Worthing teacher with award-winning Tiny Voice Talks education podcast launches book full of tips, insights and practical approaches to teaching

Mrs Toria Bono, a full-time teacher at Thomas A'Becket Junior School, has seen her campaign grow from a weekly thread on Twitter to a podcast with 30,000 downloads and now a book full of tips, insights and practical approaches.

She has been teaching since 2000, working at Thomas A'Becket First School in Worthing until 2013, then five years in Crawley before joining the junior school in 2019.

Mrs Bono said: "I love teaching, I have loved it my entire career and I would say it is the best job in the world. The book is celebratory of our profession, sharing knowledge. It is about empowering educators and making a difference to the children in our schools."

Tiny Voice Talks started on Twitter in February 2020, just before the Covid lockdown, to raise the voices of the quieter educators, including teachers, teaching assistants and leaders.

Mrs Bono explained: "I realised that actually the quieter educator didn't get a voice, they were drowned out often by the larger voices. I wanted to create a place where educators could have their voice heard and their questions answered.

"It just took off. At the height of lockdown, there were more than 500 people a week on the Tuesday thread #TinyVoiceTalks. It was a place for educators to connect."

In the summer of 2020, Mrs Bono was asked to start a podcast, where she could speak with educators from around the world about education. This was launched in August 2020, with weekly episodes out on Fridays, and the success of the podcast saw Mrs Bono being asked to write a book in April 2021 for Crown House Publishing.

Mrs Bono said: "It has been a really funny journey because I had never written a book. I received so many submissions from voices who wanted to be heard. What I want to do is to empower educators to find their voice and use it, and think about the impact that will have on the children."

There are 37 contributors in the book, Tiny Voices Talk Education, Engagement, Empowerment, which is divided into sections covering being a teacher, teaching from early years to further education, inclusion, professional development and teachers' personal stories.

Mrs Bono said: "The reviews I have received have been wonderful - including one from Dame Alison Peacock, the CEO of the Chartered College of Teaching.

"The children are the what is most important to me. This was a way in which I could share experiences, widen their understanding of teaching and learning, help them to develop professionally and ensure our children get the best of education."

Visit www.tinyvoicetalks.com for more information about Tiny Voice Talks and visit www.crownhouse.co.uk/tiny-voices-talk to order the book, Tiny Voices Talk Education, Engagement, Empowerment, which is priced at £16.99.