Year after year, Rafe Esquithâ€™s fifth-grade students excel. They read passionately, far above their grade level; tackle algebra; and stage Shakespeare so professionally that they often wow the

There Are No Shortcuts

Year after year, Rafe Esquithâ€™s fifth-grade students excel. They read passionately, far above their grade level; tackle algebra; and stage Shakespeare so professionally that they often wow the great Shakespearen actor himself, Sir Ian McKellen. Yet Esquith teaches at an L.A. innercity school known as the Jungle, where few of his students speak English at home, and many are from poor or troubled families. Whatâ€™s his winning recipe? A diet of intensive learning mixed with a lot of kindness and fun. His kids attend class from 6:30 A.M. until well after 4:00 P.M., right through most of their vacations. They take field trips to Europe and Yosemite. They play rock and roll. Mediocrity has no place in their classroom. And the results follow them for life, as they go on to colleges such as Harvard, Princeton, and Stanford.
Possessed by a fierce idealism, Esquith works even harder than his students. As an outspoken maverick of public education (his heroes include Huck Finn and Atticus Finch), he admits to significant mistakes and heated fights with administrators and colleagues. We allâ€”teachers, parents, citizensâ€”have much to learn from his candor and uncompromising vision.

Country	USA
Brand	Random House Books for Young Readers
Manufacturer	Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Binding	Paperback
PartNumber	9781400030835
Color	Multicolor
IsAdultProduct
Height	7.99211
Length	5.19684
Weight	0.47178924068
Width	0.59055
ReleaseDate	2004-05-11
NumberOfItems	1

There Are No Shortcuts