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When LFJ’s manager for teaching and learning—then a fifth-grade teacher—shared his personal story about the 9/11 attacks with his students, a fascinating, in-depth conversation about narrative writing occurred.

Since the polarized 2016 election, many people have suggested what schools can do to promote civility, critical thinking and civic engagement. This educator says democratic education might be the most important way to go.

This history teacher offers a strategy for teaching about the presidential election. It starts with organizing ideas into three categories: consensus, legitimately controversial and out of bounds.

Read this installment of the "Why I Teach" series.

Like many of us, I sometimes overuse the word “need.” I have a tendency to say that I need the new iPhone or I need a pedicure, even though those are clearly things that I want, rather than need. My greatest lesson on distinguishing between a want and a need came with my first-grade class when I was a new teacher. Volunteers from the business community came to teach for a day through the Junior Achievement program. As a new teacher, I was overwhelmed and relieved not to be responsible for lesson plans for the day. I was nervous, however, about how an idealistic businessperson would deal with 20 extremely needy first-graders living in one of the most violent parts of Oakland, Calif.

Ramadan begins today. Discuss this Muslim holy month with students—and take a step toward countering Islamophobia.