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Education World's
Learning Machine


Explore the coolest teaching resources on the Web.

From the Reading Machine
Fun City reinforces spelling skills. (Grades 1-3)
From the Math Machine
Mission: Magnetite is a fun Web site for teaching relationships between percents and fractions. (Grades 3-5)
From the Science Machine
Use floe to explore the topics of climate change and energy. (Grades 3-12)


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Back-to School Letters and Survival Kits Build Communication
Many teachers and administrators have started introducing themselves to parents and students before school starts. Some even provide "survival kits" to help students weather the first few days of school.

Dimes for Charity
Linda Biondi's Dimes for Charity program demonstrates what can happen when children believe in the power of doing the "right thing."


Harry K. Wong and the Real Meaning of Classroom Management
Meet Harry K. Wong, the author of The First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher, and learn the secret to your success in the classroom.

Strategy of the Week
Rules
Experienced educators know that effective teaching is only possible after they establish a positive climate for learning. One of the most basic and easily implemented aspects of classroom climate is the development of class rules.




Ken Shore: The Classroom Problem Solver
The School-Phobic Student
The problem of school phobia requires immediate attention. The longer a student is absent from school, the greater his anxiety is likely to become -- and the harder it will be to get him back.



Ms. Powell's Tips for Organizing Your Classroom
Fewer Office Trips
Use a four-section expanding file folder to hold papers that need to be taken to the school office.

Classroom Management Article of the Week
Ten Teacher-Tested Tips
Hallway conferences, pasta discipline, buddy rooms, bell work -- teachers share the classroom management techniques that work for them.

From Our Classroom Tips Library
Classroom Management: Bulletin Board Basics
Behavior Management: Attention and Transitions
Motivating Kids: Theme Teaching
Book Report Makeover: BINGO!
Homework Tips: Exit Slips
Best Idea: Capture Class Images
Testing Tips: Anxiety Attack




Fred Jones's
Tools for Teaching

Rules, Routines, and Standards
Investing time in teaching classroom rules, standards, and procedures is a classic example of proactive versus reactive management. Prevention is cheaper than remediation.

Emma McDonald: The New Teacher Advisor
Lost in Space
Whether youve got a classroom the size of a football field or one barely bigger than a closet, the ideas in this article will help you make the most of the space you've got.


Eric Baylin's Songs to Brighten a Teacher's Day
Coming Back Is Never Easy
Understand that I love teaching. I wouldn't choose any other field. But I also love summer. And coming back to school has just never been easy. I can't lie about that -- but I can sing about it!


Joe Martin: The Teacher Motivator
First Things First on the First Day of School
Do you think you can show students how learning reading, writing, math, science...can help them achieve some of their goals and relieve some of their stress? Its worth a shot.

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






What Color Is Your Balloon?
How many balloons of each color does Jeremy have to sell?

Wendy Petti's Math Cats
What Is Math?
It might seem obvious, but responses to that question can be surprisingly diverse.

Math Flies Off the Shelf
Parents in Virginia learn to capitalize on "teachable math moments" at home in the kitchen with hands-on items like cereal and soup labels.

Math Games With Joanne and Jane
Race to 1000: Review odd/even numbes and place value to 1000. (Grades 2-3)

Math Mnemonics
Learn to Count

Try a Hinky-Pinky
Stuck for easy ideas for the first weeks of school? Try hinky-pinkies. The simple multidisciplinary poetry-writing activity is a fun back-to-school icebreaker.

My Phone
Motivate kids to write with this fun "myPhone" template.

Writing Lessons
What Happened?
Explore legends surrounding volcanoes, write your own legend. (Grades 3-12)
Create a Word
Have fun making up new words, writing definitions for them. (Grades 3-12)

Writing Bugs
Somewhere in Time
You have invented a time machine. Where are you going?
Too Much Violence?
Is there too much violence on television?


Reader's Theater
Good To Be Green
Little Gerry Green Thumb has applied to become the newest character in Nursery Rhyme Kingdom. Will the admissions committee look beyond his unique appearance and accept him into their group?


Cathy Puett Miller:
Engaged Reading: Turning Reading into an Active Experience
Engaging all students in active, thinking, reading is vital. Centering reading around student interests, motivation, and self-concept is how we give every student a reason to read.

Reading Feature
Reading Aloud: Are Students Ever Too Old?
Is there ever a time when students are too old to be read to? Many teachers are firm believers in reading aloud -- even at the high school and college levels.


Best Books for Teaching About...
Bullies
Friendship





More from Our Professional Development Archive

Backpack-tivities
These 36 @home learning activities provide teachers with simple and effective tools for involving parents in their childrens education. They provide families with opportunities to spend time learning with, from, and about one another.