101 practical ways to manage behaviour, reduce workload and enjoy teaching again.
Teaching doesn't have to break you - it can inspire you.
If you've ever ended the school day wondering why you became a teacher, 101 Ways to Win in Teaching in Secondary Schools will help you rediscover the joy, confidence, and balance you thought you'd lost. Drawing on years of real classroom experience, Gurdeep Singh shares practical strategies that actually work - not theory, not wishful thinking - to help you take control of your classroom, cut through the chaos, and fall back in love with teaching.
Packed with humour, honesty, and hard-earned wisdom, this book offers down-to-earth advice for managing behaviour, taming your workload, and protecting your wellbeing. Gurdeep's stories of success (and the occasional disaster) will make you laugh, nod, and realise you're not alone - we've all been there.
From clever seating plans and subtle body language techniques to winning over even the toughest classes, you'll find 101 simple, effective ideas you can use tomorrow. Learn how to create positive relationships, manage challenging students with calm authority, and get real support from colleagues - without burning out in the process.
Perfect for early career teachers (ECTs) - and anyone who's ever felt overwhelmed - 101 Ways to Win in Teaching in Secondary Schools will help you not just survive but thrive in the best job in the world.
Table of Contents:
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER 1 THE STARTER
CHAPTER 2 BEST OF THE BEST
1 Thank you, it has been a pleasure
2 Let the good kids win
3 Really make them think at the start of the lesson
4 Stock balls and doosras
5 Replace the word 'work' with 'learning'
6 Find out about the best teachers in your school and ask yourself why
7 Accept that it will take time (and focus on the positives)
8 Hands-down questioning
9 Stand up, sit down
10 Be a great form tutor
11 A laugh and a smile? Rudeness and disrespect or just embarrassment?
12 Make confrontations a win-win
13 Simplicity of a three-part lesson
14 Anagrams - to asrtt and ifshin
15 Bad lessons? Blame yourself first
16 Slay the marking monster - who is working harder?
15-minute challenge
17 Slay the planning monster - 10-minute preparation
18 Support circles - learn from others
19 Support staff - the heart and body of the school
20 Wellbeing - YOU have the power to change the way you view things
21 Simple messages and instructions repeated over and over
22 Organisation - growing extra arms and legs
KEY TAKEAWAYS
CHAPTER 3 THE POWER STRUGGLE
23 Your classroom, your rules - seating plan
24 A look to say it all
25 Open your door, close their window of opportunity
26 Loose control or lose control
27 Sticky note questions
28 Don't enjoy the honeymoon too much
29 No dead time in lessons
30 Change 'if you do, then I will' for poor conduct to 'because you have, now I will' for good behaviour
31 Class wars and bad groups
32 Elastic band - stretch and relax
33 Empathise during tellings-off, don't rant
34 The power of the start
35 The power of the plenary
36 Testing for behaviour
37 Don't encourage an audience
38 Give them space in lessons - they need it
39 Ownership of the line
40 Write the following down
41 De-escalate
KEY TAKEAWAYS
CHAPTER 4 THE HUMAN TOUCH
42 Build lessons around what they need and want (and tell them what they want if they don't know)
43 'Yes, Sir', 'Yes, Miss' and the disarming smile
44 Name that name
45 Good detentions
46 Praise for everyone
47 Give a little piece of your heart
48 'I haven't got a pen'
49 Calming of the mind
50 Excuse me, am I boring you?
51 The pat on the back
52 Getting it wrong and changing your mind
53 Am I doing a good job? What could I change?
54 Meet and greet
55 The new student
56 Parents - emails and phone calls
KEY TAKEAWAYS
CHAPTER 5 WALK THE WALK
57 Dress as a role model
58 Good morning, good morning
59 Enjoy the classroom
60 Extracurricular, extra respect
61 Aspirational pitching
62 Walk the unfamiliar school
63 Don't speak - they'll know what you're asking and thinking
64 Play your personality
65 Embrace and learn from bad lessons - don't brush those experiences under the carpet
66 The great resources hoarder
67 Enjoy the small victories
68 Parents' evenings - how to manage them
69 Technology - knowing when and how to use it
70 Complaints about students - keep things in perspective
71 Supply cover - the nightmare dream teacher job
72 Reading, reading, reading
73 The one-hour, six-lesson planning challenge
74 Ensure that your classroom is an extension of you
KEY TAKEAWAYS
CHAPTER 6 TALK THE TALK
75 The controlled shout
76 Learn to act - watch wrestling!
77 Learn to act - watch stand-up comedy
78 The third person in the room
79 Perfect your lines
80 Only pause for applause
81 Explanation or argument?
82 The quiet mouse
83 Buying yourself time
84 The ineffective angry teacher - remember the dream?
85 Breaking the silence
86 Tweaking your (high) expectations
87 Build up to negatives and positives
88 Distracting the negatives
89 Cold comebacks
KEY TAKEAWAYS
CHAPTER 7 MIND GAMES
90 Tales of the unexpected
91 The line between confidence and arrogance
92 Sweet little lies
93 Use the force
94 Talk choices
95 Magic and mystery
96 Develop their memory, build their confidence
97 Be larger than life
About the Author :
I have been a teacher, in the UK, for 24 years and am currently an Assistant Headteacher in a Buckinghamshire Secondary School, with specific responsibility for Learning & Teaching.My journey in teaching, has been from a very timid and ineffective new teacher to my current role delivering training on effective classroom practice, both within my school and to trainees in the local teaching school.More about Gurdeep: I was quite accident prone when I was young - over a two year period I managed to fracture my right ankle (jumping off a garage roof!), fracture my right wrist (running into a wall during a basketball lesson at school) and then put a 6 inch slice on the back of my left arm (getting it caught in that same garage!).I never dreamed of becoming a teacher, but at the end of my Maths degree I had no clue what to do so I ended up doing what my mate Kelvin was doing and applied for a PGCE - over 25 years later and I have not looked back or ever regretted that decision.One of my favourite pass times is playing golf with my son. I'm not great but keep trying. During one of my first rounds that I played, I hit a shot which bounced back off the tree in front of me and hit me on the knee - I could not walk properly for a few months.One of the many benefits of being a teacher (and getting involved in extra-curricular activities) is the trips that you get to go on. In addition to many places in the UK, I have been very lucky to have visited France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Germany. However, I have not YET managed to get on a Ski trip to America, or a Cricket tour to Barbados.I am a big fan of colour coordinating what I wear - turban, tie, watch strap, cufflinks, socks and even underwear! I currently have over 10 different colours and during the last week of a term (or half term), I run a poll on Twitter (X), @TheTeacherWins, to decide what the colour should be for the following day.
