"My first year I was so overwhelmed I couldn't get lesson plans done easily in advance. It had seemed so simple in college! So, basically the way my planning worked is that if I planned at all, I would scribble something out the night before and hope for the best. One day my principal came by to sit in on my class and afterwards asked to see my lesson plan. I nearly fainted. I actually had to hand her a "plan" I had done on a paper napkin in ballpoint pen while I had eaten dinner the night before. She just looked at me and shook her head. Finally, she gave a small smile and told me she knew how hard it was, but that I just had to get it together. We set up a plan for improvement. I started my planning on Friday afternoons after that. It took me a couple of months to get into the habit. Now, 15 years later I have a huge bank of lessons to draw from."                              Michael, teacher for 15 years