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!
 
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

 

 This week, as I met with my PLC, an agenda item was, “What’s essential?”  In this year of 2020, and seven months into the pandemic, we realize that teachers and students are bearing extra burdens.  Each day holds many extra decisions, and each decision seems heavy.  So, in our PLC, we began to ask, “What can we take off?” “How can we lighten the load?” These are questions that coaches can use as they reflect on their own workload and also as they consider the work of students and teachers. 
 
Although I’ll always be about continuous improvement, this is not the year for pushing hard, for tough love.  This is the year for compassion, for grace, for caring. As I described in last week’s post, this is the year for “soft-pedaling.” In that post, I talked about how bicyclists pedal, turning the crank without applying force. This week, let’s consider soft pedaling as a musical analogy.
 
Musicians know musical dynamics from notation using the Italian words, “piano” and “forte.”  Dynamics are one of the expressive elements of music. The relative loudness of a note or section communicates a particular emotional state. In musical notation, p, or piano, means quiet or soft. There’s even a special pedal on the piano for it, the una corda or “the soft pedal.”  Pianist know that the soft pedal not only quiets the sound, it gives a subtle change, producing a mellower tone.

Reading up a bit about the soft pedal,* I learned that every piano will have a different response when using it. “It’s very important to get to know the effects of your soft pedal,” says expert pianist Robert Estrin.  Further, Robert describes, “Room acoustics, audience noise, and many other factors can determine whether or not the soft pedal is appropriate. Many times I have performed on pianos that were a bit too bright and border on having a harsh tone. When faced with this problem I might use the soft pedal a great deal to sweeten the tone and produce a better sound out of the instrument.”
 
How can coaches sweeten the tone during this harsh year?  Last week’s post included a string of ideas related to soft-pedaling. I’ll continue that approach below, with each idea linked to a previous post.  If an idea strikes you as something you’d like to dive into, click the link to read more.

Following classroom observations, it’s easy to judge and recommend. However, this year, we might want to restrain judgement and, instead, ask questions. This approach feels softer, and it can reap rewards, encouraging teachers to take an active role during debrief conversations. The act of questioning often prompts an insightful explanation or the teacher’s own appropriate adaptations or next steps.  For example, asking, “Why did you give the students more time to work?” rather than making a recommendation, might lead to a fruitful conversation. Even if the direction is not what you expected, it will likely be a direction that is meaningful for the teacher you are working with.
 
Each coaching cycle is a journey, and because 2020 has been full of unexpected twists and turns, our coaching journeys have held the unusual and unexpected. The hope is that each coaching excursion is a collaborative one. This year, teachers need a coach who is not only at their side, but on their side. As a teacher told me, “When you have someone who is on your side, you are going to want to grow as a teacher and as a professional.” A supportive coach believes in what you are doing. They are your champion and cheerleader. So, they are going to recognize and acknowledge what you are doing well.  We can do this through affirmation and praise, leaning hard on those coaching moves that typically take center stage near the end of a coaching cycle.
 
This year, more than ever, teachers benefit from affirmation. Affirming all along the way maintains a positive climate for coaching. As a coaching tool, affirmations can give recognition of what to continue.  When affirming, coaches act as a sounding board so teachers can fine-tune their ideas. Giving a metaphoric pat on the back through words of affirmation is a good feeling – for both you and the teacher you are supporting. 
 
This week, I realized the power of praise.  During an observation, several things had gone wrong that were out of the teacher’s control (accidents happen, especially in kindergarten!).  Even though she subtly handled all the details and kept the lesson going for the class, mentally, she was flustered.  Her directions were off and she wasn’t really noticing her students’ responses.  Later, after the teacher unloaded during our debrief, I chose to focus on a long list of things that went right in the lesson: “The partner talk was brilliant,” I said. “Kids were coming up with great ideas, and it really worked that you followed Javier’s suggestion and had the class stand up, and then touched their heads so they would sit down as you counted them. I think that reinforced their understanding of the need for accurate counting!”  I also praised the instructional scaffolds she provided: “Having their 100’s charts and counting bubbles on their clipboards was really helpful.  I saw lots of students using them!”  I continued the conversation with addition details about positive things I’d noticed.  Kimberly did swing back to the things that hadn’t gone so well, and we talked them through and made plans, but even if that part of the conversation hadn’t happened, the praise, in and of itself, served a coaching purpose.  During stressful times, praise can help teachers find their happy spot – the reason they come to school every morning.
 
Asking questions, affirming, and praising can be “soft pedal” moves, appropriate for coaching in these turbulent times.  They sweeten the sound amidst the sometimes harsh tones in today’s world.
 
*https://livingpianos.com/when-to-use-the-soft-pedal-on-the-piano/
 
This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
This 10-minute podast about face-to-face school and SEL:
 
https://www.coolcatteacher.com/smiling-behind-the-mask-face-to-face-school-and-sel/
 
 
You can’t do better than your best:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufg-HMEzUwE&feature=emb_logo
 
 
Remote learning lessons from Mr. Rogers and Daniel Tiger (using puppets and props, allowing children to respond even in recorded videos, and talking directly to students):
 
https://www.9news.com/article/news/education/back-to-learning/boulder-valley-school-math-literacy-remote-learning-videos/73-1b5e48b1-e672-4b79-9858-c405329f094c

Georgia Heard talks about using poetry to connect us during these uncertain times:

https://ccira.blog/2020/09/15/poetry-is-a-way-to-connect-us-during-these-uncertain-times/

Picture books meaty enough to share with secondary students:

https://choiceliteracy.com/article/read-aloud-in-middle-school/
 

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

 

Soft Pedal to Move Forward

 

This year, more than ever, if I want coaching work to move forward, I need to soft pedal.  In cycling, soft pedaling means turning the crank without applying force. As needed, a soft-pedaler can smoothly apply power or back off a bit, easily feathering their speed. The dictionary says that soft pedaling is to refrain from emphasizing the more unpleasant aspects of something. Either way, I found myself soft pedaling while working with teachers recently.

Stephan is a teacher who has been too hard on himself.  He wants to break the habit of jumping in to rescue before students have time to think – an important goal, and one I’m supporting him with by gathering data about student response.  But, more than anything, I am drawing on the inspiring moments in his classroom. Stephan teaches with joy and humor. This year, especially, I don’t want him to lose that as he focuses on his current goal.

Alissa is a novice teacher who was struggling with classroom management but wasn’t really aware of it, because she was just so focused on getting through the lesson plan. The examples I shared in a debrief conversation had too much sting. I could see it in her eyes above the mask.  So I’ve been back-pedaling to find, instead, those moments when students are participating and engaged, and we are building on them.  We’ve already seen a lot of forward movement!

This year of 2020 is one of fragility, and my coaching needs to reflect that. As I’ve been coaching myself toward a soft-pedaled approach, I’ve been looking back over past blog posts for reminders. Below is a string of ideas related to soft-pedaling. Each is linked to a previous post, so if an idea strikes you as something you’d like to dive into, click the link to read more.

First, since we can never really stop thinking about infection, let’s remind ourselves that attitudes are contagious, too!  Coaches can take the lead, sharing a positive attitude that will spread. An increase in confidence follows.

Now, more than ever, it’s important for me to attend to how teachers are responding, using their body language, expressions, and tone of voice, in addition to the words they say. The ability to read a conversation with all of my senses is a valuable coaching skill that I’m reminding myself to use.

I’ve also noticed that the better I am at really hearing what a teacher is saying, the better I will be heard.  I have to first listen deeply to teachers’ ideas, trying to understand both the purpose and the process.  I might have to asked question to better identify what the teacher values so that our work aligns with her needs.   

As I noted in the scenario about Alissa, coaches can offer an injection of hope by taking a strengths-based approach to their work.  Areas of struggle become easier to address – and sometime disappear entirely – when you and the teacher you are working with are focused on making what is good even better. 

Alissa is thriving on praise, building on things that are working. Specific praise can get teachers thinking about their practice and has been found to increase motivation, efficacy, creativity, and willingness to take risks. It enhances reflection and keeps a good thing going!

An emphasis on praise this year doesn’t mean I won’t use the other coaching moves in the GIR model. But I’ll soft-pedal those moves. The coaching journey is a cautious one. My steps are trepidatious – I have to test the ground before I move. I have to think things through before I say them and measure what the impact might be, because as 2020 winds down, perhaps we are all a little fragile.

If you, too, are finding the need for soft-pedal coaching, I hope these ideas will help you on your journey.

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

This podcast about trauma and reducing stress:

https://www.bamradionetwork.com/track/six-critical-things-every-teacher-needs-to-know-about-trauma-and-reducing-stress-this-school-year/

 

How mentors help first-year teachers:

http://neatoday.org/2017/06/19/lean-on-me-how-mentors-help-first-year-teachers/

 

Strategies for better online discussions:

https://inservice.ascd.org/three-strategies-for-better-online-discussions/

 

Build connections before providing feedback to students:

https://twowritingteachers.org/2020/08/09/providing-feedback/

 

Let students write ANYTHING:

https://ccira.blog/2020/08/26/the-power-of-anything-making-the-case-for-starting-your-writing-year-with-choice-of-genre/

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

The Music of Collaboration

 

What’s your role when the PLC gets together?  For many instructional coaches, the expected role is facilitator: they move the agenda forward, listen actively, and maintain norms. Another important role for meeting facilitators is to care for the conversation.

In the role of conversational steward, it’s important to be aware of the balance of voices in the room.  You might think of yourself as a conductor, and the conversation as the music of collaboration.  The conductor of a symphony looks to the violins and brings them in to add melody to the piece.  If you’ve watched a conductor, you’re probably also familiar with the palm toward an instrumental section, patting down the voices to quiet their sound and bring harmony to the overall effect. 

Team meetings also benefit from having someone who is listening carefully to the balance of the conversation, pulling in the voices of those who are too silent, and quieting those who are overpowering the conversation.  Just like in the classroom, in the PLC room there are “conversation hogs” and “silent somebodies,” and the discourse could benefit from a skilled conductor.

In a successful PLC, the conversational music flows among all members of the group, not just a few, and not just as a back-and-forth between the facilitator and others, like a ping pong match. Teachers should look to each other, not to the facilitator, as they talk and listen.  A direct reminder about this expectation is helpful, and I try to send that message with my own eyes by scanning the group if a teacher is looking too much at me. The conversation is more like a volleyball match, with multiple players lobbing the ball before it goes over the net.

The tools you’ve used to support successful discussions in your classroom work equally well in a PLC meeting. You add your voice mostly for structuring, questions, and recaps. Asking, “Susan, what do you think?” can pull in the teacher who tends to sit quietly, pulling the focus away from someone who is dominating the meeting. “Brad, it looks like you have something on your mind,” could invite a divergent opinion. “Say more about that,” clarifies a contribution. Ensure that everyone’s ideas and experiences are brought forward improves the outcome. Harmony is achieved not through commonality, but through balance.

Balance also means avoiding holes that don’t lead toward the meeting’s purpose, redirecting tangential topics so they don’t overpower the melody. A skillful orchestra conductor manages a conversation among instruments.  The musical dynamics, from “pianissimo” to “forte,” migrate throughout the piece and among the different instruments, allowing the melody to resonate. Similarly, an instructional coach can orchestrate a PLC conversation, mindful of group dynamics, the amplification and contributions of all members of the team.  Whether the meeting is face-to-face or virtual, a thoughtful conductor supports the cohesive melody of productive conversation.

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

This 11-min. podcast about how discussion makes students the lead learners:

https://jackstreet.com/jackstreet/WASCD.EL.wiggins.cfm

Having students create life maps to value the knowledge they bring to the classroom:

https://choiceliteracy.com/article/my-world-maps/

Do-able remote synchronous teaching ideas:

http://msbordnerteachertech.blogspot.com/2020/07/remote-synchronous-teaching-ideas-i-got.html

 

Special education and online learning:

https://www.smartbrief.com/original/2020/08/special-education-and-online-learning-what-you-need-know?utm_source=brief

 

Practices to center the voice of Latinx students:

https://blog.heinemann.com/six-practices-to-center-the-voices-and-experiences-of-latinx-students-in-the-classroom

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.