What Are You Measuring?

I’m a lover-of-nature. I write from a seat facing the forest – it inspires me. A walk through the trees leaves me feeling peaceful and refreshed. The forest’s colors delight my eyes. The leaves under my feet cushion my step.  The canopy overhead shields and shadows me. Music is provided by the birds that call the forest home.  How can I measure that?
 
In his book, Messy, the Power of Disorder, Tim Harford describes how, in 1763 a forest was measured by Johann Beckmann and his crew.  Each man had a belt with five leather pouches containing a known-number of differently-colored nails. At one edge of the forest, the team formed a line. They walked abreast through the forest, assessing every tree in their path and tagging it with a nail colored to identify its size. At the other edge of the forest, they emptied their pouches, counted their remaining nails, and determined how many trees of each size the forest held. They had systematically measured the forest for timber production.
 
What are you and the teachers you work with measuring in the classroom?  How are you measuring it?  Are you measuring engagement? Curiosity? Connectedness?  Are you measuring passion for learning? Participation? Comprehension?  Are you measuring rage at injustice?  Whether students treat one another with respect? Whether the teacher invites all voices to participate? How high the expectations for learning are?  We are subtly – or not so subtly – influenced by what we are measuring. “What gets tested gets taught.” 
 
Although the institutions that govern schools have a hand in deciding what gets measured, teachers and coaches have freedom to decide what to emphasize. As we create lesson objectives and goals for coaching cycles, let’s not forget to measure the walk through the forest.
 
This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
 This podcast about rubric repair:
 
https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/rubric-repair/
 
 
Shifting from trauma-informed care to healing-centered engagement:
 
https://medium.com/@ginwright/the-future-of-healing-shifting-from-trauma-informed-care-to-healing-centered-engagement-634f557ce69c
 
 
Conferring with mentor texts:
 
https://ccira.blog/2020/12/08/conferring-with-mentor-texts/
 
 
A video of Tanya Wright doing a remote read-aloud to support vocabulary development (scroll down):
 
https://www.heinemann.com/products/e11277.aspx
 
 
Are educators recharging or recovering?
 
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec20/vol78/num04/When-Netflix-Isn't-Enough@-Fostering-True-Recovery-for-Educators.aspx
 
That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!
 
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Welcome!

This season of giving and receiving is a good time to think about what it’s like to be a gracious receiver, and how that applies to coaching.  A gracious receiver of a gift appreciates what they receive with kindness. Enjoying what you receive is an expression of gratitude.

How can coaches be great receivers who welcome teachers into the coaching relationship with acceptance and grace? A coach I spoke with this week talked about the importance of being open and accepting, of exuding the feeling, “You’re welcome here.”  This may sound strange, especially if you are meeting in the teacher’s own room, but it’s the coach’s job to put out the welcome mat for the coaching conversation.

Showing genuine interest in a teacher’s work and their experiences in the school and in the classroom is a welcoming gesture.  Ask them what gave them the greatest satisfaction at school that day or during that lesson.  When you find out what a teacher values, tuck away that information and look for opportunities to build on it.  For example, Rachel got great satisfaction when she saw how several of her students jumped to help when another student accidently dumped the contents of her chair pocket. Knowing that Rachel cares about student-to-student interactions, I can be sure to notice and note them.  By doing this, I’m investing in Rachel’s happiness and welcoming her into the coaching relationship.

It’s a welcoming gesture to broadcast a teacher’s strengths, even if she is the only audience.  Acknowledge what is remarkable about her.  When a teacher knows you see her good, she will be open to moving forward rather than digging in to where she is. Quickly noting an asset is more effective than a long explanation of something a teacher should not do.
 
We are welcoming when we position the teacher as peer.  Showing our own vulnerability and mistakes helps teachers recognize that we will allow for their weaknesses and doubts along with their certainty and confidence. They know they can show up to a coaching conversation as their whole, real selves, not as a perfect imposter.  The old Billy Joel song, “I love you just the way you are,” has relevance here.  Welcoming in this way invites vulnerability, which opens the door for learning.
 
Welcome questions and problems. Ask, “What are you wondering about?” Tolerate hesitations. Welcome teachers’ half-baked ideas, the parts of their work that they are still figuring out.  Encourage ideas.  Make sure teachers feel valued for who they are and what they bring to the table.
 
When a teacher feels welcomed and understood, there is a purposeful connection. Respectful willingness to receive a teacher and her intentions empowers her to attempt, and accomplish, things she may otherwise not feel driven to do. Feeling welcomed and valued inspires greatness.
 
I’ve noticed that two coaches may seem to be acting in similar ways but have very different results. They may be equally knowledgeable and dependable, even using the same coaching moves. But the coach who is friendly, reassuring and personable, the one who is there to chat as well as to offer support, is more likely to be effective.  Putting out the welcome mat opens the door for successful coaching.
 
This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
Interactive literacy games:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/three-classroom-games-for-literacy-learning-and-laughter/
 
 
Rethinking homework:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/rethinking-homework/
 
 
This podcast about managing the ambiguity of teaching in the current climate:
 
https://www.bamradionetwork.com/track/managing-the-ambiguity-loss-of-control-and-fatigue-of-teaching-in-the-current-climate/
 
 
28 Student-Centered instructional strategies:
 
https://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/28-student-centered-instructional-strategies/
 
 
The value of shared reading (and how to do it with digital books):
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/shared-reading-in-the-digital-age/
 
That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!
 
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Follow on Facebook at: facebook.com/mycoachescouch or Twitter @vscollet for more coaching and teaching tips!  You can also find me at VickiCollet.com
 
 

Teacher-Thinkers

Are teachers you work with getting a “vote of no confidence?” A vote of no confidence is a statement that a person is inadequate in some respect or making decisions that others feel are detrimental.  In some governments, a “no confidence” vote means the leader has to resign, along with all the council members; but teachers may feel a vote of no confidence when they are given a scripted curriculum or recommendations that do the thinking for them.
 
Teachers should be the ultimate knowledge workers:  They are tasked with the job of creating critical thinkers, so they should be treated as critical thinkers themselves.  They should be the lead thinkers in and about their classrooms. Unfortunately, programs that promise easy success, that “take the guesswork out” of teaching, also take away the opportunity for thinking (and, I would argue, for effective instruction).
 
A thinking teacher chafes at mandates that reduce their agency. They see scripted materials as a way to dumb-down the profession.  Instead, an intellectual educator has the desire to think deeply about her practice. A teacher-thinker is one who wonders, ponders, questions, and reflects. Teachers as thinkers consider possibilities, think about individual and group needs and aptitudes, and are never satisfied with the status quo.
 
What does that look like when coaching?  How do we support teachers as thinkers?  Coaches can create a consistent, conscious space for thinking regularly about classroom practices. And in those spaces, the teachers we work with need to do the thinking for themselves; we don’t think for them, we think with them, or facilitate opportunities for them to think.
 
I’ve been considering how to support intellectual educators throughout the GIR coaching process.  Here are some initial thoughts that you can add to (as an intellectual educator yourself!).
 
When coaches model, they encourage thinking by setting the stage for thoughtful noticing and by encouraging a critical stance.  In a conversation before modeling, coach and teacher think together about the lesson.  The teacher could anticipate student responses and then test her hypotheses through careful observation.
 
When coaches recommend, they can invite the teacher to consider options rather than directing a particular action. A coach may share the purpose or benefits of particular strategies and ask the teacher to consider how those purposes or benefits align with their objectives or their students’ needs.  Following a recommendation should be a thought-filled decision.
 
When coaches ask questions without having a specific response in mind, they encourage divergent thinking and problem-solving. Together with teachers, they entertain and evaluate possibilities.  Questions are a thought-provoking tool that can nudge teachers to explore new ideas.
 
After coaches affirm, they can ask, “Why do you think that worked so well?” Because teachers often jump to what they would do differently when they reflect, an affirmation draws important attention to practices that should be carried forward.  Probing those practices uncovers underlying principles for success.
 
Praise might be a stand-alone coaching move, but, like affirming, it increases the likelihood of iterating effective practices and inspires ongoing success. 
 
Compliance and conformity reduce teaching to a robotic, ineffective enterprise. Continuous thinking improves practice, with teachers getting better and better at what they do.  Coaches support teachers as intellectual educators when they provoke thought-filled conversations all along the way.

 
This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
Strategies for better online discussion boards:
 
https://inservice.ascd.org/three-strategies-for-better-online-discussions/
 
 
How to coach the overwhelmed teacher:
 
https://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/coaching_teachers/2019/02/how_to_coach_the_overwhelmed_t.html
 
 
A podcast on creating meaningful learning experiences:
 
https://www.bamradionetwork.com/track/creating-meaningful-learning-experiences/
 
 
Author videos, interviews, and websites:
 
https://booksavors.wordpress.com/authors/
 
 
5 levels of student engagement, including rebellion à compliance àengagement:
 
https://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/levels-of-student-engagement-continuum/
 
That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!
 
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Follow on Facebook at: facebook.com/mycoachescouch or Twitter @vscollet for more coaching and teaching tips!  You can also find me at VickiCollet.com

Open

A week ago I met with Piper after observing in her classroom. Piper is an effective teacher who includes active learning opportunities. She listens to her students, they listen to her, and they listen to each other.  These interactions are pretty impressive for 4^th-graders. When we met to talk about the science lesson I’d observed, we had so many effective practices to talk about: including multiple representations of the content; short, effective partner talks; discussion where students’ built on one-another’s comments, explaining concepts to one another. She also made meaningful connections to previous learning, provided clear instructions, and encouraged students to use independent work time efficiently by setting a timer. Of course, we celebrated all of these successes!  Eventually, the conversation turned to an aspect of the lesson that went less smoothly: After all students drew a picture of the human eye (as a check for background knowledge near the beginning of the lesson), she had each student hold up their drawing and say something about it.  Snaking around the room through the COVID-straight rows of 27 desks, the conversation started out productive but soon dissolved into embarrassment about sharing their drawings and nothing to say.  Because I trust Piper’s judgment as a teacher, I wanted to remain open to her ideas and her reasoning for including this approach. So I asked, “When has having every student respond worked well in the past?”  Responding to this question helped Piper pin down criteria for when a sequential all-respond might be appropriate in future lessons.  Even though my instinct was to dismiss this practice altogether, Piper showed me there are times when it can work well.  I’m glad I was open to her thinking!
 
Being open is a coaching attribute that can be part of our lifelong-learner mindset.  Asking an open-ended question, as I did with Piper, is one way to demonstrate an open mindset.  Starting a conversation with, “What’s on your mind?” leaves the door wide-open for any topic of conversation.  Asking, “What else could you try?” suggests there are many possible solutions. Asking, “What makes you say so?” deepens the level of analysis in a conversation.  When we ask questions without having our own answer in mind, we are displaying an open mindset.
 
Keeping the doors of the mind open means that we avoid criticizing or ignoring new ideas.  It means delaying judgment. It’s refreshing not to have to defend your own ideas, but rather to listen intently to others’.  Although there are definitely times when coaches should share their expertise, doing so with an open mindset brings a lightness to the conversation, affording teachers their agency and acknowledging their own professional judgment.  Being open invites a productive conversation. 
 
When we maintain open communication with teachers, we welcome their thoughts, worries, concerns, and celebrations. We establish a conversational tone where teachers feel free to talk about their thoughts and opinions.  Teachers know they can bring up both everyday issues and difficult topics. I’ve found that exploring ideas together leads to growth – for the teacher and for me.
 
When coaches have an open mindset, they are approachable.  Their posture, positioning, and facial expressions help teachers feel at ease. Some of us have to think intentionally about each of these things, but they tend to flow more naturally when we remind our brains to move our own ideas to the back burner for a minute and be open to the ideas of others.
 
Our state of mind frames and changes everything we see. When we are open, our mental models are temporary and flexible. A good conversation is one where we learn something, and what others say is always interesting.  Being open is seeing things both as they are and as they could be.  It means seeing our coaching work as full of possibility.
 
This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
How to build resilient teams:
 
https://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/coaching_teachers/2019/07/how_to_build_resilient_teams.html
 
 
A podcast about productive PLC conversations:
 
https://barkleypd.com/blog/creating-plc-converstions-that-increase-collective-responsibility/
 
 
7 rules for supporting students who have difficulty self-managing:
 
https://www.smartclassroommanagement.com/2011/04/23/7-rules-of-handling-difficult-students/
 
 
Assessing engagement with the engage-o-meter:
 
https://studysites.corwin.com/highimpactinstruction/videos/v12.2.htm
 
 
Humor writing for teens:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/humor-writing-with-teens/
 
 
That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!
 
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Interrogating Success

This week, I’ve felt a little grumbly about our teacher evaluation system – the negative messages it sometimes sends through its wording.  Although I think the elements of the rubric our state uses are generally aligned with strong instruction, I find myself grimacing at certain words, phrases, and assumptions.  Phrases like, “but may display lack,” and “no knowledge.”  Words like, "limited," “however,” “only,” “although,” and “but.”
 
If we have a growth mindset, wouldn’t we say, “Teacher recognizes the value of understanding students’ skills…and displays this knowledge for the class as a whole” rather than “Teacher recognizes the value of understanding students’ skills…but displays this knowledge only for the class as a whole.”*  Changing the but to an and and dropping the only sends a message that acknowledges what a teacher can do.  Words matter, whether coming from a rubric or from the mouth of an instructional coach.
 
I was also grumbly about the final section of the rubric, where the observer is to list, “Focus areas for next observation.”  That section of the rubric seems to be asking for recommendations.  But what if the teacher doesn’t need recommendations?  What if, instead, she would benefit more from authentic questions? 
 
In our state’s use of the system, a post-observation question for teachers’ written reflection is, “If you had the opportunity to work with the same students on this lesson again, what would you do the same? What would you do differently?” I’m so glad the reflection request begins with the notion of what worked well, but I find that most teachers jump right to the second question and list changes they would make.  What if, instead, we interrogated success?  What if we began with only the question, “What would you do the same and why?”  What if we focused so much on the things that went well that they became an emphasis for future lessons?   
 
This week, I tried to focus my conversations with teachers on the things that worked – the effective core structures of lessons, the in-the-moment adjustments, the thought-provoking questions.  I talked with Annie about how her follow-up questions stimulated learning.  I asked Ashley about how including opportunities for students to self-assess supported the work.  Aymanda and I talked about her spontaneous decision to stop reading the words of a book and let the pictures tell the rest of the story.  With Emily, the conversation centered around the joy that is palpable in her room and what she does to build it. After these conversations, both the teacher and I felt thankful for the good things that were happening in their classrooms – good things that will surely continue, and perhaps be more intentional, because we have looked at them closely.  By interrogating successes, we gain a deeper understanding of effective instruction. A close examination of what went well creates anchors that help teachers stay the course.
 
*Danielson, C. (2007). Enhancing professional practice: A framework for teaching. ASCD.
 
 
This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
This podcast about the school as a conversational community:
 
https://www.growthcoaching.com.au/podcasts/the-school-as-a-conversational-community
 
How to curb burnout:
 
http://teacher.scholastic.com/education/pdfs/Educator-Check-In-Campaign-Infographic.pdf
 
What really matters in learning to read. A podcast with Dr. P. David Pearson:
 
https://blog.savvas.com/learning-to-read-what-really-matters-with-dr-p-david-pearson/
 
What makes a good mentor:
 
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/may99/vol56/num08/The-Good-Mentor.aspx
 
This work-Life Balance quiz:
 
https://cmha.ca/work-life-balance-quiz#.VyYsIzArKhc
 
That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!
 
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Follow on Facebook at: facebook.com/mycoachescouch or Twitter @vscollet for more coaching and teaching tips!  You can also find me at VickiCollet.com

Guessing or Gathering

When planning– whether it’s in our personal lives or in our classrooms - we look forward and think about what the future might hold. We think about hoped-for outcomes and anticipate potential roadblocks. All this forward-thinking is essential, of course, but future-oriented forecasting is best coupled with the “look back” practice of reflection.
 
The future hasn’t happened yet, so it can’t be our teacher.  As we plan, instead of looking ahead and guessing, reflection helps us look back and gather.  Gathering beats guessing as a planning tool.
 
It’s also unrealistic to depend on the present to teach us in the moment as it happens.  The present is fleeting; it happens too fast, and we are going to miss out on the nuances if we don’t rewind to reflect. We need to name the unnamed, and this requires attention.
 
That is why reflection is such an integral part of coaching. When working with a coach, teachers have a reason to say it out loud, to make connections, to describe specific, concrete examples, to make sense of a situation.  After the moment has passed, we can connect the dots and look for patterns. We pull lots of ideas together to consider the relationships between them.
 
I had a reflective conversation with Ryan this week after observing in his classroom.  The lesson was about informational writing, and there were parts that went smoothly, along with bumps in the road.  After we had talked our way through the lesson, thinking about what we noticed and why that mattered, Ryan returned reflectively to his favorite moment in the lesson.  After sharing informational texts written by published authors, Ryan had asked, “Do you think the authors who wrote these could always write like this?  Do you think when they were in third grade like you, they could include facts, details, and definitions like this?” A student called out, “No!” enthusiastically, and Ryan asked students to turn to their partner and talk about this question.  I heard students dialoging energetically, “They can’t just know that already!” “They have to learn about it first!”  When he later reflected on this bright spot in the lesson, he realized the thing that made it stand out was how it brought authentic purpose to the lesson objective.  Students had ah-hah experiences about their own learning.  Seeing that moment in connection with and in contrast to other parts of the lesson helped Ryan gain valuable insight.   
 
During reflection, we gather information - little bits and pieces that were mostly unnoticed in the steady forward-flow of the moment. After gathering, we synthesize – that is, we pull lots of ideas together to consider the relationships between them.  Our answers won’t be definitive.  In fact, one of the valuable outcomes of reflection is the questions we carry with us into the future. For the reflective practitioner, though, the future will be guided by gathering rather than by guessing.
 
This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
The case for coaches in professional learning communities:
 
https://www.allthingsplc.info/blog/view/362/the-case-for-coaches-in-professional-learning-communities
 
A podcast - We are all teacher leaders:
 
https://learn.teachingchannel.com/tchtalks-podcast/tch-talks-episode-11
 
 
Lifting a line from mentor texts helps students’ writing soar:
 
http://all-en-a-days-work.blogspot.com/2013/11/line-lifts-great-strategy-still.html
 
 
Avoiding Zoom fatigue (for teachers and students) – check out the notes or the podcast:
 
https://www.edsurge.com/news/2020-09-15-is-learning-on-zoom-the-same-as-in-person-not-to-your-brain
 
 
Using single-point rubrics:
 
https://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/how-single-point-rubrics-can-improve-quality-student-work/
 
That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!
 
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Follow on Facebook at: facebook.com/mycoachescouch or Twitter @vscollet for more coaching and teaching tips!  You can also find me at VickiCollet.com

Downloading Solutions

When coaching with the GIR model, we are always thinking about what the teacher needs. But moving from recommending to questioning requires a deep shift in how we, as coaches, see.  We may need to work on ourselves before we work with others.

As knowledgeable, experienced educators, we are able to download solutions based on patterns that have worked in the past. This is comfortable territory! Interpretations and options for action are those we know and trust. However, as we shift our coaching moves from recommending to questioning, we are also shifting what we attend to.  When making recommendations, the center of our attention is really ourselves – what we already know and can do. We perceive through the lens of judgment. When we question, our attention shifts to the unique reality in front of us.  Instead of past patterns, we see the present moment and emerging futures.  Instead of letting what we see confirm what we know, we suspend judgment and broaden our perceptions. Questioning opens the boundaries of potential solutions. Instead of listening to the voice inside of us, we listen to the voice in front of us.

How can we make this internal shift?

·       Listen without letting your brain forecast your own response.

·       Suspend judgment.

·       Pause before responding.

·       Recognize the possibility of multiple solutions.

·       Suspend the decision.

·       Look for new information.

·       View the situation from another perspective.

·       Be ready to brainstorm.

When coaching shifts from recommending to questioning, we stop downloading the familiar from our own existing knowledge. Instead, we work collaboratively to create new possible futures. Moving from recommending to questioning is as much about changing as coaches as it is about teacher change.

This week, you might want to take a look at:

Thank you for all you do! You’re doing a good job!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkDNp4ATCso

 

Vocabulary activities for any age:

https://choiceliteracy.com/article/quick-vocabulary-practice-and-assessment/

This podcast about establishing relationships with students of color:

https://www.bamradionetwork.com/track/the-e-word-what-students-of-color-need-from-every-teacher/

 

A how-to guide for relationship mapping:

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5b7c56e255b02c683659fe43/t/5bd7aaac419202e5d277e29d/1540860588805/relationship_mapping_strategy.pdf

Rich picture books:

https://choiceliteracy.com/article/detour-texts/

That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!

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Follow on Facebook at: facebook.com/mycoachescouch or Twitter @vscollet for more coaching and teaching tips!  You can also find me at VickiCollet.com

Looking for Beautiful Things

My husband recently bought two new cameras, reinvigorating his interest in amateur photography. While on our walk, he paused and looked down the nearby street, grabbed a camera from his pocket, and framed a photo of colorful fall trees. He wore a smile as he tucked his camera back into his pocket, and I thought to myself, “It’s good to be looking for beautiful things in this world.”

Coaches, too, can be looking for beautiful things.  During observations and subsequent debriefs, a strengths-based approach can go a long way.  Sometimes teachers dread coaching and even come to dislike reflection because there is a “fix-it” mentality. A fix-it approach focuses on what went wrong and brainstorms ways to correct it. In contrast, a strengths-based approach focuses on what went right and looks for ways to increase it.

Positive psychology suggests this is a helpful approach. Positivity boosts creativity. Building on strengths, rather than focusing on deficiencies, promotes confidence and resilience.

Unfortunately, humans tend to have a negativity bias, remembering unfavorable experiences more than positive ones. This has some disadvantages, Negative emotions consume energy and can lead to worrying, uncertainty, and a narrowed view of options.

In today’s educational climate, we need practices that increase energy and creativity. Decision fatigue and all the extra to-do’s because of the pandemic are weighing teachers down.  So it seems the right time for a strengths-based coaching focus. 

I had this on my mind as I met with Andrea last week.  I had spent some time in her classroom and seen so many positive things!  Even though technology failed, she didn’t miss a beat!  But when I asked what stood out for her with the lesson, she said, “It was a disaster!” It took some doing to pull her back to talking about things that went well. But we ended up focusing our conversation on the open-ended questions she asked her students throughout the lesson and how students responded to them.  I had specific examples in my notes, and reflecting on the higher-level thinking students were doing was encouraging.  A focus on this positive outcome brought enthusiasm as she thought of specific questions to include in an upcoming lesson.

At a time in world history when it feels there is much to drag us down, a strengths-based coaching approach can renew energy and optimism. By understanding their strengths, teachers can more easily create successful learning experiences for their students.

This week, you might want to take a look at:

The role of skillful noticing:

http://www.growthcoaching.com.au/articles-new/noticing-a-key-coaching-skill

Problems and solutions when teaching with a mask:

https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-connecticut-archive-52b44eed118bc03579c41795637e9b86

Instant mood-boosters:

https://aestheticsofjoy.com/2020/10/17/8-quick-things-you-can-do-right-now-to-boost-your-mood/

 

How to set up virtual book clubs:

https://www.edutopia.org/article/how-set-virtual-book-club-students

This podcast episode about the classroom as a place of joy:

http://talkswithteachers.com/

That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!

Was this helpful?  Please share!
Want to know about new posts? Click “Follow” (bottom right)
Follow on Facebook at: facebook.com/mycoachescouch or Twitter @vscollet for more coaching and teaching tips!  You can also find me at VickiCollet.com 

Time Out! (for Coaches & Teachers)

 Football season is upon us, but it’s more than just athletes who need a Time Out! Teaching has never been a more stressful profession.  And ongoing stress has serious consequences, affecting the area of our brain responsible for memory and learning.
 
When stress is high and seems to be getting in the way of your coaching efforts, you might try some of the following to get both you and the teacher you are working with ready for a productive coaching session.
 
1) Take a deep breath.  You might even close your eyes while you do it. Don’t hide your attempt from the teacher you are working with. Our brains subconsciously mirror the emotions of others. As you relax, the teacher you are working with is likely to relax, too. You may even see the exhale.
 
2) Drop and relax your shoulders. We carry a lot of tension there! Rotate your shoulder blades and imagine the stress going down your arms and out of your fingertips.
 
3) Laugh out loud – it lowers stress hormones and boosts feel-good endorphins. You don’t have to be a stand-up comedian to bring out a chuckle!  Slip a comic strip in the front of your clear-view binder or share a story from the school-day that made you smile. Lightening the mood can increase the effectiveness of your coaching.
 
4) Add calming images, sounds, or scents. In your classroom or office, a photo or sound of waves washing up on the beach can foster relaxation. Bird song, music, lavender, the scent of pine trees, the sound of rain, or the image of a sunset are some other possibilities. Invite your senses to take you to a relaxing place. It will ease the way for an open conversation and make others feel good, too!
 
5) Chew gum.  A few minutes of chewing can actually reduce anxiety. So offer a minty stick when you sense tension.
 
6) Offer lotion. Our hands also carry a lot of stress, and applying lotion provides a mini hand-massage for instant relaxation.
 
7) Squeeze a stress ball. It’s a portable way to reduce tension.
 
8) Head outside. If it’s a sunny day, an outdoor walk-and-talk will lift your spirits and inspire new ideas.
 
9) Journal. Writing about what’s stressing you can make emotions less intimidating. In addition to reducing stress, taking a few minutes to write at the beginning of a coaching session builds in reflection time and can provide a springboard for discussion. Those two or three minutes for reflection feel like a luxury in our fast-paced days.
 
10) Food for thought: although complex carbs create a more lasting stream of serotonin, simple carbs, like sweets, produce a spike in the hormone that can get the brain in gear for productive conversation.  My favorite research about stress is that dark chocolate regulates the stress hormone, so now I have an excuse for my addiction!
 
Of course, you won’t try all of these at once. One or two will likely do the job, releasing helpful hormones that chase away some of the ill-effects of stress. Decide whether or not to explicitly mention the stress and what you are doing to relieve it based on the context, the people you are working with, and your relationship to them. 
 
The quick-fix stress-reducers mentioned above set the stage for the coaching conversation – which could be another stress reducer.  Talking about stressful situations to a calm listener relieves, relaxes, and creates opportunities for problem solving. 
 
Try a few of these suggestions yourself to get ready for the day. You’ve earned that time out!
 
 
This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
An article about the value of reading for pleasure:
 
http://www.reading.org/reading-today/post/engage/2014/02/27/reading-pleasure-central-to-practice?utm_source=Inspire-1014&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Inspire

 
An article about using memorabilia as writing prompts:
 
http://www.choiceliteracy.com/articles-detail-view.php?id=348
 
An online app for Venn diagrams:
 
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/mobile-apps/venn-diagram-a-30994.html
 
A podcast with off-screen activities for remote learning:
 
http://www.nowsparkcreativity.com/2020/09/103-off-screen-activities-for-remote.html
 
 
Get convinced about the power of collaboration:
 
https://www.edsurge.com/n/2014-08-09-say-yolo-to-studying-solo-the-power-of-collaborative-learning
 
 
That’s it for this week. Happy coaching!
 
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