Powerful Classroom Stories from Accomplished Teachers

"We must improve schools from within, utilizing our expertise as teaching professionals and placing ourselves at the center of the education reform movement. As Adrienne Mack-Kirschner informs us all in this important book, 'These stories represent what is happening in tens of thousands of classrooms. They hold within them the power of what could be if all teachers and schools provided opportunities for all children to experience powerful teaching and learning.'" --From the Foreword by Cathy R. Owens, NBCT Director of Teacher Leadership Initiatives The National Board for Professional Teaching StandardsInspiring stories from everyday classrooms to move your head, heart, and soul . . . In an increasingly rigid educational world dominated by standards, lock-step scope and sequence, and strict, scripted lessons, we can sometimes lose sight of why we chose to become teachers in the first place. This important book puts the heart and soul back in education, reminding us that we are not only teachers, but also parents, mentors, friends, and leaders. Powerful Classroom Stories from Accomplished Teachers contains 70 wonderful, inspiring stories told by accomplished classroom teachers, all of whom have achieved or are candidates for National Board Certification. These stories reach behind and around the statistics to highlight the art, craft, joys, and challenges of teaching in today's classrooms, breathing fresh life into the countless students we face every day. Creative, caring teachers invite you into their classrooms as they relate compelling and moving narratives, allowing us to witness, first-hand, essential teaching and learning moments in the lives of individual children. The stories offer examples of instructional activities that are real, student-centered, meaningful, and most of all-lasting! Stories are grouped in harmony with the Five Core Propositions of accomplished teaching, as defined by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards: Teachers are committed to students and their learning Teachers know the subjects they teach and how to teach those subjects to students Teachers are responsible for managing and monitoring student learning Teachers think systematically about their practice and learn from experience Teachers are members of learning communities All of us have been touched in some way by the teachers we've encountered in our lives. This incredibly moving tribute to the artistry and love of teaching opens classroom doors and lets us look inside to find out what really makes a difference in the lives of our nation's students.

Table of Contents:
Foreword - Cathy R. Owens Acknowledgments About the Author About the Contributors Introduction: The Power of Story It′s Okay Not to Be Perfect - Adrienne Mack-Kirschner As Loud as Thunder - Adrienne Mack-Kirschner Resource National Board Core Proposition 1: Teachers Are Committed to Students and Their Learning Making a Difference - Christina Maffia Christopher and Clarence - Renee A. Moore The Hook - Carolyn Moser Oh No, Not Her! - Kathleen Pickard Invisible - Genevieve Bodnar His Words, His Way - Cheri J. Mann What Dog? - Sharon Chaney A Student′s Road to Success - William Dean Our Journey - Odessa Cleveland You Just Never Know - Judith A. Chalmers From Cocoon to Butterfly: Up Close and Personal - Rosemary Fryer The Pelican Way - Kathryn Gemmer First Comes Love - Wendy Hacke Success: Measured in Inches, Not Feet - Foster Walsh Finding Miguel - Damien Riley A Gift of Cookies - Ann Matthys Smalley Reflection Resources References National Board Core Proposition 2: Teachers Know the Subjects They Teach and How to Teach Those Subjects to Students Rembrandt Comes in All Sizes - Kathleen A. Blake Collect, Select, and Reflect - John Dorroh Elementary Artist Studies - Kelly Campbell-Busby Not Just Another Field Trip - Pamela Beery Blueberry Stains - Kathleen Gonzalez The Phone Call - Mark Ellis The Forgotten Holocaust (Classroom Story) - Renee O′Brien The Forgotten Holocaust (Poem) - Virak An Emotional Response - Jeanne Owens "Way Out" But Wonderful and Worth It - Marcia Harris Even Comedians Need to Write - Maureen Robinson Getting to Know Gina - Catherine Humphrey Poetry Lesson - Diane Saienni Albanese Three Pigs - Helene Hirsch Grown-Up Language - Stephanie Penniman Economics 101 - Helene Hirsch Teaching Him to Read - Anthony John Vincent Griffin Reflection Resources References National Board Core Proposition 3: Teachers Are Responsible for Managing and Monitoring Student Learning Role Model - Alfee Enciso One Meeting You Won′t Mind Attending - Patrice J. Faison A Gram of Truth - David Feela "Fair Is Foul, and Foul Is Fair" - Joel Kammer A Gift of Progress - Cindy Taylor A Lesson About Diversity From Kyle - Linda T. Johnson Jose - David Ross Hunger - Shelia Sutton Finding Freddie - Macre Jay Schwartz The Power of Words - Nicki O′Neill Carley - Linda Hollett Reflection Resources National Board Core Proposition 4: Teachers Think Systematically About Their Practice and Learn from Experience 10 Powerful Consummations of Teaching and Learning From a Reflective National Board Certified Teacher - Lynn Gannon Patterson Quality Verbal Discourse - Olivia Herring The Prodigal Stapler - Janet Hironaka A Message to Keep Close at Heart - Susan Sheffield Brandon We Are Writing - Marlene Carter The "Unplanned" Lesson - Marta C. Findlay-Partridge What Holly Heard: R.L. Stine in the Classroom - Stacia A. Smith Inspire - Barbara Yvette LeWinter Our Story - Janet Hironaka Reflection Resources National Board Core Proposition 5: Teachers Are Members of Learning Communities A Box is Not Just a Box - Tammi Bender Teachers Are Students Too - Tammi Bender Sharing What Works and What Doesn′t Work - Claudia L. Swisher The Importance of Partnerships - Karen M. Caruso Taking the Lid Off: Social Studies and the Arts - Sharon McCubbin Opening the Door to Possibilities - Mary Hanson No More Two by Four - Brenda Culp Smith Classroom Assignment: Get on the Oprah Winfrey Show - Michael Taylor A Collegial Approach to Teaching Art Critique - Constance M. Rogers Lyreesha - Helene Hirsch If I Can Think It, I Can Speak It - Kathy L. Smith In Memoriam: Peijian, December 11, 1986 - May 5, 2003 - Kathy L. Smith Hamburger = America - Cecelia D. Lozano Reflection Resources Conclusion: Those Who Can Teach, Do David′s Rose - Rebecca Witt Show Me the Money - Marlene Carter Reference Index

About the Author :
Adrienne Mack-Kirschner, Ed.D., NBCT, is an education consultant and speaker with vast experience as a classroom teacher, mentor, writer, literacy coach, and support provider for candidates applying for Certification throught the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS). She developed and directed NB support programs at the University of California, Los Angeles, and for the Los Angeles County Office of Education. She has personally supported more than 700 teachers in the certification process, enjoying one of the highest success rates in the country. Adrienne's publications include The Teacher's Guide to National Board Certification: Unpacking the Standards (2003), The National Board Certification Workbook: How to Prepare Your Portfolio (2003), and A+ Parents: Help Your Child Learn and Succeed in School (1998). Her website is www.accomplishedteaching.com.

Review :
"We must improve schools from within, utilizing our expertise as teaching professionals and placing ourselves at the center of the education reform movement. As Adrienne Mack-Kirschner informs us all in this important book, ‘These stories represent what is happening in tens of thousands of classrooms. They hold within them the power of what could be if all teachers and schools provided opportunities for all children to experience powerful teaching and learning.’" "Thought provoking and powerful." "Adrienne Mack-Kirschner′s book provides a welcome antidote to all the bad news about teachers that makes daily headlines. Reading these stories gave me hope. With such teachers in our classrooms, public education is in good hands." "Warm, interesting, and informative. I recommend it not only to all teachers looking to hone their professional skills, but also to all parents who insist upon a quality educational experience for their children." "How clearly teachers, in their stories, articulate the importance of connecting students--either through first person anecdotes or experiential trips--to real life. Twenty years from now when asked about memories from school these students will remember these experiences that touched their lives--the results of accomplished teachers who touch our children′s lives every day." "Adrienne Mack-Kirschner′s book lets us teachers know that indeed we do make a difference in the lives of the students in our classrooms. She has collected ‘our’ stories so that we can feel connected to our fellow educators, so that we can know beyond all doubt that what we do each day does mean something. That knowledge is what makes teaching worthwhile; that is what makes teaching a joy." "A must read for all teacher prep programs, with enriching ideas for ALL teachers, and vital to counter the effects of teaching for testing!" "Readers are reminded that teaching reaches beyond a child′s academics to personal and emotional domains. Through the author′s commentary, the volume reinforces the power of story to help us understand and learn from students."