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Education World's
Learning Machine


Explore the coolest teaching resources on the Web.

From the Science Machine
Cell Models Students click the names of cell parts to view their descriptions. (Grades 5-12)

From the Reading Machine
Alton-Ra: The Lost Statue reinforces spelling, sentence structure. (Grades 3-6)

From the Math Machine
Penguin Waiter is a fun Web site for teaching about percentages and money. (Grades 4-12)

This Weeks
Highlights

Wow box text starts here, about 20 words or so and ends with an ellipses so readers know to click the This Weeks Highlights link (or whatever text you choose to use as a headline) to read



Planning for Your First Day of School
On the first day of school, the secret to success is in the planning, not the pedagogy.

Personality Profile Posters
Mark Rougeux's middle schoolers reveal their personalities through profile posters.

Back-to-School Guide for Beginning Teachers (and Not-So-New Teachers Too)
Resources for getting your feet on the ground, lesson planning tips, assessment ideas, time and behavior management resources, classroom freebies, technology information, humor, and much more!

Strategy of the Week
Icebreakers
An icebreaker is a simple activity that enables teachers to get to know their students and students to get to know their teachers and one another. Most of the activities are short and fun, and most require little or no preparation.




Ken Shore: The Classroom Problem Solver
Line-Up and Hallway Dilemmas
Behavior problems often occur when students line up and walk through the halls. That is not the time to relax rules or lessen efforts to maintain discipline. Eight tips for keeping order in line.



Ms. Powell's Tips for Organizing Your Classroom
A Movable Seating Chart
Make seat changes easier with this versatile seating chart.


Article of the Week
Teachers, Start Your Engines: Management Tips from the Pit Crew
While you've been (we hope!) enjoying a relaxing summer, the editors at Education World have been lurking on listservs and in chat rooms, reading articles and message boards, and surfing education sites and teacher Web pages in search of classroom management tips you can use in the new school year.

From Our Classroom Tips Library
Classroom Management: A New School Year
Behavior Management: Rules and Routines
Motivating Kids: Treat Kids With Respect
Book Reports: A Book Report Sandwich
Homework Tips: Homework Club
Best Idea: Time Capsule
Testing Tips: Are They Ready?




Fred Jones's
Tools for Teaching

Effective Room Arrangement
Classroom management expert Fred Jones identifies "three zones of proximity" and discusses how knowing what they are can help you "work the crowd" in your own classroom.


Emma McDonald: The New Teacher Advisor
Day One: Laying the Groundwork
Every teacher wants a smoothly running classroom, but that's difficult when you don't know where to start. What you need is a vision. Then you need to use the first day of school to lay the groundwork for making that vision a reality.


Eric Baylin's Songs to Brighten a Teacher's Day
The Teacher Anxiety Song
It's coming -- the inevitable end of summer and the opening days of school. The mere mention of summer's end is cause for the onset of teacher anxiety dreams. Perhaps we should put our fears and worries into song instead?

Joe Martin: The Teacher Motivator
Teach Like Every Day is Christmas
The night before every new school year, I get to be a child again by re-living Christmas Eve. Because when I arrive on the first day of school, I have approximately 25 to 30 gifts waiting to be opened. And they're ALL mine.


Meet other members of Education World's Professional Development columnist team.





Math Cats With Wendy Petti
A Math Toolbox in Every Home
As teachers, we know the value of hands-on exploration with math manipulatives. Extend that sense of discovery into students' homes by helping them assemble math toolboxes to be enjoyed by the whole family.


Go Figure
How many miles did Maria's family travel?

Make Puzzles Part of Your Game Plan
Puzzles and riddles have an inherent appeal to children, and through play, children can develop new concepts and reinforce skills. Many sites offer puzzles, riddles, and other games to stimulate fun and learning. Check out a few of them!

Math Games With Joanne and Jane
A - Ten - Tion: Reinforce the concepts of odd/even and place value. (Grades 1-2)

Math Mnemonics
How do you spell Arithmetic?

Discovering the Writer in Every Student
Are you tired of "What I Did on My Summer Vacation?" Do you want to move your students beyond weak, formulaic writing? Discover how.

Teacher Feature
A+ Ideas for Creative Writing
Teacher Susan Schweiker has a unique approach to building creative, confident writers: it starts with promising them A's!

Writing Lessons
Writing Lesson #1
A weekly writing assignment results in a year-end volume of work that documents students' writing progress. (Grades K-12)
Writing Lesson #2 Create travel brochures to sell tourists on the concept of space travel. (Grades 6-12)

Writing Bug #1 A writing activity for the second day of school.
Writing Bug #2 Write a story in which every other word begins with a vowel.


Cathy Puett Miller:
The Reading Coach

Creating a Reading Community
Make it your goal this year to transform your classroom into one that has positive assessments, and strong and engaged learners -- by declaring reading an empowering, engaging, life-enhancing experience.

Reader's Theater
Bus Yard Blues
Bernard, a shiny yellow school bus hopes a coat of paint and new wheels will make his young riders sit up and take notice, but he finds them infatuated with fast cars instead. Can Bernard's buddies convince him he's special?

Reading Feature
Reading Aloud: Is It Worth It?
Why do teachers read aloud to students? Are the benefits worth the time? Many teachers believe reading aloud enhances classroom instruction and improves academic achievement -- and research supports that belief.


Best Books for Teaching About...
Back to School
The Five Senses





More from Our Professional Development Archive

From "Pretty" to Practical: Using Bulletin Boards to Teach
If you've ever been guilty of ignoring a clearly out-of-date bulletin board or of putting up "anything" that will do, maybe it's time to give your bulletin boards a second look. Experts tell Education World that classroom boards can be more than just "wallflowers" -- they can be tools for teaching too.

Check out these Five Fabulous Back-to-School Bulletin Board Ideas from Education World.