Resources for in (and out of) the classroom

AFT TEACH Brochure
This colorful brochure highlights the AFT's Tools for Teachers website that provides the tools you need to succeed in all areas of the classroom. Item no. 39-11003. $1 each (April 2011).

School Tips
The AFT has developed a series of brochures, called School Tips, to assist educators in the classroom and beyond. These concise publications will be an effective and useful addition to your back-to-school and throughout-the-year organizing campaigns. $1 each (April 2011).

The Classroom Tips series include the following ten titles:

• Assigning Effective Homework—characteristics of good assignments and assigning homework dos and don'ts (item no. 39-1100A)
• Before the Year Begins—classroom arrangement and design, procedures and rules, and reinforcing teachers' expectations (item no. 39-1100B)
• Behavior-Management Techniques for Safe Schools—preventing problem behavior and providing safe learning environments (item no. 39-1100C)
• Building Parent-Teacher Partnerships—communication strategies and phone guidelines for talking to parents (item no. 39-1100D)
• Creating a Classroom Team—good communication + teamwork = student success (item no. 39-1100E)
• Quality Classroom Assessment Techniques—developing classroom assessments (item no. 39-1100F)
• Loan Forgiveness—Eligibility requirements for new teachers to forgive some of their college loans (item no. 39-1100G)
• School Staff Rights and Technology—minimizing your risk while using social media and common cheating techniques (item no. 39-1100H)
• Students and Technology—teaching online safety to students (item no. 39-1100I)
• Working with Cooperative Small Groups—consideration for cooperative small groups, including how to assign small-group tasks (item no. 39-1100J)

A Guide to Understanding National Board Certification: 2009-10 Candidacy Cycle
This guide—produced jointly by the AFT and the NEA—capitalizes on the experiences of National Board Certified Teachers and others engaged in candidate support, sharing practical advice about how to approach the National Board's assessments and how to increase the prospect of successfully completing them. Item no. 39-09004. $5 each (June 2009).

Becoming a Teacher
This booklet, targeted to middle and high school students, provides answers to questions about the teaching profession and how to become a teacher. $2 each (June 2008).

Colorin Colorado English and Spanish Tip Sheets for Educators
These one-page reading tip sheets, available in English and Spanish, offer ways for school staff to help ELLs become successful readers. (June 2008).

• What To Do First English | Spanish
• Reading in Grades 4-6 English | Spanish
• Reading in Grades 7-12 English | Spanish
• Vocabulary English | Spanish

Colorín Colorado! ELL Starter Kit for Educators: Tools for Monitoring Language Skills
This kit provides helpful forms for PK-12 educators who work with ELLs to find out if they’re on track learning the important academic English skills they need to be successful. Included in the kit are: monthly tracking forms; a glossary of common phrases and words used in Spanish; a list of Spanish-English cognates; a list of recommended bilingual, culturally appropriate storybooks for children; and information on PK-3 literacy tip sheets available for parents in 11 languages. Item no. 39-0487. $2 each (June 2007).

Communicating with Parents: Understanding the Process, Improving Your Skills
English | Spanish
Tips for school employees on working with parents. (2007)

The Journey to the Top of the Profession … Begins in Your Classroom
What does it take to become a National Board Certified Teacher? What are the benefits of National Board Certification? This brochure has been developed to answer these and other questions you may have about the certification process. Item no. 39-0188. $1 each (June 2007).

Managing Student Behavior for School-Based Secretaries
Tips for school secretaries on handling student discipline issues. (2007)

Tips for school bus drivers on handling school discipline issues. (2007)

Transitioning to Kindergarten: A Toolkit for Early Childhood Educators
PowerPoint Presentation | Toolkit
This toolkit provides early childhood educators with a comprehensive, flexible, easy-to-use set of resources to enhance the transition to kindergarten for all children. The toolkit provides many opportunities for educators to document critical information about a child's progress in reading readiness, as well as qualitative information about a child's early literacy, cognitive, social, linguistic and physical development. This resource has a mix of charts and one-pagers to be filled out by teachers and parents and passed on to a child's kindergarten teacher, as well as guidelines for collecting valuable examples of drawing and other work samples throughout the year. $6 each (2006).

Creating a Classroom Team
Paraprofessional and teacher members of the AFT share their ideas on how classroom teams can make working together work. (2004)

Tips for Student Discipline
Here are some specific tips that can help you establish, maintain or restore order in the classroom, many of which can be used on the school bus, the playground, or any other place where school employees supervise students. $1 each (1999).