Most Popular Books by Steve Reifman

Inspirational and practical, this book presents applications to improve teaching quality in K–8 classrooms and helps teachers find greater meaning and satisfaction in their work.

This book contains a wide variety of effective, user-friendly strategies, tips, and activities for your elementary school classroom. Rich with anecdotes and examples, this resource features suggestions for creating a positive, cooperative classroom culture, improving academic instruction, and building student capacity.

Woodstock, a young American hippie, beats the Draft and hits the hippy trail in a coming of age story. "Wanderer" follows Woodstock''s year-long journey to scratch his nomadic itch. During his travels, Woodstock''s spontaneous, unscripted adventure of raucous, hilarious incidents weighs heavily against his need to come home and grow up.

This resource helps teachers with extra curricular aspects of teaching.

Book Synopsis Riding high in fifth grade, Chase Manning joins the Apple Valley baseball team, and his clutch hitting leads the squad to within two victories of the school''s first league championship. Confidence is high-until Chase''s lucky batting glove turns up missing the day of the semifinal game. Unsure whether the theft represents a personal attack or an attempt to derail the entire baseball team, Chase must track down the culprit and find the glove before the team boards the bus at 3 o''clock. Surprising and suspense-filled plot twists fill the pages of this single-day, real-time mystery thriller. About the Chase Manning Mystery Series The Chase Manning Mystery Series features single-day, real-time thrillers that occur on an elementary school campus. Written for readers 8-12 years of age by National Board Certified Teacher Steve Reifman, the series launched with the award-winning Chase Against Time, in which fifth grader Chase Manning must investigate the mysterious disappearance of the cello that the school plans to auction off to save its prestigious music program. Chase Against Time has enjoyed rave reviews from children, parents, and teachers. Young readers love the book''s fast-paced, action-packed format while parents and teachers appreciate the book''s kid-friendly tone and content. Chase is now back in the eagerly anticipated sequel, Chase for Home. Note for Elementary School Teachers and Parents Chase Against Time and Chase for Home are Level Q on the Fountas & Pinnell scale. Both books are ideally suited to be used as read alouds and mentor texts during Reading Workshop and Writing Workshop units on mystery and "edge-of-seat" fiction because they include numerous examples of end-of-chapter cliffhangers, red herrings, suspects, motives, and other important mystery elements. If you are interested in teaching children how to craft their own mysteries, check out Steve''s e-book, The Ultimate Mystery Writing Guide for Kids.

In a last-ditch effort to save Apple Valley Elementary¿s awardwinning music program from looming budget cuts, the PTA plans to auction off a recently donated, handcrafted cello at the school¿s annual fund-raising dinner. Confidence is high¿until the cello turns up missing the morning of the event. The school principal charges Chase Manning, a fifth grader who has dreamed of playing in the Sixth Grade Honors Orchestra his whole life, with finding the cello by three o¿clock. Each hour of the school day involves surprising and suspense-filled plot turns as Chase pursues the elusive cello. This single-day, realtime mystery thriller truly is a chase against time!

Book Synopsis With huge prizes on the line at the state hamster race, the Apple Valley Elementary science team has been working overtime to prepare. Dash, the school''s little speedster, is in the best shape of her life, and confidence is high-until the hamster turns up missing the morning of the event. Fifth-grader Chase Manning must overcome an unsupportive principal, the visiting members of a rival school, and even his own teammates to identify the thief and find Dash before the competition begins. Expect the unexpected on the pages of this single-day, real-time mystery thriller. About the Chase Manning Mystery Series The Chase Manning Mystery Series features single-day, real-time thrillers that occur on an elementary school campus. Written for readers 8-12 years of age by National Board Certified Teacher Steve Reifman, the series launched with the award-winning Chase Against Time, in which fifth grader Chase Manning must investigate the mysterious disappearance of the cello that the school plans to auction off to save its prestigious music program. Its sequel, Chase for Home, was released in 2014. Both Chase Against Time and Chase for Home have enjoyed rave reviews from children, parents, and teachers. Young readers love the books'' fast-paced, action-packed format while parents and teachers appreciate the kid-friendly tone and content. Chase is now back in the eagerly anticipated third installment, Chase Under Pressure. Note for Elementary School Teachers and Parents Chase Against Time, Chase for Home, and Chase Under Pressure are Level Q on the Fountas & Pinnell scale. All three books are ideally suited to be used as read alouds and mentor texts during Reading Workshop units on mystery and "edge-of-seat" fiction because they include numerous examples of end-of-chapter cliffhangers, red herrings, suspects, motives, and other important mystery elements. If you are interested in teaching children how to craft their own mysteries, check out Steve''s e-book, The Ultimate Mystery Writing Guide for Kids.

Every elementary school teacher knows that students need to be active during the day. After all, they''re kids! But with all the demands on our time, we find ourselves pushing through the school day, just trying to get through everything in the curriculum. Our students suffer when they are stuck in their seats all day long.Now there is a resource to teach your students while they are moving. "Rock It! Transform Classroom Learning through Movement, Songs, and Stories" by Steve Reifman has over 100 activities that allow your students to move while learning the required curriculum.Many of the activities in Rock it! align with specific Common Core State Standards for English language arts and math. Other activities help students learn concepts in science, social studies, and health. Reifman also explains how to use movement for warm-up activities, as short breaks during the day, and as a way to build strong classroom bonding.Rock It! includes: - Movement activities for English language arts, math, science, social studies, and health, grades K – 5 - Stories for English language arts, math, science, social studies, and health, grades K – 5 - Songs for English language arts, math, and science, grades K – 5 - Chants for English language arts, math, and science, grades K - 5 - Movement warm-ups and breaks - Movement activities and stories for creating a positive classroom culture Each activity in the book includes step-by-step descriptions for preparation, procedure, and variations. You can adapt the activities for the age group of your students.Research shows that children learn best when they have multiple ways to process information. Adding movement, songs, and stories to your teaching repertoire will have your students rocking to the beat of success!

Book Synopsis The last day of school at Apple Valley Elementary could mark the end of Mrs. Kennedy''s 27-year teaching career, if she finds the rest of the money she needs to buy her dream house. When former student Brian Kelly surprises her with a $10,000 check, confidence is high-until the gift turns up missing hours before the down payment is due. Fifth-grader Chase Manning needs to work quickly to save the day for his favorite teacher. Suspense, drama, and excitement overflow from the pages of this single-day, real-time mystery thriller. About the Chase Manning Mystery Series The Chase Manning Mystery Series features single-day, real-time thrillers that occur on an elementary school campus. Written for readers 8-12 years of age by National Board Certified Teacher Steve Reifman, the series launched with the award-winning Chase Against Time, in which fifth grader Chase Manning must investigate the mysterious disappearance of the cello that the school plans to auction off to save its prestigious music program. The book and its sequels, Chase for Home and Chase Under Pressure, have enjoyed rave reviews from children, parents, and teachers. Young readers love the books'' fast-paced, action-packed format while parents and teachers appreciate the kid-friendly tone and content. Chase is now back in the eagerly anticipated fourth installment, Chase to the Finish. Note for Elementary School Teachers and Parents Chase Against Time, Chase for Home, Chase Under Pressure, and Chase to the Finish are Level Q on the Fountas & Pinnell scale. All four books are ideally suited to be used as read alouds and mentor texts during Reading Workshop units on mystery and "edge-of-seat" fiction because they include numerous examples of end-of-chapter cliffhangers, red herrings, suspects, motives, and other important mystery elements. If you are interested in teaching children how to craft their own mysteries, check out Steve''s e-book, The Ultimate Mystery Writing Guide for Kids.

Changing Kids'' Lives One Quote At a Time contains 121 inspirational sayings designed to bring out the best in children and develop lasting habits. The quotes target 13 "Habits of Character," a list that includes Cooperation, Courage, Fairness, Honesty, Kindness, Patience, Perseverance, Positive Attitude, Pride, Respect, Responsibility, Self-discipline, and Service. In addition, the sayings touch on other important ideas, such as quality, success, and health & wellness. Accompanying each quote is a set of "talking points" that parents and teachers can use as a reference when discussing the quotes with children. Though the conversations take only a few minutes, the exercise is a valuable one because it encourages kids to think deeply, because there is a high tone to the dialogue that appeals to the best in people, and because it allows your family or classroom to start the day on a positive note. Further payoffs to consistent use of this activity include better student behavior, stronger work habits and social skills, improved attitudes towards school, greater enthusiasm for and increased dedication to learning, more connections made between school and students'' present and future lives, and enhanced vocabulary development.