Fires in the Mind: What Kids Can Tell Us About Motivation and Mastery

Written by Kathleen Cushman and The students of What Kids Can Do

Narrated by Barbara Goodson

Through the voices of students themselves, Fires in the Mind brings a game-changing question to teachers of adolescents: What does it take to get really good at something? Starting with what they already know and do well, teenagers from widely diverse backgrounds join a cutting-edge dialogue with adults about the development of mastery in and out of school. Their insights frame motivation, practice, and academic challenge in a new light that galvanizes more powerful learning for all. To put these students ideas into practice, the book also includes practical tips for educators, exercises, questionnaires, do and dont lists, and other helpful tools.   "Every educator would like for students to develop a passion, but many are unsure of how to light that fire. Kathleen Cushman had the wisdom to ask students, and they tell us with clarity what motivates them and how school might be made more inspiring. Anyone who cares about schooling or children should read this book." Daniel T. Willingham, best-selling author of Why Dont Students Like School?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Jul 20, 2020
• ISBN: 9781705260388

Kathleen Cushman

Kathleen Cushman is the author of Fires in the Bathroom: Advice for Teachers from High School Students and the co-author, with Laura Rogers, of Fires in the Middle School Bathroom: Advice for Teachers from Middle School Students, both published by The New Press. Student motivation and mastery are the subjects of her recent books Fires in the Mind and The Motivation Equation. Her work with the national nonprofit What Kids Can Do, Inc., which she co-founded with Barbara Cervone in 2001, includes extensive documentation of adolescent learning in print and mixed media. She lives in New York City.