Today’s
animated video – and ticket to lessons about instructional coaching – is
Disney’s The Lion King. Although there are many dark moments and
themes in this movie, it lives on in my mind with a warm glow. That is mostly due to the charming portrayals
of Simba as a young cub, the majesty of Mufasa and the tenderness he shows to
his son, and the light-hearted segment of the movie where Simba is nurtured by
his friends, Timon and Pumbaa. Hopefully
summertime is your chance for what Simba had during his time with these two
friends: “hakuna matata” ("no
worries")!
Besides the carefree motto of the meerkat and warthog,
who nurse Simba back to health after he is nearly killed by the evil Scar, The Lion King has some themes worth
noting as we reflect on instructional coaching.
The overarching idea of the movie is cycles – in this case, “The Circle
of Life.” The movie begins and ends with
a young royal lion cub entering the world.
What happens in between is a coming-of-age story of growth and change as
Simba grows from a young cub trying unsuccessfully to imitate his royal father
to a mature lion who is mistaken for Mafusa, not only because of his physical
appearance, but also because of his maturity.
Simba
has become like his father and obtained the wisdom of a true king.
Although
we are not looking to clone ourselves when we support teachers, there is a
cycle of growth and change as we work with teachers in a coaching cycle. Like Simba, the teachers we are working with
need nurturing. Some light-heartedness from time to time helps, too! But Simba needed something more than the
companionship of his friends to help him revive and grow. He needed life-giving water. What are the ways you provide “water” to
teachers in your school? The stages in
the GIR model emphasize different types of support you might consider as you
work with teachers:
·
Providing
Models - by teaching for or with them in their classroom, through
demonstrations during conversations, by arranging for them to visit other
classes, by sending them video clips, etc.
·
Making
Recommendations – about formative assessment, teaching strategies, content or
skills, or the standards. You might also
recommend resources – perhaps by providing an article for a teacher to read
that really hits the spot!
·
Asking
Questions – to promote reflection or analysis.
Although asking questions may not seem like a way to provide “water,” it
may be just the nourishment a teacher needs to grow as a professional!
·
Affirming – by
agreeing with a plan, confirming information, or using data to validate their
practice. Definitely water!
·
Praising – to
commend their practice, praise their plan, or applaud their knowledge.
Different teachers need different nourishment. If you’re not sure what a teacher needs, just
ask them! This summer, you might create
a menu of coaching services using the above list as a guide. Starting the year off by sharing this list of
ways you can support teachers can enable you to quickly begin your coaching
work and get those cycles going!
The theme of The
Lion King is also illustrated as we preparing for the start of another
school year. “The Circle of Life”
continues as we get ready to welcome new teachers and students and take on
whatever opportunities for growth come with the 2013-14 school year. But for now……..
Hakuna
matata!
This week,
you might want to take a look at:
What
this author says is “Everything You Need to Know about CCSS Testing" (provides
helpful insight, but right now you also need to know that there’s a lot we don’t
know!):
http://thejournal.com/articles/2013/07/02/everything-you-need-to-know-about-common-core-testing.aspx
An
article by Doug Fisher about Sustained Silent Reading (he’s talking about high
schools, but the ideas can be applied more broadly):
Fun
for math folks – a video about the decimal point from “The Rappin’ Math
Teacher” (the rap starts at 3:21, but the rest is interesting, too!):
Try
out some digital tools while you have more time. If you haven’t embedded Google forms
(surveys, quizzes) in Wikis, here are some tips. Once you’ve figured this out yourself, it’s a
helpful tool to share with teachers:
http://blog.wikispaces.com/2013/03/tips-and-tricks-embedding-google-forms.html
http://blog.wikispaces.com/2013/03/tips-and-tricks-embedding-google-forms.html
That’s
it for this week!
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