The Bookshelf: June 26, 2014

Trib+Edu is joining with respected books authority Kirkus Reviews to bring you select reviews of books of note in the field of public education. For more book reviews and recommendations, visit Kirkus.com.

CRASH COURSE: The Life Lessons My Students Taught Me

by Kim Bearden

Grouped into 17 categories — including tenacity, bonding, generosity, creativity and love, the author brings readers into her classroom and into the lives of the students she taught, using real-life examples to deliver the overarching message that adults often have as much to learn from their students as vice versa. … Humorous and sensitive, Bearden's narratives bring to life the many issues inherent in public school teaching — e.g., how to engage and interact with students who come from broken homes, who feel invisible, who are shy or who believe that they are worthless. … Bearden provides helpful "class notes," which summarize each lesson, and "homework" so parents and teachers can use the lessons she learned in their own situations.

For full review, visit kirkus.com