Compare & Contrast: Teaching Comparative Thinking to Strengthen Student Learning, one of a series of books intended for study by professional learning “clubs,” explores a basic strategy of good teaching effectively, says reviewer & NBCT Joni Allison.
Reviewer Diane Horban says Judy Willis succeeds in intertwining brain research with practical lesson ideas to ignite the thinking power of 10 to 14-year olds in her book, Inspiring Middle School Minds: Gifted, Creative & Challenging.
Educators looking for ways to become more connected to other educators using digital tools will find plenty of meat in The Connected Educator: Learning and Leading in a Digital Age, says reviewer Fran Lo.
The documentary School Play by Eddie Rosenstein and Rick Velleu celebrates the importance of creative arts opportunities for all students, says principal Lyn Hilt, who also reviews a companion PD guide.
Debbie Silver’s book, Fall Down 7 Times, Get Up 8: Teaching Kids to Succeed, is “an ideal blend” of theory, common sense, research & humor about effective ways to help students succeed, says reviewer Susie Highley.
Book Review Festival / Book Reviews / MiddleWeb
by John Norton · Published 10/04/2012 · Last modified 07/19/2023
Our Fall Book Review Festival features 15 brand-new reviews of professional books – each one written by and for middle grades educators – on teaching strategies, visual & media literacy, test preparation, the Common Core, academic icebreakers, RTI & special education, social studies, mathematics, teacher research, ESL students, and student motivation.
Students don’t like school because we don’t create the right cognitive conditions for learning. Bill Ivey reviews Dan Willingham’s book, Why Don’t Students Like School? A Cognitive Scientist Answers Questions About How the Mind Works and What It Means for the Classroom.
Teacher librarian Lorri Kingan recommends Bryan Harris’s book, Battling Boredom – 99 Strategies to Spark Student Engagement, and its clever, simple-to-implement strategies to all teachers looking for ways to promote active student learning.
Reviewer and math teacher Michelle Schwartze says the eight essential elements for school-wide math success identified by Chris Confer and Marco Ramirez in Small Steps, Big Changes: Eight Essential Practices for Transforming Schools Through Mathematics ring true.
In Amy Benjamin’s Math in Plain English: Literacy Strategies for the Mathematics Classroom, says reviewer Shelly Sims, there’s finally a book combining literacy strategies with what we know about math thinking and problem-solving.
