This article draws from the experiences of a European American classroom teacher, her African American teacher educator, the classroom teacher's interactions with an African American family, and her conversations with her African American aide. It answers the call to speak to the everyday experiences of teachers who seek to acknowledge and address…

Discusses (1) classroom experiences of the reading writing relationship, (2) one student's experience with realizing how writing for an audience changes the demands of writing, and (3) how a teacher realized that while he had taught his students to cooperate with him, he was not cooperating with other teachers. (SRT)

Argues that the idealism that is central to most stories of good teaching practice can become an obstacle when teachers who do not work in optimal conditions try to turn "theory" into practice. Offers an alternative narrative of "good" teaching: teacher and students constructing an intellectually engaging experience under less-than-optimal…