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One:  Waiting to grade writing until they’ve finished the whole piece

(Alternative: grade each chunk as they go and fix things up before they keep making the same mistakes over and over again)

Two:  Mindless bell-ringers that go on longer than the bell actually rings

(Alternative: get started on a small chunk of the regular content you’re teaching that day right off the bat)

Three: Thinking that “one day” you’ll pull it all together and teach near-perfectly

(Alternative: Realize that you are the teacher the kids have been waiting for.  Today.  Like right now.)

Four:  Winging the lesson planning

(Alternative: Know that your front-end work makes EVERYTHING better in the classroom and saves time in the end)

Five: Messy teacher desks

(Alternative: Take hold of the fact that you set to the tone for your kids in everything they turn into you – your classroom might be the only place in their life they can experience order and organization that allows them to think clearly)