This is a great book. My daughter is entering first grade this fall, and reading this book helped me so much. I now know about what she is going to be learning, and how I can help. There are also tons of ideas for fun and educational activities. I would highly recommend this book!

My son is entering first grade in the fall, and I'm glad that I had the opportunity to read this book. As the parent of a gifted child, it's important for me to know how to challenge my son. This book is packed with tips, activities, games, fresh ideas, and book recommendations that I can use to supplement what my child is learning in school. The practical advice on relating with the teacher and avoiding homework problems is great. I feel prepared to start the school year armed with this information.

As a single parent, this clear and concise bird's eye view into the second grade classroom helped me understand a lot about the challenges my son will face come September. Since I want to spend my downtime with my six-year-old on activities, not reading academic diatribes, this quick read struck just the right balance for this reviewer. Information packed, practical, and to-the-point--I recommend it highly.

If you are a parent, then you know (or you will soon learn) the agony that accompanies standardized tests, and worse, the day the results arrive home. Firstly, the scores themselves are not easy to understand, and what is worse is when you child wants you to explain them to him or her!

I found this book to be a saving grace for me and my family. It is a practical guide for preparing, understanding and explaining the tests and the scores. I highly recommend it to any parent who has a child facing standardized tests.

This book provides an interesting glimpse into the lives of students, teachers, and administrators of elite boarding schools. It describes the costs and benefits to students (and teachers) of an elite boarding school education, and how this "rite of passage" encourages the idea among students that their advantages are earned. It also describes how elite students are socialized for power; and how their social contacts and schools help them gain acceptance to the best colleges and, later, into the best jobs, with the full complicity of the college admissions officers. This is an easy-to-read, well-researched, and interesting book. My only complaint is that it is too short!

"Democracy is supposed to begin at the schoolhouse door. One has to be blinded by this glowing image of equality, however, not to see that private [boarding] schools, in general, represent an elite alternative to the public educational system in much the same way that private cars are alternatives to public transportation." Even though this book was published in 1985, most of the research and analysis of the elite schools can be applied today. The different types of boarding schools across the United States are illuminating. The public schools are even producing a growing number of eligible candidates for the Ivy League schools, although in many ways, the authors believe they still remain at a significant disadvantage. Although attending a private boarding school is no guarantee for admittance to Harvard, it certainly does provide a "booster shot" for incredible success. Every parent should read this book. Plan accordingly while your child is in kindergarten. Discover how America's elite are bred.

The words "Expect Miracles" and "Hope and Despair" caught my attention as I was researching a book to read for an assignment in my Philosophy of Education class. As a graduate student studying in the field of Counseling and Guidance, school accountability and standardized tests have been an ongoing topic in several of my classes. I am familiar with how public and A-typical schools in my city stand on these issues however; charter schools are an area that I am unfamiliar with. After hearing mostly negative comments from former charter schoolteachers on their experience working in this type of school system. I wanted to examine this form of alternative school program.

I believe this book would be beneficial to parents who are thinking about enrolling their child in a charter school, individuals who are already knowledgeable in this form of educational system, and for individuals like myself who have an interest in learning and understanding the goals and purpose of charter schools. The authors of this book have provided the reader with information on the school choice/charter school conception through its current status and it's impact on the education of our children in America. They have also provided scenerios on what an individual would have to go through in order to see their vision of opening a charter school realized.

Finally, another issue this book addresses is whether or not government and politics should remain influential in educating our children. After reviewing the author's comments the reader will be able to ask him or herself if these institutions are the source of failure at our schools or do they contribute to their success? There are pros and cons to all educational systems in America, from traditional public schools to voucher programs. In my opinion, I believe charter schools are not the best environment for a child to learn and grow as a person. The curriculum is limited and the social structure is not as diverse as our population.