Asking the Essential Questions: Curriculum Development: Examines why curriculum should be organized around thoroughness instead of coverage, questions instead of answers; includes a guide for using essential questions in class. Download PDF
Scheduling the Essential School: Provides strategies schools have used to create new schedules to enhance learning; includes sample schedules from three schools. Download PDF
Getting Started in an Essential School Program: Describes school start-up experiences to address such questions as, What are the first steps? Must the whole school take part? How will we find and maintain support? Download PDF
Teaching in the Essential School: Addresses concerns about teaching in an Essential school, particularly about becoming a "generalist" and about designing interdisciplinary assignments. Download PDF
Affording the Essential School: How planners can disarm the chief obstacle to school change – “We can’t afford it” – and force attention instead to the real subject: how a community wants its students to learn. Download PDF