Best Books for Teachers for Professional Development

The best educators are always in the process of learning more, from professional development to innovative teaching strategies. Whether you’re a first-year teacher or a seasoned educator, developing new skills to meet the unique challenges of your classroom is essential to evolving as a teacher. Many books target how to improve as a teacher, but it’s also essential to adjust your learning based on your students’ specific needs, such as social-emotional learning or special education. 

Teachers are working with limited time and resources. To help you on your teaching journey, we’ve carefully selected the below books to inspire you and match your teaching needs. Read on and get started: 

Entering the teaching world can be a daunting endeavor. Classroom management and planning effective lesson plans are just the tip of the iceberg, which is why we’ve compiled this list of the best books for new teachers:

• In this one-of-a-kind teaching essential, internationally renowned educator Todd Whitaker and his daughters (both teachers) Madeline Whitaker Good and Katherine Whitaker created a step-by-step guide for new teachers. Learn from specific examples and personal vignettes in Your First Year: How to Survive and Thrive as a New Teacher.
• Written for first-year teachers, 101 Answers for New Teachers and Their Mentors: Effective Teaching Tips for Daily Classroom Use dives into practical solutions to common classroom challenges, including discipline problems and challenging coworkers. Although made for new teachers, this can also be extremely helpful for veteran educators. 
• Classroom Management From the Ground Up is another must-read for new teachers by Todd Whitaker, Madeline Whitaker Good and Katherine Whitaker. Each chapter tackles a core aspect of classroom management and real-world applications. 
• Want to learn from a practical, hands-on guide? Check out The New Teacher's Guide to Overcoming Common Challenges by Anna M. Quinzio-Zafran and Elizabeth A. Wilkins. This book covers 10 common classroom challenges and tips to overcome them. 

Burnout can be a real problem for teachers at any level. Maintaining the motivation and inspiration to keep teaching and growing in the classroom is the key to long-term success. Explore these exciting options to get the teaching spark — and keep it: 

• In the day-to-day, it’s essential for educators to celebrate the small successes and understand the value they bring to the classroom for students. In Brad Johnson and Hal Bowman’s Dear Teacher: 100 Days of Inspirational Quotes and Anecdotes, gain access to daily motivation through personal quotes and powerful teaching stories. 
• Great teachers focus on creating engaging classroom environments to keep students inspired. Learn more about practical ways to foster a motivated classroom in Todd Whitaker’s What Great Teachers Do Differently: Nineteen Things That Matter Most.
• Danny Steele and Todd Whitaker’s Essential Truths for Teachers gets down to the fundamental ways teachers make a change in the classroom. It prioritizes the core principles that drive success in the classroom to get you inspired for the next lesson. 
• When you break down the roots of educator burnout, there are clear ways to help climb out of the slump. Based on research and expert recommendations, Jenny Grant Rankin’s First Aid for Teacher Burnout: How You Can Find Peace and Success shows how to stay motivated with realistic strategies. 

In recent years, the social and emotional learning of students has risen in importance due to its impact on classroom success. As our blog explains, addressing the unique needs of students is essential to their growth and education. From anxiety management to coping skills, teachers can transform how a student relates to their academic experience: 

• Anxiety is a growing problem in schools and classrooms — but how can students overcome this challenge? The key is through a positive and encouraging classroom environment, which can be created by teachers and educators. Read how to do so in Beverley H. Johns, Donalyn Heise and Adrienne D. Hunter’s Working with Students Who Have Anxiety: Creative Connections and Practical Strategies.
• Michael Hass and Amy Ardell’s Supporting Student Mental Health: Essentials for Teachers gives teachers the tools to address and support students dealing with mental health challenges. From relationship-building to questioning techniques, this resource is a great addition to your educator toolkit. 
• Provide elementary students with the strategies they need to improve peer-to-peer communication and strengthened SEL skills with Carla Tantillo Philibert’s Everyday SEL in Elementary School: Integrating Social Emotional Learning and Mindfulness Into Your Classroom. For high school teachers, adjust your approach with Philibert’s book, Everyday SEL in High School: Integrating Social Emotional Learning and Mindfulness Into Your Classroom.

Inclusivity matters and teachers have the power to inspire students with learning disabilities to succeed — inside and outside of the classroom. Increase your support, knowledge and teaching skills with these research-based books: 

• If you’re looking for an updated resource for special education teachers with culturally responsive practices, this is the book for you. James McLeskey, Lawrence Maheady, Bonnie Billingsley, Mary T. Brownell and Timothy J. Lewis’ High Leverage Practices for Inclusive Classrooms teaches educators how to implement integral practices that can help students with mild to moderate disabilities. 
• Anne M. Beninghof’s Specially Designed Instruction: Increasing Success for Students with Disabilities equips readers with a detailed road map to specially designed instruction (SDI). It defines SDI and explains how to provide it in any classroom setting. 
• Neurodivergence and academic excellence don’t stand at opposite ends of the spectrum. Many children with diagnoses can be cognitively gifted, which is what Emily Kircher-Morris’ book Raising Twice-Exceptional Children: A Handbook for Parents of Neurodivergent Gifted Kids explores. Although written for parents, this guide can be a great resource for educators who work with students with special needs. 
• Do you have students who are twice-exceptional? Learn additional ways to teach students with detailed intervention suggestions, resources and vignettes from C. Matthew Fugate, Wendy Behrens and Cecelia Boswell’s Understanding Twice-Exceptional Learners: Connecting Research to Practice.

An ESL instructor has distinctive techniques to teach their students to improve literacy and communication skills. Students may enter the classroom with different reading levels and learning styles, which teachers must creatively solve. Discover helpful strategies with our best books: 

• Learning and fun go hand-in-hand, and this book combines this approach with a practical guide to help students master language in the classroom. Whether you’re teaching in person or remotely, take advantage of Rachelle Dene Poth’s Your World Language Classroom: Strategies for In-Person and Digital Instruction for K-12 teachers. 
• Confident students are engaged learners. That’s why Melisa Cahnmann-Taylor and Kathleen R. McGovern’s Enlivening Instruction with Drama and Improv: A Guide for Second Language and World Language Teachers incorporates drama and theater techniques into the world language classroom. Get this resource to transform shy students into active learners. 
• Sean Ruday and Katie Caprino’s Inquiry-Based Literature Instruction in the 6–12 Classroom: A Hands-on Guide for Deeper Learning takes an inquiry-based approach to middle and high school ESL classrooms. Discover easy-to-implement teaching strategies to encourage students. 
• Teaching a new language begins with vocabulary practices. Optimize your vocabulary lessons with research-based strategies from Vocabulary Strategies That Work: Do This—Not That! by Lori G. Wilfong. 

Identifying and encouraging gifted students is an exciting endeavor for students. Discover how to best approach gifted education with these top books on the subject: 

• Need a formal introduction to gifted education? Julia Link Roberts, Tracy Ford Inman and Jennifer Robins’ Introduction to Gifted Education addresses exactly how teachers can meet critical needs, understand the history of gifted education and build an inclusive curriculum. 
• Learn how to recognize gifted students with the Scales for Identifying Gifted Students (SIGS-2): Complete Kit by Gail R. Ryser, Kathleen McConnell, Laila Y. Sanguras and Todd Kettler. This important resource offers educators the ability to identify gifted students between the ages of 5-18. 
• Teach students how to critically think — or “think like a lawyer.” Colin Seale’s Thinking Like a Lawyer: A Framework for Teaching Critical Thinking to All Students provides a practical framework to empower students and close the critical thinking gap. Help bring equity to learning with this one-of-a-kind book. 
• Created by the Center for Gifted Education at William & Mary, Jacob's Ladder Reading Comprehension Program gives teachers a guide to improving reading comprehension skills in high-ability, or gifted, learners. Learn from its field-tested method to help students comprehend and analyze almost any reading passage.