Learning to Lead: Ten Stories for Principals

Principals must be knowledgeable about students, curriculum, teacher performance, and the community that they serve while at the same time, able to manage a myriad of daily activities. Often times, management activities predominate and take time away from leadership leaving little time for principals to engage in reflective thinking and proactive planning. Learning to Lead provides ten ideas essential to effective school leadership, which are illustrated in the individual and collective traits and qualities of the principal. This book will inspire and encourage school leaders to reflect on their work; to look beneath the surface of what they do to examine what really matters; and to fine-tune their practice to build their capacity to truly make a difference in schools. It will be of interest to anyone with an interest in the principalship.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 Colorful Dreams: Creating Your Vision Chapter 3 Life in the Kennel: Building Trusting Relationships Chapter 4 The Hen and the Geese: Highly Effective Teams Chapter 5 The Patient Gardener: Nurturing Potential Chapter 6 A Dress for the Duchess: Leaders as Risk Takers Chapter 7 Stay in the City: Change or Transition? Chapter 8 The Storm: Leading in a Crisis Chapter 9 Throwing Out the Cookie Cutter: Respecting and Valuing Differences Chapter 10 Winning With Wisdom Chapter 11 Looking Into the Mirror: Finding My Voice Chapter 12 Appendix A: The Standards for School Leaders

About the Author :
Michael Chirichello was a teacher, principal, and superintendent for 30 years. He is the chair of the Department of Educational Leadership at William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey where he works with aspiring and experienced school leaders. Nancy Richmond has been a classroom teacher, reading specialist, vice principal, and principal. She is a senior educational consultant for the Center for Evidence-Based Education in Princeton, New Jersey.

Review :
Learning to Lead: Ten Stories for Principals is a just-in-time resource. The book is an excellent resource for experienced principals mentoring new principals, new principals searching for answers, and college professors needing texts to help prepare future principals. An original and wonderfully accessible contribution to the literature on the principalship—sure to touch the hearts and minds of principals and to help them see and feel the illusive concept at the heart of their work: leadership. Principals today are faced with endless challenges and asked to do more than ever before. Yet they continue to be committed, resilient, and tireless advocates for children, teachers, and the school community. Learning to Lead: Ten Stories for Principals paints a vivid picture of the skills that effective school leaders must master to be successful in the changing roles they have. The authors use a distinctive style and provide invaluable insights, integrating lessons from children's literature with everyday realities. It would serve you well to add Learning to Lead to your collection of education resources on what it means to be an effective and committed school leader in the 21st Century. Using children’s stories as a unique lens for understanding the role of the principal, Michael Chirichello and Nancy Richmond explore practical, real-life truths about effective leadership for today’s schools. Learning to Leadis a delightful and helpful book that affirms one's desire to make a difference. This book will become a huge success as readers recognize the wisdom, humor, and humanity so clearly woven throughout its pages. Every principal who has grappled with finding the time to be 'everything to everybody' should read this book. The authors have grasped the essence of the many struggles principals face in their leadership roles. A must-read for all those principals experienced in their craft, and those just beginning their noble journey. Kudos to the authors who have captured a world of dreams and imagination through children's literature to help define effective leadership in a unique way! Principals often say that the day-to-day hustle and bustle rarely allows them to reflect on the big picture. Learning to Lead: Ten Stories for Principals will help remedy this situation. Each chapter has a range of thoughtfully conceived opportunities for reflection and guided planning. Using this book will refocus a principal's work on what really matters. This useful volume belongs on every principal's desk, within arm's reach. The authors creatively use lessons from children's literature to help define what it means to be an effective and committed school leader. They present ten ideas essential to effective school leadership, which are illustrated in the individual and collective traits and qualities of the principal. This book encourages school leaders to reflect on their work, look beneath the surface of what they do to examine what really matters, and fine-tune their practice to build their capacity to truly make a difference in schools. Using their combined 64 years as principals, Michael Chirichello and Nancy Richmond provide readers with valuable information and suggestions to be applied immediately. The book is cleverly conceived and well-written....The sources are well-documented and woven together to make a scholarly presentation, but a delightful read. The book also provides an approach to leading students through the stories they know and to which they can relate. This book should be in every principal's library and reread, just as children reread the stories, to remember the points within the leadership principles.