Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com
Summary:
From seating plans to Shakespeare, Teaching Outside the Box offers practical strategies that will help both new teachers and seasoned veterans create dynamic classroom environments where students enjoy learning and teachers enjoy teaching. This indispensable book is filled with no-nonsense advice, checklists, and handouts as well as
A step-by-step plan to make the first week of school a success
Approaches for creating a positive discipline plan
Methods for motivating students, especially reluctant readers
Strategies for successful classroom management
Suggestions for creating and grading student portfolios
Customer Reviews:
Average Customer Rating:
Some Unique Ideas for Effective Teaching
Customer Rating:
As an experienced elementary teacher, I especially appreciated the relatively novel features of this book. For instance, while discussing the layout of the classroom for effective learning, Johnson mentions the distracting effects of classroom odors, and recommends that the teacher invest in an air purifier. She notes that music being played can calm the children. And, when discussing children who have reading difficulties, she mentions scotopic sensitivity. This is the problem caused by the high contrast between black print on white paper, which is often aggravated by fluorescent lighting. One solution to this problem is the provision of transparent, colored overlays to cover the printed page.
Johnson opposes ability grouping. She also strongly opposes forcing children to read out loud who don't feel comfortable doing so. This only humiliates them.
She eschews the authoritarian approach of teacher-student relations in favor of one based on mutual respect. As an example, she mentions a cowboy (Craig Cameron) who trains horses to accept their saddles (pp. 112-114) instead of chasing them, confronting them, and forcing the saddles on them. She believes that all teachers should study Cameron's methods and apply them to children.
Despite respecting their students, teachers often still have difficulties getting respect from their students. Johnson (p. 25, 236) believes that this stems from the teacher, perhaps unconsciously, projecting an "I am here to fix you and save you" attitude. Children then get a sense of being inferior, stupid, or wrong, and react accordingly.
As for grading, Johnson comments: "Instead of dumbing down the curriculum when you work with unmotivated or underachieving students, try smartening them up instead." (p. 167). Also: "Ironically, the students who claim to care the least about school are the same ones who complain the most about the bad grades they earn." (p. 160). She is a firm believer in frequent progress reports. In some classes, students can earn at least a "C", regardless of how they do on tests, if there are no unexcused absences and all the assignments are adequately completed.
Her book ends with a list of useful websites (URLs) for teachers.
Not just elementary school
Customer Rating:
Although this book looks like it would be for elementary school only, it really branches out. Some of the short lessons transcend all grades and are even valuable for adults. A must-buy for anyone looking for a fresh approach to goal setting with students of any age.
Title should be "Teaching Inside the Box"
Customer Rating:
Like the author I entered teaching later in life. I brought some of my insights in managing people and motivating people with me. It helped to an extent because in teacher training courses you get none of it.
The great thing about this book is the author actually gives examples and suggestions of what to do in real every day teaching situations. I teach outside the US and her ideas work fine. Kids are kids - no matter where you are.
Sharing her triumphs and failures she actually seems to have looked deeper into the classroom setting and adopted her teaching to fit. That is why I recommend a change of the title. The ideas she suggests are not new ideas - just good people skills.
I read Rafe Esquiths books and his come across a bit as "Look how good I am/was". This book is more of someone sharing and giving practical advice for you to use.
Any univeristy student about to enter student teaching should read this book.
A MUST Own
Customer Rating:
Thinking Outside the Box is hands down THE best teaching book I own (and I own a lot of theaching books). Johnson's straight-forward, friendly, yet pragmatic style make this an enjoyable and useful book. I plan on using all of the ideas that she has put forth. I will reread it as soon as I am finished! It's like having the best mentor spill all of her secrets. She also has helped me affirm my own teaching style. I am a young teacher and sometimes get the message that I'm too soft. Johnson's friendly yet in-charge teaching style is a refreshing change from the "Don't smile 'till Christmas" advice that I have received from other seasoned teachers. I normally don't write reviews but I had to recommend this book because it is so wonderful. A+
NEW TEACHER TOOL
Customer Rating:
I had high hopes when I purchased this book but was sadly disappointed. It really is a good book for either new teachers or those who work in urban settings. I am not new to teaching nor do I teach in an urban area so I was not able to put my reading to good use. I think there is an abundance of great advice for those new to profession so I would recommend this highly to them. If you have taught for several years you probably already implement the recommendations in the book. While some of the book could be applied to any grade level, most of it is geared toward middle or high school. This also was contrary to my personal needs but may be quite useful to others. So, new teachers, urban teachers, and teachers of grades 6-12 will probably find this book rather useful. Others might want to keep looking for something else that targets their needs more directly.
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