Meeting Toolbox and Resources
These are our favorite books out of dozens that we have seen on this topic.  All are available on Amazon.com.

Meetings That Work! Richard Chang and Kevin Kehoe, published by Jossey-Bass. 1994
This is not a large book (only 108 pages) but is packed with tips and information.  The 6 chapters are:  Introduction, Making Meetings Work, Three Essential Meeting Stages, Preparing for the Meeting, Conducting the Meeting, and Evaluating the Meeting.  In the appendix the authors have included some ready-to-photocopy forms for minutes, agendas, and evaluation of meetings.

Mining Group Gold Thomas Kayser, published by McGraw-Hill, 1995
Although this book has a section on meetings, it goes much further into the topic of team building and collaboration throughout an organization.  It was written for the corporate world but has clear implications for schools.  Instead of "meetings" Kayser likes to use the term "Group Sessions," thereby emphasizing the meeting as an opportunity to build effective teams, not just gather or share information.

The Adaptive School Robert Garmston and Bruce Wellman, pub. by Christopher-Gordon Publishers, Inc. 1999
This is one of the few good books on meetings that focuses on schools, not the corporate world.  The authors see good meetings as just one element in "adaptive schools."  Other topics in the book include developing collaborative norms, using conflict as a resource, working with unmanageable problems, and building a true community.  We learned a number of specific tools from these authors, and included them in this web site and in our workshops.

Also:
The Skilled Facilitator, Roger Schwarz,  pub. by Josey Bass, 1994 
In addition to the focus on facilitators, the books covers why some groups are more effective than others, how a facilitator can help, when to step in, and the diagnosis of group behaviors. 
Keys to Successful Meetings, Stephanie Hirsh (National Staff Development Council) A useful paperback designed for educators.
A useful web site and organization:
National Staff Development Council (NSDC)  www.nsdc.org

Meeting Toolbox
We like to keep these items in a plastic tub, ready to take to a meeting.
20 sharpened pencils
20 fine-tip felt tips (Black)
Overhead markers (Colors and Black)
Whiteboard Markers (Colors and Black)
Dots (Red, Blue, Green, Yellow)
Folder of Meeting Skills overheads
Blank overheads
Pushpins
Magnets
Posters
Lined meeting sheets (Folded and Roll)
Tape (Scotch and Masking)
Index Cards, sentence strips

 

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