Are you wondering what to do at the beginning of your school day? You need to use the amazing power of DO NOWS. These are activities that teachers use in the morning when their students first enter the classroom.

Do you know that DO NOW's are important classroom management tools that help you to establish yourself as a Proactive teacher? These activities help you prepare your students for the days work. One of the easiest methods of getting your DO NOW's ready is to find a workbook that is a grade level or two below the grade that you are teaching.

Using this book find twenty or more pages of activity the your students can do by themselves. These activities are time fillers or review material that will not be graded. You can use this material for a quick review or a quick recall of something taught months past. These activities should be material that has already been taught the previous year or during this school year. You should take five or ten minutes to review the material. So students know that they are being held accountable for the DO NOW.

When I use DO NOW's I use them to review material that I taught the day before. I also use them as review for our state standardize test that students need to take every year. Once you have decided on the material to be used have them copied on to transparencies. Why use transparencies:

they are cheap to use'
they can be used year after year
you can write on them
students can use them because they are low tech
they can be printed in color or black and white
teacher assistant can make copies for you
you save on copy paper and trees

You should have DO NOW's for all the subjects that you teach. It is an easy way to transition from one subject to another. They are also a good strategy to use when your high achievers have finished their work and are waiting for the rest of class to finish. Remember when children have nothing to-do they get themselves and other students into behavior problems. Always be prepared and think ahead. Establish your classroom as one where students come to work, not goof off and waste time. Remember students are aways checking you to see if you are a Proactive teacher. Don't be one of those teachers whose class is for goofing off. Set the tone of your class as one where students learn and achieve their goals. Be prepared and Proactive in your classroom management.

Happy teaching from the educationfairy.

Written by a veteran teacher of 32 years who hopes to give new teachers tried and true strategies that work. Come join me at http://www.squidoo.com/classroomanagement and look for the educationfairy.