TS This morning I came across the word “provide” in some reading I was doing, and I began wondering how it might relate to my classroom. SD Searching in a dictionary, I discovered that the word derives from Latin words meaning “to see forward, or ahead”, and that immediately seemed to connect with my work as a teacher. CM My job, after all, is to look ahead into the future of my students and see what skills they will need as readers and writers. CM In one sense, I must always keep an eye on their futures, because my job is to provide them with the good language habits they will need to function comfortably and successfully in the coming years. SD In another sense of the word, both my students and I must be providers in my classroom. CM We must constantly be ready to look ahead and anticipate what other people might need. CM If some lemonade is spilled, we must be ready to provide a towel; if someone seems discouraged, we must be ready to provide support; if someone writes a successful poem, we need to be ready to provide congratulations. SD Of course, it’s true that my students and I should maintain our primary focus on the present moment, on the task at hand, but we also should keep one eye trained on possible upcoming events. CM As the Boy Scouts of America program teaches, we need to "be prepared”. CM In the classroom, we all need each other’s help as various situations arise, and therefore we must be ready to act as providers. CS As our lives as teachers and students move forward, we must be always ready to “see forward”, and provide.