I used to to teach high school English and History in Singapore for eight years, and I am now settled in the US, and working towards a masters (and eventually a PhD) in education. I was recommended this book in one of my graduate classes, and am very impressed by it. In fact, I wish that I had this book when I was a beginning teacher 13 years ago. "The First Days of School" is a highly organized educational resource that takes educators (both novice and experienced) step-by-step through the skills and strategies that teachers can use to become more professional in their teaching and learning. It covers all the basics such as the skills needed to succeed in one's first year of teaching, i.e. having positive expectations for student success, being an efficient classroom manager, designing effective lesson plans and implementing them successfully in the classroom, and finally being a lifelong learner.
This edition of the book also comes with a DVD "The First Days of School" which features Chelonnda Seroyer, voted "Teacher-of-the-year" at her school. Ms. Seroyer used "The First Days of School" to come up with effective procedures that she could use in her classroom to attain positive learning outcomes, and shares these procedures in the DVD.
A handy and practical resource, I'd recommend this to all novice and experienced teachers.