Stirring the Head, Heart, and Soul
Redefining Curriculum, Instruction, and Concept-Based Learning
- H. Lynn Erickson - Educational Consultant, Everett, WA
"This book is a potent reminder of what it means when teachers teach whole human beings—their minds, hearts, and souls. Erickson helps us recall what all great teachers know: quality teaching is about building young lives."
—Carol Ann Tomlinson, Professor, University of Virginia
Author, The Parallel Curriculum
"Erickson sets the standard for concept-based curriculum. Her work offers a theoretically rich and eminently practical approach for constructing curriculum around rich, transferable concepts. The third edition extends this seminal work for the benefit of educators and their students."
—Jay McTighe, Educational Consultant, McTighe and Associates
Author, Understanding by Design
Help students analyze and synthesize information for a deeper understanding of big ideas!
This updated edition of the classic bestseller on curriculum design for quality instruction provides practical structures, planning tools, and specific classroom examples of effective teaching strategies. The author focuses on the need for curriculum and instruction that allows students to move beyond factual learning to a level of understanding where knowledge transfers readily to new situations and thinking becomes integrated. The book's wide-ranging topics include:
- Aligning local curriculum with state and national content standards
- Using brain-based teaching methods
- Developing higher-order thinking skills
- Assessing and reporting student progress
- Creating a lifelong love of learning in students
This invaluable resource encourages teachers to create an educational environment that challenges students' personal intellect, engages their spirits, and fosters a greater understanding of the world around them.
"The essence of good teaching is in this book. It's a potent reminder of what it means when teachers teach whole human beings—their minds, hearts, and souls. Erickson helps us recall what all great teachers know: quality teaching is about building young lives."
"Erickson sets the standard for concept-based curriculum. Her work offers a theoretically rich and eminently practical approach for constructing curriculum around rich, transferable concepts. The third edition extends this seminal work for the benefit of educators and their students."
"Shows us the value of teaching to transferable ideas, and emphasizes deep understanding versus shallow coverage of material. Erickson guides educators in designing a high-quality curriculum organized around the essential concepts and ideas of each discipline. This book a must-read for preservice and inservice teachers and administrators at all levels."
"Erickson's work is a gift for teachers striving to prepare students for the exciting challenges of the twenty-first century. The concepts of teaching for global citizenship in today's world come alive with Erickson's clear, practical, and inspiring guidance."
use as resource for students and colleagues - its' wonderful
This text covered the deeper aspects of therapeutic journal writing. Rather than using an academic driven approach, the authors employ a psychoeducational approach to their intervention.
The 2nd edition of Stirring the Head, Heart and Soul : Redefining Curriculum and Instruction (© 2001) was a complete re-write of the first edition, which was published in 1995. The 3rd edition required less revision because the message is even more current today as educators nationally and internationally become increasingly aware of the need to address the conceptual, as well as the factual levels of knowledge and understanding in curriculum and instruction. The 3rd edition reinforces, clarifies and extends the message that the expanding knowledge base requires conceptual structures to help students relate new knowledge to prior knowledge, transfer knowledge at the conceptual level, and develop synergistic thinking abilities as they use factual knowledge to develop deeper conceptual understanding.
The 3rd edition makes a slight revision to the sub-title-- Redefining Curriculum, Instruction, and Concept-based Learning—to emphasize the concept-based focus of the book. Each chapter was evaluated for clarity and focus of the message which led to some changes and revisions in wording, the inclusion of new tables and figures, and updating of many references. Twenty-eight additional and current references were included in the 3rd edition. Fifteen pages of additional text material discussed key trends that support concept-based instruction : Cooperative Learning, Differentiation, and Essential and Guiding Questions.