Are you ready to hardcore relax from teaching this winter break? Cozy up with a list of my favorite books for teachers, with some Spanish teacher flair. This perfect Spanish teacher book list of 9 great books for Spanish teachers has something for everyone – fiction, biographies, teacher PD, and classic Latinx novels in Spanish to rejuvenate your love of language.
A note on links: All books are affiliate links either to Amazon or to my favorite place to get books – Bookshop.org. This means I’ll get a small commission at no cost to you if you choose to purchase.
I’m a proud affiliate of Bookshop since they support small locally-owned bookstores. I try to buy from them whenever I can. Any books not available there yet are affiliate links to Amazon – buying from these links helps keep the lights on for this blog 🙂
El Tiempo de las Mariposas is a must-share. I read this in Spanish on the beaches of the Dominican when I lived there in college. The story is a beautiful historical fiction about Las Hermanas Mirabal, the heroic sisters who stopped the dictator Trujillo in the sixties—and were murdered in the process.
This book has some serious signs of love because I brought it with me everywhere—beach, class, camping trips in Puerto Plata, you name it.
he Americas don’t look anything like what you’d expect or have been taught.
This libro lunes is the story of the indigenous peoples of North and South America through the lens of anthropology and natural science, but with plenty of narrative to keep it interesting. I’m about a quarter into it and love learning about the Native Peoples of America without the overbearing narrative of Colombus and impending colonization.
We already know so much of that story. What I don’t know is who they were before someone else defined their entire story.
Who these people were and their societies is the story of humanity…it’s a page turner and I’m taking it everywhere.
It’s a classic for a reason. This great book for Spanish teachers is honestly great for all humans, but way better in its original language.
Allende has this way of getting you inside a character’s head while making you feel like you’ve lived there your whole life. Someone else’s thoughts, usually so alien, feel like an everyday familiar voice in her masterpiece.
It’s also a great practice for my Spanish interpretive listening, since the reader is Chilean and that accent is completely different from the Dominican Spanish I’m used to from the study abroad days ( a million years ago).
What book in Spanish are you reading right now?
I mean seriously, who doesn’t love the ultimate rags to riches queen/dictator story of Evita?
She’s the most interesting bio I’ve ever read – you never know whether to be on her side or not. aka populism at its finest.
What are your thoughts? Also read this biography – right meow – and let me know what you think.
You’ve got problems at school, this book has actual solutions. It’s my all-time favorite educational book. I’m all about practical solutions that are both student and teacher friendly, and inspirational teacher reads just don’t do it for me anymore. This book gets right into the answers to your most obnoxious problems – having nowhere quiet to grade without students barging in, never-ending meetings, and lack of quality teacher professional development. All with zero funding? Yes please! It’s a quick read with even quicker solutions and a much-needed change of pace from the sappy teacher reads we’re usually fed on PD lists.
Now that you’ve read las Mariposas, you’re ready to really get to know las Hermanas Mirabal. I picked up this book while touring their house, managed by their one surviving sister, Dedé. She was just as much involved in the revolutionary activities as her murdered sisters, but just so happened to not be in the car that was attacked. She dedicated her life to their justice, their memory, and the care of their many orphaned children. This book is her story.
I know, right? What are you waiting for?
This book made my wildest dreams possible by teaching me the power of small changes and course corrections every day.
James Clear teaches that habits are tiny votes every day for the person you want to be. Isn’t that alot sexier than getting up early or working out?
It sets the real vision and purpose behind WHY we want to master or ditch certain habits.
I don’t care that much about being a person that works out, but I DO care about being a person who’s mentally and physically strong.
This is the only Spanish-specific PD book I’ve found to be full of actionable steps instead of research-heavy suggestions. Even though I LOVE Second Language Acquisition, (I could seriously read about research all day) there’s a profound gap between that useful knowledge and how I can make that happen in my class.
That’s why I love this book for Spanish teachers.
I highly recommend this for your Spanish teacher book list. Although this is certainly not enough to learn TPRS strategies, I skimmed it and used the relevant chapters to me to up my questioning technique game. I also used the sample scripts in it to create cool input-rich activities for my classes.
Now that’s what I call useful! If you’re like me and can’t get to a workshop on TPRS, this is the next-best thing. Also, check out the conference invite below for a free opportunity to learn more questioning strategies!
Probably the most fascinating novel I’ve ever read – captivating, unsettling, and filled with truth.
An incredible story of the Dominican experience from the island to the US, this is a must-read.
I won’t spoil this modern classic for you – just go ahead and grab it!
Want more Great Spanish Books?
This list of great books for Spanish teachers is a roundup from my instagram tradition, #LibroLunes. Every Lunes, I pick my favorite reads from education or anything that my Spanish teacher and French teacher heart is into. Join me on instagram @lalibrelanguagelearning and tag me with your favorite reads! Every Monday, use the hashtag #librolunes to find a great rec!
Looking for Spanish Teacher Professional Development?
It’s certainly not found in books, but I have something better for you. I got together the best teachers I know to help you navigate this crazy year of distance learning, hybrid, and face-to-face teaching. You can learn from these amazing world language teachers in your jammies, and it’s FREE!
Hola, Devon,
tengo muchas ganas de que empieze la conferencia! .-)
Soy profesora de espanol en Alemania y me intereso mucho por el método de CI y TPRS.
He estado buscando material para la clase de espanol y quería pedirte una sugerencia. Aparte del manual que presentas en tu lista de libros favoritos, qué te parecen los materiales (manual y libro del alumno) de TPRS de Todd McKay o de Adriana Ramirez?
Hasta el fin de semana,
un abrazo,
Sylvia
P.S.: En cuanto a algunos de mis libros favoritos: A mí me encantan estas escritoras espanolas. Últimamente leí:
Rosa Montero (Instrucciones para salvar el mundo)
María Duenas (El tiempo entre costuras)
Pilar Rivas (El lado humano)
De hecho, no soy ningun tipo de experto en TPRS. Intenté el método y aunqué me gustara, no era mi personalidad de maestra de estar “on” todito el tiempo. Me costaba tanta energía. Pero a otros maestros, les encanta. Por eso, lo unico libro que tengo sobre TPRS es lo de Blaine Ray. Pregúntale a mi amiga @perfectingpedagogy sur instagram – es profesora de francés y usa TPRS con frecuencia.
Suerte, y disfruta la conferencia 🙂