Everyone's Invited: Interactive Strategies That Engage Young Adolescents.

EVERYONE'S INVITED: Interactive Strategies That Engage Young Adolescents. (2008). Spencer, Jill. Columbus, OH: National Middle School Association. This text is a practical, hands-on resource written by a 30-year middle school teacher, Jill Spencer. Spencer offers teaching strategies that use a variety of learning modes in developmentally appropriate ways. Readers are encouraged to create classrooms in which young adolescents can explore and clarify their understandings without fear of receiving a poor grade. The author demonstrates how to use formative assessments as a tool for teachers to know when they've "lost" students and how to regain them. The underlying theme of the author's work is that all children can learn in a safe environment. This text was selected as the 2009 Book of the Year by the National Middle School Association.

You may order from the National Middle School Association at www. nmsa.org/store/ProductDetails/ tabid/1084/CategoryID/7/List/0/ Level/a/ProductID/354/Default. aspx?SortField=ProductName%2cP roductName. Retail price: $27.00; members $21.60; Item #1378, ISBN 978-1-56090-222-5.

Special Films for Special Kids

In the last edition of this column, we profiled useful information from the Autism Society of America (ASA), particularly for parents of teenagers on the autism spectrum. We now want to inform you about another unique offering that results from a joint agreement between ASA and AMC Entertainment. These two entities have combined forces to give families affected by autism and other disabilities an opportunity to enjoy their favorite films in a safe and accepting environment each month with their "Sensory Friendly Films" program. In order to provide a more accepting and comfortable setting for this unique audience, movie auditoriums will have their lights brought up and the sound turned down, families will be able to bring in their own gluten-free, casein-free snacks, and no previews or advertisements will be shown before the movie. Additionally, audience members are welcome to get up and dance, walk shout, or sing--in other words, AMC's "Silence Is Golden[R]" policy will not be enforced unless the safety of the audience is in question. For more information, go to www.autism-society.org/site/ PageServer?pagename=sensoryfilm s. Participating theaters are located in Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Chicago, Cleveland, Columbia, Dallas, Denver, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Norfolk Oklahoma City, Omaha, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Tucson, and the Washington, D.C., area.