More Readers Theatre for Middle School Boys: Adventures with Mythical Creatures by Ann N. Black (Teacher Ideas Press, 2009, 153 p., $_____, ISBN: 1591587573)

You mean boys will stand up in front of folks and perform? Unheard of unless its something they can get interested in. And in this second volume from Black, she presents some mythical creatures that just might be the thing to stir those bored bones to action. There are creatures from Africa, , American Indians, Greece, India, Ireland, and Scandinavia. Yes, there is blood and guts, and while readser’s theater doesn’t require props, certainly the boys could investigate and create some ferocious masks to go with their presentation and such props  actually might be incentive enough to perform first in the classroom and then at a listening lunch in the learning commons. Even better, as the idea is tried and other creature are encountered in their studies, think of having the class write their own reader’s theatre. It is just a matter of getting them started and would be a great project for collaborative work among the teens and with  various adults in the school. Get a copy today and get going.

Teaching writing using blogs, wikis, and other digital tools by Richrd Beach, et al. (Christopher Gordon Publishers, 2009, 258p., $_____, ISBN: 9781933760285)

Web 2.0 tools open a host of possibilities for writing; better writing; creative writing; collaborative writing; personal writing; assigned writing; and, any other type of writing one seems to be able to think of. Writing using pencil and paper predominated; then came the typewriter; then the word processor; now, the web. But simply doing the same writing excercises from previous technologies is not likely to produce any gains in writing quality, amount, or sophistication. All teachers who expect writing products need to re-examine totatly what is possible using the new technolgies from texting to tweeting, to social networking, and on into the mainstream of Web 2.0. Then, it is not just a matter of making the tools available. It is the coaching of this digital generation how to take advantage of the new power within the world of learning. Beach and tem provide many many examples of real writing using the power of technology to actually make an impact on both writing skill and voice among many other qualities that need to be developed. That is why I recommend this book to suggest a variety of techniques. Test the ideas as collaborative teacher librarian classroom teacher teams. What works best? With what kinds of learners. Certainly real projects that naturally involve writing are likely to produce the best results and one-shot trials will not automatically produce the improvements we want. Bottom line. Milk this book for ideas. Add them to your repertoire disocover and share every other idea you can find. This generation deserves it.

Total instructional alignment means that state standards, the curriculum, and assessment are in sync. We as teachers know the specific expectations, we know what and how to teach at what grade level, and the various tests the students take will exactly match the expectations and what was taught. In the last survey we saw, only one or two states have matched the standards with the assessment and provided guidance on what should be taught at each grade level. Frankly, it’s a fractured mess. And, we now face “reform” of NCLB. Carter’s book makes sens in theory if you believe that a lockstep approach with every teacher acting as a robot is the magic pill that will cure education. Admittedly, more alignment would make sense. But we have to come to terms with differentiation, diversity, inquiry vs. behaviorst strategies =, and concentration on minimums vs. excellence. Thus, this book is a very understandable explanation of one part of a very complex picture. It is ofen interpreted in the individual school as a dictate for everyone to be teaching exactly the same thing, the same way, and at the same time; certainly an invitation for a disaster. I am sure that Carter would shudder at a total lock step curriculum. Where is creativity? Where is inquiry? Where does the digital native fit? How does the library/learning commons fit? How can the library/learning commons program work in tandem with total alignment? This book will not answer those questions. There has to be a larger picture. Perhaps Carter could address these and other realities in a second edition.