• Student Learning
• Professional Growth
• Family and Community Involvement
• Safe Schools

1. Teach Your Children to Love Reading.
   
   Educators believe that children love to read and children do not. Yet they have a hard time explaining the success of the Harry Potter series. Children, like adults, like to read what they like to read. Who among us has read their computer-operating manual? Or the instructions for their 1040 income-tax form? We, like children, like to read what we like to read. Children do like to read. How else can you explain the Harry Potter phenomenon?
   
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2. Teach Students the Value of Planning.
   
   Do you remember when we went to school and how, occasionally, we had to cram for a test or to cram when we needed to complete a paper? Students have always crammed. While some students need to have the pressure of an immediate deadline imposed on them, others suffer under that pressure.
   
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3. Greet Your Students at the Door and Welcome Them.
   
   "Not greeting your students every day may be one of the biggest mistakes you could ever make."—Annette Breaux
   
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4. Involve Students in the Learning Process.
   
   Students delight in being involved in the learning process. Moreover, people who are involved in their learning learn faster.
   
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5. "I Taught My Dog How to Whistle."
   
   David Langford tells the story, "I taught my dog how to whistle. I did a really good job of teaching. But my dog cannot whistle."
   
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6. Independent Learning.
   
   One of the ways of placing the responsibility of learning back on the students is by using "independent learning."
   
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7. Interdependent Learning.
   
   I believe the highest form of student learning is "interdependent learning," where students are dependent on each other for their learning success.
   
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8. The Sounds of Learning.
   
   I have had the privilege of visiting elementary, middle, and high schools in 49 states and eight countries. As I visit schools and classrooms in elementary schools, I hear the sound of learning. When I visit middle and high schools, too frequently, I hear the sound of teaching.
   
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9. Judging Students by the Content of Their Character.
   
   In Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have A Dream" speech he said, "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." I recently saw a group of students dancing in wheelchairs and realized that there aren't any handicapped students. Only handicapping conditions which in most cases, can be overcome.
   
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10. The Achievement Gap.
    
    Achievement gaps exist among all kinds of students. They exist along racial, ethnic and socioeconomic lines as well as African American, Hispanic, and Native American children. While the gaps grew narrower between the 1970s and 1980s the research indicates that it has grown wider in recent years.
    
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11. Learn All Students' Names as Early as Possible.
    
    We need to break down the bonds of anonymity that surround our students. We need to learn their names as early as possible. It shows respect.
    
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12. Transitional Students.
    
    Data indicates that the highest dropout grade is the ninth. A study conducted in 450 high schools showed that 25% of ninth graders were not successful in moving on to the 10th grade. Another study conducted at Johns Hopkins University showed that a student who successfully completes ninth grade in a single year increases the likelihood of graduating by 85%. What can classroom teachers do to increase the success of ninth graders?
    
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13. Look for Signs.
    
    What does a bored student look like? Do you know how to recognize body language as well as students yawning? How many students in your class have their heads on their desk or may even be sleeping?
    
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14. Taking a Risk.
    
    Education is a relatively riskfree, stable job. And most educators are not risk takers. The New York Times recently asked its readers, "What was the greatest risk you have taken?" The answers were interesting and made me think that maybe we should be asking our at-risk students the same question.
    
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15. Differentiated Instruction.
    
    Get to know your students' learning styles. Be aware of the variety of learning styles. Some students are tactile or hands-on learners while others do well with the written word.
    
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16. Classroom Testing.
    
    Traditional testing goes that if too many students fail a test, we curve the grades. If too many students pass the test, how many of us believe that we were just terrific at teaching and taught the students well?
    
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17. Differentiate the Homework.
    
    Some students need more complex homework than others.
    
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18. When Graduates Return, Have Them Teach a Class.
    
    Let them explain to students what they are doing now that they have left school. What skills are they using that the school taught them?
    
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19. Jimmy, Stay After Class and See Me.
    
    Making that statement is frequently for something punitive. At the end of each class period, ask one student to stay for a moment and compliment him on something.
    
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20. Lend Students Pens, Pencils, and Paper.
    
    None of us are perfect. Students will forget the equipment they need in order to work.
    
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21. "Stupid" Questions.
    
    Encourage students to ask questions when they do not understand something that has been taught, tested, or given as homework.
    
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22. Technology.
    
    Technology is only one tool in the teacher's toolbox. It should not be used as if it were the only one. The goal of using technology, as any other tool, is to improve student achievement and learning.
    
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23. Keep Your Eyes on the Stars, but Your Feet Firmly Planted on Earth.
    
    When I was a counselor, a young lady came to see me. I asked her what she planned to do after graduation. She said that she wanted to be a psychiatrist. I said that the first requirement in being a psychiatrist was knowing how to spell it. Without a blink, she asked if she could be a nurse instead.
    
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24. Call Students if They Are Absent for An Extended Period of Time.
    
    There are several reasons to do this. First, and most important, you are showing your concern.
    
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25. English Language Learners (ELL).
    
    Educators are dealing with an increasing number of English language learners. The U.S. Department of Education estimates that the number of ELL students has doubled from 2.2 million to 4.4 million during the 1990s.
    
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Innovative Teachers' Companion Every day across the United States teachers make a difference to the lives of thousands of young people. Rejoice in the commitment you have made to the great profession of teaching. Use the Innovative Teachers' Companion to help you achieve your teaching and learning goals.

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Making a Difference for Students at Risk Making a Difference for Students at Risk offers thoughtful, practical suggestions for new approaches aimed at not only reforming, but transforming, urban schools in order to achieve the inclusion of all students into general school programmes.

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