think it would be a mistake to rush the learning process. Worse yet, to indicate little interest in it.

Congratulations to the Workman Publishing Company and especially to the editors of Brain Quest. How pleased they must be to know that their materials have already helped to nourish so many young minds and to delight so many young hearts and, fortunately, will continue to do so for the development of other children in months and years to come.

THE BOOK GIVES YOU AN INSIGHT ON HOW EDUCATION SHOULD BE AND A COMPREHENSIVE ACCOUNT ON WHERE OR/AND HOW EDUCATORS LOOSE THE MARK.

The book was received in excellent condition. I was pleased that it arrived in a timely fashion, before my class started. I was kept updated on the progress of delivery. Great Service!

The book was in great condition. I am sure I probably could have paid cheaper going to a store, but this was easier for me.

If you are think about reading Experience & Education by John Dewey, get ready for a "heady" read. This book is very dense and thoughtful. If you are an educator be prepared to read this book at a slow pace and take notes. Dewey, illustrates two thoughts in education: traditional vs. progressive.

According to Dewey, traditional education is focused on content rather than process. Progressive education, is more of a free approach with freedom of choices being most useful in education. Throughout the book, the reader must understand the nature of human experience. Dewey theorizes that the human experience has two principles: continuity and interaction.

Continuity is a concept that people will influence the future, for better or for worse. Interaction, according to Dewey, refers to situational influence on one's experience. Meaning the present experience is a function of the interaction between the past experience and the present situations. An applied example of this would be a teacher's experience of a lesson. The lesson will have much to do with the teacher's past interaction with the content. And this past interaction will them manifest out with how the teacher thinks, arranges and presents the content in the lesson.

This is a great book of cognition and metacognition.

Nancy Linden

John Dewey's Experience and Education is a timeless treasure on the educational process in the United States. Although the language maybe flowery and dated the ideas are fresh and meaningful. I have worn out the binding in this short 91 page gem of learning theory from reading and rereading passages that are as relevant today as they were almost 70 years ago. As I continue in my process as a graduate student in education this book will be a worthwhile reference and inspiration. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the value of education.

Specific, reproducible worksheets for teaching writing according to 6 + 1 traits; rubrics are enormously successful for the teacher and the student--both learn

What I love about the 6 Traits is the accessibility across the grade levels. My initial experiences with 6 Traits was in the elementary school and I currently teach 8th grade. I have not found this resource to be helpful with older writers as most of the language is for young writers. With some of my students writing at the high school, even college level, it seems inappropriate. I use picture books for inspiration, but the checklists are too young. I will continue to collect 6 Traits materials as I found it is the best way to teach writing effectively.

It really does take out all of the grunt work out of teaching the 6 traits. All you have to copy and teach. It's that simple.

Exactly what I was looking for as a 4th grade teacher using 6 Trait writing in my classroom. The rubrics are easy to use and modify. The "forms" inside make understanding 6 Traits for young writers easier.

This is a wonderful book. I read it many years ago as a young person. And after becoming an adult I purchased it and read it again. My son read it when he was younger and he still keeps a copy at his home.
His son is reading it now. This is a book that everyone should read. It's a great read for blacks, because it's about blacks. However, this book is enlightening for anyone who dares to pick it up.
Great read!

This book has been a mainstay in Black Literature because the relevance of the content still apply, and have applied to every generation of African-Americans since it was originally published in 1933. I recommend this book to all African-Americans, young and old.

This is book a must have for anyone studying African American History. If you are building a library, it cannot be complete without this writing - this is one of the foundational cornerstones.

This book is such an eye-opening piece of work. I believe that people of all races can be motivated by this book.

Although copyright for this title is dated 1933, I found that the vast majority of the information therein, pertinent, applicable, and relative to our situation today. This book-as it has been said before-should be required reading for all Black Americans.

The analysis put forth by Dr. Carter G. Woodson on subjects like commerce, religion, and the value of an uncompromising education within our community, are profound.

Parents and teachers must encourage children to start young interacting and discussing great children's literature to develop those all important comprehension skills.Two of my favorite children stories are written by teachers and have fabulous 10-page reading guides so parents and teachers can have questions and fun activities built around the stories to develop these skills and a love of reading. They are Life's Little Lessons: An Inch-By-Inch Tale of Success and The Big Squeal: A Wild, True, and Twisted Tail. A++++ rating.

I am a huge Lucy Calkins fan, so I was thrilled to buy this book, as it is written by one of her "people". This book is a very long look at Book Clubs within the reading workshop classroom. A very long, overly detailed look........

The basic gist is that heterogenous groups of students should have time throughout the school year to meet over a basket of books that are grouped for some reason and close to some of their reading levels. They should be given instruction and time to have authentic conversations and interactions with the books. While I love this idea, it is not new and not so involved that it needs an entire book devoted to this one component of reading workshop. Instead of this book, I would highly recommend Debbie Miller's Reading With Meaning. It covers this idea thoroughly, plus so much more.

thank you for the book, it was in great condition and will work well for my class!

This is an excellent book for anyone who is in the teaching profession, and especially those who teach beginning readers.

This book was in excellent condition and just as described. I received it in a timely manner and am very happy with my purchase.

This book arrived in excellent condition and in a timely fashion. I was able to use it before I went back to school and I need it to teach elementary and middle school aged students in the fall. Thank you very much.

Let me start by saying this book builds off of Guiding Readers and Writers, also by Fountas and Pinnell. If you haven't yet invested in that book and you teach reading or writing to grades 3-12, that's where you want to start. This book will not be nearly as helpful until you have read and engaged in the teaching strategies laid out in Guiding Readers and Writers. However, if you are currently looking to build and add to your literature circles and your reading and writing workshops, this is the book you want.

This book is loaded with resources for teachers. It comes with an interactive DVD to show teachers exactly what they are describing as mini lessons. This was truly the most helpful to me - being able to see teachers in action, working with students, using the techniques I had just read about helped to enable me to create the same learning environment and use the same techniques. The DVD also includes over 100 blackline masters/forms/worksheets ready to use! As a teacher, that in it's self is worth $100 not to have to make everything yourself!

This book uses a variety of methods to deepen comprehension that overlap into to guided reading within the classroom. Interactive read-aloud using picture books is just one way I started deepening comprehension within my classroom using this book. Just two months in, I can see the difference in how my kids are reading and understanding! This is just one of the many pieces I use within reading workshop. The more and more I do this, the more I see my kids using skills that we've pointed out in reading workshop in their writing! This book helps kids think 'about the text', 'beyond the text', and 'within the text'.

This book also helps teachers (of any reading grade) set-up running records to increase fluency. Within the blackline masters, the forms are ready to use, and the layout is easy to use! I am able to do this while my kids are writing in their reader's notebooks or doing independent reading. This is a great tool to help assess where a child is and where a child should be.

This book is a powerful tool if used in combination with Guiding Readers and Writers. Teachers of all ages can find this book filled with useful strategies and practical ideas to use within their reading class.

PS - If you have a chance, check out Heinemann's website. Fountas and Pinnell are doing conferences across the US on small sections of this book. If you have a chance to go, they are well worth it!

Great resource for all primary elementary teachers. Great ideas to develop schema for various comprehension strategies!

This book meets the big areas of comprehension with concrete and engaging activities that will introduce strategies to your students and provide a gradual release of responsibility!

I love this book! It is so easy to read. As a reading coach, I am writing a grant to get this book for my faculty so that we can do a book study. The book makes comprehension concrete for children. I have used the lessons in the book with both kindergarten students and fifth graders. I would suggest it for anyone looking to make the instruction of reading comprehension more accessible to elementary age children. I would also recommend it for teachers of struggling students in middle and high school. Explicit, concrete instruction is what this text provides.

Since Mosaic of Thought, I've been reading a lot about teaching reading comprehension strategies. But like my special education students, I needed someone to show me how to teach them-concretely. This little gem gives you anchor lessons for each strategy. The anchor lessons use objects, songs, movement to introduce students to reading strategies. I highly recommend this book to my special education commrades trying to help their students improve comprehension.

Excellent concrete examples and charts that children can relate to and use as anchor lessons. I recommend this book to all elementary teachers of comprehension skills.

Excellent book to help young children learning basic addition skills. We started this book when my son was 4 years, 8 months. The going was slow for a while, but now we are more than halfway through the book, and I no longer have to guide him on every step. Prior to this book, he had not spent a lot of time learning to write his numbers (this was his first numbers workbook), and now he can write his number 1-29 without help.

For the reviewer who mentioned the pages were full of too many math problems for one sitting, I agree. We improvise, and I divide each page in half with a marker. He gets a sticker for each half-page he completes.

Most importantly, my son's confidence has dramatically improved. When we began the book, he was unsure of himself and easily confused by the many numbers, but time and patience has won out--and he races to get his book now.

I received this product in a timely manner,product in good condition.

I just love the Kumon workbooks because they are so well organized, with pages that are simply laid out and they introduce the information incrementally. It appeals to the learning style of my five year old. I was a tiny bit disappointed by how extremely simple this workbook is. It only covers adding 1 and 2 to the numbers 1 through 29. It says it right there on the cover but somehow I missed it. I would say it's definitely pre-school level and not kindergarten as I'd hoped. I'll probably just do a few of the pages with my five year old and order the next book to do this year with her and let my four year old use this when I need her to have busy-work. The information builds very slowly in this workbook and so it might not be ideal of the child who likes variety in their workbook pages or who struggles with being under-challenged or gets bored really quickly. However for my daughter this will be perfect.

I have brought all of the Kumon workbooks. Most of the other workbooks are full of bright colorful pictures with lessons containing just the right amount of sit down work. That is not true with this book. It is just pages full of problems -- too many of them for one sitting. They call it simple, because you are only adding 1 to numbers 1 to 29, but it is a bit much for a child trying to learn this for the first time. The book is fine for speed improvements, but find a different book for first time learners.

This is a wonderful book for anyone wanting to know more about Charlotte Mason's educational philosophies. This book breaks it all down into manageable pieces that are very easy to follow and understand. This should be on every CM fans "must-read" list. An excellent book!

This book was my favorite (as written by a homeschool mom) to describe the Charlotte Mason philosophy and how one can use it in a practical way to teach their own children at home.

It is not only easy to read but a charming book. I have passed it on to my oldest child, who has begun homeschooling her daughter and son.

A book that makes the ideal childhood including education feasible and practical to implement. It shows that education does not have to take place in a chair and behind a desk. It shows that learning takes place all the time and the most important lessons are taught outside of textbooks.

This book gave me more inspiration, enthusiasm and direction for homeschooling than I ever expected to have with my oldest child still just two years old. Written by Karen Andreola, an intelligent, well-written and passionate mother who has homeschooled three children Charlotte Mason-style, the thrust of the book is not how to mold intellectually superior children (though that may be a natural result :) but rather how to nurture their natural curiosities and cultivate in them a love of learning. Reading "whole" or "living" books is foundational to this method, that is, books written by authors who have a personal passion for the subject, an enthusiasm that the reader may catch. Charlotte Mason is critical of most textbooks as they are over-stuffed with information compiled by committees aiming to meet generalized standards of what a child should learn in a particular grade. Charlotte felt that to know about something was not the same as knowing it personally. "Children are educated by their intimacies," was an oft-repeated theme which Charlotte was convinced of. A necessary partner to the reading of whole books is the "narration" of them, when a child is asked to re-tell what they have learned in their own words. Naturally the child will begin to incorporate the words of their authors into their own vocabularies. As they get older, they may narrate in both written and oral forms. In a child's early years (the first 6), no formal schooling is recommended but rather abundant play and exploration in nature, that they might experience the world through the five senses, as well as songs and books and practice at helpfulness in the home. Most importantly, Charlotte Mason recognizes Christ in her theories, placing spiritual formation as central to the child's education "...because knowledge without virtue is nothing to God."
A perfect compliment to this book in its emphasis on spiritual formation in the home: "Family Driven Faith," by Voddie Baucher.

If you've read the Charlotte Mason 6 volume set, there is no need for this companion book. My hope in reading this book was to get a modernized take on Miss Mason's educational theories. I was sadly disappointed. I find this book to be just about as victorian as the original. I do believe that the CM method will work in today's homeschools, but let's be honest, my children (and my home for that matter) look nothing like the rosy picture painted by Karen Andreola. I was hoping this book would break down the meat of CM's philosophy into what works for the modern home. I guess I'll have to do that myself.