Five Stars by Carmine Gallo

I often read business books and think about how they could apply in a school setting. One that seems an excellent match – for teachers and for students – is the recent FIVE STARS by Carmine Gallo, bestselling author of Talk Like TED. Here, Gallo stresses “presentation literacy” and emphasizes the importance of communication, saying, “Mastering the art of persuasion – combining words and ideas to move people to action – is no longer a ‘soft’ skill. It is the fundamental skill to get from good to great in the age of ideas.”  Gallo splits the book into three main section, one that explains why great communicators are essential, another that profiles scientists, (e.g., Neil deGrasse Tyson) plus a variety of entrepreneurs and other professionals who excel at communication and finally, an outline of how to get from good to great. It’s in that last section where Gallo devotes chapters to topics like The Pathos Principle, Three Act Storytelling Structure (situation, complication, resolution), The Big Picture, Smart Words and so on; similar points are often emphasized by our English teachers, especially.  I found FIVE STARS to be an inspirational and useful guide which has potential as a One School, One Book type read. For example, as Junior Themes become more issue oriented, wouldn’t it be interesting to encourage students to explore developing and sharing data with sites mentioned by Gallo like Kaggle? As we continue to develop critical thinking, creativity, and empathy amongst our students, FIVE STARS will be a valuable tool.