Customer Reviews (2)

Must Read for EL Teachers
This book provides excellent insight and suggestions for teachers of English Learner students. It is perfect for teachers who are trying to integrate ELD with their regular reading and language arts program. Excellent for administrators too.

A welcome and instructive addition to professional and bilingual instructor reference collections and ESL curriculum development
Balancing Reading & Language Learning: A Resource For Teaching English Language Learners K-5 by educational consultant and former bilingual resource teacher, ESL teacher, and literacy coach Mary Cappellini offers a framework for a balanced classroom reading program that includes the use of reading aloud, shared reading, guided reading, and independent reading to develop a student's skills and fluency in the English language. Classroom instructors will learn how to set up an environment that will enable all English language learners to succeed in advancing their fluency and academic performance; the stages of English language proficiency and how to use them to assess and plan for individual children; advice for tapping into children's prior knowledge in their primary language while teaching reading in English, and the use of Spanish/English cognates to help develop academic language skills; how to manage numerous guided reading groups with children at all stages of reading and language proficiency, and more. Enhanced with ideas for events to involve the parents, thematic planning sample units for primary and upper grades, forms and checklists, bibliographies and suggested reading lists, Balancing Reading & Language Learning is a welcome and instructive addition to professional and bilingual instructor reference collections and ESL curriculum development resources.
... Read more

Book Description
Lessons from Nothing is an invaluable resource for busy teachers everywhere who are looking for easy-to-use activities that do not require extensive facilities or preparation. It is a practical source of around 70 language teaching activities that encourage interaction and co-operation in the classroom. Special features: * activities for immediate use * activities for all ages and levels * clear presentation * no photocopying required. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Fantastic resource for inspiration
I'm an English teacher in China, doing both classroom and private small-group teaching. Language learning definitely requires more than the "chalk and talk" approach that Mr. Marsland warns against, and his book is a great resource for avoiding such a bland style of teaching. Language learning should be engaging, and this book offers good inspiration for making it so.

I have to cope with very unsatisfactory teaching materials oriented towards memorization and drills -- not good for achieving fluency. Also, I'm frequently asked to teach last-minute classes with little or no time to prepare. Resources are frequently limited to little more than a chalkboard, if that. It's easy to become frantic and stuck in a pattern of "Oh God, how do I fill this 90 minutes of class time? What do I do?!"

Many thanks to Mr. Marsland for giving this concise, well-organized and thoughtful book. It's like a splash of cold water in my face when I make my own job more complicated than it has to be. /Lessons From Nothing/ is a nice reminder that you can easily turn "nothing" into "something" if you make it engaging and interactive.

Not satisfied
I don't think that this book is what it claims to be.Too difficult to read and the lessons weren't really that great.I threw it out.

Must Have No Matter Where You Are
This is a small compact book that has tons of activities that
you can use with absolutely no resources.In many LDN nations
there will be no resources at all.At times, not even a chalk
board.This book can however, be used anywhere, because it
focuses on Communicative methodology and student-centered activities which allows for better development of L2 acquisition.No matter where you are teaching in the world, if your teaching TEFL/TESOL it should be on your shelf. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

Book Description
Designed to make language learning enjoyable and effective, this book includes games for all age groups and language levels. Each chapter begins with a short introduction, and each game is then explained clearly and practically. The book is especially suitable for use with large classes. ... Read more

Product Description
PACKAGE INCLUDES -COMMUNICATIONS ISBN#0030564093, SENTENCES,PARAGRAPHS & COMPOSITIONS ISBN# 0030563216 GRAMMAR, USAGE AND MECHANICS LANGUAGE SKILLS ISBN#0030563569 ALSO THE ANSWER KEY, COMBINING SENTENCES 0030563127 ... Read more

Product Description
Product #1-51344-LV6. ... Read more

Product Description
Build fluency and independence with this teaching resource kit. This Teacher's Guide includes A lesson plan for each Leveled Reader. An Oral reading Record for each Leveled Reader. and a Comprehension, Bocabulary, and Graphic Organizer Blackline Masters. Complete with Activity Cards and audio CD's. ... Read more

Book Description
Educators will welcome this cohesive and comprehensive volume on the research and practice of teaching English as a second language (TESOL). The author, director of the TESOL program at Fordham University Graduate School of Education, provides a holistic view of the field-its practical and philosophical considerations. Of particular interest is the coverage of such new research areas as ESL literacy, cultural literacy, thinking in a second language (TSL), and pragmatic writing. ... Read more

Product Description
The Houghton Mifflin Leveled Readers Teaching Resource Kit contains Teacher's Guides, Activity Cards, and Audio CDs in a sturdy, translucent plastic portfolio case. Each Teacher's Guide includes a complete lesson plan, an Oral Reading Record, and Comprehension, Vocabulary, and Graphic Organizer Blackline Masters for each Leveled Reader. Activity Cards provide extension, discussion, and independent work, and the Audio CDs contain all Leveled Readers selections. The following themes of Houghton Mifflin Reading are supported: Theme 1: Journeys (A Horse Called Sky, Elena's Two Horses, Nemo and the Ship of Gold, River Race, and Focus on Mystery: The Mystery in the Attic) .......... Theme 2: American Stories (Portia and the Math Problem, Fresh Air, Chester's Good Idea, One Day, Two Stars, and Focus on Plays: A Birthday for Cornelius) .......... Theme 3: That's Amazing (Spring in the City, Tattercoat and the Magical Flute, and A Strange Day in Mayville) .......... Theme 4: Problem Solvers (The Very Best Fish, Cora at Camp, Joy's Great Idea, A Poem for Grandma, and Focus on Poetry: Eloise Greenfield: The Music of Poetry .......... Theme 5: Heroes (Thank you, Sandra Cisneros, Duke Ellington: Man of Music, Mark McGuire: Home Run King, and Focus on Pourquoi Tales: How Wisdom Came to the World of the Ashanti) .......... Theme 6: Nature: Friend and Foe (The Tradition of the Harvest, Danger--Landslides!, and A World of Snow) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A much needed reappraisal
Edith Wharton until recently has not received the interest and praise she deserved as one of the finest American authors -- was it because she was wealthy and female? Because people thought she was simply a protege of Henry James? Or because her books rarely had happy endings? Fortunately, a new generation is reappraising her work and finding much of value in it, from her critique of early 20th century American society and subtle assessment of man-woman relationships to her wonderfully textured and evocative style. RWB Lewis, who must be the foremost Wharton scholar today, brings Wharton to life in this book -- her tremendous intelligence, the terrific emotional hardships she endured, her great capacity for friendships and amazing zest for life.Wharton got started late as an author, not publishing her first book until nearly 40 -- because she had to overcome a tremendous hurdle -- being born into a society where women writers simply did not exist. Everything she accomplished thus was purely out of her own drive to communicate and create.If you haven't read much Wharton, I recommend also The Age of Innocence, The Custom of the Country, The House of Mirth, and any short stories you can lay your hands on.

Very interesting
I had to read this for a college class about 10 years ago and was reluctant at first. It turned out to be a very interesting, informative book. It's quite large, but enjoyable - the pictures were especially fascinating, especially of Edith's various homes throughout her lifetime. ... Read more

Product Description
The goal of Teaching Language and Literature in Elementary Classrooms: A Resource Book for Professional Development, Second Edition is to help the beginning teacher create a classroom environment that integrates literacy development with learning in all areas of the curriculum. Theoretically based, well organized, and practical, this text identifies the major components of an integrated language program and describes and illustrates skills teachers need to implement this kind of program in their own classrooms. It is uniquely designed as a handbook for beginning educators that serves both as a text and as a professional resource to be carried into the first year of teaching. The narratives in this text, and the accompanying instruction for preparing to teach, are included for every elementary instructional level. A consistent chapter format is used to help readers move from a direct experience of a classroom narrative, to step-by-step descriptions they can follow to implement these activities in their own classrooms. A rich array of interactive pedagogical features is provided. New in the Second Edition: This edition retains the purposes of the first edition, but adds ideas and information gathered over the years from new classroom observations. It also incorporates the results of the author's extensive reviews of educational research, continuous reading in all the genres of children's literature, and correspondence with faculty and students who used the first edition of this text. In response to these varied and helpful experiences, the Second Edition features: *Strategies for dealing with problems of disruption in the classroom; *Expanded discussions related to diversity and special needs; *Increased attention to methods of evaluation and mandated testing programs; *Reorganization of chapter sections to make them more useful to readers; *A new chapter on play and the fine arts; *Integration of electronic teaching technology into all chapters; *Extensive in-text annotations of children's literature, discussions of new titles in children's literature, cultural literatures, book clubs, series books, and the influence of books published internationally; *Updated reports of research and best practice studies; *New classroom observations; and *New appendices, designed to provide information and resources for instructional support. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Useful text for pre-service and beginning teachers
I used this text with pre-service teachers as required reading for my course in teaching elementary language arts. It is a book that my students highly recommend and that they feel will be a useful resource to them throughout their future years of teaching.This text gives a solid framework to a well-rounded language and literacy program, based on sound theory and realistic practice.Each of the twelve chapters is divided into recurring sections so that the format becomes predictable.The author shows in a meaningful way how to integrate language and literature across the curriculum, giving concrete examples of each concept and teaching practice at the Kindergarten level, the primary level and the intermediate level.Throughout the text, in the "What Do You Think?" section, Popp asks reflective questions to her readers.These provide wonderful discussion starters in class and opportunities for the students to reflect privately at home in a focused manner.The recurring section on evaluation was of particular value to my students, connecting specific types of assessment strategies to specific classroom activities - for example, creating a "discussion chain" or a "shared-pair" summary to evaluate understanding of a presentation.Popp makes sure to build connections from home to school and community, and is very conscious of including students and teachers with varying needs and in varying situations.There is truly something for everyone in this valuable text.Popp provides for each topic recommended readings of relevant professional literature, descriptions of teaching resources and a variety of theoretical perspectives, in addition to very thorough preparation and step-by-step instructions in carrying out the teaching strategies.
Although as a Canadian I had some concerns about the all-American references and cited literature, I would still heartily recommend this text to instructors/students in both Canada and the U.S.A., perhaps encouraging additional Canadian content or a future Canadian edition. ... Read more