PRIMARY TEACHER’S POCKETBOOK. By Bruce Potts. Teachers’ Pocketbooks Pounds 6.99
Had an Ofsted? If so, you undoubtedly had - and did - lots of preparation.
Did you do this one, though?
“Sit in one of your children’s chairs and look around at your classroom from their perspective. What does it look like and, more importantly, what should it look like?”
Obvious, isn’t it? Yet you know that many otherwise diligent, creative and intensely prepared teachers won’t have thought of it.
It’s that sort of cutting to the chase that makes this little book such a boost to the confidence. After trying to master the intricacies of the literacy strategy, or making sure you can distinguish between level 2a and level 2b, sitting in a pupil’s chair and taking stock of your room is a comfortably manageable task.
At the core of the book is a list of “21 great ideas”. They’re all good, including the obvious ones - paying compliments not necessarily related to school work, asking about a child’s day out at the weekend and playing music in class (but ignore the track suggestions. Who’s Mark Knopfler, anyway?).