Recommended Reads from Megan Chrusciel, Adult Services Librarian
Teach Like Finland: 33 Simple Strategies for Joyful Classrooms
By Timothy D. Walker
Finland’s students regularly score at or near the top of international rankings of student success. Discover why the focus on a joyful learning environment may be the cause.
The Fuzzy and the Techie: Why the Liberal Arts Will Rule the Digital World
By Scott Hartley
In this counterintuitive work, the author examines the importance of liberal arts majors in the technology field.
Lift Off: From the Classroom to the Stars
By Donovan Livingston
Originally a spoken-word poetry commencement address, this rallying cry for racial equality in education is timely and powerful.
Lower Ed: The Troubling Rise of For-Profit Colleges in the New Economy
By Tressie McMillan Cottom
This former counselor for two major for-profit colleges offers an inside look at the conditions that allow for-profit colleges to thrive, and how they take advantage of desperate people’s aspirations.
The Secret Life of the Mind: How Your Brain Thinks, Feels, and Decides
By Mariano Sigman
Combining two decades of research and expertise from a wide array of fields, this book examines the myriad ways our brains make decisions and are shaped by our educations.
Girl Rising: Changing the World One Girl at a Time
By Tanya Lee Stone
Examine the barriers to education that girls face around the world – including poverty, child marriage and human trafficking – and learn how the removal of these barriers means a better life for whole communities.
Recommended Reads from Susan Carr, Youth Services Librarian
Lion Lessons
By Jon Agee (picture book)
What does it take to be a lion? Our hero discovers it isn’t as easy as he thought. Expressive illustrations teach the basics about being a lion, including the most important “looking out for friends.”
Fancy Nancy: Splendid Speller
By Jane O’Connor (reader)
During a test, word-loving Nancy runs into trouble when she can’t remember the right spelling for a word and peeks at her best friend’s paper for reassurance. What will Nancy do now?
Class Act
By Kelly Starling Lyons (first chapter)
Fourth-grader Jada Jones is excited to be a candidate for student council until she faces challenges she’s not sure she can overcome – like her fear of public speaking.
I’m OK; Building Resilience Through Physical Play
By Jarrod Green (parent/teacher)
Making a case for allowing children to take some risks while they play, this book offers guidelines for parents and caretakers to help kids get the most out of their adventures.
Auma’s Long Run
By Eucabeth Odhiambo (juvenile fiction)
Auma wants to run, wants to learn and wants to be a doctor. But she may not get a chance after AIDS robs her of her parents. Set in 1980s Kenya, this book pulls no punches.
A School Like Mine: A Celebration of Schools Around the World
By Penny Smith (juvenile nonfiction)
Meet children representing five continent areas – Africa, he Americas, Asia, Europe and Australia – as you learn about their lives at school and home. This is a browser’s delight, including colorful photographs paired with tidbits of information.
Bronx Masquerade
By Nikki Grimes (teen fiction)
Meet the members of Mr. Ward’s English class as they present their lives to you, open mic style. The setting is an inner-city high school in the Bronx.
Real Friends
By Shannon Hale (juvenile graphic novel)
School is where we learn to get along with others and make friends, but it isn’t easy. This graphic novel is a realistic and sometimes humorous depiction of best friends, lost friends, bullies and real friends.
Nothing Can Possibly Go Wrong
By Prudence Shen and Faith Erin Hicks (teen graphic novel)
Charlie and Nate’s friendship is about to be tested in a big way when a school election pits the robotics team against the cheerleaders. Teen angst and drama at their finest (and
