Review of Never Teach A Pig to Sing. It is a waste of Time

[evraealtana]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Never Teach A Pig to Sing. It is a waste of Time" by Freida Atwood.]

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3 out of 5 stars

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Never Teach a Pig to Sing, written by Freida Atwood, is a collection of stories and thoughts accumulated from the author’s decades spent teaching students of every description. It contains stories from the author’s own childhood, from her students’ academic and personal lives, and from the lives of other teachers, as well as observations and wisdom learned from experts on the subject of teaching.

The author’s experience is rich, having taught in several different countries and at grade levels from kindergarten through high school. She is particularly seasoned in teaching students with learning disabilities, a task that requires flexibility and a slightly unorthodox approach. I loved seeing the quirky and inventive methods the author employed with her students in order to foster confidence and build a love of learning.

The book simply consists of a collection of the author’s thoughts, with no central theme, no organized timeline, and no argument being made. It reads like a conversation in which amusing or interesting anecdotes are added almost randomly. I found it difficult to follow the author’s train of thought as she jumped, for example, from a story about a student’s lack of focus in school to a lecture about how “I” statements can be used to solve conflicts and then to a story about her own childhood struggle with bad handwriting. I believe that a more logical flow would have improved the book’s readability and better engaged me as a reader.

Unfortunately, the book is definitely in need of editing. I found many, many errors in grammar and spelling, as well as larger mistakes like entire sections being repeated almost word for word in multiple chapters.

Although there is no violence in the book, serious injuries or deaths are mentioned surprisingly often, and there is one mention of drug abuse. There are also three instances of borderline profanity. For these reasons, I cannot recommend the book to young readers.

Never Teach a Pig to Sing earns a score of 3 out of 5 for its candid examination of a rich and varied career in teaching. It loses two stars for its many errors and for its rambling, disorganized style. The book is most applicable to readers who are involved in teaching, whether as a professional teacher, a tutor, or a parent. However, in my opinion, the book is not ready for publication yet and needs much more editing before it will be ready to end up in readers’ hands.

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Never Teach A Pig to Sing. It is a waste of Time
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[Hazel Mae Bagarinao]

The title sounds funny, but yes, it's true. This book is very suited to individuals in the teaching industry, as they will find ideas to handle better with students. Interesting review!

[Monale Bariyima Ueh]

The title is very interesting and captivating. However, it seems this book was poorly written and didn't do justice to the interesting title it had. While interesting anecdotes are nice, the book needs a central theme.

[Patty Allread]

Interesting title! I hope the author does a re-write of this book. It sounds like it could be promising and helpful to parents and educators.