Try clicking on the sample menu above. The Home link will lead you to a listing of all the boards and much more. Discover all the options on our home page!

Many boards also have navigation arrows that let you conveniently loop to other boards. All our grade level boards are connected in this way. Keep clicking and you will make the complete round trip through all the grades. Our subject area boards are connected by a similar loop.

 non-working sample

Tip #2: BusyBoards know when a board is getting too long and they automatically make another page instead. You can flip between these pages using the numbered links next to the "post" button. Here's what to look for:
Jump to page: [1][

This example doesn't work, but if it were the real thing, you'd know that this board had 3 pages. Click on the numbers to flip between these different pages of the same board. Don't miss out on all the great messages on pages 2, 3... Keep those great threads going!

Click on the orange Archive link to search through tens of thousands of past discussions from all the boards.

This Is The Original Message Mary Poppins Dec-10-05

• This is a reply Judy Dec-11-05
• This is a second reply Sue Dec-12-05

So, to read everything at once, without clicking back and forth, simply click on Mary's message. You'll be able to read Judy's and Sue's replies at the same time, then add a new reply of your own!

Community Watch

Each thread contains a report form in the upper right corner of the page. With dozens of boards and hundreds of posts, everyone's help is needed to monitor and maintain our community! We appreciate your participation and support in that effort!

Please report any commercial advertisement, off-topic, rude, or otherwise inappropriate messages to us. ProTeacher reserves the right to remove messages we feel are inconsistent with the educational mission and focus of our community.

If you find an inappropriate message, please select the type of problem from the pull-down menu and click "Report". You'll then have an opportunity to briefly describe the problem. Please do! Taking an extra minute to describe the problem helps us understand and respond more quickly.

When an inappropriate post is reported, a ProTeacher editor or administrator will review the thread as soon as possible. Each report will be evaluated on an individual basis. We try to keep inappropriate posts off the boards without being too heavy-handed. Your help is sincerely appreciated!

PART II - How to Participate

Participation at ProTeacher is easy! It's also free and there is no registration required. All we ask is that you help keep our community a friendly place by sharing your own ideas and welcoming different points of view!

Professional classroom teachers, specialists, substitute teachers, administrators, and student teachers working in early childhood, elementary grades K-6 and middle school are all welcome to participate. All others, please see important guidelines below.

Next, you will see a simple form to fill out. Add your name, initials, or nickname, email address (optional), a short descriptive subject (see example below), and type or paste your message in the blanks provided. (click here for our Privacy Policy and tips)

Grandparents' Day (This is a good descriptive subject)
Help! I need ideas (This is NOT descriptive enough!)

A checkbox allows you to receive email reminders every time someone replies to your thread (your email address is needed for this optional feature to work). Note: If your thread is popular, you may get several reminders, so use this feature very sparingly.

Finally, press the "Preview Message" button to see how your message will look when it is posted. If you don't like the way it looks, the preview page includes a form to make changes. Or, skip the preview option, throw caution to the wind, and simply press "Post".

Choose One Board

In general, choose the board that best fits the specificity of your post. If your post is just relevant to a certain grade level, then choose the appropriate grade level board. If your post applies to (for example) all primary teachers, then choose the primary board. Finally, if your post applies to all preK-6 teachers, then choose the BusyBoard.

Tips for Posting

If you ask a question, be specific and be sure to explain your situation and needs completely. Others might be in similar situations, and they can benefit from hearing about your experiences! Remember: sharing ideas is what these boards are all about!

By the same token, please encourage everyone to reply to your post right on the board. Asking people to email you suggestions might be very convenient for you, but it doesn't help our community grow. Remember, others are interested in reading all those responses too!

Please avoid typing in all capital letters (IT LOOKS LIKE YOU ARE SHOUTING). Also, please use standard spelling and capitalization (i think u should avoid typing like this). Posts with lower case i and u instead of I and you, tend to be ignored.

Choosing what Nickname to use

Currently, visitors are not required to register unique names. This does mean that you may choose to use different names at different times. This also means that duplicate names do occur.

We suggest that you look casually down the board and choose a name not already in use, and also that you add some uniqueness to the name you choose. Have fun with your nickname and use one that is somewhat anonymous yet meaningful to you. And, if a duplicate "you" appears, modify your nickname slightly to make it more distinct.

Try It Out

Post a test message on our Newbies board. Messages posted on our Newbies board are JUST FOR PRACTICE and deleted regularly:

Newbies Board (will open in a new window) Didn't work? click here

Don't be shy! No one is looking

Then, once you feel comfortable with how things work, join us. New visitors are welcome! Jump right in to our many discussions. Find the boards that interest you most and get involved! Discover the rewards of participation today!

Special Note About Email & Junk Mail ("spam")

Your E-mail address is best protected from "spambots" (i.e. junk mailers) when you type your email address in the E-mail line. When you post, your email address will be hidden within ProTeacher's email button. Including your email address also enters you in our free drawings!

ProTeacher's email button is designed to hide your email address from junk mailers using special coding and encryption. Do not post your email address on the Internet unless it is in a protected environment such as ProTeacher's specially designed email button. Junk mailers use automated computer programs ("spambots") which constantly search the web looking for unprotected email addresses. Don't be caught by them!

We recommend that ProTeacher participants also sign up for a free email address through Yahoo or Hotmail and use that free address for ALL public activities on the Internet. Save your personal or school email address for personal contacts with parents and colleagues. Never use your personal or school email address for posting or signing up for things on the Internet.

Hotmail includes a "junk mail filter" which is very effective in screening out much of the junk mail. We understand Yahoo has a similar feature. Using Hotmail or Yahoo, you never need to download email to your computer so you don't need to be concerned about viruses. Finally, you can check your email easily from home or work!

Special note regarding Confidentiality

While all our boards are intended exclusively for professional teachers (including classroom teachers, specialists, substitute teachers, administrators, and student teachers), please keep in mind that ProTeacher is a public venue. As such, parents, and even students can (and do) occasionally access and read our discussions.

With this in mind, it is important to never mention real names of students, parents, or colleagues. Also, we should be especially careful when engaging in talk about others.

American humorist Will Rogers is quoted as saying, "Live in such a way that you would not be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip".

We think that's very good advice for discussions on ProTeacher and elsewhere.

Special note to Future Teachers

We're so excited you're here! You are truly the future of the teaching profession! You bring fresh new ideas that can inspire us. You observe the most experienced professionals among us in action. You have so much to offer! In return, we have years of experience to share with you!

Please note: College students (elementary education majors) are welcome to post on our Future Teachers, Student Teachers, and Educational Issues boards, but we ask you to wait until you actually begin your student teaching experiences before posting on other boards. Then, we'd like you to post questions directly related to those classroom experiences. And please share ideas and be helpful whenever YOU can; don't be shy :)

In the interests of the teachers who visit ProTeacher, we remove student questions about college assignments, etc. We must do this in order to keep our focus on classroom teaching. Keeping our boards reserved for teachers makes them more interesting places for teachers to visit. If we didn't have this policy, our boards would quickly fill with questions from parents, students, and others. That would be overwhelming and would discourage teachers from visiting. Hope you understand!

The email button appears only if the person posting the message chose to include their email address. Not all posts will have an email button since this is optional information some might decide not to share. (click here for our Privacy Policy and tips)

To access an email address, click on the email button. if this does not work, right-click on the email button and select "Copy Shortcut". Then, past this shortcut into an email message and remove the characters "mailto:". Sorry, our email button does not work with some Netscape browsers. Use Internet Explorer if you are having trouble.

PART III - Guidelines & Policies

Please be aware of the following policies, including our strict view on commercial messages, public service and website announcements:

All of our boards are intended exclusively for professional teachers (including classroom teachers, specialists, substitute teachers, administrators, and student teachers) working in early childhood, elementary grades K-6 and middle school. We also welcome retired and former PreK-8 teachers with a continuing professional interest in teaching. Our primary focus is on grades K-6.

Reporters, authors, students, parents, and all other non-teachers seeking teacher opinions should contact ProTeacher for permission prior to posting. Student teachers in classroom teaching experiences are welcome to post. Education majors are welcome to post on certain boards, but should wait until their student teaching begins before posting on other boards (although they are always welcome to listen in!) See above for a special note to Future Teachers.

Advertisers, Individuals and Organizations

Advertisers, individuals, and organizations with news relevant to elementary school teaching are invited to post ONE announcement on our Advertisements Board, a link to which can be found on our Home page. Advertisers are further invited to read our Advertising Information page for other promotional opportunities.

All other commercial messages and public service announcements are not allowed and shall be removed promptly. Contacting our visitors for commercial purposes except as mentioned above is not allowed. In particular, unauthorized collection and/or use of email addresses is strictly not allowed.

You are considered an advertiser if you are promoting something such as a product, a service, a website, an organization, an event -even yourself- regardless of whether your intent is commercial or noncommercial.

Speakers and Authors of Books & Websites

Participate, but do not promote. If you are a teacher, you may share ideas with us, but you must NOT mention your service, product, book, or website. Treat us as friends and colleagues, not as an opportunity!

Please do not announce your website on ProTeacher regardless of whether or not your site is commercial. To preserve the friendly community atmosphere, ALL web site announcements are strictly not allowed* (contact ProTeacher via the suggestions link on the home page to suggest your site for inclusion in the Directory portion of the site). (*One exception only: Teachers are welcome to share their class websites for the purpose of sharing ideas and getting feedback. A class website is a website created expressly for communicating with one's own students and their parents.)

Copyright Notice

Reproduction of messages is granted for personal use only. Messages may not be republished or exchanged in print or electronic forms without the express written permission of ProTeacher and the respective authors. Do not post other people's messages on web site(s) or transmit them to others through email or newsletters. In particular, all commercial and/or organizational use is strictly forbidden.

Graphics including but not limited to the 'post a message' pencil design are strictly copyrighted and may not be used elsewhere. ProTeacher is a registered service mark. The "PT" logo is a trademark of ProTeacher.

By posting messages here, you grant ProTeacher the royalty-free non-exclusive perpetual right to compile, edit, modify, adapt, archive, reproduce, display, distribute, license to others, create derivative works of, and publish your messages in this and all other forms now in existence or hereafter devised (both electronic and print) at our discretion without any liability or obligation of any kind to you. BusyBoard messages are routinely saved for the future benefit of ProTeacher, the ProTeacher Community, our visitors, members and teachers everywhere. All other rights remain with you.

ProTeacher respects the intellectual property rights (copyright) of others. Please only post material that you write yourself. ProTeacher will investigate instances of alleged infringement when they are brought to our attention. Please also read our privacy policy

For all other problems and concerns, feel free to contact us at Thank you for your cooperation and support.

Thanks for participating in the growing ProTeacher BusyBoard Community. Make yourself at home!

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