Below are the books in our library. Contact the president if you wish to borrow any from the list.
Lakehead Occasional Teachers Local Library
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“The Bully, The Bullied, The Bystander, The Brave” collection of poetry – various international authors (2013), 119 pages
● Features 4 chapters of beautiful and poignant poems that focus on various viewpoints of bullying, i.e. being a bully, being someone who is bullied, being a bystander
● Co-edited by OISE educators David Booth and Larry Swartz
● Selected poems by international authors range from a variety of genres, cultures and time periods that speak to the universal issues that surround bullying
● Intended for junior/intermediate classrooms
● Poems can be read-alouds, independent or within the circle of a classroom community – endless teaching options and excellent conversation starters
“Promoting Equity and Inclusive Education in Schools” – a teacher’s guide – COPA/OTF publication (2013), 129 pages
● Intended for all teachers and educators seeking to ensure that all students – regardless of background or personal circumstances – have the right to reach their full potential
● Focuses on various social injustices that students can face, such as racism, sexism and homophobia
● Chapters include Tools for Equity: Becoming an Ally; Case Studies; Strategies for Positive Action
● Valuable reflection questions to ask yourself in relation to building inclusive learning spaces, such as “how do I identify?” and “what are my privileges?”
“More Than A Play” performance arts handbook – ETFO publication (2010), 112 pages
● Features 9 short dramatic plays with themes geared towards junior/intermediate classrooms
● Plays written by top professional Canadian playwrights, including full scripts, story summaries, list of cast/characters, and key questions/follow up activities
● Plays include current social justice and equity themes, such as racial bias (Mustafa Plays Hockey), immigration (The Suitcase), cyberbullying (Believe It), homophobia (Jake’s Progress)
● Each play focuses in the complexities of eliminating intolerance and prejudice in our world, by encouraging critical thinking, understanding, acceptance and respect in the classroom
“The Heart and Art of Teaching and Learning” resource book for beginning teachers – ETFO publication (2011), 130 pages
● Geared towards new teachers, this practical resource book includes information on building relationships with students, setting up a classroom, conflict mediation tools, tips for communicating with parents, assessment strategies, activities and many real-life teaching examples
● Features colourful photos, diagrams and example forms from Ontario teachers
● 8 chapters include titles such as Before School Starts, Building Effective Classrooms, Meeting Diverse Learning Needs and Preparing For Being an Occasional Teacher
● Includes parent/teacher interview forms, field trip check lists, and many examples of engaging ways to promote inclusion and a sense of belonging in the classroom
“Special Education Handbook: Updated” – a practical handbook for all teachers – ETFO publication (2015), 67 pages
● An updated, practical resource to support all Ontario elementary teachers, including classroom teachers, special education teachers and occasional teachers, in their work with students with special needs
● Intended to serve as an introduction to common needs and to provide strategies for teachers to use with students with these needs
● Includes detailed samples of student ‘Areas of Need’ that list instructional, environmental and assessment strategies for teachers who work with specified students, i.e. a student who has needs in the area of aggression, attention skills, fine motor skills, low vision/blind or non-verbal, etc.
● Teachers are encouraged to use this resource in conjunction with the students IEP and ongoing consultations with the school’s special education teacher
“Building and Enriching Partnerships in Kindergarten” – a compilation resource book – ETFO publication (2021), 109 pages
● A colourful, informative resource for all Ontario kindergarten teachers – new and established
● Provides current field-tested strategies, tools and ideas to inform kindergarten partnerships between teacher and DECE
● Highlights several real-life stories and styles of kindergarten teams in Ontario
● Includes a section with templates, such as planning boards, weekly planning organizers and small-group instruction templates for anecdotal note-taking
“Building Safe and Inclusive Schools” – a teachers’ guidebook – COPA/OTF publication (2015), 145 pages
● A guide for teachers that is part of Safe@School, an Ontario initiative co-developed by COPA (the Centre ontarien de prevention des agressions (COPA) and Ontario Teachers’ Federation (OTF)
● Focuses on bully prevention and the promotion of equity and inclusive education practices
● Informative text-focused book with chapter titles such as Preventing Bullying and Promoting Equity and Inclusion, Mobilizing Parents/Guardians, Healthy Communication, Strategies for Positive Action
● Includes samples of real-life classroom scenarios, including scripts (the things teachers could actually say) to address anti-bullying and to promote equity in classrooms
“The Legacy: Canada’s Residential Schools, Volume 5” – The Final Report of the TRCC- Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (2015), 383 pages
● The Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s final report outlines the history and legacy of residential schools in Canada between 1867-2000, and charts a pathway towards reconciliation
● Featured chapters include: Child welfare: A system in crisis; The failure to educate; A denial of justice; An erosion of culture; Calls to action, etc.
● this volume examines the long shadow that residential schools have cast over the lives of Indigenous Canadians
“Belonging at School” – a guidebook with equity and inclusion strategies for home and school collaboration – COPA publication (2017), 84 pages
● Small-sized guidebook is intended to strengthen the capacity of parents/caregivers to to support their child’s well-being, particularly in areas of inclusion and anti-bullying
● Part of COPA’s We All Belong initiative designed for parents and caregivers and is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Education
● Highlights include how schools foster safe and inclusive learning environments, the importance of strong communication between caregivers and schools, and several conflict-resolution strategies that caregivers can consider if issues arise
“Creating Emotionally Safe Schools” – a guide for educators and parents – Jane Bluestein, Ph.D/ (2001), 496 pages
● A comprehensive researched-based guidebook that examines the many dimensions of emotional safety within an educational institution – and what we can all do to make a school safe for every student and adult who walks through its doors
● Features evidence-based information on gun violence and other forms of violence, but also goes into depth about learning styles, social interactions, discipline, and the role schools assume in our society and economy
● Primarily focused on American schools, yet applicable to the Canadian elementary system
● Includes three chapters: Dimensions of a Very Big Picture, The Tool Box, and The Grownups
“I Am The Teacher” – a guidebook for occasional teachers – ETFO publication (2008), 92 pages
● An ultimate guide for elementary OT’s in maintaining effective classroom management
● Features 6 chapter titles: Establishing an Effective Presence, Considering Student Expectations, Bonding and Connecting with Students, Effective Routines and Procedures. Effective Classroom Management Techniques and Effective Instruction
● Reviewed by 750 OT’s from Ontario who contributed and provided feedback in the development of this guidebook
● Includes real-life examples and realities of the role as an OT within elementary schools
“Reaching & Teaching Them All” – a guidebook for making quick and lasting connections with every student in your classroom – Amanda Yuill (2018), 119 pages
● A practical guide for forming immediate connections with students in simple ways
● First chapter examines Connecting Through… body language, humour, exciting curriculum, technology, activities, etc.
● Second chapter explores Connecting When…there’s trouble at school (student conflict, chronic difficulty) and when there’s trouble at home (divorce, sickness, poverty, abuse, death etc.)
● Final chapter examines Connecting With… students with behavioural challenges, developmental disabilities, mental illness, etc.
“The Sharing Circle” – stories about First Nations culture – Theresa Meuse-Dallien (2003), 52 pages
● a collection of 7 stories about First Nations culture and spiritual practices on Tuttle Island (Canada), featuring The Eagle Feather, The Dream Catcher, The Sacred Herbs, The Talking Circle, The Medicine Wheel, The Drum and The Medicine Pouch
● Researched and written by Mi’kmaw children’s author Theresa Meuse-Dallien and colourfully illustrated by Mi’kmaw illustrator Arthur Stevens
● Excellent resource for teachers and for the classroom as an engaging and informative book for children of all ages
● This book is a wonderful collection of short stories to support a culturally inclusive classroom
“Socks Are Like Pants, Cats Are Like Dogs” – games, puzzle and activities for choosing, identifying and sorting math- Malke Rosenfeld & Gordon Hamilton (2016), 84 pages
● A colourful book full of fun ideas for inspiring families and classrooms to play, solve, talk and make math – together!
● Filled with a diverse collection of math games, puzzles, and activities exploring the mathematics of choosing, identifying and sorting
● Many activities require little preparation and materials and are easily portable, such as Beetle Sort, Name Connection, and Dancing Variables
“Classroom Beginnings” – a teachers’ guidebook – ETFO publication (2000), 104 pages
● A comprehensive resource for new teachers with practical, usable strategies, ideas and information to ensure success
● Sample chapters include Setting Up Your Classroom, Getting to Know Your Students, Planning for Student Success, Taking Care of Yourself and Professional Relationships
● Student worksheets included to foster a welcoming learning environment in the first few weeks of school
“Respond + Rebuild” – a guidebook for culturally relevant and responsive pedagogy – ETFO publication (2019), 53 pages
● Explores the role that Culturally Relevant and Responsive Pedagogy (CRRP) plays in ensuring success for all students
● The CRRP addresses a growing body of research that highlights systemic inequities that exist for marginalized groups within the student body
● Includes information about 3 key CRRP areas: holding high expectations for all students; assisting students in the development of cultural competence; and guiding students to develop a critical cultural consciousness
● Examines how beliefs, knowledge and actions impact you as a teacher, your students and the community you serve
“STEM The Tide” – reforming science, technology, engineering, and math education in America – David E. Drew (2011), 242 pages
● Identifies proven research-based strategies for reforming America’s struggling school system to build stronger science programs and mathematics education
● Provides useful solutions to show how the achievement gap between majority and minority students can be closed
● Intended for policymakers, administrators, educators and anyone concerned about how to better inspire students’ participation in STEM fields
“#Black in School” – lived experiences of Blackness and anti-Black racism in a Canadian high school – Habiba Cooper Diallo (2021), 135 pages
● First person perspective of journal entries from author Habiba Cooper Diallo, in which she documents, processes, and resists systemic racism, microaggressions, stereotypes and outright racism she experienced in Canada’s education system
● A book recommended for educators, administrators, and politicians to read and study with careful consideration and humble reflection
● Journal entries range from gr 11-gr 12 (2012-2014)
“The Bold World” – a memoir of family and transformation- Jodie Patterson (2019), 328 pages
● an intimate and exquisite memoir of authenticity, courage, and love
● Back cover: “In 2009, Jodie Patterson, mother of five and beauty entrepreneur, has her world turned upside down when her determined toddler, Penelope, reveals, ‘Mama, I’m not a girl. I’m a boy.”
● A book about family, gender, race, and identity
“Surviving Canada: Indigenous Peoples Celebrate 150 Years of Betrayal” – essays and literature- Edited by Kiera L. Ladner & Myra J. Tait (2017), 462 pages
● A thoughtful and powerful collection about Indigenous peoples’ complicated, and often frustrating, relationship with Canada
● Featured essays and literature from a range of political and community leaders, scholars, artists and activists examine the struggle of Indigenous peoples to celebrate their cultures and exercise self-determination to control their own economic development, lands, water and lives
● Topics covered include subjects such as treaties, The Indian Act, Walking with Our Sisters, and the legacy of residential schools
“Building Proportional Reasoning” – across grades and math strangs, K-8- Marian Small (2015), 113 pages
● A mathematics book intended for any teacher working with elementary or middle school grade mathematics students
● Introduces fundamental concepts for early learners to help students develop essential skills in ratios, percentages, and other proportional representations when they reach middle grades
● Uses a complex subject with simple examples and questions that help teachers convey fundamental proportional understanding in mathematics
COPA 5 mini-books bundle:
1. “Elementary School Guide” – for newcomers to Ontario – COPA publication (2018), 78 pages
● Designed for newcomer families to have clear information about how elementary schools work in Ontario, what choices there are, expectations and your rights
● Provides practical information about what to expect when children start school and offers ways for getting prepared
● A concise summary, including resources and information on school registration, daily school life, supporting your child learner, how schools evaluate student success, becoming involved in your child’s school, school codes of conduct, and school-related vocabulary
2. “Bullying Prevention Guide” – a resource for parents and schools – COPA publication (2013), 48 pages
● A mini guidebook about bullying prevention
● Includes chapters, such as Impact of Bullying, Challenging the Code of Silence, Empowerment for Prevention, Healthy Communication, etc.
● Step-by-step suggestions for specific bullying scenarios, i.e. responding to children who are bystanders and who want to help stop the bullying, or Responding to children who are bystanders and who contribute to the bullying
3. “Problem-Solving Together” – COPA’s tool for empowerment – COPA publication (2015), 12 pages
● A mini resource focusing on empowerment-based problem-solving techniques for children and adults
● Features discussion questions, sample action plans and responses and collaborative strategies in solving problems together
4. “Joining the Circle: Guide for Educators” – COPA publication (2017), 87 pages
● A comprehensive resource focused on the journey of reconciliation, designed to help ensure Indigenous students and families feel that they belong and are able to realize their greatest potential
● A project that emerged from COPA’s A Circle of Carin project for First nations, Metis and Inuit parents, families, caregivers and schools
● Designed for all education staff at any school level, board or community organization
5. “A Circle of Caring” – a guide for First Nations, Metis and Inuit families, and schools – COPA publication (2015), 100 pages
● A detailed resource part of COPA’s We All Belong initiative for parents and schools, adapted for First Nations, Metis and Inuit parents, families, caregivers and community helpers and leaders who are looking for more ways to help their children to learn and foster their well-being at home and school
● Also designed to support schools working with Indigenous children and families
● Book acts in conjunction with the 21 short animated films that were created in this project (*note: films not included in this book bundle package) to help jumpstart conversations, including discussion questions
OTIP