Information to orient teaching assistants (TAs) at the University of California (U.C.), Berkeley, to their teaching responsibilities is presented. Written primarily by veteran TAs, pragmatic advice on teaching is offered, drawn from actual classroom experience. After exploring ways to resolve problems that occur in the earliest stage of the semester, suggestions are made on how TAs can devise teaching strategies to improve their effectiveness in all instructional roles, including leading discussion sections in the humanities, sciences, and engineering; teaching composition, math, and foreign language; and teaching lab sections in various subjects. The political, cultural, and social dimensions of being a TA at U.C. Berkeley are also described. Ways to cope with the task of grading and how TAs can evaluate their teaching are also covered. Advice to help TAs teach undergraduates to write effectively is provided, along with information on educational resources and services that can be helpful in teaching and informal advising roles with students. Rights and responsibilities of TAs as educators and employees are also addressed, including the salary schedule, grievance procedure, and tax information. (SW)