Thinking and Writing about Literature: A Text and Anthology

Book Description

Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, K - 8 is the next new breakthrough from Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell. Offering a complete picture of how to skillfully teach meaning making and fluency within any instructional context, Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, K - 8, supports you with frameworks for high-quality instruction that describe appropriate expectations for comprehending, fluency, and vocabulary development.

Fountas and Pinnell's teaching and assessment frames will give you a firm understanding of your students' reading levels: where they are, where they should be, and what they need to do to get there - for any reader, in any grade, at any moment. You'll also gain insight about the specific demands that fiction and nonfiction texts place on readers and about how effective readers think within a text, beyond a text, and about a text to gain rich understandings. As you learn about how the characteristics of texts help or hinder a reader's improvement, you'll find effective teaching strategies for:

comprehending, word solving, fluency, and vocabulary
writing about reading in a variety of genres and using writing as a tool for thinking
using guided reading with fiction and nonfiction books
discussing books during interactive read-aloud and literature study
taking part in shared and performance reading.

Fountas and Pinnell's teaching tips, smart strategies, proven classroom ideas, and professional-learning opportunities will lead the way as you discover how to help readers develop effective systems of strategic actions over time. You'll also learn how to take running records of reading behavior to assess comprehension and fluency then use those assessments to inform and differentiate your teaching.

In addition, Fountas and Pinnell have also added a dynamic companion resource to Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, K - 8: a DVD containing short, focused video segments that illustrate concepts from the book and demonstrate exemplar teaching in real classroom settings. The DVD is also a repository of useful materials to support your work - including blackline masters, forms, checklists, and numerous other classroom tools.

to download any of the Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency teaching guides and syllabi now.

Discover powerful ways to help your students read with deep understanding and fluency. Read Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, K - 8 and be part of the big breakthrough in literacy instruction.

Customer Reviews:

A great text.......2007-07-15

This is an excellent book for anyone who is in the teaching profession, and especially those who teach beginning readers.

Wonderful Reading Resource to build on Guiding Readers and Writers.......2006-11-11

Let me start by saying this book builds off of Guiding Readers and Writers, also by Fountas and Pinnell. If you haven't yet invested in that book and you teach reading or writing to grades 3-12, that's where you want to start. This book will not be nearly as helpful until you have read and engaged in the teaching strategies laid out in Guiding Readers and Writers. However, if you are currently looking to build and add to your literature circles and your reading and writing workshops, this is the book you want.

This book is loaded with resources for teachers. It comes with an interactive DVD to show teachers exactly what they are describing as mini lessons. This was truly the most helpful to me - being able to see teachers in action, working with students, using the techniques I had just read about helped to enable me to create the same learning environment and use the same techniques. The DVD also includes over 100 blackline masters/forms/worksheets ready to use! As a teacher, that in it's self is worth $100 not to have to make everything yourself!

This book uses a variety of methods to deepen comprehension that overlap into to guided reading within the classroom. Interactive read-aloud using picture books is just one way I started deepening comprehension within my classroom using this book. Just two months in, I can see the difference in how my kids are reading and understanding! This is just one of the many pieces I use within reading workshop. The more and more I do this, the more I see my kids using skills that we've pointed out in reading workshop in their writing! This book helps kids think 'about the text', 'beyond the text', and 'within the text'.

This book also helps teachers (of any reading grade) set-up running records to increase fluency. Within the blackline masters, the forms are ready to use, and the layout is easy to use! I am able to do this while my kids are writing in their reader's notebooks or doing independent reading. This is a great tool to help assess where a child is and where a child should be.

This book is a powerful tool if used in combination with Guiding Readers and Writers. Teachers of all ages can find this book filled with useful strategies and practical ideas to use within their reading class.

PS - If you have a chance, check out Heinemann's website. Fountas and Pinnell are doing conferences across the US on small sections of this book. If you have a chance to go, they are well worth it!

Great book!!.......2006-11-03

This book was in excellent condition and just as described. I received it in a timely manner and am very happy with my purchase.

Excellent Condition.......2006-08-16

This book arrived in excellent condition and in a timely fashion. I was able to use it before I went back to school and I need it to teach elementary and middle school aged students in the fall. Thank you very much.

Teaching for comprehending and Fluency: thinking, talking, and writing about reading, K-8.......2006-07-12

I was very happy with the speed it was shipped and condition of the book.

If You Want to Write: A Book about Art, Independence and Spirit

Average customer rating:

A Nice Old Lady
a life-changing read
What she said.
WONDERFUL.....
Great Writing Inspiration

If You Want to Write: A Book about Art, Independence and Spirit
Brenda Ueland
Manufacturer: Graywolf Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Literacy | Books & Reading | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1555972608

Amazon.com

This book so speaks to the contemporary writer that it is nearly impossible to believe that it was originally published in 1938. In If You Want to Write, Brenda Ueland sets forth not just a philosophy about how to write or how to create, but also about how to live. Beginning writers will certainly be encouraged by Ueland's words, but even the most experienced have much to glean from Ueland's simple wisdom. "Everybody," writes Ueland in the opening chapter, "is talented, original, and has something important to say." Finding that something important involves embracing creative idleness ("the imagination needs moodling--long, inefficient, happy idling, dawdling and puttering"), freeing "what we really think, from what we think we ought to think," and "thumb[ing] your nose at all know-it-alls, jeerers, critics, doubters." One must think, she says, "of telling a story, not of writing it." And when revising one's writing, she advises, "do not try to think of better words, more gripping words.... It is not yet deeply enough imagined." Finally, "whenever you find yourself writing a single word or phrase or page dutifully and with boredom, then leave it out.... If what you write bores you, it will bore other people." And just because If You Want to Write is passionate, sincere, and even spiritual, do not think it is not also witty. One footnote bluntly declaims, "No doubt my terms would horrify a psychologist but I do not care at all." Elsewhere Ueland titles a chapter "Why Women Who Do Too Much Housework Should Neglect It for Their Writing." Amen, sister!

Book Description

In her 93 remarkable years, veteran freelance writer, memoirist, and writing teacher Brenda Ueland published some six million words. She once said there were two simple rules that she followed absolutely: to tell the truth, and not do anything she didn't want to do. Such integrity both distinguishes and defines If You Want to Write, her bestselling classic that first appeared in the late 1930s and has inspired thousands to find their own creative center. As Carl Sandburg once remarked, Ueland's primer is "the best book ever written on how to write."

Customer Reviews:

A Nice Old Lady.......2007-09-30

Undoubtedly Mrs. Ueland was a nice woman but this book is self-indulgent fluff. All she says in the entire book is, "If you want to write, write; everything you write will be worthy simply because you are a unique human being." If that inspires you, read the book (even though you now know every thought contained therein).

a life-changing read.......2007-09-12

I read this book when I was 13, so I can't vouch for how useful it might be to an adult reader. All I know is that no book has changed my life as dramatically as this one did when I was 13. I'm only slightly exaggerating when I say that this book has the power to cure minor mental disorders and to help you find direction in your life. Reading this book was like one long epiphany for me. It is an energizing read, written in simple, clear, vivacious prose by a woman without a shred of pomposity but with fierce, passionate beliefs about art and individualism, a la William Blake.

Looking at this book from a more detached perspective, I think Ueland could justly be viewed as a proponent of American Romanticism, a scion of the nature-based (as opposed to nurture-based, or formal-education-based) philosophical tradition that gave us greats like Whitman and Thoreau. If you liked "Walden," you'll almost definitely love this book. It's quite a bit like Walden in spirit, actually, except that its scope is somewhat narrower and it's less self-righteous and significantly easier to read.

What she said........2007-08-19

This book will sing for you. Whatever your muse - even if you think you don't have one - you want to read this book. Go ahead and borrow it from a library, but I suspect you will want to own it later.

WONDERFUL............2007-08-01

I've read this book at least 5 times, and I'm still not willing to let it go.

I recommend this to anyone who always thought about writing, but never did because they felt they didn't have a talent for it. Brenda Ueland proves that such thoughts just aren't true, that everyone has originality and talent. She also explains why 'constructive criticism' isn't really constructive at ALL.

But this book isn't just a motivational tool - she also includes helpful suggestions for readers to actually get started on their writing.

So if you want to write, but don't know how to get started, get this book - and go for it :)

Great Writing Inspiration.......2007-06-26

I decided to read "If You Want to Write", since it was mentioned in Robert J. Ray's "The Weekend Novelist", which was immensely helpful to me in improving many areas of my writing. I had hit a bit of a stumbling block in my own writing, and, so I thought I'd see what a book of a different style had to offer. I'm glad to see that this book has gotten a new printing for 2007.

I had gotten pretty good at all of the planning stages of writing; making character sketches, summaries of chapters/plot, and other related activities. But, as far as writing the actual text of the novel, I wasn't doing so well. I liked writing stories for fun, but I wasn't turning out anything publishable. When I looked over what I had written, I felt that it was lacking a certain quality, but I couldn't place what it was.

The first aspect of this book that really struck me was its free-flowing, non-rigid structure. Many books that offer writing instruction are rather strict, telling the would-be author how to lay out their plot, how to write their opening scene. Not that this is always bad. 'The Weekend Novelist' has a very precise layout, of course allowing the writer creative liberties. Structure is good for keeping a person in-line and motivated about their novel, so they don't drift off to some other project. However, rigidity doesn't offer much inspiration for a beginning writer. This is where Ueland's little book comes in handy!

"If You Want to Write" is peppered with valuable suggestions, coming from Ueland's own life-experience as a writer and her observations on the writing of others. Ueland's advice about writing for an audience in chapter 16 was quite useful to me: "...it helps often, to have an imaginary listener when you are writing, telling a story, so that you will be interesting and convincing throughout." When I read this, I though, "Oh! This is what has been missing from my novel-writing all along." You see, when I am writing my character sketches or plot summaries (or Amazon reviews!), my writing is better because I show them to people and I am KEEPING that fact in mind while writing them. When I am writing passages for my stories, I write differently. I am trying to hard to use clever words and I revise repeatedly with slight adjustments; I go into a panic, almost! The problem has been that I'm not keeping an audience in mind, since (when writing my stories) I'm not really writing to entertain an audience or for the purpose of sharing my ideas. There are numerous other helpful pieces of information scattered throughout, and the reader will probably find passages such as the above that shed light on what has been missing from their own writing.

The last chapter summarizes the guidelines given in the book, which I'll abridge here: 1) "Know that you have talent, are original, and have something important to say.", 2) "Know that it is good to work. Work with love and think of liking it when you do it.", 3) "Write freely, recklessly in first drafts.", 4) "Tackle anything you want to-novels, plays, anything.", 5) "Don't be afraid of writing bad stories. To discover what is wrong with a story, write two new ones and then go back to it.", 6) "Don't be ashamed of what you've written in the past", 7) "Try to discover your true self.", 8) "Think of yourself as incandescent power.", 9) "If you are never satisfied with what you write, that is a good sign. It means your vision can see so far that it is hard to come up to it.", 10), Quote from Van Gogh: "If you hear a voice within you saying: You are no painter, then paint by all means lad, and that voice will be silenced, but only by working.", 11) "Don't be afraid of yourself when you write.", and 12) "Don't always be appraising yourself, wondering if you are better or worse than other writers."

The Grammar Bible: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Grammar but Didn't Know Whom to Ask

Average customer rating:

Burn it for warmth in cold winter night
A real letdown
Great reference book for anyone who wants to get it right.
Very basic and indicative of the ignorance that plagues the United States
wonderful

The Grammar Bible: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Grammar but Didn't Know Whom to Ask
Michael Strumpf , and Auriel Douglas
Manufacturer: Holt Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Grammar | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

Reference | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

Vocabulary | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

Writing Skills | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Education | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0805075607

Book Description

No one knows grammar like Michael Strumpf. For over a quarter of a century, as creator and proprietor of the National Grammar Hot Line, he helped thousands of callers from every corner of the globe tackle the thorniest issues of English grammar. Now, in The Grammar Bible, he has created an eminently useful guide to better speaking and writing. Unlike other grammar manuals, The Grammar Bible is driven by the actual questions Professor Strumpf encountered during his years of teaching and fielding phone calls from anxious writers, conscientious students, and perplexed editors, including such perennial quandaries as - Where do I put this comma? - What case should this pronoun be in? - How do I form the possessive of Dickens? Professor Strumpf explains these and other language issues with wit and wisdom, showing how to speak more clearly and write more impressively by avoiding common errors and following the principles of good grammar. Whether you need a comprehensive review of the subjunctive mood or simply want to know which form of a verb to use, The Grammar Bible is a practical guide that will enlighten, educate, and entertain.

Customer Reviews:

Burn it for warmth in cold winter night.......2007-08-19

Before buying it I've read all the reviews and they all gave it 4 or 5 stars. The author's credentials also seem to back up these reviews. After going through the chapers I then realized that it's specifically designed for people whose educational level is below or at that of GED, such as middle and high school dropouts. As another reviewer mentioned, it works for ESL students as well. It amazes me that they can't be honest on what audience they're trying to target, but instead using the misleading name like Grammar Bible, and even in the description on the back cover they claim it's everything anyone would ever need to understand English grammar; how arrogant and narrow-minded is that? This is an insult to people's intelligence and bordering on being a scam.

A real letdown.......2007-07-17

The name "Bible" is misleading; it should be "Basics" instead. An ESL student might find this book helpful, but overall too shallow and elementary. At least teachers and writers don't need this.

Great reference book for anyone who wants to get it right........2007-07-03

This book is an excellent reference resource. It is not necessarily a book you should buy to read like a novel. The explanations and examples are clear and detailed. Buy this book for your son/daughter who might be starting high school or college. Do not buy this book if you think you already know everything there is to know about grammar. Otherwise, you will just end up finding some egotistical way to "put down" the book and its intended audience.

Very basic and indicative of the ignorance that plagues the United States.......2007-05-17

Based on the reviews, I opted to purchase this book. I wish to embark on a possible freelance writing career and I need all the help I can get. I have purchased several books to improve my skills and on the list was a decent reference relating to grammar.

I was excited when this along with several other books arrived. I thumbed through several pages and I said out loud: It must get better than this! I have to say of the 512 pages I found maybe a dozen that were useful. The beginning of the book talks about the classification of nouns of all things. I am sorry but if you over the age of eight and don't know the difference between a proper noun and a common noun, you may as well give it up now.

Further, the authors devote a large section to verb agreement. Once again, this is something you should have mastered prior to reaching junior high.

I am by no means an expert in correct grammar usage hence my desire to purchase a book to help me out. My search will go on as I am promptly returning this to Amazon and will most likely buy "A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language" by Sidney Greenbaum.

wonderful.......2007-03-08

This is a very good book for grammar. It is very user friendly.

A Short Guide to Writing About Art (The Short Guide Series)

Average customer rating:

Good reference
How to read a potato in a painting as a potato and not a solar symbol?
Useful in some ways, not in others.
points out the obvious
Handy reference work

A Short Guide to Writing About Art (The Short Guide Series)
Sylvan Barnet
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Reference Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Reference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0136138551

Book Description

Key Benefit: A Short Guide to Writing About Art, Eighth Edition, the best-selling book of its kind, equips students to analyze pictures (drawings, paintings, photographs), sculptures and architecture, and prepares them with the tools they need to present their ideas in effective writing. Key Topics:This concise yet thorough guide to âseeing and sayingâ addresses a wealth of fundamental matters, such as distinguishing between description and analysis, writing a comparison, using peer review, documenting sources, and editing the final essay. Market: This book is a perfect complement to any art course where writing is involved

Customer Reviews:

Good reference.......2007-01-26

This is a great book to refer to when writing an art history paper. I was an art history major in college, and this was the book that was recommended by the majority of my professors. I definitely recommend buying yourself a copy, because the copies at my art library were always checked out!

How to read a potato in a painting as a potato and not a solar symbol?.......2006-09-05

This book is about writing on art.It has sections to equip you with what to keep in mind while writing an essay, research paper or review of an exhibit.

The book has sample examples for comparitive essays and reviews with a good analysis on the organization of the material, its purpose and aptness for the reader.

The checklist on writing on art can be extended to writing on books too. The many references to artists of all times with your interest will give you a walk through the whole of history of art.

The sections on what is art, interpretation, the importance of seeing for creating art and quotes by many writers and artists are interesting to read.

Useful in some ways, not in others........2003-07-05

I recently read the 6th edition of this book in hopes that it would help me to improve my ability to understand and write about art. I found that the book is a direct, well-written primer for someone finishing high school or beginning their undergraduate degree, but for someone with a bit more experience, it turns out to be a mixed bag.

I know next to nothing about visual art. I'm the quintessential "knows what I likes, and likes what I knows" type of guy. On the other hand, I'm a graduate student in English, so I'm well-practiced in writing essays and in applying various theoretical and critical methods. I read this book in the hopes that it would help me to better understand art. That is, I wanted to learn, as Sylvia Barnet puts it, "How does art mean?" The beginning of the text does introduce some basic questions and ways to think about different kinds of art, ranging from painting, to sculpture, to architecture, to photography, to video art, etc. However, this is not meant to be an instructional book to teach someone about art. It is more like an assistant text for a freshman-level art history course. A great deal of the book is spent discussing how to organize essays, sentence structure, revising, formatting, and some instruction on critical methods. But, again, this book is not a book on writing. It's not about art, it's not about writing, so what is it? Well, like it says, it's about writing about art. A good deal of this book was useless to me, but some of it was enlightening. If you've already got some experience studying the visual arts, or some experience writing, or you just want a really indepth study on either, pick out something else. If, however, you just want an easily understood, basic primer on writing and art, this isn't a bad choice at all.

points out the obvious.......2001-11-22

A professor highly recommended this book to my art history class. I was disappointed in it. I had hoped it would offer some useful advice but instead it merely outlines the things anyone writing on a college level (and the book seems to be aimed at college students) should already know. Perhaps it would be better suited to high schoolers.

Handy reference work.......2000-09-28

My Art History department adopted this book as its official style-manual a few years ago, and we assign it as a textbook for our writing and methodology class. To my great dismay, however, our bookstore has had some trouble ordering it this year, and so I have encouraged my students to "cut the Gordion knot" by ordering it from Amazon. The chapters on choosing a topic and organizing an argument are, I think, useful and well-written, but the greatest value of this book is Chapters 9 and 10, which provide clear instructions for writing footnotes and bibliography. This may be a mechanical task, but it is a frustrating one for many students, because there are so many possible formats to use (MLA, Turabian, etc.) Barnet's system has the virtue of being designed specifically for research papers about art and art history, and the format he recommends is clear and logical. The book also reprints the instructions for contributors from the Art Bulletin, the most prestigious art-historical journal in this country, and so will be of value for graduate students and recent PhD's preparing their first works for publication.

Writing about the World (with InfoTrac )

Average customer rating:

Writing about the World (with InfoTrac )
Susan McLeod , John Jarvis , and Shelley Spear
Manufacturer: Heinle
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Rhetoric | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

Study & Teaching | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Reference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1413002382

Book Description

Ideal for your freshman composition or freshman seminar course, WRITING ABOUT THE WORLD is a thematically-arranged reader that focuses on the social sciences, sciences, and the humanities.

Average customer rating:

A good help to improve your writing
Wrong about Literature!!!
An Okay Text with Some Odd Terminology
Writing About Literature
Great book for AP English Literature courses

Writing About Literature (11th Edition)
Edgar V. Roberts
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

Academic & Commercial | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Literature & Fiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Reference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0131540572

Book Description

Writing about Literature serves as a hands-on guide for writing about literature, thus justifying the integration of literature and composition. The reading of literature encourages students to think, and the use of literary topics gives instructors a viable way to combine writing and literary study.

Customer Reviews:

A good help to improve your writing.......2006-12-07

A great book for those who have to write essays on literature. Covers many different types of essays and provides a very understandable help.

Wrong about Literature!!!.......2005-10-10

I purchased this book with the intent on using it in my AP Literature class. What a waste of $50.00!!!

An Okay Text with Some Odd Terminology.......2004-02-24

I'm forced to use this book at the college where I teach because a committee chose it. While it does an acceptable job at explaining the basics of story elements--character, plot, dialogue, etc.--its essay examples are mediocre to awful. Worse, Roberts likes to refer to what every undergraduate and graduate class I've ever taken calls a "thesis" as a "central idea." In turn, he calls a list of supporting points the "thesis." The result is never-ending confusion for students--I've actually had students tell me, "But that's not what we called a thesis in freshman composition." Also, this isn't Roberts' fault, but we use the book in American literature courses when most of his examples are British--perhaps more examples focusing on American writers would make the book more applicable to American literature courses? New editions of the book are also churned out every couple of years, but the differences between the more recent editions appear to be marginal, meaning students have to keep shelling out dollars to get the new edition for what is mostly the same information as the old edition.

Writing About Literature.......2000-07-29

A wonderfully helpful, classy book. I just wish this book had been the first choice for students at the college where I teach an introduction to literature course. I use Writing About Literature to supplement the classroom textbook. Writing About Literature makes difficult concepts about chacterization, theme, symbol, irony, and so on easier for students to understand. The narrative voice is friendly, never stiff or preachy. Super job, Mr. Roberts. This book goes with me to every introductory literature course I teach.

Great book for AP English Literature courses.......1999-03-08

WRITING ABOUT LITERATURE offers clear strategies for writing a variety of literary analysis essays. Many examples and step-by-step procedures to write a variety of essays such as: characterization, setting, metaphor and allegory, point of view, theme, imagery, and tone. An appendix at the back of the book provides samples of literature for students to use as resources for analysis including classic short stories, poems, and two plays. This 9th edition also includes a chapter explaining 10 critical approaches to literature.

A Short Guide to Writing about Film (Short Guides Series)

Average customer rating:

An Excellent Intro to Film Study
I've looked at clouds from both sides now
TWO THUMBS DOWN
fine, blessedly concise guide
Intelligence and accessibility

A Short Guide to Writing about Film (Short Guides Series)
Timothy Corrigan
Manufacturer: Longman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

History & Criticism | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Linguistics | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

Nonfiction | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Reference Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Entertainment | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Reference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0321412281

Book Description

Doubling an introduction to film study and a practical writing guide, this brief text introduces students to film terms and the major film theories, enabling them to write more critically.

Examples from newer movies provide a fresh list of references for students introduced to film study and writing films. The author presents several approaches to film analysis and writing about film–auteurs, genres, ideology, kinds of formalism, and national cinemas, and introduces students to a range of film terms and film theories. Recent movies are used to fresh examples. Multiple approaches to writing about film as well as theories about film are given. Please enter here.

Customer Reviews:

An Excellent Intro to Film Study.......2007-09-10

Timothy Corrigan, in the preface to "A Short Guide to Writing About Films, sixth edition," says, "Writing essays about films is, in short, one of the most sophisticated ways to respond to them." In this concise book, he lucidly explains how to write screen reports, movie reviews, as well as theoretical and critical essays on films.

Here's a sample of his lucid writing. Defining terms often used in film study: mise-en-scene -- "the arrangement of the so-called theatrical elements before they are actually filmed; these include sets, lighting, costumes, and props"; shot/reverse shot -- "an editing pattern that cuts between individuals according to the logic of their conversation"; jump cut -- "a cut within the continuous action of a shot, creating a spatial or temporal jump or discontinuity within the action."

Moreover, this updated edition explains the supplementary features often included in DVDs such as story boards, behind-the-scene documentaries, and interviews with the cast and crews.

Even if you don't intend to write about films, reading this blessedly brief book will enhance your enjoyment of watching films. Five shining stars.

-- C J Singh

I've looked at clouds from both sides now.......2003-08-08

One thing I can say is I enjoy a good film. O.K. if it moves I'll watch it. But until I read this book I really was just looking with out seeing.
It is nice to have this guide confirm what one knows as common sense. Probably because the guide is designed to take you from ground zero to a level of appreciation and allow you to convey your opinion intelligently.
If you have an earlier edition you will still get the essence of the book. Newer editions add different resources and research information.
Some of the highlights are:
* A shot-by shot analysis of a sequence from the film "Potemkin"
* Suggestions on using the Internet
* Sample student writing

Some contents:
Writing about the Movies
Preparing to Watch and Preparing to Write
Film Terms and Topics
Six Approaches to writing about Film
Style and Structure in Writing
Researching the Movies
Manuscript Form

This guide is an eye opener.

TWO THUMBS DOWN.......2001-01-28

I am currently a film major who is being forced to read this book. Let me say that so far I am only to chapter three and have suffered through every page of it. It is filled with basic, common sense, (i.e., the best way to write about film is to take notes during the screening. and if you can, it's good to see the movie more than once), which is explained in several pages. Give me a break. Not only does he present basic knowlnedge but he repeats himself in so many words. The truth is, the only way to successfully analize film is to develop an eye for symbolism. No book, I don't care who writes it, can teach you that. It is something that must be personally developed. Why someone would waste their time writing a book trying to teach people how to do that blows my mind. I give it one star, cause after all, everyone deserves a little comething for at least trying.

fine, blessedly concise guide.......2001-01-07

I'm writing to second mitry's opinion of the book and to add to mitry's comment about kenosha's complaint of textual errors. I have the second edition of the book, and Corrigan speaks of Captain Willard and refers to Marlowe as "the other Captain Willard" (p. 43). It's clear from the context that he is comparing the film character with Conrad's protagonist. I doubt Corrigan would have revised the 2nd edition text here to make an error in the 3rd edition. Don't get turned off by an erroneous review!

Intelligence and accessibility.......2000-08-02

This a marvelous book, packed with information and much more accessible than far more expensive books. It's the perfect companion for almost any film course since it not only introduces students to the language and methods of film analysis (including how to take notes) but does so while guiding students through the work of writing a good essay (with great suggestions for doing research). The writing is clear and accurate (with none of the errors referred to by the Kenosha reviewer). I recommend it without hesitation to all students of film.

Average customer rating:

successful sense of self
my book about me
Amazing and a great idea
FUN
My Book About ME

My Book About Me
Dr. Seuss & Roy McKie
Manufacturer: Random House Books for Young Readers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Children's Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0394800931
Release Date: 1969-09-12

Amazon.com

One of the titles for the younger crowd in the Beginners Books series, My Book About Me has an unusual interactive twist--you make it up as you go along. On each page there's something new to complete, from "I weigh ___ pounds" to "My teeth. I counted them. I have ___ up top. I have ___ downstairs." It's a simple idea, but with a surprising amount of educational value--getting children to name their home country, to recognize and draw in the color of their own eyes, learn their telephone number and address, to name favorite clothes, foods, and colors, and more. Finally, there's a two-page spread where each owner of the book can write his or her own story. Illustrator Roy McKie's style is halfway between the P.D. Eastman of Are You My Mother and the mainstream Seuss of Cat in the Hat and Thidwick: The Big-Hearted Moose. (Ages 4 to 8) --Richard Farr

Book Description

Illus. in full color. Encourages children to find out about themselves, while having fun writing and drawing their own biographies.

Customer Reviews:

successful sense of self.......2007-09-29

i was always jealous that my older sister had this book about herself, growing up...i bought a copy for my nephew...saving it for when he gets to elementary school...it has easy to follow illustrations and questions that will make a child feel proud as they write in the answers...how many footsteps to the mailbox...whats your eye color...are you a lefty, etc...YOUNGER KIDS CAN COMPLETE WITH ADULT HELP...older ones can do on their own!!!

my book about me.......2007-07-27

as a child i loved this book and my children all three have enjoyed it also. It's a blast to do with your child and if you make a point of doing one a year you can make a fabulous library that not only they will enjoy but also their children will love. the best way to buy a toy or a book, i have found is to find something that i loved as a child, if its still around then someone doing something right.

Amazing and a great idea.......2007-07-04

I had done this book as a little girl way back when....I have a 10 year old son that saw this book when he was about 5 and we ordered him a copy. He loves looking back at the simple things like how many door knobs I had and how many he has. We just had a little girl and one of the first things he asked me to get her was her own book, we can't wait until we can watch her fill it out! It is a great way to preserve the most simple memories! I recommend this book to everyone!

FUN.......2007-03-25

THIS BOOK WAS GREAT FUN FOR MY CHILDREN AND NOW ALSO FOR MY GRANDCHILDREN

My Book About ME.......2007-02-13

purchased a copy for eacn of my 3 grandsons, all approaching their 3rd birthdays. My own 3 children each had this wonderful Dr. Seuss classic and loved reading it over the years. Indeed, they still have their worn and tattered copies and continue to chuckle over them to this day.

Reading, Writing, and Rising Up: Teaching About Social Justice and the Power of the Written Word

Average customer rating:

A must for both experienced and aspiring teachers
One of The Best Teaching Books
Not what I expected in a text book for education
A Very Good Read
If you work in a multicultral classroom, a troubled youth classroom or any secondary ed school you need this book.

Reading, Writing, and Rising Up: Teaching About Social Justice and the Power of the Written Word
Linda Christensen
Manufacturer: Rethinking Schools Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Lesson Planning | Education | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

Reading | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0942961250

Book Description

A practical, inspirational book offering essays,lesson plans, and a remarkable collection of student writing, all rooted in an unwavering focus on language arts teaching for justice. An excellent resource for colleagues, staff development, teacher education, and school libraries.

Customer Reviews:

A must for both experienced and aspiring teachers.......2007-06-30

This was one of three required texts for my masters level Adv. Language Arts class. At first, I thought that the book would follow the pathway of others dealing with education in urban schools--focus on the "Great White Hope". Although the author is Caucasian and the majority of her students are minorities, the book didn't come off as a "Made in Hollywood" story. Christensen is completely honest in her sharing of students' attitudes, experiences, beliefs, and achievemnets as well as her own. She is explicit in her teaching methods, and openly shares what works and what doesn't. It is impossible for me to give Christensen the credit that she deserves in such a limited space. However, I encourage you to discover her on your own. Happy reading.

One of The Best Teaching Books.......2007-01-22

Linda Christensen's book is one of the most useful and rewarding books for teaching Language Arts, period. Reading, Writing, and Rising Up is totally hands on, useful, and will help any teacher figure out better, more effective ways to make learning meaningful for their students. I've used this book many times in my own classes and my students have responded well. No other Language Arts book incorporates issues of social justice so seamlessly. Thank you Linda!

Not what I expected in a text book for education.......2006-10-25

I had expected this text to be a collection of teaching ideas and suggestions for students preparing to teach language arts in school. There are some useful ideas for educational majors. There is also a ton of unuseful, uninsightful and personal ramblings of an apparent devout feminist who obliviously would more comfortable wrting about societies ills with men in charge, instead of useful educational ideas. Writer Christensen should write social commentaries, instead of professing to write useful text, when she can spew extreme left wing ideas. This should have been a book for a sociology class, not an education class.

A Very Good Read.......2006-02-25

I bought this book for a class I'm taking as an education major. This book was an asset to me when planning lessons I'd like to tackle with my students. I'd recommend this book to anyone who is interested in giving students greater ways to to express themselves through their written work!

If you work in a multicultral classroom, a troubled youth classroom or any secondary ed school you need this book........2005-10-07

I bought this book because I thought it seemed interesting. I had no idea how useful it would be.

I work with out of school teenagers who are almost all Latino. This book has given me so many activities to use with my students. They are really starting to understand the power of their voices and how important their stories are. It was really a blessing to finally come across a book that actually addresses the population that I work with.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books