Lead Lit Topic: Getting Organized
Getting Organized
Results
Coaching from Teachers’ Strengths
As a principal for the last 16 years, I have had many opportunities to sit in classrooms to learn with teachers and students. One question I ask myself when observing...
Balancing Ambition with Humility
It’s hard to imagine an instructional leader or a coach who isn’t passionate about change. We like to call them agents of change. What these agents are aware of is...
Developing an Ambitious Vision with Humility
Agents of change and leaders with high levels of ambition know that ambition is the driving force behind progress and innovation. Ambitious leaders set high-reaching goals, dream big, and work...
Empowering Teachers and Building Relationships
My first days as a traveling coach were filled with excitement. What a new adventure this would be, moving between the five buildings in the district. I was really looking...
How to Hire a Great Teacher
In my most recent book, I guide school leaders to better support teaching and learning. It serves as a pathway away from traditional supervision and evaluation practices. The goal is...
Making PLCs Public
One of my favorite aspects of instructional coaching is the aerial view of learning in the school. I get the opportunity, in one walk-through of the school, to see a...
Building Teacher Confidence, Building Leaders: The Power of Observation
Believe you can and you’re halfway there. —Theodore Roosevelt Confidence is a necessary part of our profession. Let’s face it: When we are in front of multiple groups of dynamic...
A Richer Picture: Assessing Our Students as Readers (And Not Just in Reading)
Independent reading is not merely the ability to decode a text with minimal errors. Nor is it simply the ability to answer correctly the teacher's questions. Independent reading is the...
Connect with a Larger Community!
Human connections are deeply nurtured in the field of shared story. —Jean Houston Eleven years ago I wrote my first article for Choice Literacy. I had written a reflection paper...
Teacher Book Club
Teachers read all the time: assignments, professional books, student writing, all the emails. In the hectic nature of school days, it’s easy to forget when we last made time to...
Know Your Teachers
Teaching is about building relationships with students. Donald Graves, in his book A Sea of Faces, reminds us that we must know 10 things about each of our students before...
Back-to-School Coaching Reflection Survey
We do not learn from experience. We learn from reflecting on experience. —John Dewey I vividly remember the last day of school during my first year of teaching. I had...
Crafting a Vision of Teaching and Learning Rooted in the Strength of Multilingual Learners (Part II)
In part 1 of this article, which can be found here, I wrote about spending time as educators thinking and reflecting on the following questions regarding teaching and learning with...
Crafting a Vision of Teaching and Learning Rooted in the Strength of Multilingual Learners (Part I)
Sandra and I sat together to read the book My Two Border Towns by David Bowles. As soon as I finished reading the title of the book, she said with...
Making the Most Out of Teacher-Librarian Partnerships
“Can I help you find something?” I ask as a classroom teacher pokes around the biography section in the school library. “Our kids are going to be doing a big...
The True Test of Leadership
Please note: Tornado drill changes don't belong on the Instructional Leadership Team agenda. I left this comment on the Google Doc teacher leaders were using to discuss instruction. As principal,...
Energizing Yourself
I define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance...
Picture It: Highlight the Strengths in Student Writing
Students select a portion of their writing they are proud of and mount it on colored paper. These are displayed on a bulletin board in a high-traffic area of the...
Making Learning Visible from Coaching Cycles
Sometimes I feel the need to reach a wider audience while working in an instructional coaching cycle since I often work with a small group of teachers for an extended...
Classroom Library Elements in School Library Design
I have always imagined that paradise will be a kind of library. —Jorge Luis Borges “I have a vision of a student-centered library where there is student writing on signs...
Combat Self-Doubt: Make a Ta-Da List
My first word was hardball, which is shooter slang for a type of ammunition. I was Dad’s best assistant at reloading ammo. I could take apart, clean, and name each...
