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Lead Literacy Articles & Videos (formerly leadliteracy.com)

Our lounge is your home for exploring hundreds of articles and videos for literacy coaches and school leaders. Our contributors share their best advice for working one-on-one with teachers in coaching cycles, hosting professional development sessions, and designing demonstration lessons and study groups.

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Coaching Minute: Taking Risks

Instructional coach Mary Brower encourages us to notice leaders and teachers who are taking risks. Couple a quick note with an inspirational story, and you will build strong professional connections needed for meaningful leadership. Download a copy of the inspirational story.

Coaching Minute: Supporting a Principal’s Vision

Holly Wenning attests to the importance of instructional coaches knowing and supporting a principal’s vision.

If Your Walls Could Talk

Heather Fisher leads us in realizing the power of wall displays, and offers a reflection guide so all school leaders can make their walls talk in positive ways.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Creating a Screening Team

Gwen Blumberg provides a step-by-step guide to creating an assessment screening team that quickly and collaboratively administers one-to-one screening-style assessments to a classroom of children.

It’s Time to Pause: A PD Session to Reconnect with Core Values

Heather Fisher guides a reflective practice exercise to begin a professional meeting that gives space for participants to pause and consider their core values. This simple experience has the potential to powerfully energize educators.

Coaching Minute: Be Aware of How Your Presence Affects the Room

Ruth Ayres shares the importance of being aware of how your presence affects the room. This is part of a series about the importance of norms.

Goals Are Greater than Nice Conversations

Brian Sepe moves instructional leaders to commit to encouraging growth through focused goal-setting rather than having “nice conversations.”

Coaching Minute: Expect and Accept a Lack of Closure

Ruth Ayres shares why it is important to expect and accept a lack of closure. This is part of a series about the importance of norms.

Aiming for a 5 on a Scale of 1–10

Gwen Blumberg adjusts her expectations to a 5, rather than a 10, as she sets a big assessment project in motion. This small shift in mindset allows the team to expect and embrace bumps and shifts along the way.

Coaching Minute: What’s Said Here Stays Here; What’s Learned Here Leaves Here

Ruth Ayres shares the importance of having a place for instructional coaches to learn, as well as process their own situations. This is part of a series about the importance of norms.

A Sense of Accomplishment: Four Strategies for Making Students’ Literacy Learning Visible

Matt Renwick makes the connection that learners are engaged when there is a meaningful goal. He outlines ways to make the process visible to lead to a sense of accomplishment. Download a copy of the Reading-Writing Portfolio Table of Contents.

Coaching Minute: Be Wholly Present

Ruth Ayres shares the the importance of setting a norm about presence. This is part of a series about the importance of norms.

Critical Questions that Lead to Powerful Change

Stella Villalba begins with a powerful question for educators to consider in order to begin dismantling systems that oppress marginalized communities.

How the Influences of Reggio Emilia’s Teaching Approach Still Affect My Practice

Stella Villalba shares four values of Reggio Emilia that enhance literacy learning for multilingual students.

Coaching Minute: The Importance of Norms

Ruth Ayres shares the reason why norms are important for professional learning sessions. This is the first installment in a series about the importance of norms.

When the Best Coaching Is Offering Advice 

Matt Renwick shares a classroom observation and his process for discerning what kind of feedback to give. By considering different coaching approaches, as well as their limits, Matt concludes that sometimes the best coaching is offering advice.

Bite-Sized PD

Jen Court shares a “sweet” idea for practical and meaningful professional learning. Download a template to tailor professional learning for your school.

Three Books that Changed How I Teach and Think About Reading

Matt Renwick reflects on three essential professional books for understanding how to teach and think about reading instruction.

Watching Writers Work

Ruth Ayres leads us in developing confidence as teachers of writers through watching students work as writers. A printable observation and reflection form is available to download.

No More Learning Target Drudgery

Tammy Mulligan transforms learning targets into meaningful learning conversations in her first-grade classroom. This is a must-read for all literacy leaders who want learning targets to have a positive influence on students.

Guided Reading Debrief

Lora Bieghler debriefs with teacher Cheryl Miller after a guided reading lesson.

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