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Staying True to Best Practices with Required Resources
In recent years many districts have turned away from teacher autonomy in literacy instruction and toward reading or writing programs. The reasons for this shift are varied. Some think that...
Sign-In Sheets, Professionalism, and Being Human
You could feel the tension in the air as she quietly slipped in, trying to find her place without disrupting the session. Many of the professional development sessions we facilitate...
Getting Organized with Google
I find myself doing a lot of traveling as a literacy coach—not only between classrooms, but also between multiple schools. Some hard copies of papers are unavoidable; I always have...
What Am I Doing Here?
The yellow school bus pulled up to the front doors of the school, and the teachers eagerly boarded. As we settled into our seats, a microphone switched on and the...
A Good Coach Is a Good Wingman
During World War I, the US Air Force started using a wingman pattern for their fighter jets. The wingman flies off the right wing and slightly behind the lead. The...
A Booklist for Grandparents Day
Grandparents are special people for many children. Sometimes they are baby-sitters or day care providers. Sometimes grandchildren live with their grandparents. Sometimes they live far away and only get to...
Just Reading?
A colleague recently said to me, “My seventh graders never just read. Every time they pick up a book, they have an activity to do.” Following up, I uncovered that...
Speed Dating Books
I come back from lunch to join my second block of students, whom I always greet with “Did everyone have a good lunch?" There are the usual grumblings about the...
Struggling Teachers? Don’t Force It
Instructional coaches can find themselves in a difficult position when their supervisor, the building principal, requires a struggling teacher to access coaching. The circumstances become even more complicated when accessing...
Breaking Away from the Team
Since the start of my teaching career, the professional learning emphasis has been on collaborative teamwork, ideally centered on student work, with the purposes of developing teaching teams’ shared expectations...
Why I Stopped Asking, “Where’s Your Pencil?”
In college I became a brain research junkie. I blame my dad. He was an elite pistol shooter, winning national and international titles and obliterating records. He believed in practice...
What Difference Does Difference Make?
One of the most important conversations I have with my students at the beginning of the year is about being different, embracing the ways we are different from others, and...
Growth Lines
When we began to remodel our home recently, we realized that the opening between the dining room and the kitchen had pencil lines vining up the wall from the late...
Failure to Norm
As I developed relationships with 36 teachers this year, I was careful to watch and try to understand the dynamics that would help me as a coach. It’s easy (and...
Honesty with Adult Learners
Over the past few years, I’ve learned that when leading professional development for adults, it’s important to treat them as colleagues and to acknowledge that we are all learners together....
Classroom Environment: Access to Supplies
One way I promote a sense of community and ownership is by making all supplies and materials accessible to students. I make time during the first few days of school...
I Don’t Want to Know What You Did Last Summer: Rethinking Narrative Nonfiction
Maria is already on her second page of writing. She has a lot to say about that family vacation to the beach. She is eager to share the shells she...
Classroom Environment: Bulletin Boards
At the beginning of each year, I make it clear to students that it is "our" classroom, not "my" classroom and that we share responsibility for taking care of our...
Doodlebug
Mrs. Cox was my second-grade teacher. Tall and lean, she had a wide grin and a crazy mess of bright red hair that matched a smattering of freckles all over...
Beyond Cute: Print Rich with Purpose
Preparation for the new school year is under way. Are visions of chevrons, polka dots, and owls dancing in your head? Many classrooms are filled with them. Rosy-cheeked, curly-headed children...
Matching Resources to Teachers: Tools for Coaches
Talking with a teacher who has a long-standing coaching relationship with me, I was surprised when she said, “I guess I keep Googling to find the latest and greatest. I...
