Coaching through Messes and Successes

My K-12 teaching career spans that whole continuum, and some of my proudest moments happened with my youngest students. When a kindergartner, Ellen, wrote about her time in the “Zoo Box” play center, saying that the “trdl” is “vare sic” and the “zeba” has “nomony” I was impressed with her audacity, her willingness to take risks. I’d had high school seniors who would write their way around a situation rather than risk the word, “pneumonia.”
 
But learning is about risk-taking, isn’t it? If we’re not willing to venture beyond the known, whatever is outside that circle remains beyond our reach. This is true during coaching, too. Sticking with the tried-and-true is safe, but unproductive, territory.
 
When a coach told a novice teacher who was frustrated with classroom management to move the desks into rows, she was asking this teacher to retreat into the circle, even though the teacher embraced an inquiry philosophy for teaching. Instead, the coach could have said something like, “It sounds like you’re feeling frustrated because students are off-task, and you really want them to be more engaged. Let’s think of some ideas for making that happen.” Instead of withdrawing to safety, they could have brainstormed together and leaned into the productive struggle of inquiry-based learning.

If teachers are afraid to make mistakes, they miss the opportunity to be innovative. Coaches create risk-friendly environments when we say, “I wonder why that happened?” and “What are your hunches?” when a new approach goes differently than planned.  Coaches create risk-averse environments if attention to “mistakes” is heavy-laden.

I’m beginning to feel uncomfortable with the word mistakes. I worry that it promotes the idea that there is one right way. Of course, that’s never true in a classroom full of individual learners. Ambiguity and risk-taking are part of effective teaching. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! Taking risks means experiencing the unexpected. Sometimes we don’t get what we hoped for, and that’s okay! Learning isn’t quick and easy, and coaching is an opportunity to work through this process together.   

When a lesson goes differently than planned, we can demonstrate how reflection supports revision. We reexamine and modify. We edit our plan. Each lesson is an update on the last when reflection, analysis, and action are part of the process. Teachers rebound and come back stronger.

It’s okay if there’s imprecision and wiggliness in the process. Learning is a little wishy-washy. When I taught kindergarten, one of my students’ favorite Big Books was Mrs. Wishy Washy. Mrs. Wishy-Washy scrubs all the animals clean, but they don’t stay that way. My students’ favorite line was, “Oh, lovely mud!” Like the animals in the mud puddle, we can embrace messiness as part of the learning experience.

Learning is a positive stretch. When kindergartners make up their own spellings, it’s sometimes called invented spelling or constructed spelling. Inventing and constructing are positive and productive!  When 6-year-old Ellen spelled turtle, “trdl,” I could have labelled it as a mistake. But I applauded her success in getting her ideas on paper. I cheered her on!  Similarly, coaches can cheer teachers through their messes and successes – it’s all part of learning.

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

Ways to honor teachers’ needs this year:
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/9-ways-for-schools-to-honor-teacher-needs-this-year/
 
 
11 secrets of irresistible people (build relationships for coaching!): 
 
https://www3.forbes.com/business/11-secrets-of-irresistible-people-v3/13/
 
 
Creating class books to build community:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/we-have-pets/
 
 
Tips for starting the new year as a coach:
 
https://blog.teachboost.com/starting-the-school-year-strong-5-tips-for-new-instructional-coaches
 
“Naughty” behaviors that are developmentally appropriate:
 
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/joyful-parenting/201705/not-naughty-10-ways-kids-appear-be-acting-bad-arent
 
That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!

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Want more coaching tips? Check out my book, Differentiated Mentoring & Coaching in Education: From Preservice Teacher to Expert Practitioner, available from Teachers College Press!  I’m so excited to share it with you! You can use the code: SEPT2023 for 15% off plus FREE SHIPPING. Click  here  and I’ll email you the free Book Group Study Guide that includes questions, prompts, and activities you can use as you share the book with colleagues.  I hope you’ll love this book as much as I loved making it for you!