Allyn & Bacon, 1997. Hardcover. New hardcover in glossy case wraps. Pages are clean and free of marks or underlining. 8vo. (6.5 x 1 x 9.5 inches) Includes an index, tables, and figures.

Fast shipping in a secure book box mailer with tracking. New. Item #202050
ISBN: 9780205150625

Drawing on five contemporary, successful approaches to teaching thinking skills, this comprehensive guide presents a wide range of strategies and techniques for improving the thinking of students at any ability level in any subject, in any grade, K-12. It includes an
abundance of practical, nuts-and-bolts directions, sample lesson plans, activities, and teaching materials, plus diagrams, charts, and other graphics to accommodate the reader who is a visual learner.

Out of a fragmented field, Dr. Beer has pulled together the best ideas for improving student thinking, along with practical down-to-earth details that will help teachers apply the techniques in their classrooms right away. The book describes the qualities that characterize a thoughtful classroom and explains how to create one. It also explains how to provide opportunities for students to see and hear what people actually do when they execute the cognitive operations the students are trying to improve; how to guide and support students' initial efforts to carry out these operations; how to provide direct instruction in difficult higher-order thinking; and how to combine instruction in thinking skills with subject matter content.

Specific techniques discussed in detail include providing puzzlement or dissonance; metacognitive reflection; prompted thinking aloud; modeling thinking skills; "expert" thinking narratives; scaffolding instruction with graphic organizers, process-structured questions, and procedural checklists; and techniques for cueing student practice - all with suggestions for classroom application. Evaluations of the techniques' strengths and weaknesses are included along with numerous illustrations, examples, and step-by-step directions for using the strategies in the classroom.

Price: $50.95