In this book, Sam M. Intrator analyzes powerful learning moments in a high school classroom. He offers five detailed case study portraits of these experiences, describing in each case how the teacher shaped the culture of the class, made critical pedagogical decisions, and connected students to the subject matter. He confirms that teachers can set the stage to encourage more magical learning moments and suggests numerous practical ideas to help them do so.
Great! Read for my Teacher Prep class. Really interesting study of how to keep kids interested in the class room, involved in their learning. Every teacher should read this.
This book is full of somewhat interesting anticdotes, but there's nothing here that will help me in the classroom next year. The summer is too short to take time to read about someone's observations of how a teacher inspired his 11th grade English students by asking them to write about grass. Anybody can inspire; the trick is doing it every period, every day. Or at least more than occasionally.
I enjoyed this book. It is about a teacher who really cares and wants his students to get something from school. He has great lessons and amazing conversations. I hope to one day be as effective as this guy was.