Picture this: a toolbox jam-packed full of ideas for school leaders eager to improve school culture and student achievement. Every idea with a picture too!

A Personal Note:
Two Minutes Pays Big Dividends

One of the simplest and least expensive ways to recognize staff for the things they do for students and each other is also one of the easiest to do. Every day, we try to recognize a few of the things -- big and small -- we witness or hear about. Taking a few minutes to pen a simple note of thanks is a great way to recognize staff for the ways they make our school a special place to work. From time to time, we even include a little reward in our note -- an extended lunch break, for example. That turns the note of thanks into a redeemable certificate. It might not be a bad idea to cc these special notes to staff members' personnel folders where they will serve as reminders when evaluation time rolls around of the special things each person has done.

Contributors:
The leadership team at DeQuincy Elementary School, DeQunicy, Louisiana

Send Us Your Favorite Tool Looking to nail your next meeting with a good idea? Tighten up staff relations? Hammer out some great test scores? Construct a fun reward or event? Ratchet up your team building skills? Just drill into our toolbox for all the tools you need -- like the one above submitted by a school leader just like you. If you find the tools in our Principal's Toolbox to be of value, we hope you will be willing to contribute your favorite tool. Just email a clear photo of the "tool" along with a brief description and your name, school name, and location to [email protected]. If we add your tool to the Principal's Toolbox we will even send along a few Ed World sticky-note pads via snail mail.