Floor and Ceiling Goals

It’s February now, and already our good intentions for the new year may be losing their sheen as the day-to-day craziness wears us down. Instead of giving up altogether, we can maintain momentum by having “floor goals” as well as the “ceiling goals” we more typically set. Having both a target and a lower limit provides a framework for consistency.
 
For example, in my overarching goal to be more fit, my personal (admittedly puny) floor goal is to do a minimum of 80 sit-ups and 24 lifts with light weights each day. This floor goal takes mere minutes and the sit-ups have been part of my daily routine for years, so it’s not much of a stretch to ensure that I get this done. My ceiling goal is to include daily aerobic exercise, too. But on days when I lack time, energy, or enthusiasm, having an achievable minimum means I’m going to do at least something. If consistency is a key to goal attainment (and it is!), my floor goal keeps me moving in the right direction. Here are some varied examples of floor goals:

·       Write 50 words per day

·       Say one compliment

·       Eat a serving of fresh vegetables

·       Tidy one drawer

Floor goals would not get you where you want to go in a hurry, but that’s not the point. They give you a daily range that allows you to hold yourself accountable, even on crisis days when you can’t pour much energy into your goal. Even if I forget about my 80-sit-up, 24-lift goal until the end of the day, I can still pull it off.
 
I’m sure your mind is already whirring with how the floor and ceiling principle could apply in instructional coaching. In addition to having their own coaching goals, Instructional coaches support teachers in achieving goals for themselves and their students.
 
A “floor” coaching goal might be doing walk-throughs in four classrooms (in the service of increasing the number of teachers you serve). It might mean leaving one positive note in a teacher’s box each day, supporting your goal of relationship-building. It could be reading 5 pages (or 1!) in a professional book. Floor goals are baby steps forward.
 

If you share the concept of floor and ceiling goals with teachers, they might lean into ideas like these:

·       Ask at least one open-ended question each class period, every day. This floor goal could support a long-term goal of developing rich classroom discussions.

·       Include at least two opportunities for partner talk, in service of a ceiling goal of regular student collaboration.

·       Comment on at least two students who are making good behavior choices, while reaching toward the goal of a well-managed classroom. 

For students, floor goals might be reading for at least 10 minutes at home, going through their multiplication flashcards once, or making sure their planner is in their backpack before heading home. Checking the box for the least we can do makes us less likely to give up all together.
 
This little mental shift of having a floor goal has made a big difference for me. My ceiling goals are the pinnacle of what I want to achieve, Many days, I can pour energy into them. But some days, they just feel too big. Having a range for achieving goals can keep students, teachers, and coaches moving forward.
 
This week, you might want to take a look at:

Transcripts as a coaching tool:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/transcripts-to-study-practice/
 
The knowing-doing gap as it applies to teacher change:
 
https://snacks.pepsmccrea.com/p/the-knowing-doing-gap
 
 
This podcast episode on forming better habits:
 
https://simonsinek.com/podcast/episodes/atomic-habits-with-author-james-clear/
 
 
Research skills for 1^st graders:
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/teaching-research-skills-first-grade/
 
 
Seeing the world through a child’s eyes (so much to explore here!):
 
https://www.understood.org/en/tools/through-your-childs-eyes
 
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! TODAY you can still use the code: FEB2024 for 20% off. 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!