A New Year---Same Focus

Andrea Reichenberger contributed this post. Click here for more of Andrea's writing and thinking.

Although a new year is different than a new school year, an extra breath of educational vitality usually stems from an extra long break. This school year has been one of “focus” for our district and I have adopted this goal for myself as well. In the spirit of resolutions, below is a list of what I am going to continue to focus on this year.  I hope you can glean something from my learning.

Ask the question, Is it within my sphere of Control? In a time in which we could look at more educational uncertainty, I have made it a point to no longer focus on the “what ifs?”  It will drive you crazy and will pull you away from what you should be focusing on.  Stay informed and do what you can within your sphere of control.  Remind yourself why you went into this profession to begin with.

Maintain the “One at a time” mantra. I’ve never been one for avoiding my favorite past time, but lately I find myself in a reading rut. This is because I have such a large pile of professional books in front of me to be read that I get overwhelmed and, as a result, put it off altogether. It might be healthier for me to cut back a bit on my Amazon purchases as well. Those who know me best know that this is me:

Get back to basics. Sometimes it is hard to convey the bigger picture,  but it is the most important thing we need to do as coaches and coordinators every day.  As we go through various stages of implementation and reviewing our current processes, it’s important to remember to communicate how everything fits together.  You cannot have a viable curriculum without a solid understanding of the standards and you cannot have a solid understanding of the standards without collaboration and formative assessment.

Educator Effectiveness: Mid-Interval Review

Sharon Seely contributed this post. Click here to read more of Sharon's thinking.

I woke up this morning thinking, “it’s January…It’s January…IT’S JANUARY!”

Do I have a New Year’s resolution?  Am I going to make one?  Will I keep it to myself or will make it public?  I have heard that more resolutions are attained when they’re made public, holding you accountable.  I’ll think about that one.

So, I started thinking, “What have I accomplished so far this school year?What did I state is my Educator Effectiveness SMART goal for this year?” 

Okay, (school) resolution #1 – re-read my SMART goal at least once a month.

I began by looking back at how I came up with my SMART goal to start with.

At the beginning of the school year, I did what the classroom teacher were doing, self-evaluating.  Last year, I used Danielson’s book Enhancing Professional Practice’s rubric for Instructional Specialists.  This year I used Teachscape Rubrics for Instructional Specialists.  I like that this resource contains sample indicators of proficiency for each component.  After completing my self-evaluation, I looked at the areas I needed to focus more time and attention on.  Those areas became my SMART goals.

Self-Evaluation using Instructional Specialist Rubric

SMART goal written based on self-evaluation results

January – Mid-Interval Review

• Am I at least halfway to meeting my goal(s)?
• What changes, if any, do I need to make to attain my SMART goal? 
• Do I need to rewrite my SMART goal?
• Sometimes unexpected needs arise and we need to change our focus.  It is totally okay to hear.  Being responsive to our teachers’, schools’ and district’s needs, is our job!

Today, I plan to look at my 2015-16 SMART goal, evaluate my progress so far, ask another coach to peer-review, possibly make some changes and move forward to achieve what I have said I would do.   Have a Happy 2016!

New Year’s Resolutions

Maggie Schumacher contributed today's thinking. Click here for more of Maggie's thinking.

Each year I’m constantly reflecting on those things I that I would like to change or incorporate into my teaching and coaching practices. As 2015 comes to a close, even though we’re mid-school year, I’d like to take some time to reflect on five of my priorities for the year 2016.

1. Balance work and the rest of my life.

It’s so easy to let work spill over into the rest of my life. I often will find myself responding to work emails at any hour of the day, including weekends and time spent on vacation. Advances in technology haven’t made this easy for me as I have access to my email at any given moment, and I feel this sense of guilt if I go too long without responding. Additionally, there is always time spent on Sunday afternoons engaging in activities such as lesson planning and paper grading. A goal I have for this year is to shut off from my work mode for a few hours each evening during the week. On the weekend, my goal is to avoid work with the exception of any last minute weekly planning I need to take care of to be prepared for the week ahead. It’s too easy to let work overtake my life, and my goal is to limit my working at home so I’m less inclined to burn out. I think I will find much more enjoyment during my evenings and weekends as a result of this change!

2. Balance my teaching and my coaching.

During the school day, I find it difficult to balance my roles of teacher and coach. My position includes teaching for a third of my day. I teach a reading intervention class, an intervention group, and a homeroom advisory group. I am allotted one prep period related to teaching, and the remainder of my day is spent in my literacy coaching position. I find that I often will push my own teaching, planning, and grading to the side in order to let my coaching role take priority. Creating your own schedule can be both a blessing and a curse. I’m the type who likes to make sure everyone else has what they need before I turn my focus to meeting my own needs and as a result my plans get rushed and my students don’t get the thoughtful plans and immediate feedback they deserve. Another goal for this coming year is to make my own teaching a priority so that I can best support my students’ learning and growth.

3. Incorporate new teaching strategies into classroom instruction.

I often will attend conferences and come away with so many new ideas and suggestions for best practices and ways to improve student engagement. I typically share my notes out with others and pass on ideas I’ve learned about, but days or months will pass and I will find I’ve yet to incorporate some of these great ideas into my own teaching practices. My goal for this year is to try one new teaching strategy or educational tool each month. If I don’t make the effort to use new strategies in my own teaching practices, things can get repetitive and stagnant, and it’s important to try new ways to engage students in learning. There are so many fabulous ideas that I’ve yet to discover!

4. Reflect more.  

Some teaching days can be busy and chaotic. I know I’m not the only one who feels it’s a challenge some days to find a moment to make it to the bathroom, so how can we expect to find some time to reflect throughout or at the end of the day? I always say that being reflective is important, but at the same time, I don’t know that I always give this action priority.

Recently when reading The Power of Ted: The Empowerment Dynamic, I came upon the following conversation:

“I’ve come here to think. You know, just to sit and reflect.”

“That’s good to do from time to time. It’s all too easy to run through life without reflecting. Life’s lessons can be lost if you never pause.”

This really jumped out at me and was an excellent reminder that it’s important to make time to reflect on the days and the moments. I don’t need to set aside an hour to reflect, but a few minutes here or there. I could keep a journal or notebook of ideas or thoughts I have as they occur to me. I could survey my students to receive feedback on lessons periodically to hear from them how they feel things are going or if there are ways I could make learning more engaging for them. My goal is to try to do a little of both to incorporate more time for reflection this coming year.

5. Worry less.

There is a quote I’ve heard that states, “The less you worry, the less complicated life becomes.” We could easily get hung up on so many things throughout the day - big or small. My final goal for this year is to let things go. I’m going to try to not worry about things that I cannot control. Worrying will not help with any problems I may encounter; instead I will focus on putting my energy into finding solutions.

Whatever your own resolutions may be, I hope the year 2016 brings you peace and happiness!

So Much to Learn and Never Enough Time. . .

Julie Schwartzbauer contributed today's post.

As I sit at my desk reflecting on this first month of school and how quickly it has gone by, I am surrounded by some of the people I admire most.  At my desk is Diane Lapp, Barbara Moss, and Matt Glover.  At the table behind me sits Brenda Overturf, Jennifer Serravallo, Patrick Allen and Steven Layne.  Taking up floor space is Kelly Gallagher, Kathy Collins and Regie Routman.

I want to engage with these Literacy icons more than anything, but seem to keep pushing them aside.  I thought I would have had more time for them over the summer, but the idea of inviting them out on my patio or to sit around the campfire with me, did not feel right at the time.  

I have decided that I need set aside time for these influential people, the people who guide me in building my expertise as a professional.  I feel that it is my duty to engage with those who continue to inspire me and ignite a passion in me for wanting learn more.

In looking at my job description, there is nothing in writing about spending uninterrupted time with experts in my field.  When thinking about all of the meetings I attend, surely meeting with the inspiring words of Steven Layne or Kathy Collins could be part of my role.

In conclusion, I am giving myself permission to spend more time with some of my favorite people and continue to grow in a profession that I love.

Thank you for being a part of my ongoing learning…

                                                                 

Focusing on Positivity

Maggie Schumacher contributed this thinking.

We’re about a month back into the school year and into the grind, and now that I have the September testing window behind me, I can look forward to truly diving into literacy work, coaching, and initiatives at the middle school. As always, I’m excited for the year ahead and the amazing work that will be done alongside my fabulous colleagues. I could easily get overwhelmed by my ever-expanding to-do list, but today I’m choosing optimism and reflection.

This time of year I like to refresh and remind myself why I got into the field of education. It wasn’t for the money, it wasn’t for the glory, and it definitely wasn’t for assessment and data analysis. I got into this field, as did many others, because I wanted to make a difference in the lives of my students. I wanted to inspire them the way so many of my former teachers inspired me. I love teaching. I love getting students excited about reading and hooked on good books. There’s nothing more exciting to me than hearing a middle school student tell me about their enjoyment of a book they’re reading. I love hearing the groans echo throughout the room when I say it’s time to stop reading and the begging for me to keep reading during a class read-aloud. It’s music to my ears.

Sometimes we get bogged down by the pressure of deadlines and assessments and the Common Core and Educator Effectiveness. Is what I’m teaching rigorous enough? Do we have our interventions in place? How will I move these students and differentiate to meet the needs of all learners? When will I fit a bathroom break into my day? Amidst these pressures and stresses of our day-to-day work, it’s important to keep our priorities in line. We need to keep the joy alive in the classroom and embrace the teachable moments. We need to take time to get to know our students as people and not just another test score. We need to take time to stop and laugh throughout our day - when things go right and when things go wrong. In the end, these are the moments our students will remember. When our students see that we care about them, the rest will fall in place.

Finally, and most importantly, we need to remember to take care of ourselves. Without this piece, we won’t be able to give our best to our students and our colleagues. Take the time to rest. When the day gets too long, set aside the grading or lesson planning and do something for yourself. Read a good book, take a walk, eat a piece of chocolate, laugh with friends. Remember the special moments from each day and leave the negativity behind… and enjoy a fabulous school year!

One Word Goal Setting

I like to think that educators (and students) get a fresh start each September. It's like having two New Years every year (January + September) - two guaranteed times to feel bright, shiny, unstoppable, and optimistic.

For educators, September (just like January) is filled with ambitions and resolutions. Maybe it doesn't seem like it, but your school improvement plan, student learning objective (SLO), professional practice goal (PPG), and maybe even your professional development plan (PDP) are resolutions. They might be more data-based and involve more documentation than your New Years resolutions, but they, too, are resolutions.

How are all of those school year resolutions connected? 
What concept unites your professional goals and work?

What single word would you use to summarize that connection?

Now, think about all the ways that single word could become a mantra for you as you work toward your goals. Write it on a piece of paper. Doodle it. Hang it in your work space. Look for it around you. Tell people about it. Keep it near you.

This idea - single word goal setting - is popular in January, as people set resolutions for the year (read more about it from Ali Edwards, My One Word, or One Word 365). It works now, though, too.

Understand is the word that stands out for me in my professional life right now. It seems to be something that unites many things long-term projects.

• I'm always learning about and trying to better apply culturally responsive practices. Really understanding people - who they are, where they come from, what they want and need - is a big part of culturally responsive practice.
• I'm working on a project which will grow into the literature review for my dissertation. That's all about understanding.
• In conversations and meetings and emails and phone calls, I don't always take time to understand. Sometimes I want to help. Sometimes I want to move on to the next thing. I would benefit from just listening with no purpose other than to understand.

What's your word?

Small District + Big Goals

Today's post is contributed by Carrie Sand.

Small District + Big Goals = Varied Roles for a Literacy Coach: 

How to provide effective and efficient coaching when time is tight?

Another school year means tweaks to and changes in my role as a Literacy Coach. Depending on the semester, my work as the District Literacy Coach (4K-12) may also be in addition to teaching classes of intervention and high school English classes. Such is the schedule of a small district employee; no longer does the budget allow for single area experts, but calls for teachers and coaches who are adaptable, flexible, and knowledgeable about best teaching practices for all students.

While I love the wide range of experiences, students, and situations I encounter within the scope of my job, and the mental demands always keep me challenged and sharp, I am constantly think about new and improved ways I can be more effective and efficient as a coach. As I reflect on the upcoming year, I think about goals that will help me continue to develop and grow. This year, these goals include:

• What formats best allow me to deliver professional development that is meaningful, engaging, and timely?
• How can I create a system of observation and beneficial feedback when I am limited on time and responsible for a large amount of classrooms?
• In what ways can I help implement a district-wide standards based universal curriculum, delivered with best instructional practices in literacy, which ensures all students an equitable literacy experience?
• How can I support the continued development and use of formative and summative data to drive meaningful instructional decisions and intervention options?

Like many, I am striving towards reaching big goals on a small budget (of both time and money)! For this reason, I  am going to spend my year reflecting on effective and efficient coaching practices. Over the course of the year, I invite you along on my journey as I try out new ideas, share successes, and reflect on improvements for next time. I look forward to the adventure ahead.