The original title for this book by Mary Ann Knight was "MAK's ALMANACK, " after "Poor Richard's Almanck" by Benjamin Franklin. From the author's foreward: "In 1975 I distributed my Almanack when presenting workshops in seven states, Costa Rica and Honduras. It was continued by me over the years, and commonly called MAK's ALMANACK. The evolution of this book began simply. Over the years, I sketched crude, primitive DRAWINGS in my student's notebooks. I draw primitive pictures to illustrate an abstract concept, like a sound wave. Drawing also eliminates nagging and breaks tension when words have failed. I want to promote behavior modification by programming a student to respond to a series of ideas contained in one drawing. Please see the chapter entitled "Primitive Art at the Piano Lesson." After the drawings, I decided to proceed with WORDS, hence my thesaurus. If you were to look at my book, you would find: Words to Create Scenes, Words About Balance, etc. This book has been a "work in progress, " thinking of new ways to express the same old things. This book is designed so that the reader is able to skip around and consult topics of his/her interest. All teachers go to workshops to learn new and different ways of approaching age old problems. In MAK's ALMANACK, I have attempted to address those very problems." Mary Ann taught piano pedagogy and performance at Shorter University for 44 years. In 2010 she and her husband Bill Knight were named the MTNA Teachers of the Year. Here are some reviews of her workshops---"Mary Ann Knight has a fabulously creative imagination. It's truly rare to find an original idea concerning piano teaching these days but Mary Ann has done it!"--Nelita True, Eastman School of Music. "The word 'inspirational' is overused but I think it is a very accurate description of Mary Ann's workshops. Her excitement about teaching is contagious and she is able to give something quite valuable to both the experienced teacher and the novice alike."--George Mann, State University of West Georgia. "Ron and I have looked over and read Mary Ann Knight's 'treatise' on judging/teaching and it is the finest we have ever read. It is loaded with practical ideas, useful suggestions and wonderful 'MAK' humor."--Ron and Barbara Shinn, Samford University. "This is a book that frees the student and teacher to use their imagination."--Betty Nolting, Atlanta, GA.