Book Review: Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire: The Methods and Madness Inside Room 56

Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire: The Methods and Madness Inside Room 56 by Rafe Esquith

I bought this book because I'm in the midst of a sort of crisis of faith. I needed some evidence that there are teachers out there who can connect with children and make a difference. I needed some evidence that, while school is fundamentally a broken system, since nearly all American children find themselves there, a ray of hope exists.

I found it, at least partially, in this book. Rafe Esquith and the kids in room 56 do amazing things. They learn unabridged Shakespeare plays, travel around the country, make gorgeous art. They come back year after the year to the teacher who has inspired them to feed the homeless on Christmas Eve. (Que the violins.) And this teacher. He works double time, literally, making Room 56 magic.

So why did I only find it partially? Because some the wonderful things in Room 56
only happen for the kids who are motivated to make them happen. A kid who isn't into drama or Shakespeare, a kid who would rather not spend his time learning the guitar or doing whatever projects Esquith has designed, are out of luck. His Shakespeare program, for instance, according to the book happens outside of class hours to weed out the kids who don't want to do it. That's fine. But what about the things that they do want to do?

I really enjoyed the book. I read it straight through and decided to keep it for it's references to different projects and ideas. He has a really cool class project where the kids recreate this piece of art. Do I want to be him when I grow up? Maybe if I had a wife to raise my own kids! But I did come away with what I was looking for, a ray of hope.