The In's and Out's of Online Instruction: Transitioning from Brick and Mortar to Online Teaching Review

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(More customer reviews)I am truly enjoying reading this book: The In's and Out's of Online Instruction. I do not know much about online teaching or learning; however, as an industrial arts teacher, teaching was all about the methodology and this book about online instruction shows exceptional methodology for teaching online. The continuous contact with students, the warm caring environment, and the exceptional feedback to students is what good teaching is all about. As an administrator and consultant for the State Dept. of Education, I wish half of the teachers I consulted and observed had this type of methodology in their face to face classrooms.

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The In's and Out's of Online Instruction: Transitioning from Brick and Mortar to Online Teaching is a great resource for the teacher who is considering a transition to online instruction. It is also filled with wonderful tips for the seasoned online instructor as well. No matter if you teach online or are considering teaching online, this book is for you!Online teaching is rewarding and exciting. It enables educators to work from home or anywhere in the world where there is an Internet connection. It is flexible and allows instructors to teach early in the morning, in the middle of the day, and/or late at night. The statistics say by 2019 more than 50% of high school classes will be delivered virtually. Plus more and more universities are adding online departments to their well-established brick and mortar degree programs. With online instruction growing at a more rapid pace than traditional brick-and-mortar classroom instruction, a classroom instructor or college professor who is considering making the switch to online instruction has many things to think about before making the leap. In this book, there are tips on how to find an online job both from online job billboards and from searching through a plethora of online universities for a position that is right for you. The book will take you step by step through the process of applying for a position, writing your resume/curriculum vitae, interviewing, training, and preparing you for that first day of class.Wouldn't it be nice to set your own office hours? How about the days and hours you wish to work? The goal of effective time management is to know how you spend your time and make purposeful decisions on how to balance work, family, and leisure time. In the online classroom, the biggest draw for both students and instructors is the anytime, anywhere aspect. Students and instructors can work any hour of the day or night, any day of the week, any time of the year. You can work around all of your family's extracurricular activities and even take vacations when no one else can! This book will guide you on stetting up a work schedule that fits your lifestyle.There are several online resources that can help you with your job search. There are also several online discussion groups where current and prospective online faculty network and share leads; Yahoo! groups have more than one group for online adjuncts where networking occurs and job opportunities are passed along. Just like learning online, teaching online is not for everyone. This book will assist faculty members to determine if online teaching is a good fit and, if it is, to find a position and make the transition from the brick-and-mortar classroom to online instruction. This book will also help the new online instructor become more comfortable and efficient in the classroom. You will find ideas and suggestions for setting up and maintaining a positive, inviting online classroom that invites collaboration from your students.Many online instructors work at home for part or all of the day. The majority of work in an online class is completed at the computer. Organization is the key! Keeping all of your materials organized saves time from hunting through piles of material to find a specific paper. This book is not just for the new online instructor but contains a plethora of tips and shortcuts for managing your online class, including grading and participation. You will also find great strategies for handling challenges that accompany online learning, such as plagiarism, flaming, group problems, and many other difficult situations.Inside this book you will find great icebreakers, ways to divide students into groups, and how to solve problems and/or be proactive to minimize problems in the collaborative forums. We invite you to use this book as a tool in creating and maintaining your online classroom!

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Writing to Persuade: Minilessons to Help Students Plan, Draft, and Revise, Grades 3-8 Review

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(More customer reviews)First off, I must say that I am not a big fan of "canned curriculum" but I decided to try a workshop approach to persuasive writing this year since I am doing Writer's Workshop in my 3rd grade class. I have always used more of a guided writing format for persuasive writing in the past, since it is so difficult to teach. I work at a small school and am the only third grade teacher and I felt like I needed some guidance in tackling persuasive writing in Writers Workshop. This books lesson-by-lesson support gave me the courage to face persuasive writing in a more organic form. There is a lesson map at the beginning of the book which tells you which lessons to do for what grade level. Obviously, all lessons are appropriate for third grade. It pretty much gives you verbatim minilessons to introduce each phase of the writing with your class (which is nice for the first time through). The author also offers support on how to handle issue that may (and will) come up throughout the process. I would definitely recommend this book to any teacher wanting to use the Workshop approach to teach Persuasive Writing. The second grade teacher at my school even adapted it for his class.

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I love this book for all it teaches us about persuasive writing and for how it strengthens our understanding of this expansive genre…. Having read it, I am wiser about teaching -and writing - persuasion. You will be, too.

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The 86th Degree Review

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(More customer reviews)Barbara Harken writes with fervor in "The 86th Degree." She relates the story of Amber Helm. Her novel combines a story of romance, rejection, self acceptance, and emotional healing.
Amber, young and idealistic, has intentionally chosen teaching as a profession to enable her to positively influence students. She is a high school teacher in Chicago's inner city. Amber has been instrumental in securing a grant for the school to sponsor a special class to encourage young journalism students. Ethan Michaels will be teaching the five week class.
Amber is conflicted as she learns that Ethan will be leading the class and that she has been assigned to welcome him to the school as a department host. Three years earlier Amber had walked out on Ethan after a brief summer romance and had not seen or heard from him since.
As Amber relives some deep rooted emotional experiences of her childhood, her mother's illness, and the demands of her wealthy father she finds herself on an emotional roller coaster.
Amber is faced with stark reality of the emotional crisis that one of her students, Jocelyn is going through. She begins to cultivate friendship with her and soon discovers that there is an abusive relationship in the home. Her own deep seated anger and emotional scars cause Amber to make unwise decisions that have serious ramifications on her career.
Harken introduces the reader to the foundational issues of child abuse, verbal, and physical, and of the paradigm shift in philosophical, psychological, and legal implications being faced in our society today.
Conflict, resolution, and more conflict keep the reader glued to the pages of this important novel which creates a social awareness and critique of the problem of abusive relationships and the importance of the availability of emotional caregivers, and interventions.
Barbara Harken writes convincingly with a strong plot, crisp dialog, and believable characters. She has used her own experience in the classroom to create a timely, engrossing, poignant story of hurt and healing.


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Amber Helm begins her third year of teaching full of excitement, glad to be back in the comfort zone of the classroom.At the beginning teacher inservice, she discovers that for several weeks, a former lover from college will be the "Artist in Residence," the man she walked out on three years ago.Set back by the inevitable confrontation, she resolves to treat him as an adult, a resolve not likely to happen.Just as Amber thinks life is under control, in walks Jocelyn Quint, angry sophomore and abused child.When Amber reaches out to Jocelyn, she is falsely accused of assault on Jocelyn's mother and suspended.The ripples of her own relationship with a toxic mother surface, and she must do more than get her job back.She must learn to love herself, and then be open to a love that waits for her.

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