More Than I Ever Imagined: A First-Year Teacher's Discoveries

There is no lack of advice for teachers from the questionable to the inane. Don't smile until Christmas. Eat right and get enough exercise. Wear sensible shoes.

The wisdom Nancy Feigenbaum offers is more subtle, yet it provides middle level teachers with sound advice and many opportunities to reflect on the hundreds of decisions they make every day.

This first-year teacher, at age 41, learned the big lesson that every teacher learns teaching is a highly complex mixture of art and science. The lessons presented here are not gimmicks, or a laundry list of quickly forgotten "tricks of the trade." She doesn't hit us over the head with prescriptive dos and dont's; rather she makes us think critically about more significant aspects of teaching thoughtful and careful planning that connects students to their learning authentically, always keeping to the true nature of young adolescents, responding to them as individuals not just as students, and perhaps most important of all, keeping a sense of humor. Nancy Feigenbaum has provided a gem by writing so passionately, thoughtfully, and respectfully about teaching young adolescents.