I just wanted to tell you that I ABSOLUTELY love your courses! I have passed on your courses to several of my friends who also rave about your courses. Thank you for providing professional educators with new courses that help us in the real world of teaching.

I searched for six months to find a course to take for my renewal certificate.  I wanted to learn something useful, something I would enjoy, something I would actually take back to my classroom.  When I researched this course, it seemed like a good fit, but never did I imagine it would take me out of my comfort zone.  Never once did I think I would be looking forward to telling a story to my students (or to my dogs, for that matter). There was a lot of  information to cover, more than I thought there would be, more ideas to balance, more at stake than merely teaching kids to tell a story.   The authors and examples in both the book and on the dvd empowered me to take the first step and try.  That is really all I expect from my students everyday, no matter the task, yet it was a little scary, I admit.  I don’t think I have thought about that for a long time, about the scariness of trying something different and new.  I have a lot more empathy for my students who come to school almost everyday and try something new!  I hope I can at least keep learning and practicing stories to share with my students, in those little breaks in our day.  I liked how it felt to be connected to them, and I want to feel that with every group of students I teach.  I want to know them, and I want them to know me.

I really enjoyed reading all the ideas contained in the Rich Resources boxes.  I am excited to try some of these suggestions in my classroom.  Classrooms that Work is a wonderful resource for all elementary school teachers.  It holds an abundance of practical and easily implemented ideas for teachers to create classrooms where children will thrive in an environment that fosters a love of reading and writing.

This is, by far, the most engaging textbook I’ve ever read. I’ve never had a textbook that “I couldn’t put down”. I actually read this entire book in one sitting. Reflecting on the chapters and concepts in the text helped me clarify topics that I’d like to incorporate into my daily teaching practice. This book provided a new perspective on my teaching and helped me set new goals. Because of this book, I feel inspired to continue to advocate for unstructured, child-initiated play in my classroom and school. I feel energized by what I learned in this book.

Purposeful Play