Reclaim your fire. '"Teaching with Fire" is a glorious collection of the poetry that has restored the faith of teachers in the highest, most transcendent values of their work with children...Those who want us to believe that teaching is a technocratic and robotic skill devoid of art or joy or beauty need to read this powerful collection. So, for that matter, do we all' - Jonathan Kozol, author of "Amazing Grace and Savage Inequalities". 'When reasoned argument fails, poetry helps us make sense of life. A few well-chosen images, the spinning together of words creates a way of seeing where we came from and lights up possibilities for where we might be going...Dip in, read, and ponder; share with others. It's inspiration in the very best sense' - Deborah Meier, co-principal of The Mission Hill School, Boston and founder of a network of schools in East Harlem, New York.'In the Confucian tradition it is said that the mark of a golden era is that children are the most important members of the society and teaching is the most revered profession. Our journey to that ideal may be a long one, but it is books like this that will sustain us - for who are we all at our best save teachers, and who matters more to us than the children?' - Peter M. Senge, founding chair, SoL (Society for Organizational Learning) and author of "The Fifth Discipline".Those of us who care about the young and their education must find ways to remember what teaching and learning are really about. We must find ways to keep our hearts alive as we serve our students. Poetry has the power to keep us vital and focused on what really matters in life and in schooling. "Teaching with Fire" is a wonderful collection of eighty-eight poems from such well-loved poets as Walt Whitman, Langston Hughes, Billy Collins, Emily Dickinson, and Pablo Neruda. Each of these evocative poems is accompanied by a brief story from a teacher explaining the significance of the poem in his or her life's work. This beautiful book also includes an essay that describes how poetry can be used to grow both personally and professionally. "Teaching With Fire" was written in partnership with the Center for Teacher Formation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Royalties from this book will be used to fund scholarship opportunities for teachers to grow and learn.

WISE STORIES TO HONOR AND ENCOURAGE THE HEARTS OF TEACHERS

"A heartwarming collection of essays about the doubts, passions, insecurities, and life-changing moments of teachers."
--American School Board Journal

"Our history books are filled with examples of the efforts of committed education employees who helped to make this country what it is today. Stories of the Courage to Teach challenges today's teachers to see themselves not only as school employees, dedicated to serving children, but as leaders in their schools and communities."
--Bob Chase, president, National Education Association

"It's the worst-kept secret in education: the passionate and talented teacher makes more of a difference than any school policy. Yet for all the ink spilled over school reform, little gets written about what makes a great teacher tick. Stories of the Courage to Teach . . . [by Sam Intrator] bucks this trend by looking into the hearts of twenty-five effective teachers, knitting together their first-person narratives with his own ideas about great teaching."
--New York Times

"The teachers featured in this anthology have all, at various junctures, been on the verge of exhaustion, and the book is, in many ways, a sustained meditation on how they've sought to regain their emotional and spiritual strength."
--Teacher Magazine

"Stories of the Courage to Teach . . . honors teachers who struggle to rekindle their passion for teaching."
--Christian Science Monitor

Praise for Living the Questions

"Living the Questions is a tribute to a great man by those he has awakened to their own unique greatness. This is a book about love, courage, community, integrity, service, and humility, with a single message: to teach is to be immortal. Living the Questions is a profound testimony to our power to make a difference in this world, one heart at a time."
--Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D., author, Kitchen Table Wisdom and My Grandfather's Blessings

"Attests to the pervasive infectiousness of Parker J. Palmer's gentle touch, soulful honesty, and deep inquiry into the service of authenticity and clarity. A collection of extraordinary and extraordinarily moving explorations of the inner and outer landscapes of our minds and hearts and world! There is much wisdom here from authors who have shared so much of themselves and their struggles, very much in the tradition of Palmer himself. Not to be missed. A gift of pure passion and compassion."
--Jon Kabat-Zinn, author, Coming to Our Senses

"In A Hidden Wholeness, Parker J. Palmer writes that in refusing to move to the back of the bus Rosa Parks was choosing to live divided no more. That's the choice we made in the Civil Rights movement. It was a good and right choice, as important now as it was then. Living the Questions tells of others who also walk toward wholeness."
--John Lewis, Georgia representative; coauthor, Walking with the Wind; recipient, Martin Luther King Jr. Nonviolent Peace Prize

"A remarkable collection of essays that beautifully captures the profound influence that Parker J. Palmer has had. Reading Living the Questions is encouraging, a great reminder of one of Parker's favoriteexhortations: 'Be not afraid!'"
--Larry C. Spears, editor and coauthor, Practicing Servant Leadership; president and CEO, The Robert K. Greenleaf Center, Indianapolis, Indiana

"Prepare for a delectable conversation with poetic people, all of whom have been profoundly influenced by Parker J. Palmer."
--Geoff Bellman, consultant; author, The Consultant's Calling

In The Quest for Mastery, Sam M. Intrator and Don Siegel investigate an emerging trend: the growth of out-of-school programmes dedicated to helping underserved youth develop the personal qualities and capacities that will help them succeed in school, college, and beyond. Intensive programmes from rowing to youth radio, from lacrosse to studio art, aim to create "communities of practice" that capture young people's interest and support them as they strive to excel. Through richly detailed accounts, the authors describe the unconventional ways these programmes have evolved and articulate the formidable challenges they face in operationalising their aspirations. By documenting the powerful effect out-of-school programmes like these can have in transforming lives, the authors show how young people can become engaged in meaningful and productive learning experiences and highlight the poignant contrast between what these students experience inside and outside of school.

We treasure the occasions when a classroom of students becomes totally focused, absorbed by ideas. How can teachers make these special moments happen more often? Every teacher has powerful memories of becoming swept up in an electric moment when the classroom hums with energy and students are wholly engaged in learning. During such moments of real learning, teenagers find genuine meaning, worth, and value in their academic experiences. And their teachers find in these heightened and exuberant moments the embodiment of their best hopes and ideals as educators. How can such "teachable moments" be encouraged? What can teachers do to inspire more of these educationally vital episodes? In this compelling book, Sam M. Intrator scrutinizes powerful learning moments in a high school classroom. He offers five detailed portraits of these experiences, describing in each case how the teacher shaped the culture of the class, made critical pedagogical decisions, and connected students to the subject matter. Intrator confirms that seemingly magical learning moments can becultivated, and he suggests numerous practical ideas to help teachers do so.