Rating: 
Summary: Rich with Personal Case Studies to Demonstrate His Points
Review: I didn't get what I wanted out of this book because I am not the intended audience--My daughter is only four years old and is ahead of the curve in every subject I test her on. Dr. Levine writes for an audience whose children are mostly in high school even though he will review their histories all the way back to pre-school in many of his case histories. That being said, I found this book rich with real-life case studies of children with learning difficulties. He has examples from the boys and girls that he has personally worked with to illustrate several points that he makes. I find those specific case studies to be the best part of his book. They support some of his theories and assertions. His arguments become weaker when he refers to other people's research--like when he said that research has shown that high school children can learn a second language better than pre-school children and therefore he recommends that children with verbal deficiencies should postpone studying a second language until the 11th grade. This skirts over the differences between pre-school language learning vs. high school language learning and ignores that there is a different kind of language learning going on at age 4 and at age 16. At age four you can't memorize as much information or learn as quickly as can a 16 year old, but the four year old can easily learn native syntax and pronunciation which the 16 year old may never learn. Anyway, this book offers a lot to parents and teachers of high school children who have learning difficulties but perhaps is less relevant for those outside of that audience.
Rating: 
Summary: Learning by exposure
Review: Learning is a complex process but Mel Levine makes it easy. Read this book along with the Essential 55.
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Summary: Why Aren't Our Students Learning?
Review: Dr. Mel Levine believes the answer to this questions lies within neurodevelopmental dysfunctions, which are the basic instruments of learning and compose the wiring of our brains. In our schools, these dysfunctions are being overlooked, misdiagnosed, and labeled, perhaps as ADD and Learning Disabilities. Through various case studies, Dr. Levine assesses different dysfunctions that impede a child's ability to perform well in a school environment. He looks at these deficits, not from a hope to eradicate, but in order for students, parents, and teachers to be able to monitor and accommodate so actual learning can take place. He introduces the concept of the Managementt by Profile System, which uses the term management to communicate, "we aren't aiming for a cure, nor do we particularly care to totally revise any developmental mind."
As educators, we have the opportunity and responsibility to teach our kids through various learning strategies and to be aware of which kids falter and those who succeed. He is truly calling teachers to be informed of brain development and the neurodevelopmental functions that are employed in the educator's particular subject matter. If we can change our thinking in this direction, we could exercise various teaching strategies and different ways for kids to learn, making the classroom a more inclusive environment. And isn't that what it's all about? Trying out different methodologies in order to find what will foster growth and learning in our students. I appreciated Dr. Levine's encouragement of awareness of these differences and the celebration of the diversity that we find.
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Summary: The Keys to a Child's Academic Success
Review: Mel Levine stresses the importance of parents and teachers taking the time to identify each child's strengths and learning style --and he clearly explains how to do exactly that. Then you can better determine what method of instruction would be the best match to the child's particular way of thinking. This effort will in turn help the child increase his level of performance as well as his degree of self-esteem as he becomes more confident that he is capable and indeed CAN accomplish goals. As a teacher and parent, I feel that nurturing the "social and emotional intelligence" of a child goes hand-in-hand with attention to developing his "cognitive intelligence". The way we choose to discipline and communicate with children on a daily basis plays a very important role in how a child perceives himself. The more he feels understood and valued, the more effort he will put to the task of accepting the responsibility to change for the better. As a pre-school teacher, I believe that it is important to begin building a foundation for academic success and a healthy sense of self-esteem long BEFORE grade school begins. If you have preschoolers (ages 2-5), in addition to the outstanding academic guide addressing cognitive intelligence-- "A Mind at a Time", I highly recommend a very practical discipline and communication reference called "The Pocket Parent." This book offers hundreds of specific skills and strategies to help parents and teachers communicate more effectively with young children.
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Summary: Today's Child Requires "Tailor-Made" Education
Review: As a school teacher I can not fully subscribe to Mel Levine's theory that "all children can learn given the proper personalized assistance". Most children are perfectly able to work at a normal "pace" in a regular classroom. Unfortunately many are either unwilling or unable to "keep up" with their peers in a mainstreem environment.Levine asserts that children learn in "different ways"; some understand what they see, others pick up clues by listening, yet othern need to "feel" ideas in order to grasp concepts. What the author fails to include in the equasion (at least he doesn't put enough weight on it) is the fact that some children just may not be mentally "ready" to leap and jump along with their classmates, simply because the required IQ isn't there. Peer who learn easily are held up by the "slow ones" to whom an otherwise understood new concept needs to be explained a second, third, and fourth time, yet they still show no sign of mastery. I appreciate Mr. Levine's stance on "inclusion", however, from my experience as a school teacher I must advise caution not to blindly buy into the idea. One can not build an atom bomb with gun powder, no matter how difficult that may be for parents of "future nuclear scientists" to accept.***
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Benefits of this book:
Dr. Levine makes what can be difficult concepts to explain, easy to understand. He can cite many examples of kids who fit those concepts. However,..... Minuses:
At first I was happy to find this book at the library. The table of contents looked interesting. Much of what the book would discuss would be in my area, cognitive psychology, specifically how people read. I went to the back of the book to see who Dr. Levine referenced. I was surprised and dismayed to find that he had not given credit to anyone whose work was the basis for all the concepts he discusses in his book. Dr Levine says "I think it appropriate to write this book based purely on objective clinical observation" (pg.16), and I agree that it is important and useful to cite specific examples to supplement research. Plus, he has worked in this area for many years. However, I think it is also important to give credit to others. So, why should this concern you? What works for one person may not work for another, but research can tell you what works for most people. If you know who developed certain concepts, you can find out more about those concepts by reading his or her work. If you have references, you can get a second opinion. I think many people can learn from Dr. Levine's work, but I hope that this review helps to put his work in perspective.
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Summary: Must Read For Educators & Students (That Means Everyone)
Review: Levine examines in more detail the 8 different ways of learning, and how the brain learns in easy to read laymen terms. Students are individuals and they usually learn in the most optimum way in one of, or in a combination of these areas: attention, memory, language, spatial ordering, sequential ordering, motor, higher thinking, and social thinking. But the value of this book comes from Levine's incorporation of scientific research to show readers how these eight neurodevelopmental systems evolve, interact, and contribute to a child's success in school. We've had the endless "theoretical" studies of different learning styles. Levine provides the needed punch: what should the parent and educator "do." Here is the foremost how-to on reshaping the futility of "one-size fits-all" in our educational system, which doesn't tap the true potential, capabilities, and interests of our students. The key for an educator is to not only identify which students learn more conducivley from the eight learning styles, but then tailor course work for them. Student-centered proactive activities that offer more personalization and localization make this easy to do. With one-on-one tutoring and small groups, it's obviously less difficult for an instructor to identify and utilize lesson plans than in a class of 15-20-25 students, obviously. For students that have been labeled as lazy, unmotivated, or "slow," it is for some students correct. But for many more of them that are tagged with this generalization, it's a misnomer. One that often isn't even uncovered as the student moves through and graduates from the school system. Another great book in addition to this one is Howard Gardner's "Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences."
Rating:
Summary: Technically Proficient w/Solid Advice for Parents/Teachers
Review: "A Mind at a Time" dives deep into hard wiring of children and offers us an insight into their needs that we can use to adjust how we approach their education. As an elementary school teacher in a private school, we were asked to read this book for an all faculty discussion this quarter. I found it very helpful in understanding the diverse instructional needs of all of the children in my class. I was also able to use some of the suggestions in the book to develop Individual Learning Plans for my entire class that are not too cumbersome or take away from the curriculum. Last quarter we read and discussed "The Child Whisperer" by Matt Pasquinilli. These two books are profoundly different, but powerfully complimentary. Where Levine talks about the individual needs and learning styles of our children, Pasquinilli describes the basic emotional foundation and communication skills that all children need to start school with. I strongly recommend reading both books to get an enhanced understanding of what children need in order to learn.
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Summary: Innovative thinking on American Education
Review: Dr. Levine summarizes neurodevelopmental and cognitive differences in children. He uses case studies as examples of the ways in which some children with 'learning disorders' learn differently. He uses his clinical experience to describe these differences and recommends changes in American education to help all children learn effectively. He draws upon the individual's strengths as positive reinforcement and recommends methods to enhance weaknesses. Consequently, this book is not a literature review on scientific research on cognitive processes. Such reviews on this controversial and nascent field can be found in scientific journals. Rather, this book outlines his methods as a clinician to assist children with learning difficulites. His suggestions to educators for modifying current teaching regimes are innovative and thought-provoking. "A Mind at a Time" is ahead of its time and should be on any parent, teacher, or educators reading list. Teaching styles should be fluid and change as we learn more about cognitive processes and how we acquire knowledge.
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Summary: His New Book Is More Specific
Review: Dr. Levine may not have every detail of applied cognitive science "correct" (in quotes because it is a new field that contains many debates and disagreements within itself), but he is helping to improve American education. That is why "A Mind at a Time" is worth reading. Cognitive scientists, like American educators, tend to seriously underestimate the normal range of individual differences in cognitive styles, emotional development, and personality. Dr. Levine's new book, "The Myth of Laziness" tackles one particular subgroup of individual learners. I hope he keeps writing, a book at a time.
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