English Teachers Survival Guide: Ready-to-Use Techniques and Materials for Grades 7 - 12 (J-B Ed: Survival Guides) [Paperback]

Mary Lou Brandvik (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 4, 1994 | ISBN-10: 0876282982 | ISBN-13: 978-0876282984 | Edition: Spi

For both new and experienced English teachers, grades 7-12, here is a unique time-saver and problem-solver packed with tested techniques and materials to assist you in virtually every aspect of your job, from dealing with discipline problems and handling paperwork, to teaching the writing process.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

For both new and experienced English teachers, grades 7-12, here is a unique time-saver and problem-solver packed with tested techniques and materials to assist you in virtually every aspect of your job, from dealing with discipline problems and handling paperwork, to teaching the writing process.

 

Included are 175 easy-to-use strategies, lessons, and checklists for effective classroom management and over 50 reproducible samples that you can adopt immediately for planning, evaluation, or assignments.  The Guide helps you create a classroom that reflects the excitements for learning that every English teacher desires.

 

It will also show you how to practice the art of teaching English effectively and leave labor-intensive ways behind by ... devising a far grading system ... creating a positive design for discipline ... delegating tasks to students that can become learning experiences for them and time savers for you ... arranging the room for efficient classroom management ... and more.

In addition to scores of specific ideas for writing and reading activities, the Guide includes:

• Techniques for integrating the teaching of speaking, listening, writing, and literature,
• A plan for managing and monitoring cooperative leaning activities form determining group size to evaluating group work and grading projects,
• Steps for creating a master plan, individual units and daily lessons with guidance on team teaching, and
• Advice on how to reach the learning disabled students who are mainstreamed into your classroom. 

With this resource you will gain the perspective of a master teacher in working with students as well as others – parents colleagues, substitute teachers, administrators, and community resources – and regain or maintain the idealism that originally cause yu to become a teacher!

About the Author

Mary Lou Brandvik was graduated summa cum laude from Concordia College in Moorhead, MN, with a B.A. in English and art.  She also earned a Masters degree from the University of Illinois.  Ms. Brandvik has taught in public schools in Illinois and Minnesota, as well as at Bemidji State University in Minnesota.  She was named the 1988 Teacher of the Year of the Bemidji Public Schools and in 1991 received the Lila B. Wallace Teacher-Scholar Award from the National Endowment for the humanities.  She is also the author of Writing Process Activities Kit published by The Center for Applied Research in Education.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; Spi edition (March 4, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0876282982
• ISBN-13: 978-0876282984
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #738,804 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

161 of 163 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A lifesaver for new English teachers, December 31, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: English Teachers Survival Guide: Ready-to-Use Techniques and Materials for Grades 7 - 12 (J-B Ed: Survival Guides) (Paperback)

I wish I had had this book when I changed careers midlife and stepped into a 9th grade English classroom with little more than a textbook, my emergency credential, and a pair of knocking knees three years ago. Mary Lou Brandvik's book is aimed at new junior high and high school teachers and offers help in classroom management, lesson plans, and teaching writing and literature. Many books I've looked at or purchased tend to offer general ideas for instruction designed to work in a wide range of classes, but this book is truly aimed at the English teacher. Her book gave me what no one else did: a guide and a framework that would have helped me get through that first difficult year. It's filled with good ideas for writing assignments and novel (but functional) suggestions for student reading responses, group and individual projects, and speeches. A friend of mine complains about "quilt-making" activities taught at teachers' classes we've attended -- those vague, touchy-feely activities that don't move students ahead in skills. This book's activities are really linked to improving writing and reading. No paper quilts, thank heaven. Brandvik includes a section on working with others (parents, administrators, etc.) and a brief chapter on becoming a more effective teacher. Save the life of a new, desperate English teacher: Give him or her this book.

47 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great How-To Book!, July 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: English Teachers Survival Guide: Ready-to-Use Techniques and Materials for Grades 7 - 12 (J-B Ed: Survival Guides) (Paperback)

This is an excellent book for new or struggling English teachers as well as the experienced teacher who is look for fresh ideas or just to be recharged. I am a middle school English teacher with five years of experience, and I wish I had this book when I first started as I learned many of Brandvik's techniques the hard way. I have tried out a few of her ideas with great success, and I look forward to trying more ideas when school starts in September. I like the sample forms she has included in the book. They may be reproduced or reworked to fit your individual needs. The book covers the whole gamut of an English class from classroom management, to dealing with administrators, to avoiding burnout, to teaching reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Her ideas are presented clearly and consisely. This is one of the most worthwhile teaching books I have ever bought.

58 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read for any English teacher!, February 25, 2000

By 

Stacey Fossum - See all my reviews

This review is from: English Teachers Survival Guide: Ready-to-Use Techniques and Materials for Grades 7 - 12 (J-B Ed: Survival Guides) (Paperback)

As a first year teacher, this book saved my life on more than one occasion. Like most new teachers, I had been taught a great deal of educational theory, but was given very little practical advice about arranging my classroom, managing my class space, and making lesson plans. Brandvik's book provides a ton of useful suggestions and ideas that can be put to use in any classroom. I highly recommend this book to any teacher, from those in their first year who are hungry for new ideas to those who have been in the profession a while and want to rejuvinate their methods.