UPS and Downs

"Every town
 Has it's ups and downs
 Sometimes the ups
 Outnumber the downs..."
This comes from the song "Not in Nottingham" by Roger Miller. It's sung by the poor residents of Nottingham after the sheriff imprisons most of the town for not paying taxes. It popped into my head this morning as I was thinking about this first half of the year as an Instructional Coach.

There have been some ups and downs. But unlike Nottingham the ups have outnumbered the downs.
We have been blessed with a staff that is willing to work through some things and continue to try to improve classroom instruction. As I think back to the beginning of the year I can honestly say we didn't get as much accomplished as I thought we would. But there has been changes. The principals have done over 100 walk through visits since Mid-October. Our teachers are getting better at being able to clearly state their purpose for every lesson they teach. We have been able to collaborate over data and model effective teaching practices. We have even been fortunate enough to also collaborate with other coaches from other schools and get input from our AEA coach.

So it's time for Christmas break to renew and refresh. Then we will come back and start the climb back up the hill with new learning about learning and some clear success criteria. I continue to enjoy this new work I'm doing and will continue to dig in and help teachers Bring It for the remainder of the year. This is our time. Our time to learn, grow, and change the way we do things at ESC.

Today I came across this quote. It seemed to fit.

Social media is full of people talking about teaching their children to be kind and look out for one another. My thought is shouldn't we have been doing that all along? Why did it take the ugliest election in the history of the U.S. to bring people to that realization?

Do I have fears? I certainly do. I fear that people will be victimized. I fear that our country will remain divided and angry. I fear that people will continue to use the excuse "I am a ______ supporter" to vandalize, destroy, and ridicule.

But I also know the sun rose the day after the election and I went to work. I watched caring adults work with students. I watched students who struggle with life try to get through another day and learn something that will prepare them for life after high school.

I continue to work on how to help teachers learn and grow. Last week it was hard. I had to have some hard conversations. I observed that change is still hard for some of my colleagues. I wanted to run. But I stayed. I stayed and had that hard conversation. I read and watched videos and learned more about what makes teachers effective. I cried. And then I got up and kept moving forward.

I will be kind. I will open doors. I will say good morning when I see students and staff in the hallway. I will continue to treat people with empathy and compassion. I will keep working with teachers and staff to make change.  I have a choice. What's your choice?

Random thoughts

H-e-l-p is a four letter word. It's not hard to sound out and shouldn't be hard to use, but for some reason it is for some of the people in education. If you added up the years of experience in any given school building it would be in the hundreds. That is a lot of experience and a wealth of knowledge. But how many of us turn to our friends and colleagues and say, "Help. I'm not sure if my kids are understanding." Too many times we are too scared to let our colleagues know we aren't perfect, we don't know it all, and we need...H-E-L-P. So don't be afraid to let the other teachers know you need them and the knowledge and tools they own. Don't be afraid to ask for help. The other day I was feeling pretty discouraged about whether teachers were receptive to the coaching process and whether I was accomplishing anything. Then I had a coaching session with one of the teachers and we had a very productive session full of growth and learning for both of us. She was energized and optimistic about where she was headed with classroom instruction and I was energized and optimistic about being a coach again.

Today I got to co-teach with the high school Spanish teacher. Now, remember all my experience is at the elementary level. Our purpose was to get the students to practice saying and reading their numbers. So we did a number talk. A number talk is where you present the students with a number sentence and they have to use mental math to solve the problem and then explain how they did it. I handled the math side and she handled the Spanish side of it. I learned (or was reaffirmed of) 2 things.
     1. Lessons go 100% better if you clearly state the purpose or goal to the students at the beginning of the lesson.
    2. Not very many of our High School students are risk takers.
So let's talk about number 1. I knew this already, but it is one of my flaws when I teach. I know where I'm headed and what my purpose is, but sometimes I forget to tell the students. As a district we are working on this very thing. But the second time we did the number talks I remembered to clearly state the purpose of the lesson and the engagement and understanding went up from the beginning of the lesson. Which just reaffirms that we are doing the right thing by working with ALL our teachers on connecting standards and curricular goals to daily lessons.
But what really shocked me was how reluctant many of the high school students were to take a risk to try something new and to participate. The Spanish students aren't fluent when they use the numbers in conversation, so it's something they really have to think about, and they make a lot of mistakes. For several students this was huge. When I taught elementary I worked hard at making my classroom an environment where students weren't scared to take a chance, but somewhere along the line that changed. Is this what we want for our kids? So scared about making sure they are right that they won't even take a chance? What if Thomas Edison or any number of inventors and innovators hadn't taken a chance? What if they had been afraid to fail? Or is it because as teachers we model the fear of failure? Are we afraid to take a chance?

Today I get to work on my learning and professional development as a coach. My coaching team is participating in training through The New Teacher Center. It's a great time to network and learn together.
One thing I have learned already in the first half hour is that it takes 18 months for a teacher to change their thoughts and practices in a classroom so it becomes an imbedded practice. And that is if it is supported with professional learning. WOW! That's 2 full school years. My rational mind understands this and even thinks that if we could get most of our staff to make a big change within 2 years we would be farther ahead than where we are now. However my emotional mind is screaming, "We don't have 18 months! We need to change faster!"
So for me, this means I need to take a deep breath, keep moving forward, and celebrate the successes along the way.

Reflections

Reflecting is a powerful and necessary tool in education. Sometimes in the hectic day-to-day struggle of a teacher's life, it gets neglected. This year our district has decided to use videos and coaching sessions to help teachers reflect upon their delivery in the classroom and grow. My coaching team has been amazed at how easily our teachers are shifting into this method of practice. Already we have had sessions where the teacher says, "I know what I need to do to make this better, " before we even get the first question asked. I am so happy that I am getting this chance to help teachers take the time to look at how they are doing things and asking themselves, "What can I do to make this even better?"
There are still some fears and anxieties about this whole process, but we continue to move forward. Some days it feels like baby steps, some days we are making leaps and bounds, and some days it feels like we are drowning in the middle of the lake. But each day I go home with a smile on my face, knowing my team is seeing positive things in our classrooms. Which means good things for our students. And isn't that the real reason we do it?

Sometimes You Have to Take the Stairs

"Shirley Temple Stair Dance from the Little Colonel" YouTube, https://youtu.be/LrBjFokI4jM,September 21, 2016

Thought of the week: 

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So today I was looking at motivational quotes and came across this one. It fits so many situations. I think about my athletic son who this fits more literally, as in you have to run the stairs to get into shape to compete at a high level. I think of the workplace where it fits more figuratively, as in the steps or jobs you have to hold on your way to the top. But for me, it fits where I am at in my new adventure. I have done the presentations and set the stage...that was pretty easy for me and fell into my comfort zone. Now comes the work with teachers. So for me, I am on my way to success but I am taking the stairs. I am learning as I go and wondering if I am on the stairs going up or going down or somehow doing a little dance in between? 

How Do You Learn?

I am old enough and have been in education long enough that I am considered a veteran teacher. With that title comes many things including a bigger toolbox of strategies, lots of stories, a whole lot of stuff, and experiences. I've also been around long enough to be privy to a variety of professional development learning. Amongst the learning is that not everyone learns the same. So when I taught in the classroom I was always trying to think about different learning styles in my classroom and how to meet those learning needs. Sometimes that was easy, especially incorporating hands on learning or auditory learning, but sometimes the task seemed daunting. When that happened I fell back into teaching one of two ways:
1. The way I like to learn.
2. The way I was taught.

Fortunately if I used the first option I would reach some students in my classroom because it was likely that I would have some visual learners or learners who liked to learn in small groups.
However, if I chose option 2 I'm not sure I was very effective because I'm not sure my students learned that way.  I will call it the "sit-n-git" method where the teacher talks, the students listen, and maybe the students get to do some kind of work (probably a worksheet) to practice the skill the teacher was talking about. In fact I know the last few years when I tried to teach a lesson this way I was not very successful in engaging students or getting the results I was hoping for.

So I have two questions for my educator friends:
1. How do you learn?
2. How do you teach?

It (growth mindset) is the belief that qualities can change and that we can develop our intelligence and abilities. The opposite of having a growth mindset is having a fixed mindset, which is the belief that intelligence and abilities cannot be developed. -Eduardo Briceños

I have not always had growth mindset. I was the youngest of 3 children. My parents were almost 40 when I was born. I was the miracle child, the golden child. My mother will tell you I was the easiest to raise, I was good at school, and I got along with everyone. I was told my the adults in my family how wonderful I was, how smart I was, how talented I was, and I believed them. School came easy and I achieved many awards throughout my school career (varsity letter, National Honor Society, academic awards, musical awards). Then I went to college. I found out maybe I wasn't so special and smart. I didn't get into the elite choir, I didn't get into advanced writing as a freshman, and I flunked a test. Suddenly I questioned my worth.
But somewhere along the way into adulthood I figured out that I could learn and I could grow and I could fail. That's right-I could fail and it was ok. I learned how to bounce back from failure. I learned how to reflect and adjust. Then I learned how to look at my students and try to help them learn how to grow and learn from mistakes, learn from failure. 
Now my challenge is to help my colleagues. Some of them already have growth mindset and are accepting this coaching situation as a time to grow in their professional practice. Others still are not sure. They want to be perfect the first time. They don't want to be told that they are "wrong". Luckily it's not my job to tell them they are wrong. I'm here to help them learn how to reflect and look for ways to make it better. After all, we can always get better.

Today I came across this quote when I was looking at my Twitter feed and I realized this is what I am asking teachers to do. I am asking them to try something new and perhaps there will be failure. But as educators we need to look at failure as an opportunity to grow and learn.  We can learn from failure-what part of it was good? what part didn't go so well? what can I do next time that will make it better? And here's an idea...ask the students for their feedback. For elementary students this could be as simple as a thumbs up/thumbs down, or a smiley face, straight face, or frown face. In middle school and high school I think students can give more effective feedback as far as what did you like about what we did in class? Did it help you learn? What would you do differently if you were the teacher? Just because we have always done things a certain way doesn't mean we should continue, or worse yet if we do a certain way because that is the way we were taught it is time to try something new.  My challenge as an instructional coach is how do I best help those teachers who are afraid to fail, afraid to step out of their comfort zone? How do I assure them it will be ok. How do I let them know I can get you through this if you just trust me and take the first step?

I don't have the answers...yet. I'm working on my skills as a coach. I'm working on establishing relationships. I'm reading and learning. I will fail along the way. But I will learn and I will get better. And I will try again.

Today my superintendent shared with me something she had seen on Twitter. I didn't write it down word for word but the gist was that the thing that is hard about being an educator is that we can make a difference, but we have to work on making that difference EVERY day.

Many people have asked me how I like my new position. I try to answer truthfully.
1. The first week was filled with meetings, meetings, meetings. (not my favorite)
2. The second week we got to start meeting with teachers in group so we could kick off our coaching process. (Yay!)
3. By the end of the week we actually got to use our new found coaching skills and help relieve the anxiety of one of the teachers about some of the expectations this year. (Yay team!)
4. I miss the kids. I miss the chance to get to try all these new things I have learned with the students to see what a difference it can make. Hopefully I will get a chance this year to do some modeling.
5. There are lots of things to accomplish this year but I have to take baby steps. Rome was not built in a day and change doesn't always happen overnight.

But I am excited about this opportunity to keep our district moving forward towards improved classroom practices and collaborating to raise student achievement. Right now my team is pushing change in hopes that it will transform our system.

John Miller @agileschools

Change is a call to action from the outside. Transformation is call to action from the inside.

Our students are counting on us (they might not know it) to be able to bring it 173 days 8:15-3:25 because we can make a difference.

Overwhelmed

Today I am overwhelmed. We met with our AEA representative yesterday. She laid out all the things our team needs to be thinking about and working on over the next year. It's a big laundry list and it reaffirms that the work I'm trying to do is worthwhile and needed. Some of this work is easy-making sure the right tools get into the right hands so teachers can be effective. Some of the work is not so easy-supporting teachers so they can use the tools the right way and use them consistently, looking at data (which isn't bad but it certainly isn't good) and making decisions, knowing what teams to call together and how to find time for them to meet so they can accomplish goals, and helping those teachers who just can't see that change is needed. Luckily we have support from our AEA, from our superintendent, and from the principals. Most of our teachers seem willing to try new things in order to improve because it will be good for our students. I'm fortunate to work with a fantastic staff that works hard and cares about our kids. So although I feel like I have sunk to the bottom of the Coaching Waters, I'll slowly swim to the top gulp in a big mouthful of fresh air and dive back down into the waters. This is our time to make things better. This is our time to make a bigger difference than we have been. This is our time to go for the gold.

On a lighter note here are some things I have learned this week:
1. Bats like to hang out in the high school. Luckily we have a mighty maintenance staff that are versed at catch and release.
2. If you think you might need your umbrella...you do.
3. Be careful when taking the lasagna out of the oven because melted cheese is really hard to clean up when you drop the pan all over the oven door and the floor. It's also very slippery when you step in it and cats don't like to eat it.

1st Day Blues

If I was more of a musician I could have written a blues ditty yesterday entitled "First Day Blues". Now don't misunderstand me, I do not regret my decision to become an Instructional Coach. But I would be lying if I said, "No! I didn't miss the kids at all on the first day." When you are an elementary teacher you become a rock star to those little beings. You are one of the most important people in their lives.

But I did miss the kids. Sure I saw kids at the middle school that were former students and even got a few hugs. And I saw kids at the high school who wondered why I was in their building. But I didn't belong to anyone.

I am very glad I am taking this opportunity to be a coach and collaborate with teachers. I know it will be both challenging and rewarding. In fact today as I was walking through the hallways I heard teachers clearly connecting their lessons to a curriculum goal and starting to engage students. Next week we get rolling with our coaching sessions and then the real work begins. I feel ready.

BRING IT!!!

It was the night before school starts and all through the house, not a creature was stirring except for me. It's quiet at my house but I haven't gone to bed yet. Usually I would be fretting about small things like:
Will I remember to run those copies?
Did I plan enough to keep the kids engaged and busy?
Do I have enough snacks?
Will this be a good year?
What about behaviors?

But this year I am coaching. This year I am able to help teachers in their classrooms to improve instruction which impacts student engagement and achievement. This is our time to make an improvement. This is our time to grow and learn. This is our time to make a difference.

So tomorrow starts 173 of days with the students of East Sac County. 173 days to be the best we can be.
One of the fears that the staff communicated to us is they weren't sure if they would be able to "bring it" every day for 173 days. And you know what-it will be hard. There will be some days that we are on our A game and able to bring it. There will be other days that our personal life gets in the way, students behaviors bring us down, or physical ailments interfere with our ability to bring it. But...if we continue to try to strive to "bring it" every day for every kid we will be in a better place than we were when we started.
The high school principal adopted the phrase and is using it as a motto for his building. So tomorrow teachers we get to Bring it! We get to open our classroom doors and share ourselves and our knowledge with the students of ESC. Aren't we the lucky ones?

Collaborating to Raise Student Achievement

Day 1 of PD: "It's our time" was the theme for the day. My team of coaches and I were leading the morning session. I was excited but calm. We went through our morning trying to inspire our staff to see our vision that change is a necessary tool for growth (maybe some saw it as a necessary evil). We rolled out our plan to the teachers for how we would coach, who we would coach, and what we would coach.
After lunch the teachers broke into their PLC (Professional Learning Communities) groups. It was amazing to listen to them laugh and work through protocols to collaborate and set up their group for further learning throughout the year. I am so blessed to work with such a great bunch of teachers who are willing to open themselves to learning.
At the end of the day I felt we are moving in the right direction and that the majority of teachers are open and willing to grow and learn. Yes there are fears and questions but we will work through them together.

Day 2: Today I got to work with the MS staff as they worked through learning on Performance Based Assessment. Again I was amazed at how willing they are to dig in and work hard at their understandings of assessments and how to use that knowledge to help our kids. Having always worked in education I wonder if other professions are as passionate about the clientele they serve. It truly is the passion for our students that drives this bunch of adults. I'm very excited to see how things change over the year and most importantly how our students grow in their learning because of this change.

Twas the Night Before PD

Tomorrow the teachers report for the first day back to school. Normally I would be thinking about what's the absolute last minute I can sleep until and still arrive to staff meetings on time. I would also be thinking about who I would sit by, where will we eat lunch, and other trivial matters. But this year it is different. This year I am in charge of delivering the first day of meetings along with my team of coaches. So there are other thoughts bumping around in my mind.

• Do our plans clearly explain our vision?
• Will the teachers be open and willing to listen?
• Is our presentation interesting enough to hold their attention?
• Will I get tongue-tied when I'm trying to talk?

I'm surprisingly calm tonight as I get ready to pack my bag for tomorrow. We've done the preparation, we have all the handouts made and ready to go, we've made the visuals, and I've looked over the presentation several times. Tomorrow starts a new year and a new adventure for me and the staff. I'm positive we can accomplish great things this year. We have great people and effective tools. 

This is our time to make a change for the thing that matters most...our students.

A New Beginning

It is mid-August in Iowa. The hot summer days are quickly coming to an end. I know it is almost time for school to start because I can hear the crickets singing outside. Usually this time of year I am frantically trying to get name tags on desks, unpack new supplies, decorate the outside of my second grade classroom, and enjoy my last few days of freedom. This year is different. This year, after 28 years in the classroom, I am transitioning into a full time instructional coaching position.

Many of my colleagues asked me whatever possessed me to even apply for this position. This is a chance for me to learn and grow. This is a chance for me to impact more than the 20 or so students sitting in my classroom. This is a chance to collaborate with other teachers in my district. This is a chance for a new challenge.

So as my elementary colleagues are arranging desks and creating bulletin boards I am finalizing professional development plans, putting the final touches on our presentation for the staff (with the help of my amazing team), and anxiously awaiting my chance to start coaching and collaborating with teachers to impact students. I'm not sure I have been this ready or excited to start a school year for a long time.