What’s on Your Bookshelf

Suggested Summer Reading
The following books have submitted by MACSA teachers and administrators as suggestions for your Summer Reading List. The "editorial" descriptions are from www.ChristianBook.com and/or www.Amazon.com and are provided to give you an overview of the contents of the book.

The books are not specifically being endorsed or recommended by MACSA.

Because Writing Matters: Improving Student Writing in our Schools - National Writing Project and Carl Nagin (Jossey-Bass)
Timely and persuasive, “Because Writing Matters” offers classroom teachers, administrators, and those who work with pre-service teachers more than encouragement; it provides a ‘so what’ plus the ‘how to’ necessary to make real changes in the ways writing is taught and assessed. One of the book’s greatest strengths is the way relevant information is succinctly presented. —English Journal

Engaging Readers & Writers With Inquiry: Promoting Deep Understandings in Language Arts and the Content Areas With Guiding Questions (Theory and Practice) - Jeffery D. Wilhelm (Scholastic)
What makes a good relationship? How does flight influence behavior for humans and birds? Is it ever permissible to lie? Reframing our units and lessons with questions such as these makes learning more exciting for students. Wilhelm debunks the myth that teaching through inquiry is hard. He shares practical, easy ideas for turning state standards into engaging authentic questions that propel students toward deep understandings. Includes sample lessons, discussion techniques, and questioning schemes for all the content areas. For use with Grades 4 & Up.

Excused Absence: Should Christian Kids Leave Public Schools? - Douglas Wilson (Canon Press)
Should Christians send their kids to public schools as "salt" and "light," or to home and private institutions shaped by a distinctively biblical worldview? Founder of the acclaimed Logos School, Wilson argues that because our children belong to God, we mustn't "render them unto Caesar" but instead surround them with divine truth.

Reclaiming the Culture of Christian Education - Albert Greene (Purposeful Design)
This rich work is a walk through the philosophical and cultural history of education, emphasizing the unique goal of Christian education--to prepare young people for a fulfilling life under the lordship of Jesus Christ.

Set Apart - Kent Hughes (Crossway Books)
R. Kent Hughes builds a case for godliness in the church—a case that echoes the biblical call to holiness. The church can reach the world only if it keeps itself from being ensnared by the world. Hughes is not simply urging Christians to say no to worldliness—he is calling the church to say yes to Christ and to his call to reach our lost world.

Shepherding a Child's Heart - Tedd Tripp (Shepherd Press)
Many parenting books are based on hit-or-miss theories steeped in secular thinking. This one draws from Pastor Tripp's seasoned experience as a father-and from God's Holy Word. Grounded in the Bible's divine plan for parenting, this guide defines your goals as a parent and provides the Scriptural methods for accomplishing them.

The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life - Parker J. Palmer (Jossey-Bass)
This book builds on a simple premise: good teaching cannot be reduced to technique but is rooted in the identity and integrity of the teacher. Good teaching takes myriad forms but good teachers share one trait: they are authentically present in the classroom, in community with their students and their subject. They possess "a capacity for connectedness" and are able to weave a complex web of connections between themselves, their subjects, and their students, helping their students weave a world for themselves. The connections made by good teachers are held not in their methods but in their hearts — the place where intellect, emotion, spirit, and will converge in the human self — supported by the community that emerges among us when we choose to live authentic lives.

The God Who Smokes: Scandalous Meditation on Faith – Timothy Stoner (Deliberate)
“The God Who Smokes” is an unwavering answer to the postmodern cry for an authentic, knowable truth that is compassionate and courageous, demonstrated in sacrificial commitment to a life of righteousness and justice.

The Little Book of Restorative Discipline for Schools - Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz and Judy H. Mullet (Good Books)
Can an overworked teacher possibly turn an unruly incident with students into an "opportunity for learning, growth, and community-building"? If restorative justice has been able to salvage lives within the world of criminal behavior, why shouldn't its principles be applied in school classrooms and cafeterias? And if our children learn restorative practices early and daily, won't we be building a healthier, more just society? Two educators answer yes, yes, and yes in this new addition to The Little Books of Justice and Peacebuilding series. They urge a focus on consequences rather than punishment. They insist that relationships-far more than rules-are central to building community, and that community fosters caring and belonging. They put up with no hypocrisy: teachers and administrators must live restorative practices, too. So how does it all work? Stutzman and Amstutz offer applications and models. Among them are class meetings for 5th graders; reintegration of 7th- and 8th- graders who were suspended; circle processes, which offer space for all voices to be heard, and also quiet tensions that are building; and community conferencing when trouble shapes up between students and neighbors. "Discipline that restores is a process to make things as right as possible." This Little Book shows how to get there.

Worldly Amusements: Restoring the Lordship of Christ to Our Entertainment Choices - Wayne Wilson (Winepress Publications)
Do we love movies more than God? Have we compromised God's standard by letting Hollywood assault our minds and hearts with sensuality? "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God." Matthew 5:8