First Days: My First Day of School; as a Student Teacher; as a Teacher 1 --
Dear Friend: A Letter to Prospective Teachers 8 --
Help!: I'm Going to Be a Student Teacher! 15 --
A Guide for Student Teachers: An Honest Translation of the Language in Your Assessment Package 21 --
Story of a School Year: The Cycle of Life 25 --
Advice to a First-Year Teacher: "They're All Looking at Me!" 29 --
Candles: Light Your Candles and Let Them Shine 34 --
Involvement with Students: Romeo and Juliet 39 --
There's No Such Thing as "Just a Teacher!": Pride in Our Profession 44 --
One Class: Thirty Reasons Why You Teach 50 --
Power: The Power to Dream 56 --
Butterflies and Possibilities: The Story of Tony 62 --
Needs of Children: "A Wide Sea and a Small Boat" 68 --
Gift of Time: Of Heroes and Hopes 75 --
Renewal: Not Quite Burned Out, but Crispy Around the Edges 82 --
Technology: "I Touch the Future; I Teach." 90 --
Table in the Teachers' Lounge: A Monument to All of Us 95 --
Professionalism in Teaching: Formal Notes and Informal Memories on the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards 98 --
Teaching and Writing: The "Draper Paper" and Beyond 108 --
National Teacher of the Year: So Proud to Be a Teacher 117 --
World Teaching: From Moscow to Ethiopia 124 --
Touch of a Teacher: We Make a Difference 130.
