This practical book outlines how you can challenge students to grapple with complex problems and engage more meaningfully with information across the content areas, rather than rely solely on rote memorization and standardized testing to measure academic success. Author John Barell shares vignettes from effective middle and high school teachers around the country, analyzes what works and what doesn’t when encouraging students to dig deeper, and offers practical strategies that you can try in your own classroom. Topics include: Guiding students to hone their skills in abstract reasoning, inquiry, creative problem solving, and critical thinking; Designing your lessons and units for authentic achievement, to prepare students for success in their future careers and academic pursuits; Using rigorous benchmark assessments to analyze students’ progress in meaningful ways; and Encouraging students to set learning goals and drive their own achievement. Aligned with the Common Core and other standards, this book will help you teach students to become inquisitive, engaged citizens who wonder about the universe, stretch their imaginations, and solve problems by asking, What If?
Hello, Boomers! We're dedicating this book to you so you can get that old "boom" back. With over 100 years of fitness and nutrition experience combined, we knew as we rounded the corner to another year and another phase of our lives, we needed to write this book, "If You Want to Live, Move!" and share our best secrets and tips with our fellow boomers (and seniors!). We're keyed-up to show how you, too, can enjoy abundant strength, energy, flexibility and endurance to live a long, productive life which you richly deserve. We feel you are holding in your hands a prescription for ageless energy and timeless health. We are fitness and nutrition professionals. As good fortune would have it, we stumbled upon the secret many, many years ago (it's not really a secret, as you will learn) of living a life of vitality, optimism and prime physical health. One of us was born in 1926, and the other was born in 1961. One of us lives on the west coast and one in the Midwest. One of us is a woman, one of us, a man. One, a senior (from the greatest generation that ever lived), one a boomer. On the surface, it appears we don't have much in common.In fact, we have a lot in common; the most important is this: We both have a passion for teaching others the right way to live fuller, richer lives! You could say we both 'talk the talk' and 'walk the walk'. So, let us talk to you about a new beginning and walk you through it! This book is about how to dig deep to create more energy, immense joy and better health. It explores the intersection of fitness and aging, and ultimately answers these two questions: Is there a secret magic potion for living longer? (yes and no) Which is most important, diet or exercise, for feeling younger and being healthier? (both) We put our brains together to come up with a plan for changing your life for the better. In this book, you'll learn easy, effective ways to deal with difficult challenges we all face as we climb over the next hill, including low energy, increasing weight and sagging skin, achy bones and joints, irritability, and melancholy. But our main focus will be on showing you how moving your body and eating high-value foods will increase the odds that you ride into your golden years with energy and vitality. You don't need a background in anatomy or physiology to use this book. It simply weaves together information that we've learned over the course of our lives, and you can choose the tools presented here that work best for you. The mind and body are fascinating subjects, but we haven't attempted to be comprehensive here. Rather, we focused on simple methods that have had an effect on our clients over the years. Different things work for different people, so choose the exercises and tips that work best for you.A word of caution, please seek advice from a medical professional before you begin any new exercise regimen or diet.Finally, if we know one thing for sure, it's that making small changes consistently will lead to big changes in your body and your experience of daily living.Remember this, when you change your habits, you change your life."If You Want to Live, Move!" is an update simplified program that empowers you to take the right action each day on a consistent basis so you can realize the rich rewards that are rightfully yours - energy, strength, and renewed health.This book is designed so that you can quickly access the nuts and bolts of our program and get right to it.We have laid out this book to be an easy (and illuminating) read. If you need more information and motivation, we have included additional resources for that as well.Plus, we are here to help you every step of the way. Keep in touch with both of us at www.8minuteworkouts.com.
“Kristen Glosserman’s If It’s Not Right, Go Left is an upbeat and approachable lifestyle guide that’s structured around eleven transformative lessons….Her presence fills the pages of the book.” —Foreword Reviews Everyone gets stuck sometimes. Whether it’s a personal loss, an aimless career, or a difficult breakup, many people find themselves unsure where to take their next steps. Kristen Glosserman—goal-setting strategist, life coach, and mother of four—offers wise guidance and direction, using examples culled from her own inspiring life. In light of her own family tragedy and personal struggles, Kristen formulated a plan to regain sight of her goals, now made accessible to readers. She heads each section of If It’s Not Right, Go Left with a life lesson, including: Begin. Focus. Commit. Traditions: Honor Them, Create Them, Keep Them If It’s Not Right, Go Left Live Directionally Each chapter builds on the idea that life will happen no matter what, and it’s up to us to respond accordingly. Readers will be drawn to gorgeous illustrations alongside a wealth of constructive lessons in order to accomplish the lifestyle changes they need. If It’s Not Right, Go Left teaches that connection, communication, and collaboration bring change, and it takes only the actionable guidance offered by Kristen to pivot towards one’s achievable goals. PRAISE FOR IF IT’S NOT RIGHT, GO LEFT: "Kristen is a steady, patient reminder of doing what you can, celebrating the good stuff, and not beating yourself up about what you didn't do. There's always tomorrow." –Rina Stone, Creative Director of InStyle Kristen is the one you go to when you need advice, when you need someone to remind you that no matter what the challenges may be, there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel. “If It’s Not Right, Go Left is a wonderfully natural direction for Kristen—a chance to share her guidance and wisdom with all.” —Gucci Westman, founder of Westman Atelier “Those who find themselves in a rut may appreciate the nudges.” —Publishers Weekly
An astounding new work by the author of The Mind Tree that offers a rare insight into the autistic mind and how it thinks, sees, and reacts to the world. When he was three years old, Tito was diagnosed as severely autistic, but his remarkable mother, Soma, determined that he would overcome the “problem” by teaching him to read and write. The result was that between the ages of eight and eleven he wrote stories and poems of exquisite beauty, which Dr. Oliver Sacks called “amazing and shocking.” Their eloquence gave lie to all our assumptions about autism. Here Tito goes even further and writes of how the autistic mind works, how it views the outside world and the “normal” people he deals with daily, how he tells his stories to the mirror and hears stories back, how sounds become colors, how beauty fills his mind and heart. With this work, Tito—whom Portia Iversen, co-founder of Cure Autism Now, has described as “a window into autism such as the world has never seen”—gives the world a beacon of hope. For if he can do it, why can’t others? “Brave, bold, and deeply felt, this book shows that much we might have believed about autism can be wrong.”—Boston Globe
The author, a computer science professor diagnosed with terminal cancer, explores his life, the lessons that he has learned, how he has worked to achieve his childhood dreams, and the effect of his diagnosis on him and his family.
An NPR Best Book of the Year The hilarious, charming, and candid story of writer Christopher Ingraham’s decision to uproot his life and move his family to Red Lake Falls, Minnesota, population 1,400—the community he made famous as “the worst place to live in America” in a story he wrote for the Washington Post. Like so many young American couples, Chris Ingraham and his wife Briana were having a difficult time making ends meet as they tried to raise their twin boys in the East Coast suburbs. One day, Chris – in his role as a “data guy” reporter at the Washington Post – stumbled on a study that would change his life. It was a ranking of America’s 3,000+ counties from ugliest to most scenic. He quickly scrolled to the bottom of the list and gleefully wrote the words “The absolute worst place to live in America is (drumroll please) … Red Lake County, Minn.” The story went viral, to put it mildly. Among the reactions were many from residents of Red Lake County. While they were unflappably polite – it’s not called “Minnesota Nice” for nothing – they challenged him to look beyond the spreadsheet and actually visit their community. Ingraham, with slight trepidation, accepted. Impressed by the locals’ warmth, humor and hospitality – and ever more aware of his financial situation and torturous commute – Chris and Briana eventually decided to relocate to the town he’d just dragged through the dirt on the Internet. If You Lived Here You’d Be Home by Now is the story of making a decision that turns all your preconceptions – good and bad -- on their heads. In Red Lake County, Ingraham experiences the intensity and power of small-town gossip, struggles to find a decent cup of coffee, suffers through winters with temperatures dropping to forty below zero, and unearths some truths about small-town life that the coastal media usually miss. It’s a wry and charming tale – with data! -- of what happened to one family brave enough to move waaaay beyond its comfort zone
Forget the 10,000 hour rule— what if it’s possible to learn the basics of any new skill in 20 hours or less? Take a moment to consider how many things you want to learn to do. What’s on your list? What’s holding you back from getting started? Are you worried about the time and effort it takes to acquire new skills—time you don’t have and effort you can’t spare? Research suggests it takes 10,000 hours to develop a new skill. In this nonstop world when will you ever find that much time and energy? To make matters worse, the early hours of practicing something new are always the most frustrating. That’s why it’s difficult to learn how to speak a new language, play an instrument, hit a golf ball, or shoot great photos. It’s so much easier to watch TV or surf the web . . . In The First 20 Hours, Josh Kaufman offers a systematic approach to rapid skill acquisition— how to learn any new skill as quickly as possible. His method shows you how to deconstruct complex skills, maximize productive practice, and remove common learning barriers. By completing just 20 hours of focused, deliberate practice you’ll go from knowing absolutely nothing to performing noticeably well. Kaufman personally field-tested the methods in this book. You’ll have a front row seat as he develops a personal yoga practice, writes his own web-based computer programs, teaches himself to touch type on a nonstandard keyboard, explores the oldest and most complex board game in history, picks up the ukulele, and learns how to windsurf. Here are a few of the simple techniques he teaches: Define your target performance level: Figure out what your desired level of skill looks like, what you’re trying to achieve, and what you’ll be able to do when you’re done. The more specific, the better. Deconstruct the skill: Most of the things we think of as skills are actually bundles of smaller subskills. If you break down the subcomponents, it’s easier to figure out which ones are most important and practice those first. Eliminate barriers to practice: Removing common distractions and unnecessary effort makes it much easier to sit down and focus on deliberate practice. Create fast feedback loops: Getting accurate, real-time information about how well you’re performing during practice makes it much easier to improve. Whether you want to paint a portrait, launch a start-up, fly an airplane, or juggle flaming chainsaws, The First 20 Hours will help you pick up the basics of any skill in record time . . . and have more fun along the way.
You are an individual-your very own set of specific characteristics and experiences and emotions. And yet, so much of what you're going through is relatable to so many others. This book will show you that you are never alone. Read this book if nobody texted you good morning. Read this book if you're worried that you'll never find the one. Read this book if there's something you can't forgive yourself for. Whatever you're feeling, this book will help you to feel understood.
"If you believe that your organization has done everything it can to enhance its diversity, and if you are still frustrated at how little progress you have made, Moving Diversity Forward is for you. It is an instructive read for all of those who wish to live and work in a multi-cultural world where everyone has a fair chance to succeed and contribute." -- Frank P. Barron, Chief Legal Officer, Morgan Stanley
