Overall Reading & SOS Related

The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century, Updated and Expanded

By: Thomas L. Friedman

A wonderful book on globalization and how it effects every part of our life.  Friedman writing is informative, life changing and scary all at the same time.  The data and facts presented in this book will influence how your views on education and how we prepare for the future.

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking

By: Malcolm Gladwell

An insightful book that deals directly with perception, how we perceive and influence those around us.  It boast much research and statistical studies in education and many other fields.

Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
Author: Steven D. Levitt, Stephen Dubner

A fresh look at what motivates people of all ages and status.  Freakonomics offers great insight on how to motivate students, teachers, and parents.

If You Don't Feed the Teachers, They Will Eat the Students

By: Neila A. Connors

In this read Connors brings to light one of the most commonly overlooked roles of an administrator.  The message and examples are easy to read and understand.  A good reminder for those who already think this way and a stiff warning for those who need it.

The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference

By: Malcolm Gladwell

In this book Gladwell gives great encouragement for doing all the little things that are so important to true progress.  With strategies and real life examples, this read will inspire you to continue pushing forward until you reach the tipping point.

Less Is More: How Great Companies Use Productivity as a Competitive Tool in Business

By: Jason Jennings

This business oriented book gives meaning to concentrating on what is important.  It is a great reminder that change takes time and can only be accomplished by doing less, but doing it really well.  With real life examples and inspiring success stories, Jennings truly shows how many people have done less with more.

It's Not the Big that Eat the Small...It's the Fast that Eat the Slow

By: Jason Jennings and Laurence Haughton

Reading this book will convince you to drop some of your old habits and move fast into the world of today.  Jennings and Haughton convincingly explain why "good today is not good tomorrow" and "If you always do, what you always did" does not mean "you will always get what you always got". 

Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done (Unabridged)

This business book tells you how to get things done.  From delegation to having the hard conversations, these true stories of triumph will inspire you to execute the important tasks in your job.

How to Talk So Teens Will Listen and Listen So Teens Will Talk

By: Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish

Always wanted to be one of those people  to which teens gravitate?  A must read for anyone who works closely with teens or has one at home.  This book helps explain some strategies to relate with teens on there level while bring them up to yours. 

Fires in the Bathroom:  Advice for Teachers from High School Students

By: Kathleen Cushman, The Students of "What Kids Can Do", and Lisa Delpit

An amazing book which is assembled from the words of wisdom of students.  In this book you are privy to the thoughts and opinions of students from the more hard to reach groups (minority, immigrant, low income. . .).  It is a rare chance to see yourself through the eyes of our most important customers. 

Why Gender Matters

By: Leonard Sax

Although many  have tackled this issue and claim to have all the answers, Sax uses data, experience, and common sense to help us deal with these differences in a meaningful way.  Easy to read and fun to experience, this book will aid teachers and parents alike.

Education Is Not a Spectator Sport  
by Willard R. Daggett (Author), Benedict Kruse (Author), Bettijune Kruse (Editor)

Dr. Daggett of the International Center for Leadership in Education is one of the most influential speakers I have ever heard.  He will challenge your philosophy of education on all fronts.  In this book, he and Kruse will do just that and more.

Made to Stick

By: Chip Heath and Dan Heath

How many times have you seen great professional development go down the tubes as soon as the day ends.  This book will explain and give examples of how you can make all your ideas better as well as stick better.  The techniques in this book are useful in teaching students, presenting to faculty, parents, and the community.

Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie

By: David Lubar

This fiction by Lubar goes through a year of high school through a freshman's eyes.  It is honest, shocking, and above all revealing of what it is like to be a high school student in today's world.

Ten Time Bombs: Defusing the Most Explosive Pressures Teenagers Face

By: Ron Hutchcraft

Want to know what is really on a teen's mind?  Would you like to know what most of your students are going through?  In this book, Hutchcraft shares the what these challenges are as well as effective techniques for tackling them.

Mind Wide Open: Your Brain and the Neuroscience of Everyday Life

By: Steven Johnson

Brain research is not what it used to be.  In recent years there continue to be discoveries and strategies which are more effective than those of the past.  This book brings many of the old beliefs under scrutiny and shares the most recent theories and practice.

Boys and Girls Learn Differently: A Guide for Teachers and Parents

By: Michael Gurian

Another good read on gender.  Founded on more recent research than more commonly noted beliefs about boys and girls, this book relates much of the newest findings and strategies to the classroom and everyday life.

Other Recommended Readings & SOS Related

The Search: How Google & Its Rivals Rewrote the Rules of Business & Transformed Our Culture

By: John Battelle

The internet continues to change the way we think, learn, and live.  No other aspect of the internet has changed how we and students relate to the world.  With such a wealth of information at our finger tips, why should we continue to teach and learn as we did in the past.  This book goes through the history and development of the power of search engines.

The Perfect Thing: How the iPod Shuffles Commerce, Culture, and Coolness  By: Steven Levy

It is one of the most common sites in today's schools and society.  Where ever there are teens there are ipods.  Read about the development of this device and why it has such a hold on so many people.

Teacher Man

By: Frank McCourt

Frank McCourt, an immigrant English teacher from Ireland, tells his stories of teaching and his on going struggle between what is right, required, and best for his students.  Although this biography is set in the past, many parallels exist and many tasks are the same.  How do we influence students?  What is most important?  Dealing with minutia, parents, and others.

The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't

By: Robert I. Sutton, Ph.D.

Ever wonder why no one says anything to the person causing all the trouble?  Ever wonder why people are allowed to act inappropriately?  This book discusses how to recognize and deal with difficult people, as well as the repercussions of not dealing with them.

Making Standards Work: How to Implement Standards-Based Assessments in the Classroom, School, and District

By: Douglas B. Reeves, Ph.D.

In a world where standards have become a part of everyday life, we can ill afford to ignore them.  However, the same standards are difficult to communicate to staff,, ever changing, and sometimes seem secondary to every day responsibilities.  In this book Reeves discusses the importance of standards and strategies to use them consistently in order to get the desired results.