Education is only ever about the students.
“Real Rap” is a Philly-born phrase my students used when they needed a serious, no-nonsense conversation. Teach Your Class Off is my version of that—a real talk guide for educators who are feeling overwhelmed, stretched thin, or burned out. It’s packed with honest advice, creative strategies, and practical tools to help educators bring purpose, passion, and energy back into their classrooms.
In today’s challenging educational landscape—where students can be tough to reach and hard to motivate, budgets are tight, testing is rigid, and teacher autonomy is shrinking—Teach Your Class Off offers real, proven strategies to help you thrive. This isn’t about doing more with less. It’s about making learning fun, meaningful, and unforgettable—so you can show up as your best self and create a classroom your students actually want to be in.
"Real, raw and unapologetic, Teach Your Class Off is a wonderful reminder that true teaching is in the little things we do, every day, to connect with and transform the lives of our students."
I know a lot of educators, like tens of thousands of them and CJ is in my top five most favorite. Why? Because he cares about kids - all of his kids and does whatever it takes to make them feel special, give them access to the curriculum, help put a smile on their face and he shows up every single day with that mission in mind. 'Teach Your Class Off' is like no other book you've ever read, and I guarantee you're going to learn new strategies, laugh, and probably even cry at some of the stories - but you're going to be a better teacher because of it. Ten thumbs up for this amazing book!
"There are two types of teachers of any kind; those who simply transmit information and those who facilitate transformation. CJ Reynolds is the latter. He understands the importance of reaching the mind through the heart. This book is a must have for anyone who wants to do the same."
"In a time where education is overcomplicated and under funded, teaching is over scripted and under inspired, and learning is over assessed and under FUNed, this book will leave you with a thousand kinds of awesome!CJ gives “student centered” a fresh new meaning, reminding us all that we can inspire and influence students to be “kindness warriors” and even teachers with district mandated scripts and little autonomy over the curriculum, can create magic and meaningful memories for our students every single day!"
"Teach Your Class Off, is a seismic shift in the educational reads that are out there today - spoken truth, meets some slam poetry, meets education! Just like Reynolds this book is real, it's authentic and it's relevant. In Real Rap - Reynolds doesn't try to be anything other than himself and helps us to all look at our students and classrooms a little bit differently. Whether you're searching for some inspiration, motivation or to reignite the flame - this simple, uncomplicated, yet beautifully written book is for you, we can all work to being a little bit better together - I couldn't put it down!"
