Dear Colleagues:

I can't say much about our adoption process because after I attended the first meeting, I was so disgusted at the "control freaks" running it that I basically dropped out. We ended up getting some dictionaries that we badly needed and a classroom set each (ha ha) of McDougal-Littels. I can't tell you by which criteria we choose them, but I think I understand something of my fellow teachers' reasons for going for workbooks over rhetorics or other books that teach extented form writing.

For one, we have those blasted, basically worthless EOI exams to contend with.  I know there is a writing component to it, but that's not where my school is getting wasted.  We are getting pounded on the parts where the kiddos circle the dot about whether they need to substitute
"good" for "well" in the example sentence.  Of course, since the whole test is an historical exercise for  students (they don't need it to graduate) ,  our students don't give a flip how they answer, but that's another story.

Another problem is that we hear in our prof. development, and in our faculty meetings reading, reading, reading. I don't remember when a administrator got up to say, our kids can't write.  Our kids don't know their grammar is often a topic, but not as much as reading is.  

Face it, there are only so much time during the school year, and we are asked to do so much: reading, writing, vocab, spelling, grammar and mechanics, research, test taking skills and so on.  So we hit the things that are emphasized most.  So I'm not surprised that those who offered books got a lot of interest.  One thing I would be interested in as an ancillary would be an essay anthology.  Can't get those too often and boy are they expensive.

Well, that's my rant.  Keep in touch. Good luck on your school year.

R. Lynn Green