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On Young Children » Book Reviews http://www.onyoungchildren.com A gramma/community activist/professor shares her thoughts on little kids in a big world. Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:50:51 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 blank ants and buddhists http://www.onyoungchildren.com/2008/01/10/blank-ants-and-buddhists/ http://www.onyoungchildren.com/2008/01/10/blank-ants-and-buddhists/#comments Thu, 10 Jan 2008 22:53:57 +0000 admin http://www.onyoungchildren.com/2008/01/10/blank-ants-and-buddhists/ This book has been on my shelf for a while and taken longer to get through it (not because of the content, but because of my busy life): Black ants and buddhists: thinking critcially and teaching differently in the primary grades by Mary Cowhey.\\n\\nIt\\\’s really quite a good read. I work mainly with pre-service teachers in early childhood; and Mary\\\’s classroom is first and second grade. So it\\\’s necessary to think as you read about how you might transform and negotiate some of the material and ideas she has used in her classroom. When I was reading it, I thought it would be quite a good book for writing up a book review; but as I searched the web for others\\\’ opinions about it, I found this review at the Michigan State University Library which sums up quite well most of my thoughts and reactions to the book.\\n\\nI\\\’m a huge fan of the theorists and workers Ms. Cowhey uses to think about her work, and had the good fortune of taking a class with Sonia Nieto at UMass/Amherst during my doctoral work. I mention that because it\\\’s always of interest to me who writes forewords: I think to have a forward by Dr. Nieto speaks volumes about the book and what you will find to think hard about between its covers.\\n\\nI had two additional thoughts as I read the book. One is based upon the facts that I live in the area that the book is written in, and more than likely know professionally the administrators or other support folks Ms. Cowhey mentions. If you read any of Jonathan Kozol\\\’s work, I think you would be inclined to really put that in relationship to this work. There\\\’s nothing like support and resources to make a lot of things possible in a classroom. I\\\’m still waiting for the book to be written by a teacher who manages to teach in this fantastic way without colleges nearby, nice parks to walk to and the other resources Ms. Cowhey has at her disposal. The very idea that for several years, students of philosophy have been coming once a week to discuss this topic with her young children is not to be found in many classrooms. More books for teachers need to be written that encourage this type of authentic work in the classroom, most importantly for those places with little resources.\\n\\nI also agree with the book review that she gives very little coverage to the strong reality of state mandated standards, testing and curriculum that I see taking a lot of the time during a day.\\n\\nBut, overall, this book is well worth a read – or three really! If nothing else, skim the book for the really terrific children\\\’s books she has used and suggested. Any classroom would be the “richer” for having these books read and talked about by the children.

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