From Angela M. Galbreath, a fifth grade teacher at Union Gap School in Union Gap, Washington:

"Wish you had more magnets for attaching student work to your white board? I attach stickers to old refrigerator magnets and then cut them to size. These magnets work great for displaying student papers or announcements. I keep a supply of magnets in a small container near the white board, making them easily accessible for students who have work to display."
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From the Works4Me Worker Bees:

"On Memorial Day, Americans take time to remember those who have served in our Armed Forces. How do you help your students understand the true significance of the day?"
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From Debbie Johnson:

"I highly recommend donorschoose.org to fund costly projects. They have a very easy application process and the site is very effective. I have already had two projects funded. I know of several other teachers in my district that have had projects funded as well. Check it out!"
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From Marta M Pierce, a K-12 educational sign language interpreter in Mobile, Alabama:

"Educators in my city have a group on The Freecycle Network. [As of today, Freecycle has 4,343 groups with 4,969,000 members who all give (and get!) free stuff in their home towns.] Members offer and request items with no money exchanged. I have noticed several times teachers have asked for or offered supplies, so perhaps others could sign on in their own communities and do the same. Browse the site to find a group in your area. Experienced teachers who get rid of items could be a great help to new teachers with only basic resources."
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From the Works4Me Worker Bees:

From Michelle, a sixth grade science teacher:

"I have been using clickers [sometimes referred to as an 'audience response' system] now for about 2-3 months and have seen a vast improvement in my students’ test scores. At the end of each lesson, I have a 5-8 question clicker quiz. This assessment allows me to generate the much needed data that we as teachers are being called upon to have, and it allows me to tailor the review for each unit to the specific class. My students who struggle in other ways in the classroom have become more confident about science because they know we have a daily review. We also used the clickers with the math review we did leading up to our state testing with a small group of identified students from our roster. The students looked forward to having their quiz once a week in small group, and it allowed us to regroup the students as needed. All in all, the system is a great tool for me as a teacher."
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From Sharon Fedoruk:

"This year a few of my students and I tracked the participants in the Iditarod Sled Dog Race from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska. Each team is equipped with a tracking device. We would log in several times a day to track the mushers' progress. There is also a web cam set up at the finish line. It is updated each minute so we could plan when a musher was going to finish. We saw the anticipation at the finish line, and the next minute the crowd congratulating the finisher."
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From the Works4Me Worker Bees:

"We're always looking for ways to cut down on classroom expenses, whether that's by getting free supplies, recycling used items, or re-purposing old items for new uses. How do you cut down on expenses for your classroom decorations, supplies and/or equipment?"
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From J. Hamblin, a third grade teacher:

"My students absolutely loved a lesson on Shape poems using the Shape Poem tool that is on the readwritethink.org Web site. The Shape Poem tool was very easy for the students to use and encouraged creativity. Readwritethink.org also has online student tools for other poem types, though I haven't had the chance to use them yet. I plan to use the Acrostic Poems online tool as part of a center during Guided Reading. Readwritethink has lots of lesson planning ideas."
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From Coleen Walker, a teacher at Miami Middle School in Fort Wayne, Indiana:

"Recently, one of my colleagues remembered a neat way to help students understand how to write a short answer. She used it at a previous school and couldn't quite remember the exact words, but we call it RAT. Our version stands for Restate the Question, Answer the Question and Tie it to the Text. We have not taken the standardized test since we have taught this concept, but we are very hopeful. We have been practicing answering questions using the RAT method. I give them a short reading and then give them an open ended question to RAT. They write their answers, and I ask for volunteers to read them. As a class, we talk about what grade we give would and why. We need more practice, but I think (and hope) it will make a big difference on the ISTEP test."
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From the Works4Me Worker Bees:

"The Global Positioning System (GPS), a worldwide radio-navigation system of 24 satellites and their ground stations, is captured through low-cost GPS receivers that display basic geographic information like latitude, longitude, elevation, direction, and bearing. Higher quality receivers include altimeters, magnetic compasses, detailed topographic and city maps, and other points of interest. Are you using this technology in your classroom? Share some lesson ideas and tips and tricks with your colleagues."
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From Carla Winters, an English and speech teacher at Cobden Unit District #17 in Cobden, Illinois:

"I have tried to get my students to stop using tense shifts for years. I finally found a way: remove 'ing' verbs. This suggestion forces students to write either in present or past tense. Most scientific journals follow these rules and limit 'ing' verbs. It has worked with my freshmen and sophomores, and we have now implemented this rule across the curriculum. Try it, and be surprised!"

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From Donna Dinizo-Ruhl, a teacher at Roosevelt School in South Plainfield, New Jersey:

"To foster a love of reading, I show my class books that I am reading on my own time. They are thrilled by the size of them! In class, I made a large race track out of bulletin board paper and had the kids color in race cars that I printed from the Internet. I gave them all a sheet to keep track of how much time they read outside of class which the parents initial. Their goal is to make it all the way around the track, which is labeled by minutes. Once they have all made it around, we have an ice cream party. They can't wait to move their cars everyday!"

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From the Works4Me Worker Bees:

"Are you great at setting up your classroom -- seating, bulletin boards, storage, display of student work, etc.? What suggestions would you give new teachers who are setting up their learning environments?"

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From the Works4Me Worker Bees:

"NEA celebrates Dr. Seuss's birthday each year with Read Across America, the nation's largest reading celebration. It's a special day, to be sure, but many of us like to encourage reading all year long. How do you foster a love for reading among kids and teenagers? Do you organize book clubs? Recommend books to read outside of class? Send information home to parents? Share with our readers your true-tried tips and best ideas and for encouraging young people to read."
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From Jenny Smith, a teacher in Miami, Florida:

"On Dr. Seuss Day [also known as NEA's Read Across America], we volunteer to read to children at one of the big malls. We ask parents to stop for a few minutes and allow us to read a book to their child. The children are given a ticket after listening to the reading and then allowed to pick a free book from our table of books. I'm not sure where or how the books are purchased, but I'm sure that something is worked out with one of the book companies. The reading is an awesome experience for me; it's great to share my love for reading and to watch the children's expressions as they listen."
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From Barbara Kruming, a kindergarten teacher::

"Our entire K-6 school reads the same book, and parents are invited to read it too. At the end of the month, we have an evening discussion of the book in the auditorium. Of course, we serve refreshments first. There are some books that work well for both primary and upper level students. Two different books by the same author have also been chosen in the past. Our parents are very excited about sharing in the reading and discussion. The younger siblings of the older students feel proud of the fact that they can talk about the book too! I am a kindergarten teacher, so I read the book with my class, but also encourage my parents to read it themselves."
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From the editors at Works4Me:

Internet giant Google announced recently a doodling competition, Doodle 4 Google, "which offers young artists the chance to play around with the Google logo and perhaps have their artwork seen by people all over the world."

The graphic designers at Google often play around with their logo, tweaking it to fit various holidays and other days of note on the calendar. Here's what they do for National Teacher Day:

Now your students have a chance to do the same, only...

...the stakes are bit higher: "The National Winner will win a $10,000 college scholarship to be used at the school of their choice; a trip to the Googleplex on May 21, 2008; a $25,000 grant towards the establishment/improvement of a computer lab for their current school; a laptop computer; and a t-shirt with their Google Doodle printed on it. Their doodle also will be displayed on the www.google.com home page for one day." The deadline is April 12, 2008.

Forget the aimlessness, the preoccupation, the idleness. For once, doodling actually matters.

Happy Scribbles!

From the editors at Works4Me:

Check out this activity in which grades 8-12 "use an Earth image database (Space Shuttle images) to find places on Earth where there is ice and snow": Search for Ice and Snow.

Students use online images of the earth's surface -- found on such Web sites ad NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the National Space Science Data Center -- to search for geographic locations that have ice or snow.

The activity makes use of images from these Web sites

• Office of Earth Sciences
  At the Office of Earth Sciences there are nearly 400,000 space photos made by astronauts with hand held cameras.
• Welcome to Earth (Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
  At the Welcome to Earth site, there is a small collection of Earth images put together by the folks at JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory).
• NSSDC Earth Photo Gallery
  At the NSSDC Earth Photo Gallery site, there are Earth images acquired by spacecraft other than the Space Shuttle.
• Earth Observation Mission Menu

From the editors at Works4Me:

National Geographic has a quick and helpful interactive introduction to the human brain. Nifty animation makes it easy for students to explore the brain's anatomy, to see how common diseases affect specific regions of the brain, and to understand how specific stimuli -- the sound of applause, eating an apple, or seeing a flash of light -- activate certain parts of the brain.

From Stephanie,a second grade teacher in Long Island, New York

I make cleaning up the classroom part of the classroom jobs. I have two students clean the floor, one in charge of the closet, one in charge of sharpening pencils, two to check the supply area, one to put absent students' chairs up, one to put back lunch clothespins, etc. I remind them to do it before we leave for the day. These jobs change weekly, and I let students pick their jobs on Mondays so they are more likely to do that particular job for the week. I do my clean up while the students are getting ready to go home or are waiting for announcements to leave the classroom.
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From Curtis Stuart, a ninth grade language arts teacher:

I ask my students to write an essay about giving thanks. I incorporate the writing process and encourage my students to offer their suggestions at every stage of the essay.

We start with pre-writing. We use either free writing or use a variety of brainstorming activities to generate lists of ideas. I encourage students to not edit their thoughts but rather write down all the things for which they are thankful. Some students will share their lists and others are inspired to jot down their own feelings.

I pass around copies of an essay I wrote last year about giving thanks and read it aloud to the class. I explain to the class the type of changes I will make to update my essay. Many events have occurred this year that have changed my perspective. Some parts stay the same; others change.

At all stages of the writing process -- pre-writing, drafting, editing, publishing or sharing -- I encourage students to get feedback from their classmates by reading their work aloud or by having a peer read their work.

I hope that this activity brings more meaning to the holiday than just having time off from school. I write along with my students to model the writing process and demonstrate how ideas change. This practice builds community in my classroom and provides all students with an opportunity to experience a writer's supportive classroom.
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From the Works4Me Worker Bees:

Are you having trouble getting and keeping your students' attention? What do you do to reel them in and not let them off the hook? Please share your tricks of the trade?
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From Kelly Everding, a Region 19 Chair:

A few years ago PBS had a series of shows called 1900 House. I use it with my students every year so show changes in family life at the turn of the century. It is great because it combines reality TV with very historical lessons and the kids really seem to get into it.
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From S. Ranea Wright, a teacher in Sacramento, California:

My earliest memories of television being using as a teaching tool was when we went to the cafeteria together with several other classes to watch Mr. Wizard as part of our science lesson for that week. Yes, this dates me back to the sixties, but I remember those programs vividly because I was very much a visual and kinesthetic learner.

Today, as a teacher, television is still a valuable tool. I have used the History Channel series such as The Revolution to reinforce lessons in the text. As a follow up activity, students were given a person of that time to portray in our class Town Meeting to decide to side with the Loyalists or the Patriots. We worked on propaganda posters to reinforce our positions, and those posters were displayed around the room.

Television programming can act as an invaluable tool in the classroom, and I am glad to see that we no longer have to take our classes en masse to the cafeteria, but instead can utilize this technology tool in our own classrooms as needed. Visual / auditory reinforcement of lessons provides another avenue in which teachers can present information, and allows for increased enthusiasm from the students.
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From the Works4Me Worker Bees:

What interdisciplinary activities do you use to help your students learn about and celebrate Thanksgiving?
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From Nicole Dewell, a dual enrollment teacher at Eagle Valley High School in Valley Road, Gypsum, Colorado:

"Years ago I learned this trick from an amazing fellow teacher. A minute prior to the dismissal of a class, inform students that their ticket out of class is X pieces of trash. Vary the number each day, depending on how messy the floor is. I've found this procedure reduces the trash for several reasons. First, students don't litter as much because they understand that they will be responsible for picking up the trash. Second, students exert peer pressure not to litter, as students will be cleaning up each other's trash. Third, students automatically pick up trash even if I forgot to ask them to do so, as it becomes an ingrained habit. The custodians appreciate that my room is always relatively clean, the students learn responsibility and I don't spend my own time cleaning up after school. It's an all-around win-win situation!"
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From Stacy Kasse, a third grade teacher at Taunton Forge School in Medford, New Jersey:

"At the end of the day, I find something on the floor that doesn't belong there. The students are given one minute to dash through the room, pick up things, put things away, and throw things in the garbage. At the end of the minute, the students sit down, and I announce who has found the mystery item. The student gets a credit, sticker or some type of reward. This clean up has made my job easier and our custodian very happy at the end of the day."
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From the Smart Television Alliance:

"Has there been a time television has served as a great teaching tool? Or, on the other hand, have you ever tried to utilize a TV show or newscast in the classroom and bombed completely? Smart News, the online newsletter of the Smart Television Alliance (smarttelevisionalliance.org) is looking for personal stories to share with readers. Please share your experiences with us."
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From Wendy:

Each week I choose a child to present something to the class that they know how to do. Students have shared a craft, sports, cooking, sign language, etc. with the class. The point is that they get to be in charge, speak before the group, demonstrate something, and answer questions from the class. The entire class gets to know each student's special interests and abilities. I send the details home in a note with the chosen child and give them a week to prepare. I have learned so much about my students this way, and some kids, who don't always shine in academics, are seen in a new light by their peers. I have also had the rest of the class write about the presentation or send a feed back note to the presenter. You can also make a class book of all of the Teach Me Tuesday presentations with photos for the class to enjoy over and over again! Use the summaries written by the class to make a group summary for the book.
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From Polly Slappey, a behavior specialist at Wisconsin School for the Deaf in Delavan, Wisconsin:

Need to work in groups? To avoid the popularity game, randomly choose student names from a hat. Determine group roles such as notetaker, facilitator, researcher, editor, etc. based on the kind of project you are having the students complete. Each group determines their own roles based on their individual strengths at the first session. You, as the teacher, assign roles when conflicts occur, but usually the groups are able to perform this task easily. Having specific roles eliminates power struggles and leads to a cohesive project finished in a timely manner.
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From Evelyn Wray, a teacher in Tennessee:

Fluency and comprehension definitely go hand in hand; it is hard to master one without mastery of the other. My students really enjoy the following activity:

• As you read your library book, make note of particular paragraphs that you find interesting, funny, or unusual.  (This is done with the use of post-it notes, notepads, or journals).
• Upon completion of the book, go back and pick out one paragraph you made note of that you think would pique the interest for others to want to read your book.
• Practice reading the paragraph out loud (at home) several times with the correct intonation and inflection.
• Read the paragraph aloud to the class.

It has been my experience that this activity works well with third and fourth grade students. Reading aloud increases fluency, builds confidence, and sparks an interest and desire for students to want to read the book themselves.
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