12 Best Classroom Management Books

Every teacher knows that classroom management is a key component of the pedagogical equation. Without an effective classroom management nothing will work smoothly. In fact, no teaching method no matter how sophisticated it is can work in a classroom that is badly managed. This is a lesson I learned the hard way!

The first two years of my teaching career were not the best at all, and the reason was failure from my part to manage my class in an effective way. As I accumulated more teaching experience and learned the dynamics at play in classroom instruction, I developed more confidence and become better at managing my class.

The purpose of this post is to share with you a collection of some very good classroom management books that you should definitely keep handy. I wish I knew about these classroom management books when I was starting out, they would have spared me so much hassle.

Classroom management books

Whether you’re just starting out or an experienced educator, these titles offer helpful tools and strategies for every teacher. For teachers who have just started their teaching journey, check out our list of the best books for new teachers.

But before we delve into this list of classroom management books, let us first explore what classroom management is all about, talk about some of its key components, and discuss why it is important to have effective strategies to manage your class.

Table of Contents

What is classroom management? 

Classroom management is the practice of developing and sustaining an orderly, productive learning environment. It covers a wide variety of strategies, from setting expectations and implementing effective lesson plans to teaching specific skills and fostering positive relationships between students and teachers. Creating a successful educational environment  through effective classroom management strategies can help students learn and grow.

What are the components of classroom management?

The key components of classroom management include establishing expectations and rules, reinforcing positive behaviors, and providing clear instructions. Having an established routine is also important; students should know what to expect each day in the classroom so that they can focus on learning.

Teachers should use consistent disciplinary strategies to address student misbehavior or off-task behavior. Finally, teachers must provide ongoing feedback so that students understand how their actions affect the overall functioning of the classroom.

Why is classroom management important?

Classroom management is essential for creating an environment that allows students to thrive and make meaningful progress in their learning. An effective classroom management plan can also help teachers reduce stress, minimize conflicts, and ensure that every student feels safe and respected in the classroom.

With a positive learning environment, teachers can better focus on teaching content and providing individualized and differentiated instruction. Consequently, students can maximize their learning potential and gain the skills that will equip them for success in school and beyond.

classroom management books

Why is it important to have effective classroom management strategies?

Classroom management strategies ensure that students stay focused on learning, while also helping to prevent disruptive behaviors before they happen. With strategies such as setting clear rules, modeling positive behavior, providing consistent consequences and rewards, and fostering positive relationships with students, teachers can create an environment where every student feels respected and supported. Effective classroom management strategies also help to reduce teacher stress and bolster confidence in the classroom so that everyone can benefit from a productive learning experience.

Here are some of the 12 best books on classroom management

1.Classroom Management for Middle and High School Teachers , by Edmund T. Emmer, Carolyn M. Evertson

Classroom Management for Middle and High School Teachers

Classroom Management for Middle and High School Teachers provides teachers with the skills, approaches, and strategies necessary to establish effective learning environments in elementary school classrooms.

Based on experience in more than 500 classrooms, the authors provide details on how to plan, develop, and implement a classroom management system that helps create a classroom environment that focuses on and facilitates learning.

Examples, checklists, case study vignettes, and group activities illustrate key concepts and make the content concrete, allowing readers to reflect on and apply the content to real-life settings.

2. “These Kids Are Out of Control”: Why We Must Reimagine “Classroom Management” for Equity, by IV Milner, H. Richard, Heather B. (Bossert) Cunningham, Lori Delale-O′Connor, Erika Gold Kestenberg 

These Kids Are Out of Control

“These Kids Are Out of Control” provides teachers and administrators with the insight they need to better serve the needs of their students. Written by experts in the field, the book details the specific practices, tools, beliefs, dispositions, and mindsets that are essential to better serve the complex needs of our diverse learners.

Topics covered in the book include being culturally responsive in today’s classroom environments, understanding the curriculum, building relationships in and outside of school, and assessing student development and learning.

3. Troublemakers: Lessons in Freedom from Young Children at School, by Carla Shalaby

Trouble makers

In Troublemakers: Lessons in Freedom from Young Children at School, Carla Shalaby, a former elementary school teacher, explores the everyday lives of four young “troublemakers.” These children challenge the ways we identify and understand so-called problem children.

Time and again, we make seemingly endless efforts to moderate, punish, and even medicate our children when we should instead be concerned with transforming the very nature of our institutions, systems, and structures, large and small.

Through delicately crafted portraits of these memorable children—Zora, Lucas, Sean, and Marcus—Troublemakers allows us to see school through the eyes of those who know firsthand what it means to be labelled a problem.

4. Teach Like a Champion 3.0, by Doug Lemov 

Teach Like a Champion

Updated with the latest techniques and findings in cognitive science, this guide by Doug Lemov is indispensable for anyone looking to create a positive and productive learning environment. Whether you’re a new teacher or an experienced educator, you’ll find valuable tips on how to encourage student engagement, accountability, and excellence.

Teach Like a Champion 3.0 also includes an expanded video collection that will help you see the techniques in action and put them into practice in your own classroom. With this book, you’ll be able to build students’ background knowledge, move learning into long-term memory, and connect your teaching with the standards-aligned curriculum for tangible results.

5. I Notice: A Step-by-Step Guide to Transform Student Potential Through Building Intentional Relationships, by Claire E. Hallinan

I Notice: A Step-by-Step Guide to Transform Student Potential

This step-by-step guide provides a revolutionary new approach to building intentional relationships with your students. Using six simple steps, you can define unique categories of relationships, self-awareness, and strategies to make connections. This will help foster your children’s achievement and confidence.

Claire E. Hallinan, an elementary classroom teacher and author of the bestselling Gift of Gratitude, offers a unique perspective on building relationships with your students. She explains how to use the “I notice” statement to become a more mindful observer and mentor without harsh judgment on children. With this approach, you can help your students reach their goals and become successful individuals.

6. What Great Teachers Do Differently: Nineteen Things That Matter Most, by Todd Whitaker

What Great Teachers Do Differently

In What Great Teachers Do Differently, Todd Whitaker lays out the beliefs and behaviors that set great teachers apart. He discusses why it’s important to focus on relationships, how to create a consistent and engaging learning environment, and how to choose the right mode of communication with your students.

This essential third edition also features new sections on why it’s about more than relationships, how to focus on a consistent, engaging learning environment, and the importance of choosing the right mode—business, parent, child—to improve your classroom management.

7. The Happy Teacher Habits: 11 Habits of the Happiest, Most Effective Teachers on Earth, by Michael Linsin

The Happy Teacher Habits

Based on the latest research, and drawing on experts from the worlds of business, marketing, sports, entertainment, music, and medicine, you will learn simple, actionable strategies that will eliminate your teaching stress, supercharge your ability to motivate and inspire your students, and empower you to really love your job.

The Happy Teacher Habits exposes the falsehoods and misinformation teachers are bombarded with every day and provides you with the habits of the happiest, most effective teachers on Earth. You will learn how to ditch the teacher burnout syndrome, how to create a love of learning in your students, and how to find fulfilment in your career. 

8.Better Than Carrots or Sticks: Restorative Practices for Positive Classroom Management, by Dominique Smith, Douglas Fisher, Nancy Frey 

Better than carrots or sticks

In Better Than Carrots or Sticks, Dominique Smith, Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey provide a practical blueprint for creating a cooperative and respectful classroom climate in which students and teachers work through behavioural issues together.

After a comprehensive overview of the roots of the restorative practices movement in schools, the authors explain how to establish procedures and expectations for student behaviour that encourage the development of positive interpersonal skills; develop a non confrontational rapport with even the most challenging students; and implement conflict resolution strategies that prioritize relationship building and mutual understanding over finger-pointing and retribution.

9. The Classroom Management Secret: And 45 Other Keys to a Well-Behaved Class, by Michael Linsin 

the classroom management secret

Based on the hugely popular blog Smart Classroom Management, this book provides step-by-step advice on how to create a well-behaved and disciplined classroom. What makes this book different is the little-known secret shared by the most successful teachers – those who are remembered and loved for a lifetime. This secret will help you to build rapport with your students, manage behaviour effectively, and teach with joy and passion.

10. Management in the Active Classroom, by Ron Berger, Dina Strasser, Libby Woodfin  

Management in the Active Classroom

In Management in the Active Classroom, Ron Berger and Dina Strasser offer a comprehensive guide for creating a well-managed classroom. With strategies that have been successfully tested in classrooms across the United States, this book provides concrete steps and examples that will equip teachers of all levels of experience to establish a collaborative, active learning environment.

The authors emphasize the importance of creating a classroom culture where students feel safe and respected, and they provide techniques for managing everything from student behaviour to transitions between activities. Accompanying videos help to bring the concepts in the book to life, and teachers can visit the companion website for additional resources. 

11. The Total Classroom Management Makeover: in 18 short, simple lessons, by Michael Linsin  

The Total Classroom Management Makeover

The Total Classroom Management Makeover is designed to help educators create an effective learning environment. The 18 lessons are written in a concise and accessible way, and together they form an innovative approach to teaching and managing behavior. This approach is specifically designed to create intrinsic desire in students to listen, learn, and behave. As a result, educators can expect a well-behaved class with improved behavior.

12. Take Control of the Noisy Class: Chaos to Calm in 15 Seconds, by Rob Plevin  

Take Control of the Noisy Class: Chaos to Calm in 15 Seconds

In Take Control of the Noisy Class, teacher-trainer Rob Plevin shares a proven, step-by-step plan for successfully managing the most challenging individuals and groups in today’s toughest classrooms. Drawing on over 20 years of experience working in special education and mainstream settings with students of all ages, Plevin offers fast-acting techniques that help teachers connect and succeed with hard-to-reach, reluctant learners.

13. Hacking School Discipline: 9 Ways to Create a Culture of Empathy and Responsibility Using Restorative Justice, by Nathan Maynard, Brad Weinstein

Hacking school discipline


In Hack Learning Series Book 22, you learn to:

  • “Reduce repeated negative behaviors
  • Build student self-regulation and empathy
  • Enhance communication and collaboration
  • Identify the true cause of negative behaviors
  • Use restorative circles to reflect on behaviors and discuss impactful change.”