This book uses a fantasy tale to teach hard science about a very complex and poorly understood scientific phenomenon -- FRICTION -- to young children in a way they find both intriguing and relatable. Our young protagonist, Theo, is approached by a mysterious being called the Wish Magician, who wants Theo to make a wish that will make the world better. Based on recent unpleasant encounters with friction, Theo decides he wants it gone. What results is an eye-opening series of events, ranging...

A young boy has several disturbing experiences with loved ones getting sick from various germs, and he decides he wants to do somehting about it! He calls upon his mysterious wish partner, the Wish Magician, and announces he wants to eliminate bacteria and viruses from the planet. What follows is his gradual realization that doing so was not a very good idea.

Whether you're public or private; whether you run a toddler program or a 3rd grade classroom. Do you want to run a program that is both developmentally appropriate and meets high learning standards in both the cognitive and socio-emotional domains? Whether you're just looking for better ways to set up and manage the day-to-day classroom or you're ready to boldiy transform your learning environment, here are the basics of how to proceed!

Here is the tale of an eager young educator, freshly trained in Montessori theory and practice, learning how to survive in a bustling classroom of 3-6 year olds. Theory no longer carried the day; he had to learn how to achieve his goals in an environment that had as a core principle children'a right to guide their own learning.With the help of wise and talented mentors, he learned how to do so, and started jotting down the "tricks" he mastered along the way.That journey beg...

Want to communicate effectively with young children? It's not just a matter of "dummying down" your vocabulary. You need to connect on a level playing field - taking what they tell you seriously, and finding ways to get your intents and requirements available to them in ways that don't off alarms!Here, in discrete nuggets, are the "tricks of the trade", gleaned from almost 50 years engaging with young children.

There will come times in any early-childhood teacher's classroom when all seems lost. Maybe it's one child who you cannot control. Maybe the entire classroom is spiraling into chaos. You feel like a failure.This is when panic sets in and you start making bad decisions. It's hard to stay strategic when you just feel like running away, but there are still things you can do to make things better rather than worse without abandoning your core principles.

How to do early childhood education right. . . and why we tend to do it so wrong. This book is for both private-sector and public-school early-childhood teachers, administrators, and policy-makers. The suggestions range from those teachers can implement immediately to the broader steps they will need to take to totally transform their environments so children joyously engage in learning tailored to their individual needs, interests, and abilities. Here is a chance to learn how to become th...

There are key structural "levers" that control early childhood programming, many under the control of the classroom teacher and school administrator, but some requiring broader societal action. Much of what we believe about how to educate our youngest citizen's is simply wrong. Here is a passionate explanation of how and why we are misjudging children's needs and abililities, and simple, actionable steps to put us on the path of doing early childhood education right.

Teaching is, at its heart, a human affair. Early-childhood educators who just go through the paces or mindlessly implement directives from above are not teachers. ESPECIALLY in preK-grade 3 classrooms, educators MUST engage on a personal level with their charges in order to promote meaningful and lasting growth and learning.BECAUSE teaching is a human affair, it makes you as a person vulnerable, susceptible to doubt and despair. There will be times when you feel you have failed the...

Know how to teach elementary-aged children? Middle-school or high-school adolescents? Adults? Then you don't know SQUAT about teaching children in the early-childhood years! I'm not talking about just Head Start and center-based preK programs; it's grades K-3 in the public schools as well! Up until children pass throught the age 7-9 threshhold, they are in many ways alien beings, operating on different wave-lengths than older children or adults. No matter what learning standards you want t...

Herein are the "lifelines" I discovered as I was contemplating whether I could even survive as an early-chiidhood educator in a classroom of 3-6 year olds that were being encouraged to be independent decision-makers, much less achieve outcomes. How could I meet lofty educational objectives, or even maintain order, in a system that said I should not take control? I knew my knee-jerk desire to draw on adult authority would destroy everything I was trying to achieve, but what alternatives did...

Years have passed since the Morris family moved to Elkiron. While exploring caves in the area, Celia, Abigail's daughter, and Jarren, Bryce's son, discover a cave with unusually strong magic inside. With the help of Shalee, their secret friend, they enter the cave and awaken a race of magical beings that were thought to be extinct - the Sciint.While the elves rejoice at the return of the Sciint, another ancient race discover the elves' location. The Kardon, ancient enemies of the el...