Teaching Books

This is a very good book for those who are trying to understand how innovations can be adopted and how they affect our lifes.

This is, and has been for some time, an important leadership concept. The book is very well written.

Rogers' five stages of the innovation-decision process appears simple on the surface, but the detail and substance behind the simplicity bear reflective thinking by leaders of both large and small organizations. Busy leaders may be inclined to shy away from this text, simply because of its length; however, the case studies of real-life situations are worth the expense of time and money. Serious, committed organizational leaders at both strategic and operational levels should review this text in order to better understand the innovation-decision process, the generation of innovations, and how attributes of innovations affect adoption rates. Furthermore, the changing nature and structure of 21st century organizations dictate that leaders need to be aware of, and engaged in, diffusion networks through which innovation and growth can be accelerated. Rogers' text is a must read for the knowledgeable leader who seeks to gain competitive advantage in an accelerating world of disruptive, non-evolutionary change.

This book is fascinating. It discusses the spread of ideas and products through communities, how they spread and why. Rogers breaks down the process and describes different categories of people depending on when they take up the innovation. This book is very readable, and although written by an academic, not written in academese. It covers various domains of interest (agriculture, sociology, marketing) and has something for everyone.

The one thing I think Rogers has missed is subjective norm. Not only do people weigh the relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trialability and observability, but they also weigh up what they believe their personal network believes what they should do.

For instance, I will do something that someone important (to me)tells me to do, even if I personally find it silly, simply because I put enough weight and consideration into what I believe is their opinion.

Rogers gets close to that with the discussion of personal networks and adoption of innovations by organisations, but still misses the point. That is why this book only gets four stars, from me.

Very insightful. A must read for a variety of academic disciplines. I don't know that I've been in a professor's office at my university and not seen this book on the shelf!

I'm teaching PE and taekwondo martial arts from preschool to high school this book is all I need to control but without hurting my student's feeling. There are so many ways offered out there but not one offer me a quality time for my students and at the same time solution. Now I use this book also to build discipline in martial arts.

This book is just what I was looking for. It first helps you determine the type of disciplinarian you are in your classroom now. It described me to a "t". In very simple terms it described and diagrammed what I was doing wrong. It just makes so much sense. Then it goes on to show how to deal with a multitude of class and out-of-class discipline situations. It gives real situations and how the teacher dealt with them. Just what I needed. I will definitely be using this book as a guide for my classroom discipline this year.

Finally, a classroom management book that I can really use! "Setting Limits" isn't filled with jargon,statistics, or theories; it implements real examples of classroom, playground and counseling scenarios and how they should (or shouldn't) be managed. Even better, there are examples from every grade level, K-12, so I didn't find myself searching for the chapters relevant to my teaching position.
This book helped me identify ways to streamline my middle school classroom-no more getting sidetracked by difficult students or unexpected situations. I can't wait to go back to school in August and use my sharpened skills.

This is the best book on classroom discipline I have EVER read. It is to the point, with concrete ways of handling a variety of situations. It is also full of examples, most of which I have been through. In other words, these aren`t examples of situations that never or rarely happen. These are every day situations like what to do with a smart mouth student, or one that doesn`t want to listen to you, or the class clown.

I will recommend this book to all my friends at work.

You will not be dissapointed. Well worth the money.

I am a teacher with 10 years of experience in both general ed and special ed classrooms. My passion is working with behaviorally challenged students. After many years of experience, I found this book and was fascinated. Here it is- all the 'tricks of the trade' for keeping the classroom under control stated in easy-to-understand language with tons of examples. I was so impressed by it that I bought copies for fellow teachers who I knew were having problems. One teacher read the whole book over the weekend and began using it the next week. What a difference! The class that previously was throwing things at each other, talking during instruction, etc. was now on-task and excited about learning! (Yes, this is a true story!)

This program is basically a simplification of everything that I had to learn over a number of years about how to work with difficult students. But, don't get me wrong this is for ALL students and does not require any point charts or complicated systems. It is simple, easy to follow, and costs the teacher nothing! Any teacher who follows this program will have no problems with behavior - guaranteed!

This book contains a set of exercises and activities which have, in at least two cases that I know of, brought small businesses from near-insolvency to client saturation. Without spending for advertising, there are multiple techniques and a framework for effective implementation to make a company visible to its potential clients. You should have a buddy to do the 28 days, but it doesn't have to be someone from your own company or even your own industry. You can find one through the companion website if needed. It's like Nike: just do it.

This second edition is a sound primer for those in any profession looking to build their business. It emphasizes the notion of an entire marketing cycle and process. The process never ends and you need to devote as much time and effort to the marketing process as you do toward the technical aspects of your profession. That is a hard conceptual wall for many to break through.

GET CLIENTS NOW! has a practical. hands-on bent with leads to lots of other books, resources, articles, websites, etc. It has useful forms and sound day by day tips on jumpstarting your marketing efforts. I especially liked the concept of continually "feeding the pipeline"!

A good resource!

Do you need more clients? Better clients? To make more money with less effort? The answer is in this terrific and newly updated resource. I bought the first edition, and this is truly the sales and marketing bible for consultants, coaches, and all service business professionals. GET CLIENTS NOW! provides a complete sales and marketing system that's simple to use, immediately effective, and can be customized to your own personal preferences, strengths, and business model.

C.J. Hayden's handbook is packed with proven tools and strategies to help you design an effective marketing plan, boost your relish and enjoyment of the sales and marketing process, and begin to dramatically increase your client base painlessly - and in just 28 days!

Using C.J.'s reader-friendly 'build-your-own' approach, tons of straightforward tips, and specific marketing techniques, you can't help but boost your small business success. A 5-star book all the way and one that you'll dog-ear, highlight, and refer back to again and again.

I had a marketing plan set up that worked after spending about three hours reading this book. It works ! It explains the nuts and bolts of marketing, without all the typical sales fluff and self-promotion. No fish or moved cheese here, just nuts and bolts marketing.

This book is pretty good way of getting new clients. I read each page with interest but could not get into following the daily ritual of doing tasks like cold calling contacts, warm contacts, networking, speeches e.t.c. It reads more like business coaching and generalized and may be more of fit for coaches. I skipped most of the hurah and completed the book. Overcoming sales objections e.t.c., small business networking and other tools proved to be valuable reading though. would recommend this book but should be coupled with supplementary reading on the subject.

I deeply encourage you to learn about the multiple intelligences. Gardeners concepts are shared by teachers, educators, naturalists, facilitators and business owners worldwide and profoundly impactful. The implications of his work, and that of Project Zero deserve the highest honors.

Gardner is a witty author with strikingly brilliant mind and admirable reverence toward the human divinity. In his book, Gardner manifests the notion of intelligence, as a bio-psychological potential, a computational capacity and a mental chemistry set and subsequently sheds lights on the commonly misconceived concept of intelligence as a one-dimensional human potential, characterized by the g or IQ metrics.

With his eloquent style, Gardner articulates the social, educational and psychological impacts of the multiple-intelligence theory rendering speculation on how intelligence shows its multifaceted attributes in various forms such as Mathematical-Logical, Kinesthetic, Musical, IntEr-personal, IntrA-personal, Linguistic, Spatial, Naturalistic and Existentialist abilities.

Upon reading the book, I found some interesting answers to my life-long inquiries regarding to the intelligence such as;

1. Why individuals with strong abilities in certain areas of mathematics, such as algebra or probability theory do not necessarily indicate strengths in other areas of mathematical sciences such as geometry or topology?

2. How the society can take advantage of the MI theory to bridge between the ethical values and individuals' capacities.

3. How a creative educator can achieve the "understanding" by exercising various avenues, such as foundational, quantitative, aesthetic, logical and existential methods to stir and incite the human intellect.

Gardner makes no effort to back up his hypothesis through psychometric experiments and I believe he has done this deliberately. More specifically, he believes any effort to benchmark the performances of individuals against these metrics would create a new version of human labeling, a concept that he certainly refrains to delve and investigate. Instead of putting effort in benchmarking these abilities in human minds, he believes efforts need to be made to identify, enhance and exercise the abilities that help the individuals to thrive in the areas that they have been blessed with, irrespective of society norms.


Chapter 1 of the book contains the highlights of his theory and covers various forms of intelligence. The introduction of the existential intelligence as a form of computational capacity is rather unpersuasive, knowing the fact that it is defined as an attribute (intelligence of big questions) and not as a mental ability. Favorite quote of this chapter;
"Having strong intelligence does not mean that one necessarily acts intelligently".

Chapter 2 of the book covers the semantics of the intelligence. An interesting topic in this chapter is the profile of the intelligence in which Gardner discusses how the intensity, diversity and locality of these potentials in an individual can result in spot-light or laser characteristics.

Chapter 3 provides a chronologic view of intelligence. Gardner tries to provide a simplified and standardized conception of the intelligence development across the life span of a human being. He also discusses the framework for the analysis and examination of the human intellect. This chapter is quite dry and lacks ardor. In my opinion, putting framework around something that has no boundary is rather counterintuitive.

Chapter 4 is the prelude of the educational impact of the intelligence. The very interesting topic in this section is the subject of "Multiple Representation of the Key Concepts". Resorting to the notion of multiple-intelligences, Gardner believes that there are numerous ways that an educator can approach a topic in pursuit of understanding. This methodology also helps students to think about a problem in a variety of ways, triggering the thought process in the most diverse form.

Chapter 5 is a pool of questions that individuals have asked Gardner regarding to his theories. Of special interest in this section is the topic of memory and its different faculties such as procedural memory, propositional memory, semantic memory, short and long-term memories. I believe this topic deserved more elaboration, or at minimum more references.
Favorite quote from this chapter:
"I often encounter the greatest resistance to this perspective when I speak to mathematicians or logicians. To these individuals, thinking is critical thinking, wherever you encounter it; if one knows how to be logical, one should be able to apply logic everywhere (And if you don't, life is hopeless !)".

Chapters 6 to 10 have heavy weights toward education. Of special interest is the chapter 8 and the topic on multiple entry point toward disciplinary understanding.
Gardner discusses how an informed educator can use various entry points, such as narrational, logical, quantitative, foundational, aesthetic, experimental and collaborative methods in approaching the topic. The examples given in this section are extremely valuable for all educators.

As you progress toward the end chapters, the modality of manuscript transitions toward ethics. To some extent, the progression of the thought process in this book is analogous to Gardner's perspective toward the subject; in his early life his motivation toward intelligence was mainly driven and influenced by cognitive sciences and psychometric studies, whereas his recent research and interest have roots in social impacts, ethics and humanity.

In summary, this book is an instant classic on the topic of multiple-intelligences, a must have book for the fireside at home.

Howard Gardner summarizes his mulitple intelligences theory first introduced in his 1983 book Frames of Mind. Gardner introduces a provisional acceptance of a ninth intelligence (Existential Intelligence--pondering deep, life questions) to add to the eight intelligences already established. Gardner updates his theory's relevance to education and to other arenas in society.

It was in 1983 that Howard Gardner first decided to challenge the established view of a monolithic intelligence with the book Frames of Mind. In that book, Gardner posited that there are (at least) seven relatively seperate and autonomous intelligences. And 25 years later, this theory is still setting the education world ablaze.

The discipline of psychology, however, has been a bit less enthusiastic. They, much more than educators, demand hard evidence in order for a theory claiming to be scientific is accepted as such. Is Garnder's theory testable? If so, has it undergone such testing? Can these intelligences (including 'musical' and 'naturalistic') be measured by objective standards? If not, is it an adequate substitute to the reigning model of 'general intelligence' which, with all its flaws, IS measurable in such a way?

In this book, Gardner sets out to expand upon his 25 year old theory and, in so doing, answer some of the preceeding questions. Some will be disappointed and some will be encouraged by his answers.

The first section of the book devotes itself largely to questions of MI Theory's methodological standing.

Several chapters - particularly towards the beginning of the book - seek to answer objections to MI theory. As to the question of whether the theory can be called scientific, Gardner reluctantly answers a "no." He writes MI theory "intermediary status" between a philosophy and a predictive science. He suggests, though, that it can be put in a similar category with plate tectonics and evolution, in the sense that neither theory is a predictive sceince in a falsifiable sense (which is mistaken, as both are tested by retrodictions and, in evolution's case, also by predictions). Further, Gardner admits that designing assessments for these intelligences has proved to be more than challenging and that he has given up the search for ways to assess them.

There is, though, a chapter devoted to detailing a promising new study put together by Project Spectrum, to test elementary schoolers on these seperate intelligences. They were tested (a) to see if the intelligences are interrelated or autonomous by investigating whether high scores in any one area correlate with high scores in any other. The reports are that the intelligences are, by in large, seperate - as Gardner predicted they would be. They also tested to see whether the student's strengths on the tests were echoed by parent and teacher reports gotten independently. (There was correlation, but not so much as to be conclusive).

The section that will be most useful to my fellow educators, however, will be the second section. For roughly 80 pages, Gardner expounds on his theory and its possible uses in the field of education.

Gardner is quite famous for his 'value free' stance here. He suggests that there are many, many uses for MI theory in education. He tries both in this book and elsewuere to refrain from too much prescription, acknowledging that educators probably know better than he how to apply the work of a cognitive psychologist to schools.

However, he is passionate about two things educationally in this book. First, he is very displeased at the 'high stakes testing' mentality that has been developed of late. Like the concept of 'general intelligence,' Gardner sees this as being a very 'one-size-fits-all' way of assessing, and probably mis-assessing, knowledge.

Gardner is also very passionate about making sure that we see the 'ends' of schooling as pluralistic. Consistent with the idea of Multiple Intelligences, we must strike a balance between making sure that everyone recieve a common education and making sure that everyone is able to pursue their own strengths, interests, and proclivities to the extent possible.

It is hard to disagree with much that Gardner says, particularly in this and the next section (where he takes a look at MI theory's applicability betyond education). Even as one who is a bit skeptical of whether MI theory can ever be a scientific one (and whether there might be bettter models of Intelligence, like that of Robert Sternberg), it is difficult not to come away with much admiration for Gardner. He obviously cares about education and comes to his conclusions out of balanced and rigorous thought.

This should be read by educators and those interested in the psychology of intelligence alike.

Janet Allen's Tools for Teaching Content Literacy is a fantastic tool for all teachers. It is a flipbook with various instructional strategies that can be used to help students access information effectively while increasing student engagement and understanding. Not only does it provide information about the strategy, but it also includes examples and organizes them into before, during, and after reading. Keep this handy when planning lessons! It is a tool teachers will come to rely on.

I have always used Amazon to buy my school books, but man...a few years out of the game, and everything is just a little more complicated. I bought 4 books and all of them were the wrong editions. Man was I bummed, but I got what I ordered. Next time I will pay more attention.

Good tips and games for readers workshops. I enjoyed it. My college professor introduced this to us.

This small book, in a flipchart format, provides 33 strategies for teachers to use to improve students' content area reading. Directions are succint and clear. The strategies listed are invaluable in helping the teacher create varied activities geared towards improving students' reading comprehension. I use this flipchart every week when preparing my lessons.

This is a flip book style book with literacy activities briefly explained and color coded/grouped into before/during/after activities. The back of this book has some blackline masters. This is a BARGAIN! Buy this if you want to mix up some reading activities in your content area classroom.

I can't wait for the new school year to begin! I think I will be able to really help those students on IEP's.

This book is very informative and makes the concepts applicable for teachers to use in the classroom every day. I have learned a lot and it is enhancing my teaching methods!

For years educators and psychologists presumed that one could "measure" intelligence by giving a test to students in an artificial setting, scoring their multiple choice responses against a norm, and then giving a numerical label to the child. The problem with this sort of assessment is that it has little to do with how intelligence is used in the real world, namely as a way of solving problems within a specific cultural setting. Enter Howard Gardner. In 1983 Gardner offered a new vision of intelligence which suggested that humans were hardwired with 7 separate intelligences, or modalities of problem solving. These were linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial reasoning, interpersonal, intrapersonal, musical and bodily-kinesthetic intelligence. He later concluded that naturalist intelligence, the ability to derive meaning from and relate concepts to the natural world, was an 8th form of intelligence. Each type of intelligence, Gardner argued, has value and can be used for problem solving. Many of us have gifts in one or more of these intelligences, but others are relatively weak or undeveloped.

Education professionals were among the first to see practical applications for Gardner's theory. In the first instance, it explained quite a bit. Little Johnny may not be able to read well, but he certainly has a knack for music. Incorporating musical elements into instruction can help little Johnny develop his own talents and also assist him in language arts. Similarly, the child figetting in the corner may well have real talent for bodily expression and could learn faster if these talents were incorporated into the classroom curriculum. Indeed, one of the author's key contentions is that a child's "misbehavior" in a traditional classroom setting may well offer clues as to what that child's intellectual strengths are.

The value of this book is that the author, Thomas Armstrong, gives many practical applications for ways lessons can incorporate all intelligences. Some of these are rather trite. (Naturalistic intelligence nearly always gets the short end of the stick. I can't count the number of times Armstrong recommends that students draw an animal to remember a concept.) But many of these are solid. Chants and song to help remember concepts in history, science, and math are excellent learning aids. Associating body movements with concepts and operations is also helpful. Another implication of MI theory is that assessments need not always be of the paper and pencil variety. But Armstrong also offers a more radical vision in this 2000 book: perhaps the very content of our curriculum should be structured around developing the intelligences our kids have rather than molding them into some preconceived vision of what an "educated" child should be. What a radical vision! Treating children as individuals rather than little blank slates to be written upon by teachers and administrators is one of those wonderful libertarian visions that could benefit society as a whole by developing each unique individual part.

Alas, it is also not going to happen. Innovative as the ideas in this book are, they fly in the face of the current political climate educators work in. In 2001 Republicans and Democrats united to pass "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) legislation, a cornerstone of the Bush administration's new education policy. Like almost all other "bipartisan" legislation, this bill could best be described as an unqualified disaster. Flying in the face of nearly 20 years of research inspired by Gardner, NCLB narrowly defined education as proficiency in math and language arts. This pleased the back to the basics conservatives while the heavy federal controls and uniform bureaucratic implementation of the bill insured the strong support of such liberals as Sen. Kennedy. But in terms of helping students, it has damaged education beyond measure. As schools have struggled to meet the 100% proficiency requirements, courses that emphasize other intelligences have fallen by the wayside. PE, art, music, theatre, and industrial arts programs are now virtually non-existent in elementary and middle schools, and declining rapidly in high schools. Indeed, one middle school in my district now offers only six academic periods: three in language arts and three in math. They even dropped science in a desparate attempt to mold their kids into test taking maestros in these two federally approved subjects so they can meet the increasingly rigid NCLB standards. Talk about a failure of education.

It is no surprise then that this book, immensely popular when it first came out, has not seen a new edition since 2000. Just as multiple intelligences were starting to make a significant difference in educational communities across the country, the whole project was derailed. I strongly recommend it nonetheless. As public schools abandon their responsibilities to students in order to meet federal mandates, parents and private schools will need to pick up the slack. This book should give informed citizens an appreciation of what education can be. It offers an alternative vision for the future, one in which each child has an opportunity to explore and develop her talents to the fullest. Only then will no child be truly left behind.

Did you know that a child who misbehaves in class is unconsciously telling you how he/she needs to approach learning? As a special education teacher and devotee of multiple intelligence theory, this book satisfied my thirst for knowledge on how to recognize and honor children for who they are, not simply who and what we want them to be. Armstrong covers MI theory not only in relation to learning academic subjects, but behavior, classroom management, and life in general. You will never look at education the same way!

I needed to buy this book for my graduate level class. I thought that everything that I read was information that I already knew. I guess that this book would benefit a beginner in MI but it was very dry and boring.

Very helpful as a prep tool for anatomy & physiology exams. Corresponds very well with the Marieb textbook.

When the professor tells you to buy a book, you do it. What else can I say? It met my needs. I just wish that these books were less expensive.

This book as silly as you may think it sounds by the title is quite helpful in your anatomy studies. I was quite surprised at its usefulness in reinforcing the material in the regular textbook. I do recommend this highly.

This is an excellent review for anatomy class. However, it is not really a coloring book, it is a study guide/workbook. There is another study guide that has the alot of the same material... Human Anatomy & Physiology (Study Guide)7th edition Marieb. So if you buy one, you don't need the other. My teacher had both listed as recommened and since I ordered them both through Amazon merchants over a month ago, I can not return one. There are some slight differences, so I will just use both for extra extra review.

It's a really useful book, which is neither too complicated or too easy. I'm studying at university to become a paramedic, and it has been a very helpful tool in the specific anatomy and physiology topics they expect us to understand. The pages held colour pencil just fine - I remember reading a review before buying this which said the pages were too "waxy" and didn't hold pencil well. This isn't true. The pages are fine for applying pencil.

The only thing I must say in a sort of negative light is that you must have another anatomy and physiology book as well as this one - this is more of a quiz book on what you know as opposed to something to teach it to you.

It could be used on its own, as the answers are avaliable at the back of the book, but having a seperate textbook would probably be preferable. It is easier to learn things in context rather than simple question and answer form, in my opinion.

All in all, I would highly reccommend this book to anyone who is a more visual learner and studies anatomy and physiology.

Forty-six high school juniors who aspire to become teachers read Letters To A Young Teacher during the 2008 Urban Teacher Academy (UTA) at The College of New Jersey. Our students found many of Jonathan Kozol's insights and experiences very helpful to their understanding of how teachers impact the lives of children. They were inpsired by several heartfelt sentiments and suggestions that Mr. Kozol gave to Francesca, a new teacher confronted by the challenges of the urban classroom. Some of our students reacted that Mr. Kozol rambled in some of his descriptions while others found some of the terminologies in this book complex. On the whole, however, our UTA students enjoyed and highly recommended this book. They plan to read other books by Mr. Kozol who is clearly one of our nation's most accomplished educational authors.

Laurence R. Fieber
Program Coordinator
The Urban Teacher Academy
The College of New Jersey

As one who works with teachers and visits inner city school classrooms on a regular basis, I can say that Jonathan Kozol accurately describes the problems in our schools today. He convincingly demonstrates that "No Child Left Behind" not only fails to promote real, sustainable school reform, but actually supports the forces driving schools (and society) back to segregation and inequality not so different from the time before Brown vs. the Board of Education. At the same time, his letters celebrate the many ways that innovative teachers instill hope and a love of learning in their young charges, despite these conditions. Every teacher would find some value in this book, because practices like the ones Kozol describes are not taught in many schools of education today.

At this writing, this book is averaging four stars in terms of reviews, and I think that's about right. As a high school English teacher, I found some sections--especially those regarding standardized testing and how public education does not address the needs of poor children--quite compelling and validating. However, as another reviewer mentioned, I had difficulty with Kozol's tone at times, which seems just a bit condescending and does not match the acceptance and warmth he alleges to share with children. Well, I suppose there are those of us who get on much better with young people than we do adults. I do appreciate Kozol's wisdom and especially his willingness to toss aside what administrators dictate and teach in a manner that is in the best interest of the children. That is perhaps the most abiding lesson in this book.

Jonathan Kozol's Letters to a Young Teacher provides a rare glimpse into the trials and victories faced by a first year teacher in an urban elementary school. Kozol and Francesca have lively dialogue through a series of letters written throughout Francesca's first year as a teacher. Kozol draws on decades of experience to provide hope when Francesca is struggling and cheers her on during times of success. This book is a must read for young teachers venturing into the field of urban education in the United States..

Kozol has tapped into the narcissism of modern teachers and their weird regard for themselves. Down at the "Teach for America" farm, the young Ivy Leaguers get the straight talk missing from the likes of Kozol. Teaching is a degraded profession, to be compared to bus driving and custodial work both in pay and in status. In fact, smart administrators now call teachers "education workers," just to take them down a notch or two. They are sick of the uppity types who think their jobs are important. Nobody respects them. Counselors tell it like it is: Get in, treat it like the Peace Corps, don't stay long enough for it to destroy your reputation. Put it on your resume and apply for law school. Spend the rest of your life telling people you miss the kids. Kozol has got all sorts of words of wisdom for the sad sacks who follow him into the playgrounds of the inner cities, but the bottom line is that his words support the status quo, where kids do as they like, while parents and administrators work together to make sure the teachers and not the kids get blamed for every failure. The only schools in America that have ever worked are those that kick out the brats who won't follow directions. Those are the schools to which the Roosevelts, the Bushes and the Clintons send their kids.

The Life and Teachings of the Masters of the Far East was just given to me by a Buddhist friend. I had never heard of Beard T. Spalding. What struck me the most is the similarity of these teachings - even in the phrases and words used - to Christian Science. It almost strikes me as plagiarism. Or is that a huge coincident?

Nonetheless, these books are fascinating and great food for thought and inspiration. Christian Science on steroids. It also reminded me of The Autobiography of a Yogi - a book I plan to re-read, after I re-read Science and Health by Mary Baker Eddy.

These books lay the foundation for taking up the Great Work yourself. The accounts of the journeys within contain the guidelines to a priceless knowledge of self. The wisdom and awakening that can be felt is truly unlimited. May be the only books you will ever need...

These volumes offer great guidance and teachings for these difficult
times. We all have divinity within us and do not need permission of a church or organized religion to create our best life. These books are highly recommended to anyone starting their quest or already on the path to higher consciousness.

This set of books reveals Truth.. The world would be so much better off if they were Masters as described. The fine teachings are hard to find. These books describe the true abilities of all Men and Women. Enjoy the journey through them

Okay folks, it's time to wake up. First, it's been written on good authority that Spalding wrote the first three volumes of this "fantasy" before he ever left the United States, later admitting having visited these "masters" while in his astro-body. And then there is the overall racist tone to his writing. I am amazed no one has yet to mention this in a review (at least none that I've read). Spirituality based on racism is not true spirituality. If I could give it less than a single star, I would. Wake up America!

It's here! This is a teaching resource you won't want to be without. New to the traits? This book provides you with a definition of each trait that's user-friendly for teachers and young children. What follows is an annotation of a number of picture books that can be used for the trait. As if that isn't enough, each of the six main traits has three focus lessons and follow-up activities to get you going. For those of us that love teaching with the traits and use them faithfully, this book is an energizer. You'll find new picture books to add to your collection, plus old favorites with new ideas on how to use them.
As a resource person in my school, I'm often asked to do a lesson at the last minute. No problem! I pull out this magic book, look through the lesson, grab a picture book, and I'm good to go. Classroom teachers love the user-friendliness just as much as I do.
Ruth and Ray are to be applauded. In this age of test scores, change, and everything else that's going on, Using Picture Books to Teach Writing With the Traits is a breath of fresh air. It simplifies our teaching lives while making it exciting and fun for teachers and children alike.
Thank you, Ruth and Ray, for yet another excellent teaching resource!

Ideas for using picture books is so helpful for teachers. Picture books are usually rich with vocabulary and content. Often picture books have an emotional hook. This book is such a help in using that rich resource. Why reinvent the wheel? Just buy this book and plug the ideas into your writing curriculum. I teach third and fourth graders and I can adapt these ideas. Picture books are for all ages.

The writing duo of Ruth Culham and Ray Coutu have a hit on their hands and teachers are the ones who will benefit from their newest publication.
Using Picture Books to Teach Writing with the Traits is a resource that every classroom should have available. Each trait has a list of "old-time" favorites along with new titles that will evoke interest in writing for all students. The lessons are well thought out and easy to follow. Because of the format, lessons could be done with any title that is suggested. It also helps the teacher remember those favorites that we have left on the shelf and need to revisit for the love of reading and writing. This is a must buy for every teacher who wants their students to see how reading & writing can be fun.

Just when you think Ruth Culham cannot write a more practical, useful book for helping primary teachers with writing, she does it again! This time, with Raymond Coutu, Ruth shows the practicality of the 6-Traits for young writers by using K-2 picture books. As a curriculum director, I see this book as a starter guide for teaching the traits through the literature described in the book. Following a brief description of the traits, there is a bibliography of great children's literature from which to teach the traits. The focus lessons which follow give the teacher step-by-step ideas for sharing the traits with young writers. Culham and Coutu have concocted a pleasing combination ---a virtual "trait-a-palooza" by blending literature with 6-Trait models of good writing!