Books, books, and more books! We are surrounded by books each day in and out of the classroom. We teach our students to read and to learn from their reading. We read to our children at home and encourage a love of books. But do we read too? Are we modeling good reading practices? Are we demonstrating that love of learning through reading? We should be!
I recently finished a book titled "Helping Children Succeed: What Works and Why" by ____. While the book was filled with interesting facts, helpful tips, and strategies, the last few pages were a reminder that we are ultimately here to help children succeed. We may not know what to do, how to do it, or where to start, but we should work to meet our students needs. While getting right into the thick of it and working with students in the classroom is certainly a major step, we must also continue to learn how to best do our job. This requires continued learning and professional development. What better way than to read books!
A few of the recent educational related books I have read are listed below and highly recommended for both new and veteran teachers. Click on any image to take you to a link to purchase the book.
"Helping Children Succeed: What Works and Why" by Paul Tough
This book was one of my most recent reads and really provided some inspiration in meeting the needs of my students where they are, not only academically, but also socially, emotionally, and behaviorally. If you teach students in a low-income school or area or poverty, this is great read. Paul Tough talks about the areas of concern and need for students who come from a background of poverty and what we can provide or do to combat those needs.
"Teach Like a PIRATE" by Dave Burgess
The PIRATE acronym touches on all the important aspects of teaching that are necessary to engage your students and minimize behavior issues in the classroom. This book was chosen by my district's mentor coordinator for all first and second year teachers to read, but I would also highly recommend for veteran teachers as well. There are hundreds of inspirational ideas that push you to be the best, to provided the most exciting and engaging lessons, and capture your students attention and curiosity.
"Taming of the Crew" by Brian Mendler
While I did not directly read this entire book, my husband read most sections out loud to me as he read due to the many practical and applicable ideas presented. Brian Mendler has not only written books, but does seminars and has numerous video clips posted online of behavior tricks to use in the classroom. If you are struggling with that one difficult student, or feeling stuck in classroom management issues, I highly recommend reading "Taming of the Crew."
"Teach Like a Champion 2.0"
Looking for the ultimate book of tips and tricks for everything in the classroom? This is it! I read this as part of my district's mentor program in my second year teaching and found ideas for every area I was struggling in or not sure of how to handle. There were teaching strategies, behavior management tips, ideas for engagement, grading, assessment, and so much more! If you are in your first or second year of teaching and need some ideas to manage an effective classroom, check out "Teach Like a Champion."