I recently was contacted by a fellow English language teacher about promoting a book he wrote. I’m always happy to help and will buy it and review ( Teaching with Chopsticks: TEFL from the frontline ). However, it got me thinking about books by teachers about their own classrooms and teaching. Got me thinking about the list I give out to my “teachers to be” each year and also the books I really love in this genre.

See my list below and please comment and add your own recommendation. A book written by a teacher that is autobiographical, about their life and times as a teacher. No essays, no philosophy and rants about the educational system – just relating what happened to them as teachers and how they felt about it.

One of the “homerun” books that really got me to be a teacher was A.S. Neill’s Summerhill (get a preview copy here in our Essential Books category). He spoke in his own voice and that spoke to me. I felt like I was at the school and stepping through the hallways with him and his students.

Here’s the list I give to my students to start the year (see many in detail on my Goodreads list). Maybe something will inspire you to do some summer reading!

Teachers About Teaching

 

More of Eflclassroom’s books »

Educating Esme – Esme Raji Codell
Teacher Man – Frank McCourt
Freedom Writers Diary – Zlata Filipovic
Finding Mrs. Warneke – Cindi Rigsby
Tomorrow is School- Don Sawyer
The Teacher Who Couldn’t Read – John Corcoron
The Accidental Teacher – Eric Mandel
I become a teacher – Cratis Williams
Losing My Faculties – Brendan Halpin
The Emergency Teacher – Christina Asquith
There are no shortcuts Rafe Esquith
Teach like your hair is on fire – Rafe Esquith
Letters to a young teacher – Jonathan Kozol
Summerhill – O’Neill
Cries from the corridors – Peter McLaren
The Students Are Watching – Theodore Sizer
Ms Hempel Chronicles – Sarah Shun-Lien
Among Schoolchildren – Tracy Kidder
The Passionate Teacher – Robert Fried
The Courage to teach – Parker Palmer
Joey Pigza Swallowed The Key – Jack Gantos