When Choice is Constricted: Honoring Teachers’ Voice in Instructional Coaching

As a coach, you’ve probably felt this tension: we want to honor teacher autonomy, but we also work within systems that sometimes narrow the range of choices. Teachers' vision can be constricted by district initiatives, building goals, and defined non-negotiables.
 
These realities are part of the work, and there might be good reasons for it. Instructional priorities should, hopefully, be grounded in patterns detected across classrooms—through instructional rounds, observations, or student data—that point to areas where focused attention could make a meaningful difference. For example, I worked with a leadership team that identified a need to strengthen higher-order questioning across classrooms. It wasn’t a top-down decision made in isolation. It came from careful observation and a shared commitment to pushing student thinking further. From there, staff meetings and coaching cycles were to center on that goal.
 
The direction was clear. But even when choice is constricted, teacher’s voice doesn’t have to be.
 
Making Space for Voice Within Constraints
Of course, not all initiatives seem to align so well with classroom needs. But either way, when the “what” is pre-determined, coaching really matters.
 
Constraining choice doesn’t have to mean silencing teachers’ thinking.
Honoring voice within those constraints is what keeps the work meaningful and sustainable. When teachers have space to interpret, reflect, and adapt, they are positioned as professionals—people who make informed decisions, not just carry them out.
 
This can show up in the questions we ask during coaching conversations:
 
*  What do you think about this?
*  What does this look like in your classroom?
*  What about this seems important or interesting to you?
*  Where do you feel like you are in your learning about and use of this strategy?
*  How might this work for you?
*  How might this work for your students?
 
These questions don’t ignore the constraint; the focus is still there. But questions like these open up space within the implementation. They signal: Your thinking matters here. And that signal can be the difference between surface-level implementation and genuine engagement that improves student learning.
 
From Constriction to Commitment
When teachers’ voices are honored—even in the presence of constraints—they are more likely to invest in the work. They begin to shape the focus in ways that reflect their students, their content, and their own professional judgment. Without that, teachers may comply, but it can feel tight, forced, and performative. And white-knuckled compliance will not support the complex work needed in schools. Compliance may create short-term consistency, but it doesn’t leads to effective, responsive instruction.
 
Lasting improvement depends on teachers having the space to think, experiment, and make decisions. It depends on their ability to engage as professionals, not just implementers.
 

As coaches, we help make that possible—even when choice is constricted—by:
 
*  Slowing down the rush to implementation
*  Inviting reflection and interpretation
*  Honoring different entry points
*  Encouraging thoughtful adaptation and flexibility based on students’ needs
 
Ultimately, the goal isn’t just to see a strategy in use – it’s to support teachers in making sense of it, shaping it, and using it in ways that truly impact student learning.
 
Constrained choice is sometimes part of the system we work within. But honoring teachers’ voice is always part of the work we can choose to do. And when we do, we create the conditions for something more than compliance.
 
We create the conditions for ownership, investment, and real growth. Even within boundaries, that’s where meaningful change begins.

 

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You can find My Coaches Couch, the podcast (with different content) in your favorite podcast app or at MyCoachesCouch.podbean.com.
 
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This week, you might want to take a look at:

“Pilot and pivot” to avoid top-down implementation:
 
https://districtadministration.com/opinion/leaders-rhythm-how-to-engineer-true-collaboration/
 
 
April is coming, and it’s National Poetry Month! Check out these ideas for paint chip haiku and blackout poems:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/blackout-poems-and-paint-chip-haiku-two-fun-ways-into-poetry-with-adolescents/
 
 
Bilingual poetry builds literacy skills:
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/teaching-english-learners-write-poetry
 
 
How to boost reading confidence and fluency:
 
https://www.k12dive.com/news/how-reading-aloud-can-boost-students-confidence-and-fluency/811971/
 
 
Students with a sense of belonging perform better (and how to create it):
 
https://www.smartbrief.com/original/now-is-the-moment-to-build-belonging-at-school
 
That’s it for this week. Happy Coaching!
 
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: FNDS26 for 15% 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!
 

 

Top of Form

Visualizing Failure: How Instructional Coaches Help Teachers Ride the Waves

As an instructional coach, you’ve probably been there when a lesson falls apart. Things are moving along smoothly—students are engaged, the pacing feels right, and everything is clicking into place. Then something shifts. Students get confused. Directions don’t land. Side conversations bubble up. What started as a strong lesson begins to wobble, and sometimes, it unravels.
 
These moments aren’t rare interruptions to otherwise perfect teaching—they are a natural and inevitable part of it. The question isn’t whether things will go off track, but how prepared a teacher feels when they do.
 
This is where instructional coaching can make a meaningful difference—not just helping teachers plan for success, but helping them prepare for when things fall apart.
 
Planning for the Messy
In many professions, it’s part of the training to plan, not just for success, but also for breakdowns. Pilots learn emergency procedures. Athletes visualize how they’ll respond under pressure. Military personnel have a wartime plan. They don’t wait for things to go wrong to decide what they’ll do. Visualizing in advance is the best preparation, and teachers need that preparation, too. But too often, our planning conversations stay focused on the best-case scenario:
 
*What will students do?
*What questions will you ask?
*How will the task be structured?
 
Those are important, but they leave out a critical piece:
What will you do when it doesn’t go as planned?
 
Stopping short of that step leaves teachers without a clear path forward when reality doesn’t match expectations. That’s were a “wartime plan” comes in.
 
Creating a Wartime Plan
I’m not actually suggesting that the classroom will be a warzone, of course, but you understand the metaphor! When things unravel quickly, teachers benefit from having thought things through in advance. A wartime plan means having an intentional response to predictable challenges—a way of thinking ahead about how to navigate those inevitable moments. Rather than being caught off guard, teachers can respond with confidence.
 
Naming possible ways that things might fall apart helps to normalize them and it opens the door for proactive thinking. Instead of reacting in the moment, teachers can begin to anticipate and prepare. During planning meetings, you could bring up potential challenges like;
 
* The activity is too hard (or too easy)
* Students become disengaged
* Technology fails
* The discussion falls flat
* Directions are confusing for students
 
These aren’t signs of failure; they are simply part of the complexity of teaching and learning, and teachers should be prepared for them. Coaches can prepare teachers for flexibility by helping them think ahead about possible sidesteps that might be needed in these familiar moments. We always need a Plan B.
 
On my desk, I have an old toy – a small Gumby doll based on the Claymation cartoon character who can bend, stretch, and reshape himself. He uses this ability to solve problems or escape tricky situations. Gumby reminds me to be ready to be flexible. Like Gumby, teachers need to be prepared to be flexible when things start to fall apart.
 
Moving from “What if?” to “I See Myself…”
Teachers need to ask themselves, in advance, “What will I do when things get hard?” They begin building the habit of asking this question when you regularly ask, ““What will you do when things get hard?” Then, we move the practice from abstract planning to mental rehearsal by asking for visualization that brings those thoughts to life. Asking a teacher what they might do is a good starting point, but the mental imagery of visualizing a hoped-for outcome prepares the teacher’s mind for the challenge.
 
When visualizing, teachers can mentally simulate the classroom experience—the students, the timing, and even the pressure of the moment. This kind of rehearsal strengthens decision-making because it reduces the cognitive load when the teacher is tested. Instead of generating a response from scratch, she draws on something she has already “experienced” in her mind. Instead of being reactive, she is intentional.
 
Visualizing helps teachers clarify the steps they’ll take. It reduces hesitation, helping them to react more quickly and deliberately in the moment. Entering a challenging situation with a plan increases confidence. Teachers can be steady instead of panicked, calm instead of anxious. Because of visualization, a teacher’s mind and body feel like they have practiced success before the real moment arrives.
 
Coaches can support this rehearsal by asking questions that ground the plan in action:
 
* “What might you say first in that moment?”
* “What might students do?”
* “Where would you move in the room?”
* “What might you do?”
* “How will you know whether the adjustment is working?”
 
Questions like these can slow the coaching conversation down in productive ways that transform a vague idea into a concrete plan.
 
The goal of a wartime plan is not to anticipate every possible outcome, but to have a starting point that keeps the lesson moving forward. It is a first step that creates a sense of readiness. Taking this step can make the difference between a lesson that stalls and one that recovers.
 
Why the Plan Matters
Without a plan for these messy moments, even experienced teachers hesitate. When there’s not a clear next step, it’s easy to default to ineffective habits or to lose valuable instructional time while deciding what to do.
 
But when teachers have visualized and rehearsed their responses, they are ready to act quickly and intentionally. They are more likely to maintain the flow of the lesson, preserve student engagement, and adapt in ways that support learning goals. They begin to see these moments not as disruptions, but as manageable parts of the teaching process. That shift in mindset is empowering!
 
A Coaching Move Worth Trying
In your next planning conversation, consider creating space for this kind of thinking. After discussing the flow of the lesson, you might ask:
“In this lesson, when might things get messy?” Then invite the teacher to visualize that moment and talk it through in detail. Ask follow-up questions that help them see themselves in action. Over time, these pauses build a habit of proactive thinking that teachers carry into their independent planning.
 
Our Own Wartime Plans
Just like in the classroom, the goal of instructional coaching isn’t to eliminate difficulty. It’s to be ready for it. As instructional coaches, we encounter our own challenging moments. There are conversations that feel tense and sessions that drift away from their purpose. In these situations, we are also susceptible to hesitation and uncertainty and can benefit from a wartime plan.
 
In our practice, we might prepare by considering how we’ll respond when a teacher becomes defensive, when silence lasts too long in a conversation, and when teachers are unproductively negative. Having intentional “go-to” moves, and taking the time to visualize using them, can help us navigate these moments with greater confidence and care.
 
Because when we are prepared for the waves, we’re far more likely to keep moving forward—to ride the waves, even when the water gets rough.
 
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Did you know My Coaches Couch is also a podcast? (with different content) Find it in your favorite podcast app or at MyCoachesCouch.podbean.com.
 
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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: FNDS26 for 15% 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! 

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

Pause, recenter, and renew during busy days:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/pausing-for-renewal-throughout-the-day/
 
 
Visual thinking activities to boost student writing:
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/6-cool-visual-thinking-activities-that-strengthen-student-writing
 
 
3 ways to help students manage emotions:
 
https://blog.heinemann.com/3-coping-skills-activities-to-help-kids-manage-emotions
 
 
Ideas for coaxing poems (April is National Poetry Month – coming right up!):
 
http://www.poemfarm.amylv.com/search/label/Coaxing%20Poems
 
 
Book guide for the picture book, Big:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/course/big-book-guide/
 

That's it for this week. Happy Coaching!

Why Modeling Matters in Instructional Coaching

One of the most powerful ways instructional coaches support teachers is through modeling. When we step into the classroom to demonstrate a practice, we make teaching visible. We show what a strategy looks like with real students, in a real classroom, with all the unpredictability that comes with it.
 
In the GIR Model for Mentoring & Coaching (see below), modeling is shown as the most supportive coaching move. It offers a clear example of what instruction might look like and creates a shared experience that teachers and coaches can discuss afterward.
 
When coaches model instruction, they provide a vision for what future instruction might look like and open a window into parts of teaching that are invisible to students—planning decisions, instructional moves, the moment-to-moment problem solving that happens during a lesson, and the reflection that occurs afterward.
 
Making Teaching Public
Teaching can feel like solitary work, but modeling pushes against that isolation by making practice public. This starts with the pre-observation conversation. Before Alice modeled a lesson on inferring in Crystal’s fourth-grade classroom, they talked through specific instructional moves she would make: beginning with a thumbs‑up self‑assessment, adjusting instruction based on student confidence, reading aloud from an article, listening to partner talk, and probing students’ reasoning. Alice suggested that Crystal listen in on students’ thinking and also make note of the probing questions that Alice asked to assess and support students inferring skills.
 
During a modeled lesson, the classroom becomes a shared professional space. Teachers can watch how students respond, notice instructional decisions, and focus fully on learning without worrying about making the next teaching move themselves. Stepping into the role of observer offers teachers the opportunity to focus closely on participation smf engagement—details that are easy to miss when you’re the one leading the lesson.
 
Observing Is Not the End
Observation is only part of the modeling process. Powerful learning also happens afterward. Modeling creates the shared experience that fuels rich professional conversations. After the lesson, coaches and teachers can analyze what happened: What did students do? What instructional moves supported learning? What might the teacher try next? Sharing these observations out loud helps us see teaching differently. As we talk through what occurred, new insights emerge. What seemed automatic during the lesson becomes clearer when we reflect on it together. Modeling is more than demonstration—it becomes a catalyst for professional thinking.
 
The “Something More” Teachers Might Need
Sometimes experience alone isn’t enough to create instructional change. When a teacher is trying to reach a group of students in a new way, implement an unfamiliar strategy, or move beyond a long-standing routine that isn’t producing the desired results, Modeling can provide the “something more” that helps a teacher move forward. Because it is the most supportive coaching move, modeling can be a powerful place to start a coaching cycle. It can also be the move we return to when other approaches aren’t quite enough. Modeling fills the gap.
 
Principals have noticed how modeling supports instruction. In one study, a principal noted that teachers’ wait time increased after observing, and he emphasized how that increased wait time boosted students’ participation. Another principal said that modeling allowed teachers to evaluate and talk about instruction in a non-threatening context. Observing instruction creates distance from the pressures of teaching, which can make reflection more productive.
 
And modeling has another powerful benefit: coaches learn from modeling, too. When we model and then reflect alongside teachers, we deepen our own understanding of teaching and learning. Maybe that’s one of the reasons coaches enjoy being in classrooms so much.
 

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Did you know My Coaches Couch is also a podcast? (with different content) Find it in your favorite podcast app or at MyCoachesCouch.podbean.com.
 
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This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
When students refuse accommodations:
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/what-do-when-students-reject-their-accommodations
 
 
Reading – just reading – matters:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/unadulterated-reading/
 
 
Reading to children develops empathy and creativity:
 
https://theconversation.com/reading-to-young-kids-improves-their-social-skills-and-a-new-study-shows-it-doesnt-matter-whether-parents-stop-to-ask-questions-274926
 
 
A podcast episode about the power of student interest (and more):
 
https://www.classroomcaffeine.com/guests/massey-and-vaughn
 
 
The importance of a good feeling:
 
https://davestuartjr.com/credibility-booster-freds-best-line/
 
 
3 Ways to more “aha” moments in coaching:
 
https://www.growthcoaching.com.au/resource/3-ways-to-more-aha-moments-in-coaching/
 
That’s it for this week. Happy Coaching!
 
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: FNDS26 for 15% 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!

Co-Teaching as Modeling in Instructional Coaching

Modeling, the most supportive move in the GIR coaching model (see below), offers the opportunity to demonstrate practices that the teacher might choose to take up. Modeling also provides content for teacher-coach conversations and builds teachers’ confidence and efficacy. And, since the end goal of coaching is to improve students’ learning, it’s important to note that research demonstrates coaches’ modeling can improve student achievement.
 
Modeling helps to establish the coach’s credibility and to foster a learning culture where everyone’s practice is put up for analysis, including the coach’s.
When the modeling occurs in the teacher’s own classroom, the teacher sees that the practices observed (hopefully!) were worthwhile for her students. Thoughts that “this wouldn’t work for my kids” are avoided. Teachers appreciate seeing the strategies in action with their students. They value the coach as demonstrator to support possible changes in practice. Modeling can sharpen teachers’ attention to student learning and broaden their instructional repertoire. 
 
Co-Teaching as Modeling
You have probably used, seen, or heard of co-teaching as a model for providing support for students needing special services. The special education teacher pushes into the classroom and becomes a teaching partner.
 
Co-teaching can also be a way for a coach to model. When coach and teacher co-teach, it offers an opportunity for learning-while-doing. In the perfect scenario of co-teaching, colleagues ping pong instruction back and forth – one asking a question, another following up to push students for deeper thinking; one at the document camera, another leaning in to support an individual student. Teaming like this gives a coach a chance to be part of the action and to demonstrate the nuances of an instructional approach with the teacher as an active participant. I love it when I see this happen! However, this is not always easy to pull off. Below are some guiding principles for coaches who want to try this modeling approach:
 
Pre-Plan
Co-teaching works best as a planned experience, not as a response to ineffective instruction. When you plan the lesson with the teacher, including how you will partner, the teacher will be ready to both participate and pay attention. Jumping into a lesson to co-teach because you feel something has gone awry, however, is more likely to cause damage than improvement.  
 
No Correction-in-Action
Correction-in-action can be hurtful to the teacher and can also undermine her relationship with her students. Ensure that words and actions convey respect. Respectful relationships (teacher/coach and students/teacher) are vital to learning. Anything that could potentially undermine those relationships should be avoided.
 
Don’t Interrupt Student Learning
Coach-to-teacher conversations shouldn’t interrupt the learning experience for students. In the classroom, the most vital outcome is student learning. Although some have suggested that students will put up with a pause while teacher and coach confer with each other, to me, this undermines the very goal of coaching. We can find other times and places to talk that are not on students’ time.
 
Cautions for Co-Teaching
I have observed co-teaching working seamlessly, which helped me recognize the above guidelines. However, I’ve also observing co-teaching in ways that give me reason to suggest caution in using this modeling approach.
 
A co-teaching experience I saw years ago remains strong in my mind. The coach seemed dismissive of the teacher’s knowledge and possibly undermined her relationship with students. I was in a first-grade classroom when this coaching occurred. The teacher introduced students to an activity, giving instructions that were, admittedly, a bit ambiguous. The coach, who had been observing, decided to step in and make it a co-teaching situation. She changed the task slightly as she gave students clearer directions about what to do. The teacher, in what appeared to be a face-saving attempt, reiterated to students what the coach had just said. Students started working and then the coach called for a mini-conference with the teacher. She whispered, “I wonder what would happen if…” and then finished the sentence with a recommendation disguised as a question. The teacher nodded her head and complied, her feelings of self-efficacy ebbing before my eyes.
 
I know the coach was acting out of two sincere desires: a desire for strong instruction for the students and a desire to help the teacher. But this co-teaching scenario backfired, illustrating the importance of pre-planning, conveying respect, and maintaining the flow of instruction for students. Additionally, it raised a caution about recommendations disguised as questions.
 
Co-teaching can be an effective coaching move, but it’s a risky one. The example above is extreme, but I’m sure I’ve made mistakes in my coaching that were similar in nature – it’s always easier to see it from the outside. I’m learning that giving myself time to think before reacting helps me choose words that respect the teacher’s intentions, and it’s harder to do that in the midst of instruction.
 
Co-Teaching as Collaborative Partnership
Modeling through co-teaching can be a powerful way for coaches to make instructional practices visible while keeping teachers actively involved in the work of teaching. Students benefit because two heads and four hands are better, and teachers benefit as they learn while teaching. Co-teaching can enrich the teacher’s instructional repertoire and strengthen the collaborative partnership that coaching depends on.

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Did you know My Coaches Couch is also a podcast? (with different content) Find it in your favorite podcast app or at MyCoachesCouch.podbean.com.
 
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This week, you might want to take a look at:

Instant mood-boosters:
 
https://aestheticsofjoy.com/2020/10/17/8-quick-things-you-can-do-right-now-to-boost-your-mood/
 
 
Teaching students discernment and reasoning when using AI:
 
https://www.middleweb.com/53084/teaching-discernment-in-our-interactions-with-ai/
 
 
Modeling acceptance when dysregulated behavior happens:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/responding-to-dysregulated-behaviors-what-about-the-other-kids/
 
 
Building the emotional resilience to receive feedback:
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/helping-students-give-receive-feedback-without-defensiveness
 
 
Like Superbowl champs, coaches treat teachers as capable professionals:
 
https://www.the74million.org/article/super-bowl-players-get-expert-coaching-teachers-should-too/
 
That’s it for this week. Happy Coaching!
 
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: FNDS26 for 15% 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!

Can You Imagine? Coaching Teachers to Anticipate Student Response

Recently, I was coaching a novice first-grade teacher, Peyton, whose phonics lesson I had just observed. The lesson had trailed off as students finished the activity and began putting their materials away. Knowing the value of lesson closure for helping students make meaning of what they’ve just done, I asked Peyton what ideas she had for creating closure for her phonics lessons. Peyton said she’d included closure in her plans, but had forgotten to do it.  She had planned to ask, “What did you learn today?”
 
While a general, open-ended question might be productive, I wasn’t sure how well it would serve her first-grade students. I said, “I’m wondering – can you imagine how your kids might respond to that?” I encouraged Peyton to think of a few specific kids, including some whose skills were just emerging. How might they respond to that question? Peyton decided she’d need something more-specific to create a meaningful closure.
 
When we anticipate how students might respond based on previous experiences, we’re able to create a better plan for moving forward.
 
Predictive Planning
Predictive planning allows teachers to be preemptive, to replace weak areas in a lesson with stronger ones before enacting the plan. By anticipating student responses, teachers are also able to respond more effectively in the moment, to clarify concepts and correct confusion.
 
For example, during a middle school math PLC meeting, teachers predicted that students would make calculation errors when working through the word problems. Because they anticipated that using the wrong operation might cause these calculation problems, teachers decided to emphasize how to choose the correct operation during their opening discussion. Their preemptive planning fended off student confusion. When it came time to teach the lesson, the teachers were tuned in for students who were confused about which mathematical operation to use. Their awareness had been heightened that this might be a concern.
 
When teachers think the lesson through from the students’ point of view, they are more prepared to support students’ learning. Going into the lesson, the teacher has a solid plan. Because of this thoughtful preparation, they are also well-positioned to be flexible when teaching.
 
Asking teachers to imagine how students might respond helps them proactively consider potential student confusion. Envisioning what student thinking will look like allows for revision even before the lesson is taught!
 
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Did you know My Coaches Couch is also a podcast? (with different content) Find it in your favorite podcast app or at MyCoachesCouch.podbean.com
 
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This week, you might want to take a look at:

Confidence boosts progress:
 
https://www.tes.com/magazine/news/secondary/school-students-sense-of-control-improves-reading-progress
 
 
Naming craft moves in student writing:
 
https://vimeo.com/1085797889/edfda2b9c8
 
 
Nurturing classroom identity and belonging:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/do-i-belong/
 
 
Boosting comprehension with immersive read-alouds:
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/taking-your-read-alouds-from-interactive-to-immersive
 
 
The Collective Efficacy Cycle for teacher PD:
 
https://www.k12dive.com/spons/the-5-steps-of-a-collective-efficacy-cycle/650710/
 
That’s it for this week. Happy Coaching!
 
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: FNDS26 for 15% 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!

Two Powerful Words for Coaching Conversations

What if two little words could lower defensiveness, increase cognitive flexibility, support experimentation, strengthen collaboration, and position teachers as thinkers? In coaching conversations, the words, “What if?” can do just that. I’ve noticed how these simple words spark conversations that inspire growth. “What if?” can frame an idea as a topic for exploration rather than a directive. It proposes possibilities that can stretch thinking in productive ways.
 
Offering Invitations
Asking, “What if?” increases openness. Instead of feeling defensive because a recommendation is offered, a teacher who hears, “What if?” feels an entry point. “What if” sounds exploratory, helping the conversation unfold. We share ideas in ways that communicate respect, honoring the expertise of the teacher in front of us.
 
After a conversation with Angela’s team about the research on class behavior charts (problems with the “clip up,” “clip down” system), she lingered; she was concerned about the behavior chart that had been in her classroom for years.
 
“What should I be doing?” she asked. She expressed frustration about the lack of PD on classroom management.
 
I commiserated and added, “There are some kids, like we said, who need something more tangible along with having appropriate expectations modeled and taught.”
 
“The thing is,” Angela countered, “I really only end up using the behavior chart for a few kids. Most kids just stay on green.”
 
This was where a “What if” could get traction. “What if you got rid of the behavior chart and put a more private practice in place for those few students who needed it? Could that work? What might that look and sound like?” What if’s can be an invitation to create a plan for moving forward.
 
Teachers Doing the Thinking
When coaches ask, “What if?” they affirm that the teachers is capable of careful analysis and professional judgment. Rather than delivering a solution, you’re offering a possibility and trusting the teacher to examine it. It says, “This is a thought experiment. You know your context. Let’s explore this together.”
 
When I ask, “What if students generated their own questions before reading?” or “I wonder where partner talk might fit into this lesson,” I am not handing over a finished solution. I am inviting the teacher into inquiry.
 
When we frame ideas as possibilities rather than prescriptions, we signal that teachers’ knowledge of their students matters in determining whether the idea is worth pursuing. Asking, “What if?” supports professional agency, strengthens confidence, and reinforces the relationship of respect.
 
Collaborative Partnership
“What if?” communicates that we are thinking about this together. Coaching isn’t a top-down dynamic – it is shared inquiry, with both of us bringing curiosity to the context. That shift from telling to thinking together leads to rich professional dialogue and strengthens the coaching partnership.
 
During team meetings, collective thinking is expanded and ideas can multiply!  I saw this in action while planning a lesson on equivalent fractions with two excellent third-grade teachers. One teacher expressed concern about students’ lack of background knowledge. The other shared that using a balance scale had helped in the past. Then I added, “What if you used modeling clay on the balance scale — equal blobs on each side — and then divided them into halves and quarters to show equivalence?” That idea wasn’t mine alone. It grew from their concerns and prior experience. Everyone had ownership.
 
When ideas emerge through dialogue—when a teacher names a concern, recalls a prior success, and together we extend the thinking—ownership is distributed.
 
When we ask “What if?” in response to a teacher’s expressed need, we extend the teacher’s thinking. Improvement is a shared endeavor, not a delivered prescription. Joint ownership increases commitment because teachers have shaped the ideas.  Improvement happens through co-construction rather than compliance.
 
Flexibility and Growth
When we ask, “What if?” we present ideas as something to consider rather than something to unquestioningly implement. “What if?” can gently disrupt habitual patterns and routines that have outlived their usefulness. Asking, “What if?” can stretch thinking, allowing new possibilities to emerge while still honoring what is already working.
 
“What if?” invites teachers to imagine alternatives and compare outcomes. It kindles hypotheses and experimentation. That experimental mindset reduces pressure and increases willingness to try something new. This mental flexibility fosters innovation and growth.
 
Two Small Words
When “What if?” reflects genuine curiosity, ideas are carefully examined, reasoning is articulated, and shared expertise is elevated. These two small words, asked with sincerity and respect, create space for thinking, Potent change can begin with two small words and a posture of curiosity.
 
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Did you know My Coaches Couch is also a podcast? (with different content) Find it in your favorite podcast app or at MyCoachesCouch.podbean.com
 
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This week, you might want to take a look at:

Using AI to boost writing without compromising human connection:
 
https://www.the74million.org/article/how-ai-is-helping-nyc-english-teachers-improve-middle-school-reading-and-writing/
 
 
Balancing literacy and play:
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/balancing-play-literacy-mandates-preschool
 
 
Sketchnoting to increase retention:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/sketchnoting-in-the-library/
 
 
Careful words for coaching:
 
https://barkleypd.com/blog/coaches-words-and-questions/
 
 
Reasons to do an author study:
https://www.readingrockets.org/books/authorstudy/reasons
 
That’s it for this week. Happy Coaching!
 
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: FNDS26 for 15% 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!

Offering Choice in Coaching Recommendations

You were hired as an instructional coach because you have solid knowledge of content and pedagogy, as well as a deep reservoir of classroom experience. During a coaching conversation, an important questions to ask yourself is, which parts of that repertoire do you share—and when?

Just because we could offer suggestions doesn’t mean we should. The discernment lies in knowing what to bring forward.

Honoring Teacher Choice

Growth sticks best when the arc of change is set by the teacher. An important part of a coach’s job is to pay compassionate attention to the clues teachers give us about their readiness and to honor their judgment and choices.

The teacher sitting across from you is the most reliable source of information to guide your recommendations. The questions she asks tell you what she’s thinking about, what she’s wrestling with, and what she’s ready to try. When a colleague poses a specific question, her question reveals her focus. It shows you where her energy is.

Instead of offering just one option in response to a teacher’s question, consider offer a few alternatives for the teacher to consider. Offering choice develops teachers’ power and efficacy. Being asked to decide rather than being told what to do signals, “I believe in your professional judgment.” That matters.

There’s also a motivational benefit. Research shows that offering choice increases engagement and persistence. When a teacher chooses, she’s far more invested in making that choice work. It becomes her goal—not yours.

A Self-Selected Journey

I saw this clearly in my work with Stephanie. I had observed her lesson on crafting engaging beginnings in narrative writing. She used a PowerPoint to introduce four techniques writers use to hook readers. During our debrief, we started with celebrations. I asked what happened in the lesson that she was especially pleased with.

Stephanie felt good about student behavior. She had added all-respond opportunities and varied her voice when she noticed attention slipping. She paired each writing “hook” with a physical action to help students remember. The lesson met its objective: students were introduced to the techniques.

And yet—she was disappointed. Students weren’t enthusiastic. She felt like she had to work hard to keep them with her.

Before our meeting, I had jotted down a few reflections. Many of them pointed to engagement:

·        Make connections with students’ experiences and interests.

·        Limit rote repetition; emphasize thinking.

·        Create opportunities for inquiry and discussion.

Because Stephanie had already named engagement as a concern, the door was open. We talked through these ideas conversationally. I would float one out and ask, “What do you think?” After some discussion, I asked her to choose a goal. What would she like to work on next?
 
Stephanie grabbed onto inquiry and discovery, but expressed hesitation. “It will be hard,” she said. “I like to have more control.”
 
We talked a bit about how she might balance her need for control with her students’ need for discovery. Inquiry didn’t have to mean chaos or a sprawling research project. It could be bounded and managed so that she still felt control. Stephanie was seeing how her hope for more enthusiasm and her need for control could co-exist. We also explored why inquiry felt uncomfortable. Had she experienced discovery-based teaching herself? Did she have models? Not really. No wonder it felt risky!
 
But by the end of our conversation, Stephanie was energized. She wasn’t complying with a coach’s recommendation—she was stepping into her own professional curiosity.
 
Who Decides?
Who decides the next step in improving instruction?
Just as Stephanie’s students needed opportunities for discovery, Stephanie needed space to inquire into her own teaching. She identified the concern. She selected the goal. We explored ideas together. Rather than positioning myself as the expert, we considered instructional improvement together. I offered options, not directives.
 
When teachers’ voices lead the conversation, they see their strengths and name where they need to grow. When I focus my recommendations on the next step that a teacher has identified, we can come up with a tangible plan to achieve their goal. As instructional coaches, we have expertise to share. The art is in knowing when and how to offer it.
 
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Did you know My Coaches Couch is also a podcast? (with different content) Find it in your favorite podcast app or at MyCoachesCouch.podbean.com
 
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Top of Form

Bottom of Form

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

Teach students to do their own thinking, without the AI crutch:
 
https://ccira.blog/2026/02/02/teaching-students-what-to-do-instead-of-asking-the-chatbot/
 
 
How careful words boost understanding:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/the-language-we-use/  
 
 
Why teach handwriting in a digital age?
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/teaching-handwriting-older-students
 
 
Don’t remediate – accelerate:
 
https://www.middleweb.com/53063/accelerate-or-remediate-youre-at-the-controls/
 
 
What Wordle can teach us about phonics instruction:
 
https://www.ascd.org/blogs/what-wordle-reminds-us-about-effective-phonics-and-spelling-instruction
 
That’s it for this week. Happy Coaching!
 
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: FEB2026 for 15% 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!