Saturday, July 13, 2013

Hakuna matata!


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!):



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
 
That’s it for this week!

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