John Alcock brings us with him on a tour of the Usery Ridge (north of Mesa, near Phoenix, Arizona) after the winter rains, but before the harsh heat of summer. The book mostly discusses evolutionary behavior of plants and animals found there. There are a few humorous passages which add an unexpected laugh. Dr. Alcock is concerned with the disappearance of the desert and its treasures.

Sonoran Desert Summer is another of John Alcock's easy to read introductions to this desert's more fascinating creatures. The reader not only gets to experience the desert inhabitants' comings and goings during a typical summer in the Sonoran Desert, he or she does it in comfort! As informative as it is entertaining, this book gives the reader valuable insights into the wonderful adaptations of some of the desert's most interesting plants and animals. Written by a biologist who can also write, this book is fun to read, easy to digest, and makes every jaunt into the desert just that much more meaningful. And, the illustrations are charming as well. All in all, a good buy whether you are a tourist or a long-time desert rat.

This book only discusses teaching of grades K-6 (something not mentioned by any of the other reviewers). So, if you're planning to teach high school, you'd be best served by a different book.

I am currently a first year teacher. I bought this book recently and I wish I bought it to read during the summer. In September I made plenty of "first year" mistakes. If I read this book beforehand, I would have seen what mistakes to avoid. But we all live and learn. That's why I'm starting over again in my classroom. If you are a first year teacher or going back to teaching after a hiatus, you need to get this book. It will really help you in September and throughout the academic year!

should be the title of this book! As a recent college graduate, I mistakenly felt prepared to go into the classroom and "do my best" This book opened my eyes to the reality of what to expect and prepared me for it. I think Bonnie Williamson hit it right on the nose with her title, and I suggest you don't enter the classroom without it, better yet, don't accept a job without it, don't enter a teacher program without it! (smile) Really, it gives you a better outlook of the "teacher's world" and is an excellent preparation resource! Good luck and God Bless you! Oh yeah! Also, check out "The First Days of School" by Harry and Rosemary Wong (GREAT BOOK!) Yolunda

Two-dimensional shapes with human characteristics tell this story. A triangle who enjoys being a musical instrument, and catching the wind for sailboats shares his stories with his friends. Eventually, he began to feel dissatisfied and asked the shape-shifter to give him an extra side and an extra angle. After working for a while as a quadrilateral and sharing his new stories with his friends he once again becomes dissatisfied with his role and returns to the shape-shifter to have more sides added. The reader sees where the shape lives his life with his different amounts of sides and angles. With continued dissatisfaction, he adds sides and angles until he is nearly round and rolls down a hill. This is when he asks the shape-shifter to return to his former self.

Because the back of this book includes tips for teachers and parents to incorporate this book, it can be very useful as an educational tool. Taking a walk and searching for a particular shape in the world, or even spotting several makes students think about how they are seen. One pitfall that should be combated is children's tendency to recognize shapes only when they are in their most familiar form. That is, they should have some practice with flipped, turned and rotated shapes. Asking students to view a shape and then incorporate it into a drawing of a real-world illustration will help them as well.

Why 4 stars?:
Marilyn Burns has changed the way that many teachers approach the subject of math in the elementary school. This book is a wonderful accompaniment to her teaching philosophy and methods. The tips and strategies included at the end for teachers, parents and anyone else who may want to use this book just help to reinforce her teaching. I did have to take a point off for reusing the concept and becoming a little sparse with examples of shapes - the illustrations were also somewhat lacking. But in the end, this is a wonderful addition to the library of anyone who teaches about shapes.

As a high school math teacher, I place an emphasis on shape recognition and attributes with my 5 year old. For example, how many sides/angles does a triangle/square/circle(!) have. The Greedy Triangle fits in very nicely with her knowledge level, and she very much enjoyed it from beginning to end. I should note that I edit some of the content to be age appropriate, changing quadrilateral to square, and skipping some of the later, many-sided, polygons. In any case, she laughed her way through the book, which is a great thing for a 5 year old!!

I have been reading this to my classes for the past two years. They absolutely love it. I use it to introduce shapes. The book also teaches a lesson about character. This book is a must have!