Sometimes you need a little something to help you feel inspired. The good news is there are a lot of great books out there to help inspire you as a teacher. Any of Ron Clark's books are a great choice. Consider The Essential 55, The End of Molasses Classes, and Excellent 11, just to name a few. I had the opportunity to visit the Ron Clark Academy and was completely inspired. I immediately bought several of his books and read them. You can read about my visit to RCA here.
Some other great books to try are:
The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller – A great book for encouraging children to read. Donalyn Miller says she has yet to meet a child she couldn't turn into a reader. No matter how far behind Miller's students might be when they reach her 6th grade classroom, they end up reading an average of 40 to 50 books a year.
Worksheets Don't Grow Dendrites by Marcia L. Tate – This is the 3rd edition of bestseller that teachers have been using for many years to help challenge their students. Maximize retention and minimize forgetting in students of all ages. If you ever have an opportunity to hear Marcia Tate speak, do it! She has so much wisdom and I learned so much just by listening to one of her keynotes.
The Third Teacher – Created by an international team of architects and designers concerned about our failing education system, The Third Teacher explores the critical link between the school environment and how children learn, and offers 79 practical design ideas, both great and small, to guide reader's efforts to improve our schools.
Learn Like a Pirate By Paul Solarz and Dave Burgess – Learn to empower your students for learning with this excellent book that helps you build leaders that succeed.
Creative Schools by Ken Robinson and Lou Aronica – Ken Robinson is one of the world’s most influential voices in education, and his 2006 TED Talk on the subject is the most viewed in the organization’s history. His book will help inspire and guide you as a teacher.
Are there any great teacher books you would add to our list?
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