This book is a guide for students writing their college admissions essays, primarily the 650-word Common App essay and supplementary essays that many schools require as part of their admission applications. With more students applying to college, and those students applying to more schools than ever before, college admission selection is far more competitive than in the past and the college essay is a key component. We offer suggestions on good topics to write about without getting too specific (and just as importantly what not to write about), vital tips on writing approach, grammar, and usage. This guide can be for anyone who wants to write better, more clearly and crisply. If used properly, this book will help you craft a readable, interesting essay that will attract the college admissions reader by giving you a creative voice and the means to express yourself. No guarantees, but it just might make a difference in the final admission process.

This handbook is a guide and recourse of strategies, tips, and how-to-do's for parents/caregivers, teachers, and school leaders. The author provides topics in the handbook that addresses parent involvement/engagement and its effect on academic achievement and school success, the benefits of parent involve/engagement and its impact, role of parents with their child's/children's education, a listing of selected easy-to-do games and instructional activities to develop and nurture self-esteem, self-confidence, resilience, and perseverance (Power Tools) to ensure school and life success. This book has tips/recommendations for not only parents/caregivers, but also for teachers and school leaders. When the home, school, and community form a viable partnership, all youth thrive and reach their potential. As an added feature of the handbook, includes brief explanations of the roles of key school personnel, general school policies, procedures, and regulations to demystify schooling to minimize misperceptions and increase positive relationships. Additionally, although the handbook is a resource all parents/caregivers in general, a chapter is included and devoted to the parents/caregivers of special needs children and discusses/shares strategies for maximizing the effectiveness of Individualized Education Program ( I.E.P.) meetings. There are also suggestions and recommendations for teachers and school leaders to participate as viable members of I.E.P. team members.

Higher education is undergoing a reinvention. More and more instruction is moving beyond the traditional lecture to include active learning and engagement supported by technology. Without training, many instructors simply continue to lecture, but those wishing to develop their pedagogy can take action and move beyond passive methods of delivering content. This book is essential reading for novice instructors, for those wishing to shift from lecturing to active learning, and for experienced educators wishing to examine their teaching practice. A detailed discussion of academic research empowers instructors to examine, develop, and justify their approach to teaching. The focus across topics rests on effective interactions and the overall classroom dynamic, grounded in psychology, the science of learning, and perspectives on critical thinking. Each chapter includes self-assessments and "things to try" in order to understand current practice and develop the ability to promote student engagement, foster critical thinking, manage challenging behaviors, and positively shape the classroom dynamic. While the primary audience is the college or university instructor, the key concepts and suggestions in this book are also appropriate for pre-college teachers and for individuals interested in developing effective interpersonal interactions.

The Economic and Opportunity Gap has a great deal of information, ideas and resources focused on children and families living in poverty. Specifically, how teachers and other professionals working with students can reflect, improve, and implement inclusive practices. The information in this book is based in research, such as the foundational starting piece that nearly one-fourth of our children in the United States are living in poverty, a whopping 21%. This number, one that is doubled in some communities and does not consider children in families near the poverty line, is striking when compared to other similarly situated countries. Understanding that many students and families are on the trajectory of poverty will come to light as readers make their way through from statistics, to research, to definitions, to action items.

The Economic and Opportunity Gap has a great deal of information, ideas and resources focused on children and families living in poverty. Specifically, how teachers and other professionals working with students can reflect, improve, and implement inclusive practices. The information in this book is based in research, such as the foundational starting piece that nearly one-fourth of our children in the United States are living in poverty, a whopping 21%. This number, one that is doubled in some communities and does not consider children in families near the poverty line, is striking when compared to other similarly situated countries. Understanding that many students and families are on the trajectory of poverty will come to light as readers make their way through from statistics, to research, to definitions, to action items.

Higher education is undergoing a reinvention. More and more instruction is moving beyond the traditional lecture to include active learning and engagement supported by technology. Without training, many instructors simply continue to lecture, but those wishing to develop their pedagogy can take action and move beyond passive methods of delivering content. This book is essential reading for novice instructors, for those wishing to shift from lecturing to active learning, and for experienced educators wishing to examine their teaching practice. A detailed discussion of academic research empowers instructors to examine, develop, and justify their approach to teaching. The focus across topics rests on effective interactions and the overall classroom dynamic, grounded in psychology, the science of learning, and perspectives on critical thinking. Each chapter includes self-assessments and "things to try" in order to understand current practice and develop the ability to promote student engagement, foster critical thinking, manage challenging behaviors, and positively shape the classroom dynamic. While the primary audience is the college or university instructor, the key concepts and suggestions in this book are also appropriate for pre-college teachers and for individuals interested in developing effective interpersonal interactions.

Teaching controversial issues in the classroom is now more urgent and fraught than ever as we face up to rising authoritarianism, racial and economic injustice, and looming environmental disaster. Despite evidence that teaching controversy is critical, educators often avoid it. How then can we prepare and support teachers to undertake this essential but difficult work? Hard Questions: Learning to Teach Controversial Issues, based on a cross-national qualitative study, examines teacher educators' efforts to prepare preservice teachers for teaching controversial issues that matter for democracy, justice, and human rights. It presents four detailed cases of teacher preparation in three politically divided societies: Northern Ireland, England, and the United States. The book traces graduate students' learning from university coursework into the classrooms where they work to put what they have learned into practice. It explores their application of pedagogical tools and the factors that facilitated or hindered their efforts to teach controversy. The book's cross-national perspective is compelling to a broad and diverse audience, raising critical questions about teaching controversial issues and providing educators, researchers, and policymakers tools to help them fulfill this essential democratic mission of education.

Honoring Identities argues that creating culturally responsive learning communities is a process which begins with building community, cultivating certain student and teacher dispositions, nurturing social justice, leveraging the power of talk and dialogic exchange, using Cultural Identity Literature (CIL) to build bridges and to normalize difference, and fostering a culture of civil discourse. Honoring Identities provides both theory and practice to advance the important mission of building culturally responsive mindsets and to ensure that all students feel like they have a place at the learning table. CIL reflects and honors the lives of all young people, and GREEN APPLE questions focus their reading on key facets of identity, multiplying the effectiveness of the reading experience. GREEN APPLE questions also provide a lens for anyone else wishing to select CIL. The questions not only illuminate different perspectives of a text but make readers aware that individual experiences color the reading of a text.

With conversations about sexual violence, consent, and bodily autonomy dominating national conversations it can be easy to get lost in the onslaught of well-intended but often poorly executed messages. Through an exploration of research, scholarly expertise, and practical real-world application we can better formulate an understanding of what consent is, how we create consent cultures, and where the path forward lies. This book is designed with both educators and parents in mind. The tools highlighted throughout help adults unlearn harmful narratives about consent, boundaries, and relationships so that they can begin their work internally through modeling and self-reflection. We then uncover what consent truly is and is not, how culture plays an integral role in interpersonal scripting, and how teaching consent as a life skill can look in and out of the classroom. By integrating the need for consent to be taught in schools and homes we build bridges between the spaces where children learn and create alliances in the often-daunting task of eradicating rape-culture. This book is perfect for those already comfortable and familiar with this topic as well as those newer to understanding consent as a paradigm. Starting with a strong historical and research-informed foundation the book builds into action-oriented guidelines for conversations, curriculum, and community activism. This blended approach creates a guidebook that is unlike anything else on the market today.

Teaching controversial issues in the classroom is now more urgent and fraught than ever as we face up to rising authoritarianism, racial and economic injustice, and looming environmental disaster. Despite evidence that teaching controversy is critical, educators often avoid it. How then can we prepare and support teachers to undertake this essential but difficult work? Hard Questions: Learning to Teach Controversial Issues, based on a cross-national qualitative study, examines teacher educators' efforts to prepare preservice teachers for teaching controversial issues that matter for democracy, justice, and human rights. It presents four detailed cases of teacher preparation in three politically divided societies: Northern Ireland, England, and the United States. The book traces graduate students' learning from university coursework into the classrooms where they work to put what they have learned into practice. It explores their application of pedagogical tools and the factors that facilitated or hindered their efforts to teach controversy. The book's cross-national perspective is compelling to a broad and diverse audience, raising critical questions about teaching controversial issues and providing educators, researchers, and policymakers tools to help them fulfill this essential democratic mission of education.

Honoring Identities argues that creating culturally responsive learning communities is a process which begins with building community, cultivating certain student and teacher dispositions, nurturing social justice, leveraging the power of talk and dialogic exchange, using Cultural Identity Literature (CIL) to build bridges and to normalize difference, and fostering a culture of civil discourse. Honoring Identities provides both theory and practice to advance the important mission of building culturally responsive mindsets and to ensure that all students feel like they have a place at the learning table. CIL reflects and honors the lives of all young people, and GREEN APPLE questions focus their reading on key facets of identity, multiplying the effectiveness of the reading experience. GREEN APPLE questions also provide a lens for anyone else wishing to select CIL. The questions not only illuminate different perspectives of a text but make readers aware that individual experiences color the reading of a text.

This book offers readers opportunities to explore the most common universal themes taught in secondary English Language Arts classrooms using contemporary young adult literature. Authors discuss adolescence and adolescent readers, young adult literature and its possibilities in the classroom, and ways to teach thematic analysis. The book provides context, traditional approaches to teaching and examples of thematic explorations of each of the chosen themes. Chapters include developed teaching instructional units to study three universal themes: a journey of self-discovery; good vs. bad, right vs. wrong, and making difficult choices, and developing positive self-perception. Each instructional unit includes rationale, essential questions and objectives, calendar plans for up to six weeks, examples of introductory, reading and discussing, and enrichment activities and assessments. The activities target academic skills for ELA curricula and create safe spaces for exploring topics of identity struggles and personal growth complicated by social issues, all of which adolescents face today. Each instructional chapter suggests a wide range of additional texts and resources for theme explorations.

This book offers readers opportunities to explore the most common universal themes taught in secondary English Language Arts classrooms using contemporary young adult literature. Authors discuss adolescence and adolescent readers, young adult literature and its possibilities in the classroom, and ways to teach thematic analysis. The book provides context, traditional approaches to teaching and examples of thematic explorations of each of the chosen themes. Chapters include developed teaching instructional units to study three universal themes: a journey of self-discovery; good vs. bad, right vs. wrong, and making difficult choices, and developing positive self-perception. Each instructional unit includes rationale, essential questions and objectives, calendar plans for up to six weeks, examples of introductory, reading and discussing, and enrichment activities and assessments. The activities target academic skills for ELA curricula and create safe spaces for exploring topics of identity struggles and personal growth complicated by social issues, all of which adolescents face today. Each instructional chapter suggests a wide range of additional texts and resources for theme explorations.

Is College a Lousy Investment?: Negotiating the Hidden Cost of Higher Education discusses many of the economic misconceptions about earning a college degree. While it is widely believed that attending college guarantees wealth and success, students, concerned parents, and higher education professionals have neglected calculating the full-range of short-term and long-terms costs. Our work illustrates how the promotion of education merely as a commodity come at a high price for the individual and society. We argue how the idea of 'investment' can be expanded from a short-sighted view to engage a broader, more holistic rationale for higher education from which students can expect a full return on investment.

For much of the twentieth century, the definition of success for most community colleges revolved around student retention and graduation. This definition no longer works-if it ever did. In Student Success in the Community College: What Really Works? respected community college leaders, researchers, and innovators argue that student success is about redesigning community colleges in a manner that is consistent with each college's mission, goals, student population, and resources. Concluding that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to increasing student success, chapter authors analyze national, state, and regional efforts to increase student success; identify principles institutions can use to frame student success initiatives; and outline specific actions community colleges can take to increase student-and institutional-success. Student Success in the Community College: What Really Works? also provides concrete examples of effective student success initiatives in a variety of community college settings.

For much of the twentieth century, the definition of success for most community colleges revolved around student retention and graduation. This definition no longer works-if it ever did. In Student Success in the Community College: What Really Works? respected community college leaders, researchers, and innovators argue that student success is about redesigning community colleges in a manner that is consistent with each college's mission, goals, student population, and resources. Concluding that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to increasing student success, chapter authors analyze national, state, and regional efforts to increase student success; identify principles institutions can use to frame student success initiatives; and outline specific actions community colleges can take to increase student-and institutional-success. Student Success in the Community College: What Really Works? also provides concrete examples of effective student success initiatives in a variety of community college settings.

Even when everything is going wrong, the science of happiness can help you! Pioneering positive psychologist and New York Times-bestselling author Tal Ben-Shahar shows us how in Happier, No Matter What. Ben-Shahar busts the all-too-common ideas that success brings happiness and that we can seek happiness itself. When hard times thwart our success and steal our joy, these ideas actually invite despair by leaving us with nothing to do. But we can do something: We can climb the SPIRE--Ben-Shahar's five-step staircase to hope and purpose. Spiritual: I am experiencing meaning. Physical: My body's needs are met. Intellectual: I am learning. Relational: My friends support me. Emotional: I am allowed to feel. By truly living these five elements of well-being, we build the resilience to carry us through anything--from a personal loss to a global pandemic. Ben-Shahar's all-new SPIRE method shows us the way to becoming "whole again"--and when we're whole, we invite happiness in.

I WISH I KNEW THEN WHAT I KNOW NOW
Don't get to the end of your law school career muttering these words to yourself Take the first step toward building a productive, successful, and perhaps even pleasant law school experience--read this book
Written by students, for students, " Law School Confidential" has been the "must-have" guide for anyone thinking about, applying to, or attending law school for more than a decade. And now, in this newly revised third edition, it's more valuable than ever.
This isn't the advice of graying professors or battle-scarred practitioners long removed from law school. Robert H. Miller has assembled a blue-ribbon panel of recent graduates from across the country to offer realistic and informative firsthand advice about what law school is really like.
This updated edition contains the very latest information and strategies for thriving and surviving in law school--from navigating the admissions process and securing financial aid, choosing classes, studying and exam strategies, and securing a seat on the law review to getting a judicial clerkship and a job, passing the bar exam, and much, much more. Newly added material also reveals a sea change that is just starting to occur in legal education, turning it away from the theory-based platform of the previous several decades to a pragmatic platform being demanded by the rigors of today's practices.
"Law School Confidential" is a complete guide to the law school experience that no prospective or current law student can afford to be without.

An accessible guide for fun and stress-free homeschooling! When you homeschool your children, you can shape their education according to your own standards, values, and ideas. In The Everything Guide to Homeschooling, homeschooler Sherri Linsenbach provides you with all the information, inspiration, and encouragement you need to easily and successfully homeschool your children from grades K-12. This complete guide contains information on: The Common Core standards and how they impact families Creating plans for typical homeschool days, including schedules and activities Utilizing curriculum resources, strategies, and methods Managing specific learning styles and special needs This guide is packed full of ideas to make homeschooling your child easy, affordable, and, most of all, fun. With ideas for tackling social issues and motivating your child, this is the only reference you'll need to keep home education exciting and ensure your child's success!

Kiyosaki expands on his belief that the school system was created to churn out 'Es' / Employees...those "A Students" who read well, memorize well and test well...and not the creative thinkers, visionaries and dreamers -entrepreneurs-in-the-making...those "C Students who grow up to be the innovators and creators of new ideas, businesses, applications and products. The book urges parents not to be obsessed with their kids' "letter grades" ("good grades" might only mean they or the student themselves were successful in jamming a square peg into a round hole...) and focus, instead, on concepts, ideas, and helping their child find their true genius, their special gift. The path they can pursue with a love and true passion. Robert showcases success stories of "C Students" who grew up to be phenomenal successes - and HIRED those "A Students"(attorneys, accountants, and other school-smart specialists) to work in their businesses...while the more average students, "B Students," often find themselves in government-type jobs...Not surprisingly, Kiyosaki will coin his own definitions of what "A," "B," and "C" stand for as he gives parents and their children bits of wisdom as well as insights and tools for navigating an ever-changing world. ..an Information Age world where the ability to change and adapt, understand relationships, and anticipate the future will shape their lives.

Brain Changers: The Most Important Advances in Children’s Learning and Intelligence represents my second book of The Brain Smart Trilogy. This book presents an in-depth look at successful learning techniques and current brain research about how to increase children’s learning potential at all age levels. In my opinion, the words brain changing supports an often-ignored, yet obvious concept that children learn best when they are interested or passionate about learning. Our brain’s limbic system knows this when it forms emotional connections or attachment (bonding) to learning. For example, a major area of our brain associated with the brain changing concept is called the hippocampus. In fact, the hippocampus is the only part of your child’s learning brain where neurons regenerate or make more neurons. The medical world connects this positive brain changing experience and calls it brain plasticity or the brain’s ability to modify its connections or rewire itself. Studies show that without this ability, any brain, not just the human brain, would be unable to develop from infancy to adulthood. In my opinion, this book’s information provides readers with up-to-date brain research and proven learning techniques to support my brain changing thesis for all individuals interested in helping children reach high levels of learning.

This book is an indispensable how-to guide on flourishing when studying abroad, and how to use an international education to begin a fulfilling career after graduation. Written in an engaging and accessible style, using many examples, case studies, and links to resources, the book reduces the stress of studying abroad. Covering all aspects of the international student experience - inside and outside the classroom - the book encourages young people to perform their very best and succeed in their new environment. International students preparing for cross-cultural learning and recent graduates looking for employment will find this book both practical and inspiring.

Essential reading if you are considering making an application for primary initial teacher education or preparing to begin your programme. It introduces you to a range of perspectives on teaching and teacher education and guides you through the application process to ensure you choose the training route that's right for you and achieve a successful result. Key chapters cover developing your subject knowledge in English and mathematics, understanding the curriculum, the nature of learning, assessment, behaviour issues and inclusive teaching. Useful features such as jargon busters, progress checklists and case studies make the material accessible and help you navigate the 'new landscape' of teacher education. In addition the text encourages you to reflect critically on your school experiences of learning and teaching and uses example of theory, research and practice to help you develop an informed stance on important themes.

In How Stories Teach Us: Composition, Life Writing, and Blended Scholarship, Amy E. Robillard and D. Shane Combs leave behind the debate between the personal and the academic in composition studies in order to witness what happens when composition scholars allow both the personal and the academic to act upon them in the stories they tell. The editors and contributors, in blending their scholarship, celebrate the influence of life writing on their work and allow the contexts of their lives and the urgency of their stories to blend together for a range of approaches to scholarship and essay writing. This blended scholarship features scholars and teachers dealing with loss, grief, illness, trauma, depression, abuse, gender identity, and the ravages of time. How Stories Teach Us is both a challenge and an invitation to composition scholars to pursue a fuller and more robust approach to their scholarship and life stories. It is also an invitation to teachers of composition to open up the potentials of blended scholarship to the students they teach.