Read Rafe Esquith's posts on the Penguin Blog.From one of America’s most celebrated educators, an inspiring guide to transforming every child’s educationIn a Los Angeles neighborhood plagued by guns, gangs, and drugs, there is an exceptional classroom known as Room 56. The fifth graders inside are first-generation immigrants who live in poverty and speak English as a second language. They also play Vivaldi, perform Shakespeare, score in the...

The New York Times–bestselling author and world-renown teacher offers no-nonsense wisdom for teachers of all agesThere’s no one teachers trust more to give them classroom advice than Rafe Esquith. After more than thirty years on the job, Esquith still puts in the countless classroom hours familiar to every dedicated educator. But where his New York Times bestseller Teach Like Your Hair’s on Fire was food for a teacher’s mind, Real Tal...

The New York Times bestselling author of Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire shares his proven methods for creating compassionate childrenDuring twenty-five years of teaching at Hobart Elementary School in inner city Los Angeles, Rafe Esquith has helped thousands of children maximize their potential—and became the only teacher in history to receive the president's National Medal of Arts. In Lighting Their Fires, Esquith translates the inspirin...

Year after year, Rafe Esquith’s fifth-grade students excel. They read passionately, far above their grade level; tackle algebra; and stage Shakespeare so professionally that they often wow the great Shakespearen actor himself, Sir Ian McKellen. Yet Esquith teaches at an L.A. innercity school known as the Jungle, where few of his students speak English at home, and many are from poor or troubled families. What’s his winning recipe? A diet of intensive learning mixed with a lot of kindness a...

Best-selling author Rafe Esquith, the only teacher to receive the National Medal of Arts, has garnered the American Teacher Award and numerous other honors. Still teaching fifth graders in a small, leaky classroom in downtown Los Angeles, Esquith fosters a wholesome climate where character, humility, and diligence matter and support is unconditional. For his mostly poor and Hispanic students, Esquith models two maxims: Be nice and work hard, and There are no shortcuts. And his students thr...

An award-winning educator and the New York Times best-selling author of Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire, Rafe Esquith knows a thing or two about connecting with today's young people. Here he offers parents sound, proven advice on raising children ready to thrive in the 21st century.

This story focuses on the challenges, rewards, and setbacks of an instructor and his students at pivotal points during a single term in a university, with flashbacks from a decade of learning, and from two decades of applying knowledge.Along the way, a complete study philosophy emerges.The story also contains a helpful discussion guide at the end of it for reading groups, so that they may discuss the ideas that are presented in the book.It is a lighthearted look at ...

New York Times bestselling author and educator Ron Clark challenges parents, teachers, and communities everywhere embrace a difference in the classroom and uplift, educate, and empower our children.Read this book to find out why so many across the country have embraced these powerful rules.· Set the electric tone on day one· Teach your children how to study—don’t expect it to come naturally· Don’t constantly stress about test scores

The Most Dog-Eared "Teacher's Edition" You'll Have in Your ClassroomTeaching is tough. And teachers, like the rest of the population, aren't perfect. Yet good teaching happens, and great teachers continue to inspire and educate generations of students. See Me After Class helps those great teachers of the future to survive the classroom long enough to become great.Fueled by hundreds of hilarious—and sometimes shocking—tales from the teachers who liv...

The inspiration for the NBC TV series "Rise," starring Josh Radnor, Auli'i Cravalho, and Rosie Perez — the incredible and true story of an extraordinary drama teacher who has changed the lives of thousands of students and inspired a town. By the author of The Last Temptation of Rick Pitino.Why would the multimillionaire producer of Cats, The Phantom of the Opera, and Miss Saigon take his limo from Manhattan to the strugg...

Have no fear, the substitute is here!Be prepared with the confidence and the knowledge for any classroom situation.As a substitute teacher, you have the powers of a superhero. Who else could teach sixth grade math one day and then transform into a sub for the kindergarten gym instructor the next? What other educator bravely goes into work not knowing what subject or grade he or she will teach that day and still manages a smile? But even superheroes need a...

At last, the solution for getting disorganized boys back on track.Missed assignments. Lack of focus and enthusiasm. Falling grades. For too many boys and their frustrated parents, these are the facts of life. But they don't have to be.Top academic couselor Ana Homayoun has helped turn even the most disorganized, scattered, and unfocused boys into successful young people who consistently meet their personal and academic challenges. She does this by getting b...