Rating: 
Summary: Constructive criticism you can use!
Review: After panning the Wong book (The First Days of School), I searched for a more suitable replacement. This is it. Jones identifies teacher and student misbehavior and the underlying causes, and explains field-tested techniques for remediation and prevention. In addition, it is all presented in a tone that is authoritative, occasionally humorous, and always understanding and respectful of readers and their problems.
Rating:
Summary: Dynamite Book for Teachers!
Review: Every teacher should own a copy of Tools for Teaching! I've been teaching for 20 years, and I've read hundreds of books for teachers. Very few come close to the power of Tools for Teaching! I have been recommending it to everyone I meet. I teach workshops for teachers, both in my district and across the country, and I take my copy of Tools for Teaching with me to share as a wonderful resource. Dr. Jones has a remarkable way of applying the science of psychology to the art of teaching, and his amazing insight provides the concrete tools that both beginning and veteran teachers need to become more effective instructors. Best of all, it's written with a sense of humor that will have you chuckling throughout the book!
Rating:
Summary: Fred Jones Tools For Teaching
Review: Fred Jones Tools For Teaching is a practical teaching guide for all prospective and practicing teachers. It is the only methods text that I have used in 31 years of teacher training that is worthwhile for all teachers in today's classroom climate. The text provides classroom management and instruction technology that works in a positive way. Teachers learn how to set limits, teach responsibility and motivate students in a cooperative environment. Teaching and learning improve with explicit classroom instruction methods that help structure lesson planning, enhance partner learning, and actually encourage students to improve learning in order to engage in a preferred learning activity as a reward. Harry Wong's text, The First Days of School, inspires and provides an excellent framework for improved classroom activities. Fred Jones Tools for Teaching takes the next step to provide teachers at any level with proven techniques to improve postive classroom Discipline - Instruction - Motivation.
Rating:
Summary: This Book Saved my Teaching Career
Review: I had been teaching 7th and 8th grade science for two years at an inner city school and was doing OK. I had my classes somewhat under control, but I was getting worn out trying to keep them under control. I read the intro to this book and couldn't wait to finish it and implement his methods. He clearly explains a whole system to deal with EVERYTHING that occurs in a classroom. He gives specific techniques, not just handy hints. I started using the techniques from this book in the middle of the school year and the change in my classroom, and my stress level has been absolutely incredible. I now have nearly perfect class control and the cooperation of my students at all times. The principle now sends new teachers to my room to observe both discipline and instruction. I reread the whole book a few months after the first read, and my classroom management just keeps getting better and better as well as easier and much less stressful. I wish they had given me a two semester course with this book in college! It has made teaching fun and relaxing for me. I'm sure I would have quit teaching by now if not for Fred Jones' book.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books on classroom management I've seen
Review: I have been a teacher, asst. middle school principal, elem. principal and superintendent. In my 34+ years in education, this book, by Fred Jones, is one of the most practical and helpful that I have seen. I highly recommend it for any teacher who is having classroom management problems. It offers practical solutions and reasons for doing what it tells you to do. This is a step-by-step guide. It is not a book of theory! It is easy reading and can be used as a quick reference. Don't miss this one! When I decided to return to the classroom, this was the reference I used to bring back those necessary skills. Harry Wong's (The First Day of School) is also an excellent reference for classroom management.
Rating:
Summary: A Must Read for All Teachers
Review: I have been teaching for 15 years, have read countless books on teaching but this book is the best. I plan to give a copy to the new teacher I am mentoring. If you have read, The Frist Days of School, this book compliments it nicely. Whether you are a new or veteran teacher, this book is the one you need to read, especially for today's children. The fact that motivation, instruction, and discipline are all inter-related makes so much sense. I am anxious to start the school year with many of the ideas given in this book.
Rating:
Summary: A Must Read for All Teachers
Review: I have been teaching for 15 years, have read countless books on teaching but this book is the best. I plan to give a copy to the new teacher I am mentoring. If you have read, The Frist Days of School, this book compliments it nicely. Whether you are a new or veteran teacher, this book is the one you need to read, especially for today's children. The fact that motivation, instruction, and discipline are all inter-related makes so much sense. I am anxious to start the school year with many of the ideas given in this book.
Rating:
Summary: every college should offer a class based on this book
Review: I stumbled upon this book last summer completely by accident, but I am glad that I did! In three weeks of student teaching I have witnessed both the typical behavior of students described in this book and the failed strategies that most teachers repeatedly use to keep the "lid" on in their classrooms. Having read "Tools for Teaching" I feel confident that I can effectively handle and eventually eliminate the behavior of disruptive students. Although as a student teacher I am not fully able to implement the threefold strategy of limit setting, preferred activity time, and responsibility training I will certainly do so when I have my own classroom. Had I not read this book I would be forced to rely on useless techniques such as "snap and snarl", pheasant posturing, silly talk, and the "sick and tired" look when dealing with classroom management problems. If you are curious to find out what makes the previously mentioned techniques useless you simply need to purchase this book!
Rating: 
Summary: Kept waiting for the punch line...
Review: My first introduction to Fred Jones was about 8 years ago. I went to his workshop after my first year of teaching. We received his first book, "Positive Classroom Discipline" at that time. During that first year of teaching I was certainly disillusioned and ready to throw in the towel. My credentialing program hadn't sufficiently prepared me to have a well run, productive classroom with good discipline. Using his methods really gave me the tools needed to be an effective and relaxed teacher. I've now been teaching 9 years and just attended his workshop for the 4th time. Dr. Jones included his new book, "Tools for Teaching," in his workshop. This book is so well organized. The content of the book is almost verbatim what he says in class. It is an easy read and very enjoyable. The illustrations are very purposeful and represent the major points of the book. If you are a teacher who wants to save yourself from burn-out and actually remember why you went into teaching in the first place, then this book could be your life-line. Dr. Jones knows what he is talking about and is practical in his approach. It is one of the only programs out there that is livable for the entire career of a teacher. I most likely wouldn't be in the profession any longer if it hadn't been for the content of this book. I would highly recommend it!
Rating:
Summary: This Saved My Life
Review: My first introduction to Fred Jones was about 8 years ago. I went to his workshop after my first year of teaching. We received his first book, "Positive Classroom Discipline" at that time. During that first year of teaching I was certainly disillusioned and ready to throw in the towel. My credentialing program hadn't sufficiently prepared me to have a well run, productive classroom with good discipline. Using his methods really gave me the tools needed to be an effective and relaxed teacher. I've now been teaching 9 years and just attended his workshop for the 4th time. Dr. Jones included his new book, "Tools for Teaching," in his workshop. This book is so well organized. The content of the book is almost verbatim what he says in class. It is an easy read and very enjoyable. The illustrations are very purposeful and represent the major points of the book. If you are a teacher who wants to save yourself from burn-out and actually remember why you went into teaching in the first place, then this book could be your life-line. Dr. Jones knows what he is talking about and is practical in his approach. It is one of the only programs out there that is livable for the entire career of a teacher. I most likely wouldn't be in the profession any longer if it hadn't been for the content of this book. I would highly recommend it!
|
