There’s a happy buzz in Mr. M’s third grade class. It’s late fall, and the children take pride in knowing just what to do as their school day begins. First, there’s the morning message their teacher has written for them. The children gather at the easel a few at a time to read the message and respond to their teacher’s social studies question: “What’s your favorite rainforest animal?”

In many classrooms, it's during transition times that things get a little chaotic, possibly resulting in behavior problems that frustrate in the moment and spill over into the rest of the day. Many teachers resign themselves to the chaos. For years I did that myself. Then one year, I decided to tackle transition problems head on. Here's how I worked with fourth grade students to make transitions calm, orderly, efficient—and even fun!

Even if your school forgoes Halloween celebrations or costumes, I know from my own classroom experience that many children come to school on Halloween (and the days before Halloween) keyed up and counting down the minutes until they "trick or treat." With some careful planning, you and your class can have a happy and productive week despite the added excitement some of your students may bring to school.

I remember singing along with friends in my elementary school days. Teachers and students together began each day with singing. We learned about music from our music teacher, but we sang everywhere, in our classrooms and on the playground. One winter at recess, we stepped out on snow banks to sing into imaginary microphones, "I Wanna Hold Your Hand." We were the Beatles! Singing was the gateway to our imaginations.