“The book to read is not the one that thinks for you but the one that makes you think” – Harper Lee
Reading – it is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Who doesn’t enjoy looking around a good book shop, deciding on a book to read. Its great when you find a novel in which to immerse yourself and take you away to another world. Books are a fantastic way to escape whilst at the same time being a great means to pick up new ideas and learn along the way.
As you may know, here at Impact Teachers we have many former teachers working with us in our offices. Some are UK trained, others searching for teaching positions overseas came to teach in the UK with Impact Teachers. So we decided to ask them, what books they think all teachers would benefit from reading? They can be books that provide practical advice to those which help teachers relate to students.
Therefore, without further ado, here are our top 5 books all teachers should read:
Number 1 – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Chosen by Ashley this book offers great insight into the mind of a young person with Asperger’s Syndrome. The novel shows the world from his point of view and can really help teachers to understand the different view of the world that each young person can have.
Number 2 – How to Manage Children’s Challenging Behaviour by Bill Rogers
The book comes chosen by Alexandra and is a more practical guide to help teachers in the classroom. It is a tool on behaviour management from a highly respected teacher and education consultant. Alexandra highly recommends this book to anyone new to teaching looking for ways to manage student’s behaviour. It contains useful suggestions on how to tackle difficult behaviours that can be seen in any school setting.
Number 3 – To Sir with Love by E.R. Braithwaite
Recommended by Elaine this book is as a wonderful autobiographical novel about a teacher who turned round a tough East London class where he was working. He faced huge adversity in the 1960’s as he did so. This is a great book about how to break down barriers with students that you may encounter in the classroom.
Number 4 – Legacy: What the All Blacks can teach us about the business of life by James Kerr
Chosen by Nathan (who just happens to be a rugby fan who plays in his spare time) this book provides a great insight into the success of the All Blacks. It demonstrates the importance of preparation, character, humility and responsibility for good leadership.
Number 5 – How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
The final book in our list (chosen again by Ashley) can help give teachers valuable lessons in techniques and management that can be applied to the classroom. From ways to handle people to ways to make them like you these lessons can be utilised at school helping to teach about the power of respect.
So that’s it from our team but there are many more recommendations out there for other books you can read to help you on your path as a teacher.
