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Inspired by the "good old, bad old" science fiction movies that turn up on TV each October, Lisa Passen has created a hilarious tale that proves even the meanest teacher might just have a heart of gold. It was Halloween. And it was a school day. The children were eager for school to be over. Everyone was excited about going trick or treating. Everyone except Miss Irma Birmbaum, the toughest teacher in town. She's so mean that she assigns homework on Halloween! That very night, however, after she receives a surprise visit from an alien spacecraft, Miss Irma Birmbaum is mysteriously transformed into ... The Fifty-Foot Teacher. As if things weren't bad enough for Miss Birmbaum's class! Can anything save Halloween for these kids, or will their giant teacher spoil the fun? "A Halloween tale for children with a quirky sense of humor." - Booklist
"Why do I lead?" With this deceptively simple question, best-selling author Baruti K. Kafele begins a powerful examination of what it takes to make a school community achieve the greatest success in the classroom and beyond. In The Principal 50: Critical Leadership Questions for Inspiring Schoolwide Excellence, Kafele, a veteran school administrator, guides motivated school leaders through 50 self-reflection exercises designed to yield a deeper understanding of the meaning behind the work that they do. Along with many other insights, this book shows how best to • Inspire and motivate students, teachers, and other school staff to approach their work with vigor and purpose; • Ensure that all students, regardless of color, creed, or origin, are valued and represented in the school culture; • Focus mission and vision statements to address students' most critical needs and integrate shared values and objectives into the fabric of the school; and • Engage parents and other community members so that they feel a stake in the school's success. Brimming with passion, written from the heart, and informed by hard-earned experience, this transformative book is essential reading for principals and other building-level administrators determined to reinvigorate their practice, revitalize their staff, and--most importantly--guarantee the strongest outcomes for students.
Never run out of ideas for book reports and literary projects! Engaging activities have students preparing character masks, historical interviews, pop-up books, time capsules, and more!
So, you want to be a principal? Are you a new principal who could benefit from the wisdom of a successful four-time principal? Could you use help preparing for a school administrator job interview? Then this is the book for you. In The Aspiring Principal 50, school leadership expert Baruti Kafele presents reflective questions aimed at assisting both new and aspiring school leaders as they work to become effective school leaders and consider making a leap to a leadership position, respectively. This book will help aspiring principals determine whether "The Principal" is truly who they want to be and help new principals grow and thrive in the principalship. Additionally, the book contains an entire chapter devoted to preparing for the school administrator job interview. Kafele infuses the book from beginning to end with succinct advice on everything from remaining focused on the principal's number one priority—student achievement—to addressing maintenance concerns, managing budget allocations, and ensuring that the school's website puts the school in the best possible light. With The Aspiring Principal 50, you can increase the likelihood that your tenure as principal will be a successful, beneficial, and healthful one.
You're an Assistant Principal. Whatever your status—the sole AP in your school, one of two or more APs in your school, a career AP, an AP aspiring to the principalship—yours is one of the most misunderstood and underutilized positions in education. Positioned between teachers and the principal, you are an instructional leader. However, you are not the leader of the school. Therefore, you must carefully navigate your way to ensure that you thrive in your role without "stepping on the toes" of your principal. In The Assistant Principal 50, award-winning, four-time principal Baruti Kafele presents reflective questions that encompass the breadth and depth of the assistant principalship—from finding your leadership "lane" to thriving and being an asset to your principal. Kafele infuses the book (which also includes guidance and insights for principals and aspiring assistant principals) from beginning to end with personal anecdotes and accounts of both failures and successes from his years as an assistant principal. He arms you with tools and insights that will drive you to view the assistant principalship as critical to the climate and culture of your school as well as to student achievement. You, assistant principal, play a critical role in your school's success. The questions that Kafele asks you to consider will aid you as you hone your leadership skills toward becoming an effective leader in your school.
This book offers 50 practical ideas for teachers to use for their professional development. The tips cover a wide range of activities that can be carried out individually or in collaboration with others, including self and peer observation, journal writing, on-line forums, classroom research, action research, team teaching, lesson review, materials review, lesson study, mentoring, peer coaching, reading groups, and workshops. The Tips can be used by both novice and more experienced teachers and are intended to provide a basis for teachers to review the current state of their professional learning and to develop and implement goals for their development.
"While Puckett offers a valuable perspective on schooling in the twentieth-century rural South, she also captures the essence of daily life in the communities in which she taught. We read of how she sometimes boarded with the parents of her pupils; of how teachers, students, and parents joined together in observance of holidays; and of how schooling managed to continue through the busy growing seasons. Personal details of Puckett's life also emerge, from her relationship with her parents to her life at home with her husband and their eight children.".
One of the most vexing problems confronting educators today is the chronic achievement gap between black male students and their peers. In this inspiring and thought-provoking book, veteran educator Baruti K. Kafele offers a blueprint for lifting black males up and ensuring their success in the classroom and beyond. Motivating Black Males to Achieve in School and in Life offers proven strategies for getting black male students in middle school and high school to value learning, improve their grades, and maintain high standards for themselves. The author shows how simple but powerful measures to instill self-worth in young black males can not only raise these students' achievement, but also profoundly alter their lives for the better. This book will help you to help students * Reverse the destructive effects of negative influences, whether among peers or in the popular culture; * Surmount adverse conditions at home or in their communities; * Participate in mentorship programs with successful black male adults; and * Take pride in their heritage by learning about great figures and achievements in black history. Whether your school is urban or rural, all-black or mixed, you'll find this book to be an insightful resource that addresses the root causes of low achievement among young black males and offers a clear path to overcoming them.
Reading and writing are the most important things a student learns in school. An issue that gets in the way of teaching kids how to read and write are the insufferable, numerous, and bloated standards in English instruction. Teachers must pore over the minutia and sometimes forget to teach the love of language and its power to weave life-changing narratives. This work weaves an interesting combination of practices, pedagogy, and child psychology to make a survival guide for teachers. This is an essential work for anyone who wants to increase the quantity and quality of reading and writing in their classroom. Do you want your students or children to write more? Do you want your children to learn to love the English language? Do you need suggestions on how to do that?If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this book is for you.50 Things to Know About Being a Middle School English Teacher by author Dwayne Vega offers an approach to adjusting your English classroom. Most books on language arts instruction tell you to adopt theoretical and unproven suggestions. There's nothing wrong with that. Based on knowledge from the world's leading experts, we can do better in our classroom with practical practices. In these pages you'll discover how to get your students or children to view writing more positively. This book will help you understand what is going on with middle school students and help you craft lessons to address those changes. By the time you finish this book, you will know how to teach reading and writing to middle school children. So, grab YOUR copy today. You'll be glad you did.
