Choice Lit Topic: New Teacher Mentors
Universities put far more energy into the initial certification of teachers than they do into ongoing support for teachers in the crucial first five years. This “sink or swim” mentality has led to 50% of new teachers leaving the profession in these early years. Glub glub glub – the sound of many of the freshest faces and voices in teaching abandoning schools in discouragement.
The development of systematic, thoughtful support programs for new teachers isn’t optional; it’s essential for the future vitality of schools. We share advice and insight from master teachers as they mentor teachers who are in their first years leading classrooms.
Results
A Class with More Boys Than Girls
Hannah was in her second year of teaching when we began our work together. She was interested in "bettering her game" as she put it. "I know I have lots...
Acquiring Knowledge Two or Three Strategies at a Time
"Hey, Papi! What is that crop growing over there?" My dad responds patiently to repeated requests by my nine-year-old son, Jack, to identify exactly what is growing in the fertile...
Books with Overlooked Potential for Launching the School Year (and Ideas for Using Them with Students)
Editor's Note: Teachers often have cherished favorite books for launching the school year, and it's no wonder. We know how students will respond based on our experiences in previous years, and...
Favorite Short Mentor Texts for Demonstration Lessons
Teachers and coaches often ask us for a list of mentor texts to teach a particular strategy or genre unit of study. While we certainly have some favorites, we truly...
Lesson Structure: Building a Strong Foundation
The experts will tell you, "Add sand to water, but not water to sand," when building structures on the beach. You must have a strong foundation for a sculpture that...
Whole-Group Share Sessions in Literacy Workshops: Essential Elements
We survey teachers periodically to help us reflect on our professional development sessions, and plan next steps for our coaching. Recently, we have noticed a pattern in the reflections of...
Virtually Coaching a Lesson
I'd known Chad for about two months when his first observation was scheduled. Chad had shared with me that he didn't feel like his new principal understood him. Even though...
Jennifer Allen on Working with New Teachers (PODCAST)
Franki Sibberson chats with Jennifer Allen about the joys and challenges of working with new teachers. A transcript is below the player. Franki Sibberson: What have you found to be successful...
Coaching Out of Chaos: Helping New Teachers Establish Management Systems
One of my friends is a highly creative type with many big ideas. The other night he was talking about website design, and wondering aloud if he created a business...
Relevant Support for New Teachers
By building relations we create a source of love and personal pride and belonging that makes living in a chaotic world easier. Susan Liebermann This fall my son Ben ran...
You Get What You Ask For: The Art of Debriefing
When I pick up my children from school and ask, "How was your day?" 99.9% of the time I get the f-word: fine. However, when I noticed the green outline...
Mentoring from the Real to the Ideal: Mental Images of Teaching
When I work with new teachers, I often feel compelled to tell the story of my friend Michelle who was afraid to be a mother. Married for three years, Michelle...
Cap’n George: Mentors Who Matter
Cap'n George sits on the porch rocking his stories back and forth like a first child up all night trying to grasp this new air that's been slapped into him,...
Letters in the Middle School Classroom
I began my first year of teaching at a middle school this year. However, although I was trained in a program that focused on secondary education, it was the words...
Read Our Walls: Bridging Professional Development and Student Achievement
How do we connect professional development to student learning? Does it really matter that teachers change instructional practices if we can't demonstrate these questions lead to increased student achievement? These...
Structuring Coaching Conferences
When we think about the structure of a coaching session for a teacher, it reminds us of the structure of a conference for a student. Lucy Calkins set a structure...
Connecting Language and Hope: A Study Group Activity
For the past three months, a group of teachers and I have been exploring words in our classrooms. To help us clarify how language affects us, some teachers listened to...
January New Teacher Group Update: When Life Happens
It was noontime when I received a call from my daycare provider, Sandy. She told me that my daughter, Samantha was coughing a lot. I had an important meeting scheduled...
New Teacher Conversations: Management Stories from the Classroom
Classroom management was on the new teachers' minds at our last meeting of the year when we asked them what they would like from us for resources and discussion the...
The Language of Coaching Part I: Word Choices
Giving written and spoken feedback is an opportunity to be very thoughtful about the words we choose in communicating with teachers. This is a challenge. There are nuances to our...
How Study Groups Are Like Self-Cleaning Ovens
One of our favorite inventions ever is the self-cleaning oven. Set a timer, lock the oven door, and a few hours later -- voila! You have a clean oven, and...
