The End of Molasses Classes: Getting Our Kids Unstuck--101 Extraordinary Solutions for Parents and Teachers [Hardcover]

Ron Clark (Author)

Book Description

Release date: July 26, 2011

“Rife with heart-warming anecdotes and inspiring ideas . . . Educators and parents will find much to emulate in this passionate, motivating tool book.”

  —Publishers Weekly

“Inspirational, easy-to-follow insights on how to grow smarter, healthier children and communities . . .  this timely resource can make school a motivational and fun community.”

  —Kirkus Reviews

Practical, innovative, and powerful methods to enliven classrooms and ignite a passion for learning in each and every child. It is time to “GET ON THE DESK” and make every school in America the absolute best it can be.

I often say I am a schoolteacher with the heart of a parent. I’ve made it my mission to make a difference in the lives of all of our children. I have traveled throughout our country, visiting schools in all 50 states, seeking out remarkable teachers who inspire our children to greatness.

 Sadly, I have also witnessed classrooms that seemed sapped of all energy, filled with students struggling to stay awake and teachers in desperate need of inspiration. These “Molasses Classes” broke my heart.

I had to do something! I decided to leave my classroom in East Harlem, New York, and devote my time to this audacious dream: to create a revolution in our country, starting from the ground up. The heart of this change would be a school, unlike any in the world. It would be full of passion, creativity, energy, and an unparalleled freedom to do whatever it took to lead every child to success. The parents and teachers of this school would forge a true partnership with the intent of providing the best learning environment possible.

I am proud to say that dream—the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia, is now a reality. We welcome educators from all over the world to visit and learn from our methods and techniques so that they may take them back to their schools. I am still teaching, every day, and I feel honored to have hosted more than 10,000 educators in my classroom. This book is filled with the magic, the successes, the heartbreaks, the mistakes, and the triumphs that are the Ron Clark Academy. These are the 101 most successful strategies we have used to help uplift our children and enliven our classrooms. My hope is that you will find ideas here that will help you ignite a passion for learning in your children—and together we can get the molasses out of all our children’s classes.

Be different. Be bold. Join in.

—RON CLARK

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ron Clark, New York Times bestselling author of The Essential 55, has been named "American Teacher of the Year" by Disney and was Oprah Winfrey's pick as her "Phenomenal Man." He founded The Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia, which more than 10,000 educators from around the world have visited to learn about the extraordinary ways that teachers and parents of RCA have helped children achieve great success.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Touchstone (July 26, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1451639724
• ISBN-13: 978-1451639728
• Product Dimensions: 1 x 5.8 x 8.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (51 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #90,867 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ron Clark has been a teacher since 1995. Originally from North Carolina, he has taught in some of the most difficult schools in the country, most recently in Harlem, New York. Since winning the 2001 Disney Teacher of the Year Award, Clark has spoken to teachers, PTAs, and school boards across the country. He lives in Atlanta.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A very important book FOR PARENTS. July 29, 2011

By Ms Gibbs

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

In my opinion, this book has life-changing information for parents. I am so thrilled to see so many educators all over the world be inspired by RCA. My hope is that parents all over the world will consider this "required reading" for themselves.
Part II of the book is geared specifically toward parents, and it is OUTSTANDING. "Don't be a Helicopter Parent. You can't rescue them forever" speaks to the importance of letting children learn to deal with disappointment, and how to handle the situation. Mr. Clark illustrates these points with a truly amazing story. (Ron, you definitely deserved a Krispy Kreme in front of American Idol after THAT experience. Your patience is really commendable.) The chapter entitled "Remind children of their blessings and stress the value of a strong work ethic" really stood out to me as well. There are so many wonderful, American affluent communities (like the one we live in) and the parents are hard working and well-meaning, but it is so easy to fall into bad habits that can create children with "entitlement issues." As a mother of a 10-year-old boy, the chapter, "Don't get your kids a video game system unless you are prepared to be a prison guard," really hit close to home. We have a game system, and it is a challenge to control his use of it. I gleaned several great ideas from this chapter.
But this is not just "garden variety parenting advice." Mr. Clark explains how these basic childrearing concepts are critical for a student's success in school, and beyond. Mr. Clark is right on - we DO need a full blown education "revolution" in our country. And it will not work unless parents PARTNER with the teachers and the schools. Mr.... Clark has done of fine job of providing very specific suggestions on how to implement positive changes in our children's school experience. He does this with compelling real-life stories and shares his personal experiences with kids and their families. He has laid out an excellent "revolution strategy." I hope we all embrace it. Read more ›

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars LOVE LOVE LOVE - this book is a truth burrito wrapped up in one funny inspirational tortilla August 3, 2011

By AppStateTFAlum

Format:Hardcover

There is truth and inspiration in every captivating page. No excuses, read for solutions! Dry off that wet kindling and light your fire! The only reason why you would put this book down is because it IS on fire!

Those who care TEACH! And those who care about teaching will read this book! It is a must-have manual for every educator that refuses to settle for average results and strives to keep raising the bar. Ron Clark and his academy dance the "obmil" on a daily basis. The bar keeps being raised and raised, never lowered. No matter what new challenges educators face from year to year, the Ron Clark Academy keeps inspiring all types of students to become passionate life-long learners. I worry that some schools and educators fear failure and under so many pressures to meet the needs of so many diverse learners, end up doing the limbo in their schools...but not at the Ron Clark Academy. If we set better goals, we will get better results. His honesty on how to achieve this is OH SO REFRESHING!

Thanks for keeping it real (and real funny), Ron! Keep on dancing the obmil and inspiring others to do the same! Shout-out to NC Teaching Fellows - light your fire and go out and inspire!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This year's best read! July 26, 2011

By Pauline E. Essen

Format:Hardcover

Ron Clark's newest book is filled with motivational learning expectations and new strategies, along with Mr. Clark's fantastic sense of humor. Mr. Clark's "call for revolution" is truly inspiring. He points out 101 ways we can make education extraordinary. He discusses fearless teaching, fearless learning, which results in fearless living. I was truly inspired by the comments in the book, such as, "Not every child deserves a cookie", and "Teach the parents the correct way to tutor their children". The End of Molasses Classes is a must-have for teachers, students, principals and parents alike. I have purchased several books for my employees! Jeff Anderson, Audio Enhancement.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! February 4, 2012

By TeacherToo

Format:Hardcover

Absolutely one of the best books I've ever read! The first night I read nearly half of it b/c I could not put it down! It was so inspiring and I had goosebumps most of the time I was reading it! I definitely recommend this book!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars An attempt at dealing with scalability in school reform August 18, 2011

By Adam VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

My wife is a teacher; I work part time with an after school program. My Mother-in-Law just retired as a principal in June and my Mom retired as a teacher last year. Many of my friends are related to education in one way or another. Personally, I spend a fair amount of time reading about and thinking about education theory and practice (at least for a non-educator).

School reform is a hot topic, but the largest problem, in my mind, is scalability. There are many very good solutions to the problems of education, but very few of them really scale because they are so dependent on either the people or the cultural context where they are working.

Ron Clark is a teacher and administrator that is trying to deal with the problem of scalability. He is the co-founder of a demonstration school in Atlanta. The school was built with the express purpose of teaching other teachers how to better reach students. (It is a middle school because that is the age that Ron Clark believes is most in need of help.) So each classroom has a class of about 30 student and stadium seating for about 80 adults. My wife and Mother-in-Law and many teachers I know have visited the school. I am currently trying to get some of the people that work in the after school program in Chicago to come down and visit.

The End of Molasses Classes is the latest book by Ron Clark about his teaching method. I have read his two previous book and they were directed at teachers and more about how he teachers. This book is broader, for teachers and parents and other people interested in education. It more about the general method of how the Ron Clark Academy works and why it works.

The format is 101 short chapters (some less than a page, very few more than 2 or 3 pages).... Most chapters have a story to illustrate the point of the short chapter and a little explanation. Clark knows how to tell a story. He is a bigger than life, over the top, never can exert too much energy type of person. I went with my wife to the book release party and he never stopped. He signed about 1000 books, hugged and talked to every person, and did not stop moving all night. He is all about the energy, but there is more than just energy. He has well thought out principles that are behind the success of the school. One of the most obvious from the book is how much he values his staff, parents and students. He spends most of the book talking about how much the people around him have made the school a success. Clark is not a shy man, but he is also not hogging the credit.

The major issue really is time and effort. Ron Clark Academy teachers work from before 8 to around 6 every day at school. Then most days they need to work at home to prepare for the next day or grade. Ron Clark and the co-founder told one another they would essentially ignore family and all other responsibilities for the first three years of the school to get it off the ground, and in the book he says that has not been long enough. I am editing this at about 6 AM. My wife is walking out the door to go to school. Yesterday she got home at about 6:30. We have said we will not have children because we cannot do our jobs and have kids. Obviously that is not going to work for all teachers. And it cannot really be expected for all teachers.

Not every teacher is going to teach like Ron Clark, he knows that. But he does hope that teachers realize that they are important to the process and that it is essential that teachers find the best way to engage their students. This is not a blame book, but he is clear that teachers and schools can only do so much. Without parent support, even the best teachers will often not be able to help students succeed to their full potential. I am seriously considering going to visit the school myself because I want to know more about it. If you have any interest in education, or you are a parent, this is a good book about what needs to be done to move students to the next level. If you are a teacher, get this and read it before school starts, you will be encouraged and ready to start the year.

Originally published on my blog at bookwi.se Read more ›