Product Description
A Year In The Life Of An ESL Student is a must for ESL students who are serious about improving their comprehension and usage of idiomatic English.
Customer Reviews:
An ESL text you really "can't live without".......2006-12-02
Research in second language vocabulary acquisition demonstrates that learning idioms is one of the most important aspects of acquiring a second language. ESL students who do not understand idioms will not be able to understand a large portion of the English language. Consider that an ESL student can understand the grammar of the phrase "kick the bucket" without having any clue as to its actual meaning. Furthermore, ESL students who do not understand idioms will have a much harder time fitting into the culture of native English speakers. This struggle can be severely detrimental to a learner's intrinsic motivation, which is one of the most important factors influencing language learning success. A Year in the Life of an ESL Student: Idioms and Vocabulary You Can't Live Without is an outstanding resource that addresses this important issue of idioms by teaching ESL students an expansive number of them in an engaging and enjoyable manner.
As to the expansiveness of the text, it provides idioms that address a wide variety of situations from attending a TOEFL class to suntanning on the beach. The following examples give a glimpse of the range of idiomatic expressions that students will learn: "better late than never," "cover for someone (to)," "hangover," and "work one's butt off (to)." The presentation of each idiom is clear with each of them first appearing in bold letters in a stimulating dialogue. This feature of the book is beneficial since research has shown that lexical items are much better remembered when learned in authentic contexts. As the author states, "Context is the key to making the daunting task of understanding and using idiomatic English not only possible, but enjoyable too." The dialogues are followed by pages where each idiom is placed in glossary format. After that, there are a significant number of exercises for students to learn the idioms interactively.
Beyond meeting a need in the ESL community, the other aspect of this text that makes it so successful is its engaging style. Many language learning materials present grammatical and cultural information with pictures and other helpful graphics; however, when it comes to vocabulary and idioms these items are often still presented in lists. On the other hand, A Year in the Life places idioms in interesting dialogues that often contain humor and are related to the actual experiences that an ESL student may have. In addition to the dialogues, learners also have the opportunity to learn idioms by playing games. Two common exercises found throughout the book are crosswords and word searches. The realistic dialogues and the exercises make learning the idioms interesting and fun.
Considering the need for a text of this kind in the ESL community and its engaging style, I would recommend it without reservation to both ESL teachers and students. A Year in the Life will lead learners into a much more native-like competence.
Good application of the lexical method........2006-11-20
Michael Lewis caused quite a stir in the world of ESL when he published his "The Lexical Approach" in 1993. Lewis's point was basically thus: ESL students are force feed too much English grammar. The idea that grammar can be mastered and then students fill in the blanks with vocabulary is naïve, according to Lewis, and makes it difficult for students to understand natural English phrases such as "Let's have a coffee," because students have only studied "Shall we drink coffee?" Having taught English to Japanese students, who are taught grammar and only grammar in high school, I found this to be a huge obstacle. Lewis's book caused a huge sensation on the ESL teaching community, and many teachers thought they didn't have to teach grammar anymore, it was fine just to teach idiom after idiom. Lewis followed up a few years later with a book on how to apply the lexical approach, saying that it is idioms, expressions and grammar are not so far removed from grammar. In other words, idioms and expressions should be taught as a part of grammar.
Since Lewis shook up the ESL world, there have been attempts to bring out commercial textbooks that implement the Lexical Approach. However, most of them are not so different than previous textbooks, with traditional grammar the focus of the lesson, and idioms kind of tacked on as an afterthought. "A Year in the Life of an ESL Student" does a good job of introducing idioms as an integral part of communication, not just as an added bonus. Colorful idioms such as "Drink like a fish" or "toss one's cookies", as well as expressions that are not idioms, but present difficulties to ESL students, such as "mope around" are presented in natural conversations, and than reinforced through various exercises, such as crossword puzzles, word find exercises, and so on. Many ESL students have the goal of being able to watch Hollywood movies with no subtitles. Just studying grammar and straight vocabulary will never allow this to happen. However, this book will equip students with hundreds of natural and useful expressions that will help them understand and by able to speak more natural English.
The book focuses on a Swiss student, Andre, as he studies for a year at a private language school in North America. All of the conversations in the book involve Andre and his friends at the language school. Students will like this because it makes the stories easy to follow and understand. Teachers will like this book because there are lots of good exercises in each of the 16 chapters, making it easy to teach good lessons with no or very little preparation. Then there is the theme of this book, studying language abroad for a year. This should be the goal of many of your students, and if it is not, studying with this text will hopefully get them interested in the possibility. For classes with more advanced students, this can be a good springboard for a discussion on the topic.
An excellent resource for English as a Second Language classrooms or self-study for students learning English.......2006-02-09
A Year In The Life Of An ESL Student: Idioms And Vocabulary You Can't Live Without is an excellent resource for English as a Second Language classrooms or self-study for students learning English. Following Andre, a student from Switzerland spending a year completing his English studies at a private language school, the lessons cover a wide variety of language situations directly relevant to adult ESL students, from disembarking at the airport to getting around the city to hanging out with classmates. A Year In The Life Of An ESL Student is particularly valuable for its definitions of common idioms - English phrases with a specific meaning that is not immediately identifiable to those unfamiliar with the language's nuances, such as "blow someone away" (astonish someone), "into something" (enjoy something), "give someone a ring" (phone someone), and much more. Simple exercises for idiom recognition and daily use and a host of online resources round out this consumable textbook.
Francis Nails It!.......2005-09-01
Never before in my 20 years of E.S.L. teaching have I seen a better idioms textbook. A Year in the Life is simple to use, is extremely comprehensive, and helps meet a need for relevant, structured, higher level material dealing with spoken English. There are a variety of exercises and activities that can be utilized/skipped according to needs and tastes, and the extensive definitions and examples make it possible for students to learn correct usage at home. All in all, a great find for students and teachers alike. Bravo Mr. Francis!
An Invaluable Work Book.......2005-05-23
One of the most challenging difficulties teachers of a second language face is creating an atmosphere where the learning process becomes meaningful and at the same time practical, painless and enjoyable.
From my own personal experience learning French, it was only when my ear became tuned in to the nuances and subtleties of the language, and I ceased translating from English to French, that I achieved a certain amount of fluency.
One of the keys that aided my personal plight was being immersed into situations, where I had no alternative than to make myself understood to individuals, who could not converse in English, such as in a shopping mall, a restaurant, or hotel.
When I picked up a copy of Edward J. Francis' A Year In The Life Of An ESL Student: Idioms And Vocabulary You Can't Live Without, I asked myself, would life not have been far simpler if I had at my disposal this excellent workbook?
Francis is an ESL professional with over 15 years of teaching experience. He has put together an innovative and creative workbook that serves as a compliment to the classroom teaching of English as a second language.
Specifically, through the various exercises included in the book, students are exposed to a variety of practical circumstances, wherein certain words and idioms are regularly employed.
Rather than just providing vocabulary for the sake of language, students are stimulated by true- life situations rather than abstract concepts.
Divided into sixteen chapters, the workbook format follows the life of André, a student from Switzerland, who spends a year in North America in a private language school learning English. André experiences include his arrival in the country, wandering around the city, sitting in the student lounge, attending a TOEFL class, eating dinner with a roommate, shopping in a mall, picking up a friend at the airport, a day at the beach, waiting for a fireworks show, working out at a fitness club, drinking in a bar, catching a movie, driving to a cabin for the weekend, finishing classes, snowboarding and returning home.
Each chapter is set in motion with a conversation between André and another party, wherein certain key words and idioms are identified and printed in bold letters, and subsequently defined. As an example, where André works out at a fitness club, some of the key words and phrases are tuckered out, cleaned up my act, kicked the habit, pooped, carried away, do wonders for and many more.
This is followed by a series of exercises where the words are reinforced by having the student match the words/idioms, use them within sentences, complete a cross word puzzle, rewrite sentences using the word/idiom from the dialogue, fill in the blanks, comprehension questions, discussion questions, and identifying where certain words were more apt to be heard.
Also included at the back of the workbook are a list of related websites to the topics covered, answers to the exercises, and a glossary of terms.
No doubt, the traditional methods of teaching a second language are passé. Gone are the days when students only regurgitated vocabulary and rattled off verbs without integrating what they have learned into everyday situations. For the most part, with excellent workbooks as, A Year In The Life Of An ESL Student: Idioms And Vocabulary You Can't Live Without, there is recognition that what is the key to learning a second language is creativity, innovation and experimentation in the classroom.
This workbook should be a must for anyone who wishes to learn English, and will definitely prove to be an invaluable learning aid.
Norm Goldman, Editor of Bookpleasures.com
Book Description
Where does money come from? Where does it go? Who makes it? The money magicians' secrets are unveiled. We get a close look at their mirrors and smoke machines, their pulleys, cogs, and wheels that create the grand illusion called money. A dry and boring subject? Just wait! You'll be hooked in five minutes. Reads like a detective story — which it really is. But it's all true. This book is about the most blatant scam of all history. It's all here: the cause of wars, boom-bust cycles, inflation, depression, prosperity. Creature from Jekyll Island will change the way you view the world, politics, and money. Your world view will definitely change. You'll never trust a politician again — or a banker.
Customer Reviews:
The Hobo Philosopher.......2007-10-02
This book is not main stream. Its critics would probably call it the radical theories of a "gold bug". A more "establishment" answer to the criticisms brought up in this book can be found in Galbraith's - Money, From Whence It Came and Where It Went.
This book is structured very well. It is easy to read and very persuasive but if you are like me, after you finish this book you will have more questions than you have answers.
The book makes some good points on the other hand it promotes many fantasies.
Mr. Griffin could be right on many things but his answers for the most part would not make things better - but worse in my opinion.
The solution to the MONEY problem are more complicated than the answers that are supplied here. This book is a good book to buy and to read but one must read it very critically - very critically.
Fearfully Factual - Wholly Horrific.......2007-04-22
If you, like me, believe that the truth doesn't always makes sense, but the WHOLE TRUTH usually does, then you will appreciate and value this well researched, carefully written work by G.E. Griffin. Even so, this is just the tip of a much bigger iceberg, but for anyone who wants to know why the working class has to work so hard, just to go backwards, you will find out a very definitive answer in this book. This book is a must have for any TRUTH SEEKER fighting for facts in an age of profiteering deceipt. If you are new to economics, please read "Whatever Happened To Penny Candy" by Richard J. Maybury and Jane A. Williams first and you will know more than than most politicians. Griffins other book, "A World Without Cancer" is equally as researched, informative, and important.
Even a beginner can understand.......2007-04-04
When I first read this book - I had only just begun looking at the banking system and how it worked. My knowledge extended a bit past CNBC - but not much. I found it understandable and enjoyable. Since my original read (about 3 years ago) I have read it again and bought a second copy to loan out - I don't want to lose my original. I'm not sure Joe Average could simply pick it up and be enthralled, but if you have an interest in the banking system - this is a great book - even if you have little background in the subject.
The Matrix .......2007-03-17
AFTER READING THIS BOOK YOU WILL HEAR DISCUSSIONS ON TALK SHOWS, ARTICLES IN THE PAPERS AND YOU'LL LISTEN TO THE RHETORIC BANTERED BACK AND FORTH AMONG PEOPLES TRYING TO GRASP "WHY THINGS ARE HAPPENING THE WAY THEY ARE". WHY DO BANKS GET INVOLVED IN APPROVING HOME LOANS ON OVER VALUED PROPERTY...KNOWING FORECLOSURES WILL SOON SKYROCKET? WHY DOES THE US SELL WEAPON TECHONOLOGY TO COUNTRIES THAT, WE CITIZENS ARE TOLD, ARE PROBLEM COUNTRIES? WHY HAS THE CIA TRAINED FOREIGN BORN INDIVIDUALS, SUCH AS, BIN LADEN AND OTHERS KNOWING FULL WELL WHAT THEY ARE ALL ABOUT? THE MEDIA REPORTS EVENTS AND WE ASSUME THAT IT IS TRUE...THAT IT REPRESENTS REALITY. BUT, THIS BOOK WILL TELL YOU WHAT IS REALLY GOING ON. THEN YOU WILL REALIZE HOW FOOLISH WE ARE TO LIVE IN THIS "WORLD OF MAKE BELIEVE" THAT THE MEDIA HAS CREATED FOR US.
Should be required reading.......2007-03-06
You can read the other reviews for synopsis and overviews. This is a must read and should be required reading for all Americans. It is a well researched and footnoted exposition on the Federal Reserve and far more. Griffin goes into fascinating asides regarding the origins of money and banking and the ways that bankers have instigated wars while supporting both sides. This book should be of great interest to those who enjoy either history, finance, foreign affairs, mystery or politics and answers many questions as to why the "world" is as it is today. The first 50 pages are a little slow and then it reads like a detective novel. It could even be argued that it's one's duty to read this book.
Book Description
This easy-to-use resource helps readers to master the most important principles and facts in pathology. More than 1,000 questions cover everything from the fundamentals of gross and microscopic pathology to the latest findings in molecular biology and genetics. Based on two of the best-selling, most authoritative pathology textbooksRobbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease, 7th Edition and Basic Pathology, 7th EditionRobbins and Cotran Review of Pathology, 2nd Edition is an ideal aid for coursework, self-assessment, and examinations in pathology.
Customer Reviews:
Helpful.......2007-09-16
Helpful book for the study of pathology. Clinical vignettes and pictures make it a great addition to the pocket Robbins.
Great book for reviewing path.......2007-08-22
This book should be required in schools for pathology. The questions are excellent, explanation clear and well written, and the book was immensely helpful for all the blocks (we had system-based curriculum). Yes the questions are long but that makes it good practice for step1. This is also one of the few books that helped me in both step1 and school exam studying. Highly recommended.
for course work.......2007-05-24
This are very good questions especially for course work. BUt kaplan q bank is a better alternative for the step 1. You can use this for your course work and use qbank for the step 1. Better yet if u have the time use both for step 1. If you are strapped for time stick with kapln q bank. I had time and i used both and i made 229/95 in step 1.
Review of Pathology.......2007-05-12
This book provides a GREAT way to review what you read in the text. Sometimes it's hard to pinpoint what you really have to know from Robbins' text, but the questions in this book really helps you focus your reading, esp. since the questions in the book are similar to the questions on USMLE 1. Have fun!
Great questions book........2007-03-17
The book is filled with questions pertaining to each chapter in the big robbin's book. A great way to go thru pathology during year 1-2 is by reading the chapter in Robbins and then doing the set of questions in this book for that chapter. They also give a fairly good explanation with the answer for each question. I would definitely say a must have for getting ready for boards. Very glad I picked up this book.
Product Description
The Second Edition of the best-selling "Maximum SAT", the UNOFFICIAL companion to "The Official SAT Study Guide", is here! Now with a unique new approach to mastering Reading Comprehension! Improved and expanded from the first edition, "Maximum SAT" by Achieve Tutorials is unique: it is designed to be the UNOFFICIAL companion to "The Official SAT Study Guide". It is written and edited by an elite group of SAT tutors, each with over 15 years of experience raising SAT scores. Each lesson covers the materials, tricks and traps you need to maximize your SAT scores, and then points you to REAL SAT questions in "The Official SAT Study Guide" so you can master the material you just learned. Maximum SAT covers everything you need to know about Math, Critical Reading and Writing. It also includes plenty of sample problems and timed drills to help you further master the skills you've learned. Buy "Maximum SAT" and "The Official SAT Study Guide", and use them side by side. http://www.AchieveTutorials.com
Customer Reviews:
Suspect publicity.......2007-07-08
Three reviews with five stars between May 21 and May 26, 2007, all from LA, saying much the same thing? Beware.
Great Resource for the SAT.......2007-03-26
There are plenty of SAT prep books on the market, but this one stands out. Any experienced SAT tutor (I've been tutoring for 15 years) will tell you that the best way to practice is to do as many real SAT questions as possible. "Maximum SAT" recognizes this; after teaching a concept, it points students to real practice questions from the College Board's Official Guide (the best source of real SAT questions available). This book is thorough and easy to understand; using this book in conjunction with the Official Guide will help any serious student raise his or her score.
Even better than the first edition..........2007-03-24
If succeeding on the SAT is largely a game -- and most educators, including this one, feel this is the case -- then MAXIMUM SAT is one of the few books out there that truly helps students take their game to the "next level".
MAXIMUM SAT'S great accomplishment is that the manual's design provides both the bottom-line fundamentals necessary to feel confident on test day, as well as the detail and nuance required to achieve a superior test score.
The revised edition is marvelously comprehensive -- getting the numbers you want is all about just doing the work!
What's also great is that the text itself is challenging and accessible -- kids won't get bored, and parents will feel confident that even the most difficult SAT concepts to teach, such as Critical Reading and Writing, are thoroughly deconstructed and reviewed.
The big test prep companies have dominated this territory for years, but they should take stock -- MAXIMUM SAT has established itself as a formidable opponent, and an excellent way to prepare for the exam.
So Far So Good - Great SAT Aid.......2007-03-22
At first I was hesitant to buy this book because there weren't any reviews. But then I figured out that this is the second edition, which had just been released (which explained why there were no reviews). The first edition had mostly excellent reviews from credible sources (SAT tutors), and my daughter was not at all interested in the standard Kaplan and Princeton Review study guides ("boring"), so we gave this one a try.
I've been really pleased so far. My daughter actually seemed to enjoy using it. She's a procrastinator (like her mother), so the six-week study schedule recommended in this book kept her on track. She just took her first SAT March 10, so we don't know her score yet. But she felt confident and prepare taking it, so that's a good sign. She said she recognized several vocabulary words that were included in the book.
I also recommend buying the Official SAT Guide, which has actual SAT questions. This book (Maximum SAT) covers the concepts and then refers to the official guide for practice "homework". The idea is to practice the study guide's techniques using real tests, so the two books go hand in hand.
Customer Reviews:
Tufte Should Stick to What He Knows.......2007-08-22
I was first introduced to Tufte in Beautiful Evidence, which I stumbled upon in a B&N in Seattle on a business trip. I'm a software architect and developer; hence, I'm very familiar with the software world, particularly Microsoft technologies, which is where most of my development experience lies.
(I should say that I read this as part of the Beautiful Evidence book, which was good, but this part irritated me, so I'm glad it's separate here so I can review it separately.)
Certainly, Tufte has some good points about showing how PowerPoint can be limiting, and certainly PowerPoint has been abused. But that's no grounds to indict it as a useful tool, and in particular, 2007 gets a lot better in terms of empowering presenters to have more effective and visually interesting slides.
The point of PPT slides is simply to supplement a presentation by providing visual reinforcement of what is being said audibly. They shouldn't be used as a substitute for other means of communicating, which would include the possibility of a handout (interestingly enough, you can print out slides w/ space for notes to use as a handout, so it isn't an either-or option) or using some other software or even your hands to draw up and scan in visualizations that can't be done with PPT.
I think what bothered me more than anything was the ignorant indictment of the software industry as a whole. Tufte goes way out on a limb trying to extrapolate how we software creators must think based on the capabilities of PPT. There are plenty of other tools that provide other ways of visualizing information, and every year (or more often) we see advancements in tooling to help folks more effectively express data and ideas in digital format.
His rambling about the "hierarchical" structure of the corporate software world driving the development of software is simply ludicrous. More than any other industry, I'd say that software dev tends to be more open and more fluid in terms of both organization and methodology. We're a bunch of brainiacs, inventors, and artisans, and it comes naturally for us to try out new ideas and ways of doing even the most mundane of things.
So to sum up, as long as Tufte stays within his realm of expertise (which seems to be visualization of information/graphic design), he has a lot of quality ideas to offer. However, when he strays from that as he's done with his essay on PowerPoint, the value of his thoughts diminish exponentially. Stick with reading his other books that are in his area of expertise.
Tufte rails against PowerPoint (templates that is).......2007-06-26
This pdf is now part of the book Beautiful Evidence. Tufte goes after the bullet text methodology and templates that starve the audience for information. There is a lot that you may do with PowerPoint that can be effective forms of communication. Tufte shows what to avoid.
Funny and eye-opening, but very short.......2007-06-04
Very informative reading, and quite entertaining. For me, it's preaching to the converted, but it makes the point quite powerfully. The only downside is that it's a very thin pamphlet, not a real book. Get The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, 2nd edition for a larger and more satisfying dose.
Force feed this to your "management team".......2007-01-14
I have a friend whose ten-year-old daughter is required to give Powerpoint "reports" in class. Even before I read this pamphlet, the idea of the public schools positioning rhetoric as a Microsoft product struck me as revolting. After reading Tufte's brilliant and accurate dissection of how Powerpoint forces us into a kind of imitation of thinking, I am horrified.
I work on the fringe of the tech world, and I've had more than one boss demand that I reduce a coherent argument to bulletpoints "so it can be understood." Well, Powerpoint is to persuasion as comic books are to fiction -- the audience that demands it is simply entrenched in its own illiteracy. Tufte demonstrates persuasively that the Challenger disaster may have been caused -- yes, caused -- by the fact that the engineers discussed the project in the diction of "presentations." It's a large claim, and Tufte has the posthumous support of Richard Feynmann to back him up. Feynmann pointed to the facts that created the disaster; Tufte finds the core of bad thinking that let those facts control events.
If you use Powerpoint, you should read this pamphlet, also available as a chapter of Tufte's book, Beautiful Evidence. No tool should be allowed to control the nature of discourse the way Powerpoint does, and certainly no tool concieved, created, and used, with such willful lack of imagination and ignorance of the nature of communication.
Tufte has it right when it comes to the drawbacks of PowerPoint........2007-01-13
Edward Tufte gives a brief, excellent examination of how using Microsoft PowerPoint can easily lead to miscommunication and lazy thinking. The example of the infamous "Review of Test Data Indicates Conservatism for Tile Penetration" (Space Shuttle Columbia) slide alone makes this monograph worth purchasing.
Book Description
The city-run early childhood program of Reggio Emilia, Italy, has become recognized and acclaimed as one of the best systems of education in the world. Over the past forty years, educators there have evolved a distinctive innovative approach that supports children's well-being and fosters their intellectual development through a systematic focus on symbolic representation. Young children (from birth to age six) are encouraged to explore their environment and express themselves through many "languages," or modes of expression, including words, movement, drawing, painting, sculpture, shadow play, collage, and music. Leading children to surprising levels of symbolic skill and creativity, the system is not private and elite but rather involves full-day child care open to all, including children with disabilities. This new Second Edition reflects the growing interest and deepening reflection upon the Reggio approach, as well as increasing sophistication in adaptation to the American context. Included are many entirely new chapters and an updated list of resources, along with original chapters revised and extended. The book represents a dialogue between Italian educators who founded and developed the system and North Americans who have considered its implications for their own settings and issues. The book is a comprehensive introduction covering history and philosophy, the parent perspective, curriculum and methods of teaching, school and system organization, the use of space and physical environments, and adult professional roles including special education. The final section describes implications for American policy and professional development and adaptations in United States primary, preschool, and child care classrooms.
Customer Reviews:
It's philosophical and complex.......2007-05-14
Thought-provoking. It's not an "easy" read but well worth the effort if you appreciate children and their thinking. The writing is pretty complex and deep - which makes it a great book for ongoing reflection and discussion. This book offers understanding and insight into an alternative approach to educating young children. The high regard for children as thinkers, emphasis on professional collaboration, recognizion of different "languages" (modes?)for learning, attention to aesthetics and environmental factors, and genuine support for children and their parents to play an active role in education is defintiely refreshing.
love the education profession.......2006-01-07
I was not impressed with the 'Reggio Emilia' approach. Some of the 'hands on' parts don't make alot of sense. Some do, but the rest I was not truly taken by. In general, I feel this book could have done much better with the information which was true, but not used correctly. Just my opinion, I hope it does help with the educators out there, much like myself.
A necessary read for all educators and parents.......2003-04-19
For educators and parents truly interested in school reform, this book is a must read. Educators in the United States have been captivated by the "Reggio Emilia approach" to education since the late 1980s. The extensive documentation of Reggio children's work has toured the world as The Hundred Languages of Children exhibit. This book will allow anyone to see what is truly possible in early education if we are willing to let go of our long-held beliefs about how children learn. The Reggio Emilia approach is much more than "hands-on learning." It is a community effort that involves administrators, teachers, parents, children, and government. Although not a light read, the book is a fascinating dialog among the varied members of the Reggio Emilia community and American researchers and teachers.
Learning From the Interests of Children.......2001-04-20
The Hundred Languages of Children presents a fascinating and comprehensive overview of the remarkable schools of Reggio Emilia, Italy. It can also serves as an example of what learning can be like for children when it is focused on their interests and needs. One of the essays, an interview with founder Loris Malaguzzi, offers insight into the history, ideas and philosophy behind the approach. Discussing the environment of the RE schools, Malaguzzi states, "Our objective, which we always will pursue, is to create an amiable environment, where children, families and teachers feel at ease." This comment provides a stark contrast to the lip service many American schools pay to families and teachers. It signifies a deep abiding respect for the developmental nature of children and for childhood itself. Comparing the curriculum of the RE schools to American schools and early childhood programs also reveals fundamental differences. Two things are notable as the curriculum of the RE schools is described: the development of the curriculum project grows out of the teachers' observations of students, "The teachers took note, valuing the interest in dinosaurs as an opportunity to learn more about the children." Another important difference is the role reciprocity plays in curriculum building in RE. "... the teachers decided to begin a journey together with the children and study dinosaurs in depth." "...learn more about children" and "journey together" aren't phrases common to American education. Small phrases that reflect a world of difference. This excellent book offers inspiration to educators starved for a more creative and just approach to teaching and learning. To paraphrase an essay title from the book, what we can learn from Reggio Emilia is how to value the learning experiences of our children.
Languages Children Enjoy, but Readers May Not.......2001-04-18
This book was assigned to me to read by a masters program professor. Before reading the book, we were prompted by stories of the Reggio Emilia Approach. It sounds phenomenal! The professor liked it so much, his own children took part in the school here in the United States.
The approach itself is an amazing idea for educators. This early childhood program encourages hands-on learning. The teachings behind the children exploring through "languages" or modes of exploration. These languages include drawing, painting, sculpture, physical play, words, and music. It is an approach far from that of traditional schooling. However, it is known for it's amazing results. It binds together the world of teaching, children, and parents exceptionally well.
While the book supports a wonderful approach to schooling, the book itself is one that does not hold the reader's attention. I found myself rereading paragraphs because I was unable to pay attention to the words. The book is a dialog between educators and philosophers from Italy and the United States. While some of the questions posed are thought provoking and interesting, the reader is left bored after pages upon pages of questions.
If you are interested in early childhood development, this book is definitely one that you should read for ideas. However, if you are looking for a light and easy read this book is not for you. This book deserves careful attention, that only the truly patient and interested can give it.
I am glad I was asked to read it because of it's enlightening approach to child development. As an educator, I will take away with me the approach's distinct style of exploration to adapt to my classroom and even think of sending my children there someday. I just wish I would have been able to pay closer attention to it and fight my urge to put the book down.
Customer Reviews:
Not recommended: just statistical/frequency data.......2003-01-28
If you are a teacher, student or a writer seeking guidance, this is not the book which I would suggest, as it's really not prescriptive at all. It's chock full of frequency data wrt various grammatical constructs. It's like reading the census data, if you know what I mean. You'll be left out in netherspace, to basically extract the rules by yourself. Would much rather suggest using your hard earned dollar to buy the "Comprehensive Grammar ..." by Quirk to get some real guidelines. However, if you like statistics, buy this book, you'll love it ...
Excellent.......2002-05-13
This is an excellent descriptive grammar of the English language. A few months ago I compared several English grammars side-by-side, and this was one of the top two, the other being Quirk et al.'s far more [costly]work. In general, every construction is discussed in terms of a grammatical analysis (theory-neutral), quantitative analysis, and a functional analysis of the quantitative results. I've found the functional descriptions to be especially helpful.
The English Language Redefined.......1999-12-13
This work redefines the English language. Working with a corpus of more than 40 million words, the authors conform every important grammatical point of the English language with its frequency in British and American speaking and writing. As a professional language tester, one of my greatest problems is the validation of my products. While I design products that withstand validation scrutiny, I have to admit, until now much of my success has been based on intuition rather than science. The LCSWE will be a tremendous boon to my work, as it should be to the work of professional English language testers the world over.
Book Description
This book explains difficult math concepts in an easy to understand and entertaining format using cartoons and drawings. Children love the real world connections between math and science and will be challenged by over 1000 problems in areas such as algebra, astronomy, trigonometry, probability, and more. Answers are included in the back of the book. A great resource for those of any age who love math. Challenge Math is designed for children in grades 4-8 with higher math abilitiy and interest but could be used by older students and adults as well. Contains 20 chapters with instruction and problems at three levels of difficulty. Challenge Math can be used by children independently or in a classroom setting. This edition not only contains answers, but it also contains step by step solutions to the problems.
Customer Reviews:
A Blessing Indeed!.......2007-07-23
This book has been an excellent guide for my 6th grader who needed to grasp problem-solving skills in the various math concepts introduced during the last academic year. It has been fun helpng my daughter work through the book and I thank the author and his family for coming up with such a book. It is worth every penny I paid for it.
Zaccaro Rules!.......2007-06-27
Highly recommended by other reviewers and by one of the best professors in the field of teaching math, Susan Assouline:Developing Math Talent: A Guide for Educating Gifted And Advanced Learners in Math. Less time with dull textbooks, more with Zaccaro; the freedom that homeschool allows is great! Keeps my child excited about math and engaged in learning.
Challenge Math For the Elementary .......2007-01-05
This book is too focuing on the appearance not on the content, i.e, the author tried to attract the reads attention by making too many pictures, not by the content and explains the skill to solve a problem. The whole book makes me feel like that it is for K-student not for gifted students. I regreted to but it. Now, it is on my bookself like a junk.
A Dream Come True.......2005-12-12
This book really delivers what it promises - it is the music of math - not just the scales. My eleven year old son and I have been working through the book and having a great time. He has a teacher this year who really doesn't know how to teach gifted kids math and this book has been a lifesaver. Some of the concepts are fairly simple but as you work through how to apply them with increasing difficulty to some real-world problems then it does get you thinking. I highly recommend this book for all students - it is really the way math should be taught.
Excellent, Comprehensive.......2005-10-01
I run a math club for a group of 5th graders (one 6th grader). When I found this book, I knew I had an excellent curriculum to offer them. We've been using this and Real World Algebra and the kids have responded well to both. They *like* the silly cartoons. The author has taken concepts that are generally saved for older kids (and can be dry and tedious) and made them accessible to a younger age group. This is the ideal solution if your bright or gifted child needs more challenge, but standard texts just don't cut it.
Book Description
If you want to conduct market research, but feel you have little experience in doing so, we have the ideal updated and revised resource for you! Written in an engaging and active style, the
Second Edition of
The Market Research Toolbox: A Concise Guide for Beginners describes how to think of market research in the context of making a business decision. The book begins by defining market research and discussing some of the various techniques. It then goes on to examine what objectives can be met by doing market research and the expected payoffs.
The Market Research Toolbox examines six traditional market research techniques:
• secondary research • customer visits
• focus groups • surveys
• choice modeling • experimentation
Author Edward F. McQuarrie describes how each technique works, along with its costs, uses, tips for success, and when and how to use certain techniques, as well as precautions to take while using them.
New to the
Second Edition:
- Includes new chapters on questionnaire design, sampling procedures, and data analysis to ease students into developing their own market research
- Expands the discussion of how to determine needed market research via analysis of the underlying decision problem
- Contains updated suggestions for additional reading to provide students with the most up-to-date resources on market research
- Provides an Instructors Resource CD containing PowerPoint slides, case questions, teaching notes, and a sample syllabus
The Market Research Toolbox is a valuable textbook for a variety of advanced undergraduate and graduate business courses such as Marketing Research, Marketing Management, Customer Service, Industrial Marketing, Sales Management, Consumer Behavior, and Product Development. It will also be of particular interest to product managers, research & development managers, program managers, engineers, quality professionals, and executives responsible for developing business strategies.
Customer Reviews:
An essential entry-level guide to marketing research.......2006-10-15
"If you intend to execute a particular market research project yourself, you will certainly need to read more than this book - for the sake of brevity, this book won't go into a great deal of depth on any single technique, but will merely open the toolbox and explain its contents and application," states author Edward F. McQuarrie, who clearly sums up the purpose of this book in the preface.
This book gives a clear overview of different types of market research (secondary research, customer visits, focus groups, survey research, choice modeling, and experimentation), as well as related topics such as questionnaire design, probability sampling and data analysis. The units end with clear "Do's and Don'ts,' as well as very helpful lists of suggested readings for those interested in learning more about a particular area of research.
While I found this book extremely informative, I personally would have liked a few more examples to clearly illustrate some of the points. In any case, I recommend this book to marketers, who want to learn more about the benefits and limitations of marketing research techniques.
Very Good Entry Level Overview.......2006-03-21
For beginners in marketing research, this book will give you a strong understanding of the basic approaches and the relative values of different strategies.
The best value this book should provide are to people who believe that their business is doing market research by interviewing a few customers or conducting an occasional study. This book will clearly articulate the value and the errors that limited study can offer your business or group.
Especially valuable to Product Managers, Sales People, and their managers.
Marketing.......2005-10-24
Great book for research for the non-marketing professional trying to learn more about those specific skills.
Good, but EXPENSIVE !.......2003-10-23
Well, this book covers all the essentials to conducting marketing research, or at least to understanding how it is conducted! I would have given it a fourth star if the price tag had been lower.
Remarkable and perfectly titled.......2001-09-10
If you're dipping your toes into the waters of market research, you need this book. Its title is perfect: This really *is* a toolbox, written concisely for beginners.
I bought this book when my boss assigned me a market research task that could determine company direction. He gave me the task because of my past work with surveys and usability testing. I wasn't comfortable flying by the seat of my pants on this one -- determining company direction isn't the same as determining what people didn't like about a Help system you created or determining what does and doesn't work well in a computer program's user interface.
So I bought this book, and I'm glad I did. McQuarrie minced no words in explaining what market research is and what market research can and can't do for you. He next helped me determine the real goal for my research, and showed me what market-research tools are best suited for achieving that goal. He even told me what tools *not* to use. He did all this in the first 35 pages. The rest of the book describes the tools in the box. I only read the chapters about the tools relevant to my task. Within two hours, I had learned exactly what I needed to know for success -- no more, and no less.
I especially appreciate McQuarrie's writing style, which Strunk and White would call "vigorous." He packs a lot of information into very few words.
Take note: McQuarrie explains that his book will help you determine what tools you should use and tell you the basics of using the tool. However, he cautions that you should hire specialists to actually use the tools, because there is a lot of specialized knowledge behind successfully using each one. If you're determined to use these tools yourself, McQuarrie tells you what other books to read to get started.
Product Description
Instructor Required Material This COMPLETE textbook includes not only the paperback copy textbook new, but also contains the Online Edition. This is a complete interactive study guide with quizzing functionality that reports to the instructor. This text also has animated figures and graphs that bring the print graphic to life for deeper understanding. The complete text is available word for word online as well, so you do not have to bring the print copy to class or with you as you travel. We sell our products to students at a 25% discount for the NEW and complete textbook package. What do students say about the Atomic Dog Online Edition? Survey Results 80% of students found that the end-of chapter quizzes helped them review and prepare for exams. Among students using the Online Edition, 72% found that interactive figures (animations, video, audio) made concept easier to understand than images or text. Among students using the Online Edition, 82% found that studying with the online text improved their overall learning experience.
Books:
- Against All Odds: My Story
- Anesthesiologist's Manual of Surgical Procedures
- Braveheart
- Charles Faudree's French Country Signatu
- Coming Home to Myself
- Compilers: Principles, Techniques, and Tools
- Cordina's Royal Family: Gabriella & Alexander: Affaire Royale\Command Performance
- Critical Issues in Education: Dialogues and Dialectics
- Devil Dogs: Fighting Marines of World War I
- Diana: A Tribute to the People's Princess
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Game of Shadows: Barry Bonds, BALCO, and the Steroids Scandal that Rocked Professional Sports
- The Refuge: A Maxine and Stretch Mystery
- Officer Friendly: and Other Stories
- Shenandoah Summer: The 1864 Valley Campaign
- The Children of Húrin
- The End of Medicine: How Silicon Valley
- The Ecology of Sumatra
- Korean Crisis: Unraveling of the Miracle in the IMF Era
- Mind Power: Picture Your Way to Success in Business
- Fifty Feet in Paradise: The Booming of Florida
Multicultural
| Contemporary Methods
| Education Theory
| Education
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
Speak English Like an American (Book & Audio CD set)
Speak Business English Like an American: Learn the Idioms & Expressions You Need to Succeed On The Job! (Book & Audio CD)
Easy & Engaging ESL Activities and Mini-Books for Every Classroom: Terrific Teaching Tips, Games, Mini-Books & More to Help New Students from Every Nation Build Basic English Vocabulary and Feel Welcome!
Common American Phrases in Everyday Contexts: A Detailed Guide to Real-Life Conversation and Small Talk
Speak American: A Survival Guide to the Language and Culture of the U.S.A.
