Boys and Girls Learn Differently! A Guide for Teachers and Parents - Softcover

"Boys and Girls Learn Differently! offers valuable and much-needed tools to provide boys and girls with true equal educational opportunities. The new techniques Michael Gurian presents here will transform our classrooms and the way parents teach their children in very positive ways." —John Gray, author, Children Are from Heaven and Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus

"From the beginning of time, parents and sensitive teachers have observed differences in the behavior, learning styles, and focused interests of girls and boys. Defying the political correctness that is today's common wisdom, Gurian and the contributing authors draw on emerging neuroscientific data to justify these perceptions. While never allowing us to lose sight of the reality of individual differences, they suggest creative ways to modify the learning environment to encourage a broader spectrum of achievement in both gender groups." —Edward Zigler, Sterling Professor of Psychology, Yale University, and one of the original planners of the national Head Start program

"Overflowing with challenging ideas and practical advice, Gurian's research offers parents and teachers a true gift-the knowledge and support needed to create dynamic learning environments for both boys and girls." —Ann F. Caron, author of Mothers to Daughters and Strong Mothers, Strong Sons

'The insights and innovations in Boys and Girls Learn Differently! have been applied in our classrooms with phenomenal success, leading to better academic performance and better behavior. I highly recommend this book to all parents, teachers, and school administrators." —Dan Colgan, superintendent of schools, St. Joseph, Missouri

Many of us have felt instinctively that boys and girls don't learn the same way or at the same rate. And in today's highly charged nationwide debate about how to improve our children's school performance, the difference between how boys and girls learn may be the key to advancing true educational reform. At last, we have the scientific evidence that documents the many biological gender differences that influence learning. For instance, girls talk sooner, develop better vocabularies, read better, and have better fine motor skills. Boys, on the other hand, have better auditory memory, are better at three-dimensional reasoning, are more prone to explore, and achieve greater abstract design ability after puberty. In this profoundly significant book, author Michael Gurian synthesizes the current knowledge and clearly demonstrates how this distinction in hard-wiring and socialized gender differences affects how boys and girls learn. Gurian presents a new way to educate our children based on brain science, neurological development, and chemical and hormonal disparities. The innovations presented in this book were applied in the classroom and developed during a two year study that Gurian and his colleagues conducted in six Missouri school districts. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! provides guidelines for brain-based innovations that will motivate and inspire everyone-teachers, parents, policymakers, and caretakers-interested in educating kids. The book shows why we must change our classroom strategy, and makes specific suggestions for new techniques that will provide equal educational opportunities, customized for gender difference. Gurian has developed a blueprint for creating the ultimate classroom by showing how to: ? Set up and adapt learning environments that fit the different needs of both boys and girls ? Apply specific, field-tested teaching techniques that accommodate the ways boys and girls learn differently ? Identify teachers' strengths and weaknesses when educating boys and girls ? Guide parents to support their children's efforts in using innovative gender based education. This pioneering resource is a touchstone for real and lasting educational change. The Author Michael Gurian is an educator, family therapist, and author of fourteen books, including the bestselling The Wonder of Boys, A Fine Young Man, and The Good Son. He is an internationally celebrated speaker and writer whose work has been featured in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Time, and other national publications as well as on the Today Show, Good Morning America, CNN, and numerous other broadcast media.