On Their Side: Helping Children Take Charge of Their Learning

Honest and real, full of stories straight from the classroom, this book will help you:

• Empathize with all the children you teach;
• Help children problem solve in both academic and social areas;
• Pose "real questions" that identify and frame essential issues;
• Decide when to wonder with children and when to direct them.

An excerpt from On Their Side:
"There are many ways to begin experimenting with these methods. I began in science and then moved on to math. I cut down on using time out. I experimented with the way I talked with individual children about their behavior. I began working with the whole class to figure out possible solutions to problems that came up. Although initially it was hard to change my way of thinking, once I made the switch, it was so satisfying that it soon became a habit."