Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Books for New Teachers

Here are some books that I have found reader friendly with useful tips I can use in different age groups and situations. Whether you've been teaching for a while or are brand new for teaching. Feel free to recommend any books you find helpful.

1. Dr. Wong's "First Day Of School." Every teacher should read this one once.

2. Scott Purdy's "Tomorrow Begins at 3:00" (and he has several others). Great tips on saving time so you're not spending hours grading and working beyond your paid contract time.

3. Elaine K. McEwan's "How to Deal With Parents Who Are Angry, Troubled, Afraid, or Just Plain Crazy." Who can resist this title? Written more for administration, it still provides great ways to deal with different types of parents and even has workshop ideas in the back for staff development.

4. Adele Faber & Elaine Mazlish's "How to Talk So Kids Can Learn," (and they have other books too). Very reader friendly with cartoons. Is more elementary than middle and high school, but there is still useful tips in there for those students who need a different approach.

5.Dr. Kevin Leman's "Adolescences Isn't Terminal." Fantastic tips on how to deal with teenagers as a parent (and teacher). I have passed this book title on to parents who do know what to do with their kid, who is spiraling out of control in middle school. Deals with responsibility, runaways, and other situations.

6. Dr. Kevin Leman's "The Birth Order Book." This book is great for personal use as well as understanding the family dynamics of your students. I've gotten really good at spotting first born and second born traits in students.

2 comments:

Malorie Petersen said...

Hello! I just discovered your blog today, and I have to say... I think it's FANTASTIC. I'm entering my final year of University in 2010 (B.A/B.Ed) and I can use all the advice I can get regarding teaching! My husband and I are also looking to start a family within the next few years, and I've always wondered how I was going to manage balancing work and children after the maternity leave is up. How DO you balance everything? Do you pay for day care or have family help out?

CAT said...

Thank you for the feedback. I wish I had more time to update my blog, but I do what I can with an active toddler and another baby on the way. I have family help out part of the time, and we have day care for the other half of the week. We also planned the pregnancy for the end of the school year (like April and May) so we could take off the rest of the school year and summer. You will find 6 weeks is not enough to spend with a newborn. Make sure you sign up for disability ASAP when you get hired. Disability helps to pay for maternity leave so you still get a full paycheck. Feel free to ask other questions as you think of them.