PAUL FLEISHER

BIOGRAPHY I BOOKS I PRESENTATIONS I BOOK ORDERING

Paul Fleisher is the author of more than two dozen

books for young people and educators. His children's books

cover a wide variety of science, technology, ecology and

natural history subjects. "What I like most about being a

writer," he says, "is the freedom it gives me to explore

topics I'm curious about. It's the perfect excuse to ask

questions I might not ask otherwise."

Paul has also written several widely-used activity books for

teachers on thinking games, social activism and creative

writing, as well as award-winning educational software and

numerous essays and reviews. His five volume series, "Secrets of the Universe," has been translated into Chinese. His new books include Evolution and The Big Bang; and Parasites will be published next year. For NSTA reviews of some of the titles in his "Secrets of the Universe" series, go to http://www2.nsta.org/recommends/product.asp?id=16089   and http://www2.nsta.org/recommends/product.asp?id=15889.

Paul has taught gifted elementary and middle school students in the Richmond, Virginia Public Schools since 1978. During that time, he has created numerous multidisciplinary instructional units on topics including "Humor," "Justice," "Engineering and Design" and "The Art and Science of Music." "Using your brain to solve problems is fun," Paul says. "My classroom can get a bit noisy. Kids in my classes laugh and talk as they're developing their ability to think independently." Paul was one of Richmond 's pioneers in technology education, and still teaches computer programming. He has shared his ideas with other educators at workshops and conferences for many years. Paul also teaches adult classes in writing and publishing children's books at the University of Richmond and elsewhere.

In 1988, Paul received the Virginia Education Association Award for Peace and International Relations and in 1999, he was awarded the Thomas Jefferson Medal for Outstanding Contributions to Natural Science Education. He is a long-time advocate for peace and justice issues, and currently serves on the boards of the Richmond Peace Education Center, the Virginia Forum, and the Virginia Chapter of the ACLU.

Paul lives in Richmond and is married to fellow educator Debra Sims Fleisher. In his free time, Paul loves to read, cook, tend his vegetable garden, or go fishing on the Chesapeake Bay.