Customer Reviews

Teaching the Male Brain: How Boys Think, Feel, and Learn in School

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As a former educator and a retired Managing Editor for Time-Life Education, it was refreshing to read a book for the educator that was practical and free of meaningless jargon. Abigail James writes a book for the classroom teacher that is clear, enjoyable, and full of nuggets of practical applications! Boys and girls learn differently -- and every classroom teacher discovers this truth. But our "one size fits all" education system does not take this into account. Instead of struggling with the "canned" approach to classroom management, a teacher can find creative and practical ways to do a better job with male and female learners. Ms. James bases her text on proven brain research, personal classroom experience in single-sex schools, and extensive quantitative research. Her humor and insight make this book an enjoyable read, as well as an informative one. I would recommend it highly to any classroom teacher.

James provides wide ranging and thorough information on the emotional and cognitive development of boys which will be of great use to classroom teachers. But there is such a wealth of expertise on the lives of boys that any parent would benefit from its practical insights and suggestions too. As a classroom teacher I can see that James really understands how children learn. She clearly identifies and provides concrete examples of the role of development, gender and the environment in nurturing learning. I was very impressed with the scope of her understanding, the currency of the research quoted, as well as the obvious field-tested practicality of her suggestions and insights.

This book gave me great insight into my male students and my young son. Interesting explanations of why boys do what they do. I loved the parts about boys being experiential learners. I would definitely recommend this to anyone that has boys in their life.