Lead Lit Topic: Getting Organized
Getting Organized
Results
Essential Resources for Building Professional Learning Communities
Professional learning communities, or PLCs, have become almost ubiquitous in US schools. Most educators are aware of this philosophy for structuring collaborative teacher learning. Yet common knowledge of the best...
Coaching Connections
Recently I attended an intensive weekend yoga retreat. I spent a full day out of my comfort zone, pushing my limits doing things like boat pose in the air while...
Questions for Reflection and Goal Setting with Teachers
We start the school year, and all of a sudden it’s spring. Where did the time go? Even when a fast pace is the result of students experiencing deep learning,...
Refining Reflective Practice and Notetaking
Ten years ago, as a first-year middle school teacher, I clumsily juggled piles and piles of information (and that was before standardized testing really amped up!) about my readers and...
Coaching Tool: Evernote
Each time we meet with a group of teachers, leave a classroom after a coaching session, or finish a workshop, we think, I need to remember ______. Inevitably, we think...
Engaging Not Blaming: Increasing Parent Involvement
“Why don’t we have a good turnout at curriculum night? Don’t our parents care about their child’s education?" It’s human nature, unfortunately, to resist holding up the mirror when our...
Master Class: Mentoring New Coaches
Recently I went to see the play Master Class. The play is based on the life of famous opera singer Maria Callas—specifically, a snippet of her life when she taught...
Three Little Tweaks for More Effective Communication
Sometimes it feels like the amount of information we receive in a single week could fill the Grand Canyon. We live in the information age, and it comes flying at...
Closing the Year Strong: Leveraging Technology When Time Is Short
The last months of the school year can be stressful for teachers. Time becomes the enemy we feel powerless to counter. This is why principals and teacher leaders should leverage...
Becoming a Literacy Coach: Principles and Mission Statements
When I think back to becoming a literacy coach, I can remember worrying about many parts of my new career. How do I develop my schedule? How do I get...
Coaching Minute: Baggies
Melanie Meehan shares her bedraggled baggie—the essential tools she carries with her when she confers with students.
No Cutting Corners in Coaching
Recently, my husband and I decided to give our bedroom a much-needed makeover. We bought our current home about six years ago, and every summer I have chosen one room...
The Importance of Creating a Literacy Room (Instead of a Tiny Office)
This past spring, I was asked if I would be willing to return to a literacy coaching role in my school. I was in that role for three years before...
Coaching Minute: What’s in My Bag
Melanie Meehan opens her coaching bag to share her favorite on-the-go resources.
Autobiographical Listening
I recently attended an excellent three-day leadership conference that was by all measures a success: I met some great people, got some much-needed inspiration, and came back with a notebook...
Transcribing Conversations During Instructional Walks
As a principal in a high-poverty, low-resource elementary school, I do not have access to an instructional coach to work with our teachers or with me on our schoolwide literacy...
Coaching Minute: Conferring Cards
Melanie Meehan shares the simple cards she gives to students when conferring. These cards document compliments and challenges to guide the student after the conference is over.
From Coaching Logs to Coaching Reports
In all of my interactions with administrators, I’m mindful of the confidentiality of and delicate trust in my relationships with teachers. That said, I also have the responsibility to reflect...
Coaching Minute: Cycle Evaluation Form
Melanie Meehan shares her coaching cycle evaluation form and why it is helpful in this quick video tip.
The Leading Edge
Learning curves come in all varieties, don’t they? Sometimes, the path to learning is straight and quick. Other times, the learning curve is long and steep. The steepest learning journey...
On Being Coached
My daughter Maddie does not properly pronounce her L sound. She uses a W or Y sound instead. She “yikes” the color pink, she “yuvs” her “wittle” sister. Cute, but...
