Best book ever

My youngest son, aged four, has just been diagnosed with autism, and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon captures the authentic voice of an autistic teenager.

Best film ever

I’ve always been intrigued by the country house as a setting. The Remains of the Day (Merchant Ivory 1993), in which a butler played by Anthony Hopkins is so restrained by his duties, is the most memorable.

Best inspiration

An exhibition of Don McCullin’s photographs (pictured) at the Green Belt Arts Festival in Cheltenham last year. He followed Christian Aid workers around Zambia and documented the lives of people struggling with Aids. He captures resilience and a sense of hope as well as sadness.

Looking forward to

This year’s Green Belt festival in August. We go every year. It’s family-oriented and there are always good performances. I’ve seen Courtney Pine there and I remember a series of very short orchestral pieces in 2004 played in the open air by the classical composer Malcolm Lindsay. They were accessible, like a series of short stories.

To share with pupils

My wife and I have moved back to York, where we went to college. We love the city, and especially the Minster, which I use a lot as a resource. I would love to give the pupils a contrast and take them to Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia cathedral in Barcelona.

Best resource

The Hypnotiser, a collection of poems by Michael Rosen published in 1988 (Scholastic) which are so poignant. He can be deep at a child’s level.

These are poems about his own life and experiences and I use them a lot in teaching: I say, “OK, so that’s his story, now tell me yours.”

Mark Halliday, a Glaswegian poet, is headteacher of Skelton primary, York.

His collection of poems for children, Teacher on a Horse, was published by Dagger Press last December, price pound;4.99. The title poem won the TES staffroom poetry competition in 2003. Interview by Elaine Williams