RIGHT START
On the first day of school, second-grade teacher Tom Fanning of Camden, N.Y., gives each child an index card with the word "team" on it. He stresses to his students that they are now part of an important team and that each person on the team has to do his or her part to keep the team together. When a child slips a little, he gets out a "team" card and reminds the child that the team needs everyone to do a good job.

NUMBER, PLEASE Need a quick and easy way to pair students into groups? Jamie Schamp, a seventh-grade English teacher from Liverpool, N.Y., suggests that you have them add up their phone numbers vertically--and pair up the matching totals.

READY TO READ
Dan Beamer, a high school American government teacher from Tucson, Ariz., begins each school year by administering a simple reading comprehension test, such as the Botel Reading Inventory. The test is easy to grade and gives him a general idea at what grade level the students read. He then makes his seating chart so that the students who read at the lower levels, who may need more attention and help, sit in the front seats.

Submissions for "Try It" should be sent in care of American Teacher or e-mailed to tryit@aft.org. (Sorry, we cannot acknowledge or return submissions.) We'll pay $40 for each idea that is used.

American Federation of Teachers, AFL•CIO - 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW - Washington, DC 20001