BULLYING MATERIALS The National Crime Prevention Council is offering materials aimed at curbing bullying and teasing in schools. Children and parents are encouraged to visit www.mcgruff.org for tips and strategies to stop bullying. Also available are lesson plans for grades 1-2, materials in Spanish, comic books and advice for children who are victims of bullies. Because students often witness bullying episodes, many of the materials emphasize how students can play a big role by reporting such offenses.

TAX INFO Teachers and other educators will again be able to deduct up to $250 in expenses for books and class materials on their federal tax forms for 2004. The educator expense deduction, which had expired at the end of last year, was reinstated last fall for both the 2004 and 2005 tax years. Expenses incurred any time in 2004 may qualify for the deduction, which is available to educators working in public or private elementary or secondary schools at least 900 hours during a school year as a teacher, instructor, counselor, principal or aide. This deduction is available whether or not the taxpayer itemizes deductions on Schedule A. For more information, call the toll-free IRS Tele-Tax system at 800/829-1040 or visit www.irs.gov.

EARTH DAY AT 35 April 22 marks the 35th anniversary of Earth Day, and the event is expected to spark environmental activities by thousands of civic and education groups around the country and around the world. You can keep abreast of many activities in your hometown, or even find ideas for starting one of your own by visiting the Envirolink Web site http://earthday.envirolink.org. The site catalogs Earth Day activities by city and state, offers useful links, a short history of Earth Day and a “post your event” section for environmental activists.

SAFETY KITS The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in partnership with Honeywell Home Solutions has launched the “Got 2B Safe!” campaign, a nationwide effort aimed at reducing incidents of kidnapping and abduction by educating children ages 8-10 and their parents. The campaign has distributed more than 50,000 free kits to third-grade classrooms that will help children identify and prevent a potential abduction. For details on the campaign, visit www.honeywell.com/sites/hhs/got2bsafe/.

WATER WISE Teachers can order or download a free, color poster that graphically shows threats to the nation’s groundwater from urban sprawl and industrial polluters. The poster is available for download or can be ordered at the Web site of the Federal Citizen Information Center in Pueblo, Colo., www.pueblo.gsa.gov under the “Education Tab.” The Environmental Protection Agency developed the poster to explain where drinking water comes from, potential threats to the water supply and how regulators are meeting the challenge.

INVENTION CHALLENGE Applications for the 2006 Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams grant are now available at www.inventeams.org. Schools can receive grants of up to $10,000 by developing a problem-solving invention selected by a panel of Massachusetts Institute of Technology faculty and alumni, professional inventors and engineers. The grant will support project development as students work on their inventions during the 2005-06 school year. The grant is open to science, math and technology teachers who develop an interesting in-class or extracurricular project. The first application for schools typically falls in early May. For details, visit the InvenTeams Web site.

LIBRARY WORKERS The second annual National Library Workers Day will be held on April 12 as part of National Library Week (April 10-16). The event, which is built around the theme, “Libraries Work Because We Do,” will recognize the valuable contributions made by all library workers, including librarians, support staff and others. Customizable tools and materials to help libraries promote the special day are available at www.ala.org. Resources include English and Spanish versions of a proclamation recognizing library workers, sample letter to the editor, op-ed article, radio public service announcements and a sample press release. Also posted are programming ideas, such as employee recognition days and “behind the scenes” tours of the library.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY Global Volunteers invites current and retired teachers to contribute their skills on a variety of short-term service projects offered on six continents. Among the initiatives currently under way are tutoring projects for immigrant communities in Mississippi, rainforest preservation efforts in Hawaii and English instruction in rural village schools of eastern Poland. Volunteers pay a tax-deductible program fee to cover meals, lodging and transportation. For details, call 800/487-1074 or visit www.globalvolunteers.org.

MEN IN SCHOOLS Getting men involved in school PTAs is one key to building the home-school connection, and the National PTA is offering new tips and strategies for bringing men into school life. Visit www.pta.org for resources such as 10 ways to get men involved, volunteer ideas for men, strategies for asking people to join the PTA, related articles and surveys, and more.

FIRE SENSE Wildfires have become a growing national concern in recent years, and the U.S. Forest Service has developed a number of materials to help students understand and combat the problem. Visit www.smokeybear.com for a free, color classroom poster, a guide for teachers in grades K-5 and an activity book for students. For upper grades, the site also offers a “Wildland Communicator’s Guide,” which is a detailed teacher’s guide on the science and ecology of wildfires that was created by the National Interagency Fire Center.

ON YOUR MARK The pen company Sharpie has launched a nationwide “Autographs for Education” campaign that allows students in grades K-8 to compete and win thousands of dollars in supplies for their school by collecting signatures from their classmates, teachers and others in the community. Thirty schools will win $25,000 in school supplies, determined by the entrants who collect the most signatures between now and Dec. 31, 2005. Adults and students ages 13 and older also can win scholarships and tuition assistance. For details, visit www.sharpie.com.