Brick House: How to Defeat Student Apathy By Building a Brick House Culture

This book is a great book for any teacher or administrator who wants to change the culture of his or her school for the better. If you are like most educators and struggle with student apathy, this book is for you. My school purchased this book for every teacher, as well as the companion books, The Power of ICU and Grade Cleanse, and we have transformed our district for the better. We have built a brick house school. Standards mastery is the goal, and the entire staff works together to make sure every student completes every assignment. Since we have become a brick house school, every student has completed every assignment, and teachers feel so much more empowered to make a difference. Mr. Hill's approach is practical, and it causes us to go back to the beginning and remember why we teach in the first place. We want our students to be successful, and Brick House will help you ensure that you are doing everything you can to make that happen.

We have not had a missing assignment in over three years since reading this book. Combined with his Power of ICU book, we have built a Brick House. Our students, parents, and community know that every student completes every assignment. We focus on making sure our students are learning the standards, not grading. If you are already getting every assignment turned in and the work is quality work, this book is not for you. But, if you are tired of chasing kids down, threatening, punishing, giving zeros, and they still don't do the work - this book is for you.

I recommend this to all of my teacher and administrator friends who struggle getting students to complete their assignments. It gives excellent advice that can be used in any sized school and any grade level. We started implementing these ideas in my school and we have seen a huge increase in our state assessments, because it focuses our attention on how to build a school that provide support with a focus on learning the standards! Quick and easy read!

This book was the start of a culture change at our school. We struggled with student apathy and kids that just refused to do their work and accepted the zero because it was the easy path. This book helped us to change the way we think and do things. I personally do not consider myself a reader but this book was VERY easy to read and is full a great ideas for teachers and administrators to consider.

We give this book to all of our new teachers in the district. It speaks about working as a team/unit (Brickhouse) for the betterment of kids. It really breaks down how to build a positive school culture. There are many schools beginning to realize that teachers, administrators, and the entire learning community must work together not as independent contractors. I want my kids in a school that is a Brickhouse. You will like this book.

This ideas in this book are transforming our school! Practical, real world advice that helps teachers and administrators deal with what is really going on in schools today when dealing with student apathy. We went from 100's of incomplete assignments to ZERO!!! I didn't believe it was possible either but with hard work and dedication, it happened!!