In 2004, Carolyn Han left her comfortable life and position as a lecturer in English at Hawaii Community College and went to live in one of the most remote and mysterious places in the Middle East—Yemen, known in the West primarily for providing a haven for terrorists affiliated with al Qaeda. The previous year, she had sold her gold jewelry to travel with Bedouin by camel from Marib to Shabwa, and the life-changing experience opened the path for her to become the first American English instructor in Yemen’s wild tribal area, Marib. Guided by fateful encounters and unfazed by warnings of danger, Han allowed her life to unfold as it might, with a sense of acceptance informed by the idea that whatever happens is meant to happen. Learning and understanding would follow. In this book,Han paints a vivid portrait of Yemeni customs, including their enjoyment of the stimulant qat and their proclivity for carrying AK-47s wherever they go, and she conveys what it was like to be a woman alone surrounded by a culture not her own. As the old saying goes, Han, the ostensible teacher, became the student, and through these pages she allows readers a rare glimpse into a Bedouin culture that most will never encounter.

Teach Baby to Talk ... and Make Reading Fun, The Importance of Speech and Language in Learning to Read begins by recounting author Sandra Jean Smith’s experience as a teacher of illiterate adults, and also examines the possible causes for the ever-growing number of children starting school with speech problems unseen in previous generations.Smith’s research on this topic, interspersed with her personal stories make for impressive reading. She uses humour and anecdotes to entertain and inform readers.Learn the latest research into these problems and what parents can do to prevent and rectify them. Chapter summaries reinforce her research.The content covers such vtopics as childcare and parenting issues, the problems associated with children learning to speak, and the consequent implications for learning to read. She also discusses the library’s role in stimulating and extending children’s interest in reading to counteract the influence of computer games and television.Teach Baby to Talk is written in an easy-to-read format with minimal educational jargon. The book is a must-read for parents and anyone working with very young children.

This is a compact and comprehensive overview of the many teaching methods, strategies, materials, and assessments available for choral sight-singing instruction. It takes the mystery out of teaching music reading. Topics covered include practical strategies for teaching and assessment.

Motivating Teen and Preteen Readers: How Teachers and Parents Can Lead the Way contains over 1,000 diverse, original, fun, creative, absurd, challenging questions on reading that will inspire adolescent reading lives from the inside out. The four books of questions contained in this volume are designed to help kids help themselves find their ways to a desire to read.