Heather Rader guides a novice coach by sharing the power of rehearsal before leading professional development sessions. A transcript is provided below the player.
My colleague Samantha Munnecke and I have been attached at the hip lately as she learns all the different components of the job of being a literacy coach.
After she watched me demonstrate a lesson based on our co-written plan without that plan or script in my hand, she asked, “How did you do that?” I shared that during the drive to the school, I was animatedly rehearsing what I would say out loud and reminding myself of the essential steps of the lesson.
If I’m not able to rehearse out loud, I rehearse in writing. Even three minutes before launching professional development or demonstrating a lesson is powerful. I review my objective, how I’ll open, the sequence of the work and remind myself of what we’ll do to reflect at the end. The rehearsal stage can be essential for a literacy coach, especially when a seamless delivery is important to future work.
