Ron ClarkThe Essential 55: An Award-Winning Educator's Rules for Discovering the Successful Student in Every Child, Revised and Updated

I purchased this book as a gift for my sister-in-law, a 7th grade science teacher and swim coach. Mr. Clark was impressive on the Oprah show and I knew that my sister-in-law could benenfit from his teaching philosophy based on some of the horror stories she's told me. Curiosity got the best of me and I had to read the book myself...in one sitting! I found myself becoming embarrassed at some of the things I was guilty of doing myself as a student. I came to realize that I did these things in boredom and because my teachers/professors rarely won my trust and respect. Regardless of the situation, Mr. Clark handled his students with constructive and consistent discipline. I know that my sister-in-law will benefit from this book. I realize that a child's behavioral problems often stem from the home environment. In fact, I'm surprised that more teachers haven't put this on the school supply list...for the parents to read!As an engineer by trade, I realized that this book is not just for the teacher, it's for everyone. Professionals in my organization haven't learned some of the basic etiquette rules from "The Essential 55." Personally, I have already benefitted from the rules, as I become more aware of my interactions with others. These are life's basic rules that we take for granted as a result of selfishness, and I hope that I can pass this wisdom on to my children.Hat's off to Mr. Clark for an excellent read!

This is better than Wong's First Day of School! It is written for elementary school, but is easily applicable to secondary school as well. It holds many wonderful ideas that are necessary to make a strong academic environment while not losing the humanity of the social aspect of school.Some of the rules may seem a bit rudimentary, but, as a high school teacher, I see too many students that lack social graces and display anti-social behavior on a daily basis. That being said, I have incorporated many of the rules this year and can testify that they do work. Something as simple as a student saying "Yes, sir/ma'am" goes a long way. I work primarily with upper classmen and I have seen a real change since the beginning of the semester in January (review written in March). I have also encouraged many of my fellow teachers to use this in their classrooms of Freshmen and they have told me that the rules also work in their classrooms.I would highly recommend this book for any teacher just starting out or a 20+ year veteran. This book reminds us of why we became teachers. It is written in such a way that is not condescending. It is very well organized and has a smooth delivery that draws the reader in.

I have been an ESL teacher for elementary, high school and university students for 11 years in Costa Rica. English classes are considered ¨specials¨ like art and music so the amount of time we get to spend with our students is very limited compared to the grade teacher. The grade teacher forms his or her own classroom rules and the ESL teacher has to struggle all year trying to get the students to behave and perform as they should. I have been researching for years for information or a guide book that will help me get through to my students. Most books I have read don't give clear examples or the ideas are very time consuming. I am a hardworking person who loves her job but adding more things to do to my already long list just doesn't work.I just bought the kindle book today and I have read up to rule 15 and I am already LOVIN'IT and planning my moves for the 2012 term that starts in a few weeks. I have already shed some tears while reading the book; it is exactly what I needed. The rules are reachable , reasonable, and teachable! Thank you so much! I would love to meet the author and observe teachers at his school.

After raising 2 boys and then working part time as a substitute teacher and volunteer tutor, this book has a lot of what is needed. I had been working on my own book of improvements for education based on my experience in working with kids in FL - many of whom come from families that just do not have a lot. These kids are bright and I believe they need tons of encouragement so they realize they can become anything they want. This book outlines what he did for one school but it needs to be much more accessible to all kids and I believe it can. Good read and the youtube videos of Ron Clark are even more entertaining. I have a friend who had to follow him on stage once at a conference where she was speaking - not something you would knowingly sign up for.

This book is Ron Clark's story about how he "identified" the 55 essential skills to get along in life...with the students he was teaching. He then formulates these "rules" into his 55 Essential Rules, which he nails to the door of his classrom.Some of the rules make perfect sense (e.g., speaking respectfully) and some even Clark acknowledges are ludicrous (e.g., no "orange" snack foods in class--which he is willing to remove and throw ostentatiously into the garbage basket). He seems not to group his skills and rules in any particular fashion, so "respect" does not preceed "caring," for instance.These skills seem very simple: saying please and thank you, "ma'am" and "sir," looking people in the eye, smiling, returning a question for a question, not saying "hunh?", and so forth. Clark's accompanying workbook gives parents and teachers some specific methods for teaching these essential 55 skills.The book requires no more than 1 hour reading. Curriculum implementation, however, is quite a challenge, and Clark underestimates the difficulty and complexity of the challenge. It is possible to stir up quite a hornet's nest with poor implementation. If the kids are not ready or prepared, they will experience a lot of what Clark does as a real challenge, and they will either resent the teacher or fight back. The Workbook (also sold on Amazon) may be helpful. Clark's book on the 11 essential qualities of a teacher is less helpful than this book.