5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Will inspire any teacher!, November 12, 2006
This review is from: Schools of Fish! (Hardcover)
FISH! A REMARKABLE WAY TO BOOST MORALE AND IMPROVE
RESULTS by Stephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul and John Christensen
has become one of my favorite business books . . . so when I saw
that the principles have been applied to education in a book, SCHOOLS OF
FISH! by Philip Strand, Christensen
and Andy Halper, I knew that it was something that I had to read.
And am I ever glad that I did, in that it inspired me with its ideas and
techniques for better classroom management . . . though all the
many examples were from grades K-12 situations, I do believe that
they could be related to any level of education--up through and
including graduate school.
One quote from the book says it all: "We're very serious about
learning; play is just how we feel while we're doing it."
It got me thinking about the fact that education should be more
fun . . . for the teacher, as well as the student . . . you don't
have to be a rocket scientist to make this happen . . . just utilize
some of the methods that have worked for others, apply them to
your situation, and you'll be all set.
There were several memorable passages; among the ones that
I especially liked were these:
* That duality also transfers to adult relationships. As daily pressures
compete for our attention, it's amazing how people can seem rude
or, equally, how simple gestures stand out. For example, a certain
principal never answers his phone when talking with a visitor. "It
will ring and the other person will say, "It's OK if you get that," he
explains. "I tell them, `No, you're more important to me right now.'
They're always surprised," Why? Possibly because it's such a
powerful statement of respect and commitment.
* When it came to dealing with parents, Puntenney wanted to make sure
she not only called home to discuss problems, but also to congratulate
students. She sent good-news postcards home, and sometimes she
just called parents to tell them about their child's success.
"Some parents were in disbelief when I called," she says. "They
said things like, `Are you sure you have the right student?' One
said, `Nobody from school has ever called with good news before!
Thank you."
* At Avon Intermediate School, there's room at the table for everybody.
"Recently I bought furniture for the staff dining room--four tables with
four chairs for each table," says principal Scott Raftery. "The next day,
when I came in the dining room, the teachers had pushed all the tables
together to create one huge table so they could eat like a big family."
The above is just basic stuff, but it works . . . if you're looking for the ideal
gift for any teacher (past, present or future), then you won't go wrong
buying SCHOOLS OF FISH!
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