I always had lots of pens/pencils to loan the students that didnt seem to come prepared to class. So often, the loaned pens/pencils never seemed to return at the end of class and the supply would quickly dwindle. Eventually, I started the idea that if you wanted to borrow a pen/pencil from my desk, you had to give me a shoe....when they returned the borrowed item, the shoe was returned. It was something they always remembered to return to me.
What other ways do you use to get loaned...

How do you know you're a good teacher? How do you know you are successful in the classroom? Test scores, the kids are behaved, parents are satisfied, a strong evaluation from the principal?

It's a good question, one that I think educators begin to ask themselves as they gain years of experience in the classroom. Without defining success, it's easy as a teacher to get discouraged, to work hard but not know whether you have arrived.

Recently, I was talking with...

I think good teachers have mastered one important skill: time management.

Without the ability tomanage the hours ina day~ learning does not take place~ and educators do not accomplish their goals. To makematters worse~ teachers have incredible demands ontheir time.Loads ofpaperwork~ emergency drills~ new remedial programs~ specials classes~ assemblies~ morning announcements~ faculty meetings--the list goes on.

I have to admit~ sometimes it drives me a littlecrazy. I have...

My classlearned some ofits most valuable lessonson the playground--with the teacher playing a very limited role.

Trust, cooperation, teamwork, handling pressure, losing with grace.

And it all happened by accident.

We would sneak out for recess once or twice a week (due to a tight schedule, an insane amount of attention on test scores, and other factors, recess does not always happen). Some of the boys began playing a game learned at physical education classcalled...