Translated by Alan Leslie Cockerill. Vasily Sukhomlinsky's My Heart I Give to Children is an educational classic that has sold millions of copies in 30 languages. It describes Sukhomlinsky's ground-breaking work with thirty-one students in rural Ukraine, during an experimental preschool year and the subsequent four years of their primary schooling. Sukhomlinsky wrote over thirty books, all based on his personal experience as a teacher and school principal at Pavlysh Secondary School in rural Ukraine during the 1950s and 1960s. His school became famous in educational circles and hosted thousands of visitors who came from the length and breadth of the Soviet Union and beyond. About the Author: Vasily Sukhomlinsky (whose name has also been transliterated as Vasillii Sukhomlinskii and Vasyl Sukhomlynsky) was the most influential Soviet educator of the 1950s and 1960s. He lived from 1918 to 1979, and wrote over 30 books and over 500 articles, many of which have been translated into multiple languages, and sold millions of copies. Sukhomlinsky tried to redirect the course of Soviet education towards a greater concern for the needs of individual students. He was influenced by earlier educators such as Leo Tolstoy and Janusz Korczak. Sukhomlinsky's works continue to enjoy popularity in his homeland (Ukraine) and in Russia, where many of his works were first published. His writings are also immensely popular in China, where he is one of the most influential foreign educators. Alan Cockerill (1952-) is a school teacher and researcher, with a background in Russian language studies. His book about Sukhomlinsky, based on a doctoral study, is the most authoritative account of Sukhomlinsky's work written in English.

More Description

Vasily Sukhomlinsky's My Heart I Give to Children is an educational classic that has sold millions of copies in 30 languages. It describes Sukhomlinsky's ground-breaking work with thirty-one students in rural Ukraine, during an experimental preschool year and the subsequent four years of their primary schooling.

Sukhomlinsky wrote over thirty books, all based on his personal experience as a teacher and school principal at Pavlysh Secondary School in rural Ukraine during the 1950s and 1960s. His school became famous in educational circles and hosted thousands of visitors who came from the length and breadth of the Soviet Union and beyond.

One visiting principal wrote, "Pavlysh Secondary School should be renamed a university We say this quite seriously: a feeling of wonder and admiration overwhelms anyone with the slightest love for children and schools." (V.A. Karakovsky)

Another wrote, "I have spent only one day in this remarkable school ... but I have learnt as much as I did in four years at teachers college." (M. Manukian)

Sukhomlinsky's writings continue to enjoy popularity, and are especially influential in China.

My Heart I Give to Children was many years ahead of its time. It addresses issues such as our relationship with nature, how to nurture children's souls in the face of the sometimes negative influences of mass media, how to help children develop empathy for others, how schools can develop strong relationships with families, how children's brains function and develop, how to foster an intrinsic love for learning, and how to support children who struggle to acquire skills in literacy and numeracy. The work is addressed to school principals and teachers, and anyone interested in the upbringing of young children.