MSI Press Blog

Today's publisher's pride is Andrew's Awesome Adventures with His ADHD Brain by Kristin and Andrew Wilcox, which reached #213 in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. and #235 in parenting children with disabilities on Amazon. From Amazon: Customers find the book provides brilliant insight into inattentive ADHD, with one customer noting it's a wonderful informative read for children with the condition. The book is easy to read and customers consider it a must-read. They appreciate its pacing, with one customer mentioning it's perfect for both parents and teachers. Book description: In this two-part book Andrew and his neuroscientist mom each tell their story about living with the inattentive subtype of ADHD. How do you survive life and middle school with an ADHD elephant in your brain? Kids with ADHD will relate to Andrew's reactions to everyday and school-related situations, like remembering to turn in homework, staying organized, and making friends. Using...

  French Although French was technically the fourth language I began to study (after English, my native tongue, Latin, and Spanish), in some ways it could also be considered my second language or even a shared first language since I was surrounded by French from birth. I was born in New Hampshire some 60+ years ago and grew up in a small village there until I was 14, at which time my parents moved across the Salmon Falls River to a farm in Maine. In the 1940s and 1950s (and even in the 1960s), Maine and New Hampshire were strongholds of French-speaking Americans, not immigrants but families who had been there for generations, often with relatives in Canada (like we Anglophones among them), and an interesting mix of languages developed. Growing up in a francophone region in a New Hampshire village and, later, on a Maine farm meant that I always had heard French around me. I did not pay much attention to it, however, my parents usually frequented Anglophone haunts. I decided to t...

   A textbook-driven curriculum promises order, predictability, and coverage. But those strengths are also its limits. When the textbook becomes the curriculum, learning collapses into a sequence of pages rather than a sequence of meaning-making experiences. Open Architecture Curriculum Design (OACD) flips that logic: instead of forcing learners to follow the book, it builds a structure that follows the learner. Here are the advantages that matter most. 1. OACD starts with learners, not chapters A textbook assumes a single path. OACD assumes variation. Learners enter with different backgrounds, motivations, and readiness levels. A fixed sequence can’t accommodate that diversity without leaving someone behind or holding someone back. OACD’s modular structure lets instructors choose the right entry point for each cohort and each individual. 2. Authentic materials replace artificial language Textbooks simplify the world to make it teachable. OACD uses the world itself. Learners e...