This paper reviews a philosophical model of teacher reasoning based on practical arguments as well as psychological models based on cyclical stages and subject-matter representations, both of which are similar in spirit to the practical argument model. This is followed by a review of a philosophical critique of the practical reasoning model, which emphasizes the role of contemplation and leads the discussion toward an Aristotelian framework. Aristotle's three-way distinction between theory, practice and production is used to describe a balanced model of teacher reasoning. Teaching is productive in so far as it aims at student learning, it is practical in so far as it is an 'end in itself', and it is theoretical in so far as it involves reflection, both on subject-matter and on students. The Aristotelian model is used to synthesize the previously reviewed models of teacher reasoning and point toward a normative vision of teacher reasoning.