In the mid-1990s Czech Republic, no means yes, cows live in houses, and pivo is always a good idea. Chicken in a Strange Way: A SoCal Beach Girl Takes on Communism is a hilarious fish-out-of-water tale unlike anything you've read before. Melanie Thomas Armstrong, a 25-year-old accountant, arrives in Prague with the noble goal of assisting the country in its economic transition from communism to capitalism. Little can she expect the stark differences in culture and logic that await her. Ove...

Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences has revolutionized the way we think about being smart. Written by an award-winning expert on the topic, this book introduces the theory, explains the different types of intelligences (like Word Smart, Self Smart, Body Smart), and helps kids identify their own learning strengths and use their special skills at school, at home, and in life. As kids read the book, they stop asking “How smart am I?” and start asking “How am I smart?” This power...

A friendly counting book invites young children to learn about coping with emotions. Young children often need help grasping the complexities of their feelings, which can sometimes be overwhelming. When children learn from an early age to handle their emotions in healthy ways, they are more likely to grow into adults who feel capable of facing life’s challenges. This friendly, positive picture book helps children understand their feelings better, giving them coping strategies for communica...

In today's schools, students and teachers feel unprecedented—even alarming—levels of stress. How can we create calmer classrooms in which students concentrate better and feel more positive about themselves and others? Author Thomas Armstrong offers a compelling answer in the form of mindfulness, a secular practice he defines as the intentional focus of one's attention on the present moment in a nonjudgmental way.In Mindfulness in the Classroom, Armstrong- ...

A fully revised and updated edition of the groundbreaking book on tackling the root causes of children’s attention and behavior problems rather than masking the symptoms with medication.More than twenty years after Dr. Thomas Armstrong's Myth of the A.D.D. Child first published, he presents much needed updates and insights in this substantially revised edition. When The Myth of the A.D.D. Child was first published in 1995, Dr. Thomas Armstrong mad...

From a bestselling author and psychologist, an exploration and celebration of neurodivergence, completely revised with the most up-to-date research and insights.From ADHD and dyslexia to autism, the number of diagnosis categories listed by the American Psychiatric Association has tripled in the last fifty years. With so many people affected, it is time to revisit our perceptions of people with disabilities.Thomas Armstrong illuminates a new understanding of...

An imaginative picture book that defines eight ways everyone is smart and shows how to get smarter in each way.?It’s easy for kids to get dejected and believe they’re not as smart as the people around them. Maybe they got a low grade on their math test last week, or maybe they have a difficult time making new friends, but what kids may not realize is that math skills and people skills are just two types of smarts. There are actually eight types of smarts:...

Moody. Reckless. Impractical. Insecure. Distracted. These are all words commonly used to describe adolescents. But what if we recast these traits in a positive light? Teens possess insight, passion, idealism, sensitivity, and creativity in abundance--all qualities that can make a significant positive contribution to society.In this thought-provoking book, Thomas Armstrong looks at the power and promise of the teenage brain from an empathetic, strength-based perspective—and...

Educators, politicians, parents, and even students are consumed with speaking the language of academic achievement. Yet something is missing in the current focus on accountability, standardized testing, and adequate yearly progress. If schools continue to focus the conversation on rigor and accountability and ignore more human elements of education, many students may miss out on opportunities to discover the richness of individual exploration that schools can foster.In The Best...

"Every student is a genius," declares author Thomas Armstrong, and an educator's most important job is to discover and nurture the "genius qualities" that all students were born with but that may no longer be obvious. Urging readers to look beyond traditional understandings of what constitutes genius, Armstrong describes 12 such qualities: curiosity, playfulness, imagination, creativity, wonder, wisdom, inventiveness, vitality, sensitivity, flexibility, humor, and joy. He cites research in...

A new term has emerged from the disability movement in the past decade to help change the way we think about neurological disorders: Neurodiversity.ADHD. Dyslexia. Autism. The number of categories of illnesses listed by the American Psychiatric Association has tripled in the past fifty years. With so many people affected by our growing -- culture of disabilities, -- it no longer makes sense to hold on to the deficit-ridden idea of neuropsychological illness.W...

Many world-class thinkers and creators have been concerned about the state of education in the United States. Discover their thoughts on how children really learn and what teachers must do to optimally tap children's latent abilities.During the last three decades, education reformers have pushed standardized testing and policies like No Child Left Behind and Common Core to improve test scores and proficiency in basic skills. However, during this period that author ...