Rafe Esquith has been called "the
most interesting and influential classroom teacher in
the country." TeachLike Your
Hair'son Fire:The
Methods and Madness Inside Room 56gives great examples of how to reach at-risk kids,
those who live in poverty and non-English speaking
students. It is a very detailed and unforgettable guide
to turning kids on to the wonders of learning, the power
of imagination, and the wealth of finding oneself. If
you LOVE children you will love this book! It is a tear
jerker. Tammy Gayle-Coker, 4th Grade Teacher, Gregory Drive
Elementary
Reading How to Differentiate
Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms by Carol Ann
Tomlinson has helped understand how to link together all
of the pieces involved in differentiating instruction.
This overview explains how to vary the content, process,
and product. It also helped me insure that I am meeting
their many needs by designing lessons and
activities based on students' profiles, interests,
and developmental levels. This comprehensive book is
filled with philosophy and practical tips all teachers
can implement in their classrooms right away. Alison Watson, Kindergarten Teacher, Beauclerc
Elementary
Ban Those Bird Units: 15 Models for Teaching and
Learning in Information-rich and Technology-rich
Environmentsby David Loertscher is a
wonderfully useful book for the teacher who wants to
teach beyond the lecture/textbook format and provide
lessons and activities that will engage today’s digital
student. The book provides models for teaching projects
so that students aren’t just learning to cut and paste
their information, but rather learning how to apply
their research to turn it into knowledge! Great for all
grade levels, K-12.
Lucretia D. Miller, School Library Media Specialist,
Chaffee Trail Elementary
Jamie McKenzie’s Learning to Question, to Wonder, to
Learn is a must-read for teachers of students in
grades K-12. McKenzie is passionate in his charge that
thinking alone is not enough; students need to be
encouraged and taught to question in order to become
powerful thinkers. He discusses the difference between
absorbing information and actually learning and
understanding- the difference between teaching and
learning and how questioning is the “yeast” that
converts thinking into something of value. The book
reviews the different types of questioning and provides
many examples of how to change traditional questions
into questions that encourage students to “explore,
uncover, discover, invent, and decide.”
Lucretia D. Miller, School Library Media Specialist,
Chaffee Trail Elementary
Daniel
Pink’s A Whole New Mind was our staff
professional development book for this school year. It
was a wonderful book to start off not only a brand new
school year, but the inaugural year of a brand new
“school of the future.” This book discusses the change
in society from the “Informational Age” to the current
“Conceptual Age” and how this change requires a
different type of worker and thinker from the former
linear and logical, to a conceptual, inventive person.
This has big implications for our students of the 21st
century and the attributes they must have to be
successful in this new age.
Lucretia D. Miller, School Library Media Specialist,
Chaffee Trail Elementary
Many
elementary schools in Duval County are looking to, or in
the process of, switching from a teacher-centered fixed
library schedule, to a student-centered flexible
schedule. Making Flexible Access and Flexible
Scheduling Work Today by Karen Browne Ohlrich
describes scenarios of schools with each type of
schedule and points out the benefits of an open-access
plan for the library. It is a good choice to share with
a principal who is considering this model, and also
provides materials and support for the library media
specialist new to flexible scheduling.
Lucretia D. Miller, School Library Media Specialist,
Chaffee Trail Elementary
Information Literacy Toolkit by
Jenny Ryan and Steph Capra is the book that sits right
on my desk at all times with corners bent and pages
tabbed (everything I tell my students NOT to do with
their library books!) As a school librarian, I am
charged with collaborating with teachers to teach
students the learning process: how to know they need
information, how to find that information, and how to
extract it to turn it into knowledge. This is the book
that helps me organize these skills I need to teach
throughout the year. Starting this year, Information
Literacy standards are a part of the literacy standards
for all classroom teachers, so this book is beneficial
for all teachers, not just school librarians!
Lucretia D. Miller, School Library Media Specialist,
Chaffee Trail Elementary
Need to increase the time
your students spend engaged in content area reading? Do
you want to include more science in your
daily schedule? Teaching Reading in Social Studies,
Science, and Math by Laura Robb suggests many
practical ways to use comprehension strategies in
content area instruction. Strategies outlined in the
book are followed by examples of student work
generated during an actual classroom experience. Tips on
how to modify lessons for special needs instruction are
included along with a chapter on scaffolding ideas.
Both new and veteran teachers will benefit from the wide
range of strategies presented. Linda Fralick, Gifted Coordinator/Reading
Coach, Stanton College Preparatory
Doing School- How We Are
Creating a Generation of Stressed Out, Materialistic,
and Miseducated Students by Denise Clark Pope is “a
troubling portrait” of the lives of five high school
students. These young people are striving to achieve
success regardless of the cost or consequences through
manipulating the system, scheming, lying, and cheating.
It is a riveting read as you follow these young people
through their school life. Linda Fralick, Gifted Coordinator/Reading Coach,
Stanton College Preparatory
"Success is empty if you
arrive at the finish line alone," says Howard Schultz in
Pour Your Heart Into It (How STARBUCKS Built a
Company One Cup at a Time). Anyone interested in
creating a working environment that involves heart,
trust, and confidence should read this motivational
book. This book has been helpful in motivating us as we
create professional learning communities at my dedicated
career magnet high school. We all have the power to
shape the image of our profession. Mr. Schultz reminds
us that victory is more meaningful when it comes from
the joint achievements of many. It's also funny! Patricia C. Auth, Media Specialist, A.
Philip Randolph Academies of Technology
Rafe Esquith has been called "the
most interesting and influential classroom teacher in
the country."
Reading How to Differentiate
Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms by Carol Ann
Tomlinson has helped understand how to link together all
of the pieces involved in differentiating instruction.
This overview explains how to vary the content, process,
and product. It also helped me insure that I am meeting
their many needs by designing lessons and
activities based on students' profiles, interests,
and developmental levels. This comprehensive book is
filled with philosophy and practical tips all teachers
can implement in their classrooms right away.
Daniel
Pink’s A Whole New Mind was our staff
professional development book for this school year. It
was a wonderful book to start off not only a brand new
school year, but the inaugural year of a brand new
“school of the future.” This book discusses the change
in society from the “Informational Age” to the current
“Conceptual Age” and how this change requires a
different type of worker and thinker from the former
linear and logical, to a conceptual, inventive person.
This has big implications for our students of the 21st
century and the attributes they must have to be
successful in this new age.
Many
elementary schools in Duval County are looking to, or in
the process of, switching from a teacher-centered fixed
library schedule, to a student-centered flexible
schedule. Making Flexible Access and Flexible
Scheduling Work Today by Karen Browne Ohlrich
describes scenarios of schools with each type of
schedule and points out the benefits of an open-access
plan for the library. It is a good choice to share with
a principal who is considering this model, and also
provides materials and support for the library media
specialist new to flexible scheduling.
Need to increase the time
your students spend engaged in content area reading? Do
you want to include more science in your
daily schedule? Teaching Reading in Social Studies,
Science, and Math by Laura Robb suggests many
practical ways to use comprehension strategies in
content area instruction. Strategies outlined in the
book are followed by examples of student work
generated during an actual classroom experience. Tips on
how to modify lessons for special needs instruction are
included along with a chapter on scaffolding ideas.
Both new and veteran teachers will benefit from the wide
range of strategies presented. 
Doing School- How We Are
Creating a Generation of Stressed Out, Materialistic,
and Miseducated Students by Denise Clark Pope is “a
troubling portrait” of the lives of five high school
students. These young people are striving to achieve
success regardless of the cost or consequences through
manipulating the system, scheming, lying, and cheating.
It is a riveting read as you follow these young people
through their school life.
"Success is empty if you
arrive at the finish line alone," says Howard Schultz in
Pour Your Heart Into It (How STARBUCKS Built a
Company One Cup at a Time). Anyone interested in
creating a working environment that involves heart,
trust, and confidence should read this motivational
book. This book has been helpful in motivating us as we
create professional learning communities at my dedicated
career magnet high school. We all have the power to
shape the image of our profession. Mr. Schultz reminds
us that victory is more meaningful when it comes from
the joint achievements of many. It's also funny!