Advice from Veteran Teachers

Slideshows: Tips for New Teachers

Being a first-year teacher is really tough. To make the transition easier, be sure to review each of these resources from professional veteran teachers to get some great strategies, tips, and techniques to prepare for every aspect of your new job!

• Top 10 Classroom Organization Tips

  Being well-organized will help save you precious time and energy. Here are our Top 10 creative organizational tips from veteran teachers that will help you build an efficient classroom. New teachers, still determining the most effective methods in the classroom, will find this resource particularly valuable.

• Top 15 Pieces of Advice from Veteran Teachers

  Enjoy reading the wisdom of experienced teachers on how to become an effective, caring teacher. Our top 15 tips work for all kinds of situations and ages of students. New teachers will find this resource particularly valuable when they're getting ready to take control of one of their first classrooms.

• Lesson Planning Advice from Veteran Teachers

  Browse the wisdom of experienced teachers on how to best plan and execute lessons – the core of your professional world. These tips span all subject areas and grade levels. New teachers will find this resource particularly valuable and will benefit immensely from learning the tricks of more seasoned veterans.

• Tips from Veteran Teachers on Dealing with Parents

  Enlisting parents in their child's education is one of the hardest yet most rewarding undertakings for teachers. Here are some practical tips from veteran teachers on managing these challenging relationships. New teachers will find this resource particularly valuable.

• Top 10 Behavior Management Tips for the Classroom

  Enjoy a collection of terrific behavior management tips and advice from experienced educators on behavior management. We hope that every teacher who spends his or her days making a difference in the life of a child will appreciate these choice bits of wisdom.

General Teaching Tips

Even if you are not still a first-year teacher, it never hurts to review resources to help keep you at your best. Review the sources in this section to enhance your teaching style, pedagogy, or classroom resources.

• Helpful Bits of Advice from Veteran Teachers

  Veteran teachers share small bits of invaluable advice to make classroom life easier.

• Fire in the Classroom: Teaching Advice

  This excerpt from Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire will introduce you to Rafe Esquith and his advice on being a successful teacher and transforming your students' education.

• Standards for Good Teaching

  Learn the ten basic standards for good teaching and how you can be a successful, effective teacher.

• You Are a Role Model: Teaching Advice

  Learn how to be a good role model in this excerpt from Rafe Esquith's Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire.

• Lesson Planning Advice from Veteran Teachers

  Use these great tips to help minimize the time spent lesson planning.

• Replace Fear with Trust: Teaching Advice

  In this excerpt from Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire, Rafe Esquith explains how to establish a sense of trust with your students, instead of instilling fear in them.

• Student Orientation

  Learn some general rules about what makes a great teacher. This advice is especially useful for back-to-school and new teachers.

• Children Depend on Us, So Be Dependable: Teaching Advice

  Rafe Esquith, gives advice on being dependable in your classroom, in this excerpt from Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire. This advice will help you as you try to establish trust with your students.

• First Day at the Secondary Level

  Get ready for your first day teaching at the secondary level with these tips on everything from outlining the syllabus to starting a fun and hands-on project. New teachers will find this resource particularly valuable for back-to-school.

• Gimme Some Truth: Teaching Advice

  This excerpt from Rafe Esquith's Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire will instruct you on how to create a save haven for your students in your classroom. He will explain how to remove the element of fear from your classroom so you and your students have a more enjoyable learning experience.

Staying Organized

Feel like there is so much to do and not enough time to get it done? Paperwork piling up and your not sure how it's going to get organized? Use the tools in this section to help make this year your absolute best.

• Classroom Organization Tips from Veteran Teachers

  Use these tips from experienced teachers to get your classroom organized and keep it that way for the whole year.

• Too Many Tasks, Not Enough Day

  If you feel overwhelmed by the number of tasks you have to do each day in the classroom, read these tips on how to organize those chores and make your job easier. New teachers will find this resource particularly valuable.

• Routines and Schedules

  Set up a routine for your classroom procedure on the first day. Your students will feel organized and the days will run more smoothly. New teachers will find this resource particularly valuable.

Classroom Management Tips

The toughest challenges become easier when you have the right resources. Find our best classroom management resources, from room set-up advice to behavior modification articles to effective teaching methods. Whether you're a new teacher or a seasoned veteran, there's something for all grade levels, K-12.

• Behavior Management Tips from Veteran Teachers

  A helpful list of tips about behavior management. Learn how you can make a classroom full of students run smoothly.

• Classroom Management & Success as a Teacher

  These classroom management basics will help you reach your goal of becoming a successful teacher. Use the tips to gain control of your class and increase overall learning. New teachers will find this resource particularly valuable.

• Positive Classroom Behavior

  Read ideas and find resources on establishing and maintaining acceptable behavior in your students. New teachers, who are determining the most effective teaching methods for their classrooms, will find this behavior management resource particularly valuable.

• Discipline Must Be Logical: Teaching Advice

  In this excerpt from Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire, Rafe Esquith discusses discipline and how punishments should fit the crime. New teachers will find this behavior-management advice particularly valuable.

• Tips for Achieving and Maintaining Discipline

  There are certain steps you can take to ensure that your students are disciplined and behave in an appropriate manner. Find those tips here. New teachers will find this behavior-management resource particularly valuable.

• More Classroom Management Resources

Advice for Parent-Teacher Interactions

Sometimes as teachers we don't realize teaching our students' parents on how to work with our students at home is just as important as teaching in general. Work on the home-school connection and collaborating with parents with the resources in this section.

• Parent-Teacher Communication Advice from Veteran Teachers

  Communication with parents is an essential part of teaching. Here is a list of helpful suggestions from experienced educators.

• Hosting a Successful Open House

  Your students' parents are powerful allies and can make your job much more manageable. Learn some tips on how to foster a positive relationship with parents and host a successful open house. New teachers will find this resource particularly valuable.

• Parent/Teacher Relations

  Handy suggestions for creating and maintaining positive parent/teacher relationships.

Additional Resources

As teachers, we can never have enough resources on hand. Be sure to look through this section to see if there is anything here that you may need for a rainy day!

• New Teacher Resources

  Discover everything a beginning teacher will need for a successful school year, from tips for your first day, to classroom-management advice, to printables and lesson plans that will support your curriculum all year long.

• Back to School Resources

  Return to school this fall prepared to conquer any questions you or your students might have about the school year. Our resources range from teaching students the school's layout to assessment tips.

• Getting to Know Your Students

  Get to know new students through icebreakers, name games, and first-day celebrations. Our activities and advice will help teachers develop classroom community and establish positive relationships.