Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13676 in Books
• Published on: 1990-01-21
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Amazon.com
If John Holt had his way, today's primers would be replaced with the large-print edition of The New York Times, cursive handwriting would fade into disuse, and talking "cutesy-wootsy" to children would be considered a criminal act. This highly opinionated former teacher and original thinker spent the last half of his life challenging widely accepted classroom practices. The author of 10 books that concentrate on early child development and education, Holt is widely considered the father of the modern-day homeschooling movement because he grew to believe that schools stifle the learning process. In this, his final book--compiled by colleagues from drafts, letters, and magazine essays written by Holt before he died in 1985--he strings together his own observations and philosophies to show how young children can be encouraged to learn everything from reading and math to music and science.

Holt's thoughts carry the power of common sense. One of his pet peeves: the silly, nonsensical rules of phonics drilled into schoolchildren today. One of those adages, found on the walls of many an elementary school classroom, goes, "When two vowels go out walking, the first one does the talking." Holt points out that two pairs of vowels in the sentence violate the rule. This is not only confusing to some children, but simply "dumb," he complains. He dismisses picture books and primers, with their small, simple vocabularies. In their place, Holt urges parents to expose children to the Yellow Pages, warranties, letters, ticket stubs, and newspapers--the print trappings that adults rely upon for everyday life. Holt's call for context amid learning is delivered in a sensible, delightful writing style. He even includes several graphics and number games that can easily be used at home. Anyone who comes in contact with a small child would benefit from--and enjoy--reading these last words from a man who clearly adored and remained mesmerized by children and their inquisitive minds. --Jodi Mailander Farrell

From Publishers Weekly
A leading figure in school reform who died in 1985, the author professed that "children learn from anything and everything they see." According to PW , "Holt's ideas , which have been successfully, though not widely, tested, empower parents and should make them wary of structured early schooling as they make use of this excellent resource."
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Since the 1960s Holt has been an active, well-published ( How Children Fail, 1964; How Children Learn, 1967 ) supporter of the theory that "children are natural learners" whose learning is subverted by the conventional, structured methods in public schools. This new treatise, published posthumously from his notes (Holt died in 1985), presents again his basic premise--"learners create learning." Each child will learn in their own way and in their own time according to their needs. It is the responsibility of the parent/teacher to provide an environment for children to master the "greatest intellectual skill of all"--"figuring out what you don't know or aren't sure of." With explicit examples, Holt demonstrates his techniques in reading, writing, discovering scientific principles, and developing a love of music. Many of the examples have appeared in Holt's newsletter for homeschooling advocates, "Growing Without School." Holt's final work reiterates his disdain for the constricted nature of schools, but it should be read by all concerned about educational reform and accountability.
- A.R. Huggins, Memphis State Univ. Lib.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Great book!
This is a great book and I recommend EVERYONE should read it. Parents, grandparents, and even teens! Too often adults feel they are too old to learn. Children should be taught from an early age to love learning and that learning doesn't just happen 5 days a week from 8 - 3. This book is awesome and I wish my parents had read and followed it when I was a child.

Great for everyone interested in children
A book for everyone interested in how children learn. It would be of special interest to unschoolers or natural learners. Very eye-opening regarding the way children perceive the world and how they constantly learn from it, even when we interfere with this learning process.

Passionate
Once I started reading I couldn't put it down. I'm no fan of public school and recently began homeschooling/ unschooling, and I've done a lot of reading on both sides of that coin. Still, something about how John Holt writes about children and how they learn and the little things that can make it or break it... captures my attention, makes me laugh, and continues to enlighten me. I wish there were more passionate people in the world like him.