The
Gradual Increase of Responsibility Model for Coaching and Mentoring is a guide
to support learning: specifically, the learning of teachers. But as learners,
teachers aren’t so different from the students they work with. Everyone
benefits from a good model.
I
observed the importance of modeling in a first grade classroom recently. After
explaining the task, which involved creating arrays on a grid using Unifix
cubes, the teacher did something that made all the difference in students’
understanding of the task. He sat down in the middle of the carpet, gathered
students all around him, and did a “fishbowl” model of the process. Then he
sent students on their way to do it on their own. Afterwards, the teacher
talked about the lesson. “Even though I say it, they don’t really hear it,” he said, talking about his oral
instructions. “They’ve got to see me doing the process. That’s when they
understand.”
Like
their students, teachers sometimes need a good model. If you’ve made a
recommendation that isn’t being taken up by the teacher, consider whether
seeing the practice in action might help. Modeling is like a translation. A
model interprets and explains the recommendation, making it understandable. A “visual
translation” puts the suggestion in language that is more easily grasped.
Modeling
can happen during a conversation, as you talk with a teacher about a useful
practice; it can happen in the classroom, as you flexibly use the practice with
a group of students; it can be provided through a video (one of you or a
colleague, or one of the many videos available on the internet). As the most
supportive coaching move, modeling can be the “go to” when other coaching moves
aren’t working. Modeling is a way of saying, “Gather ‘round. Here’s what this
will look like.”
This week, you may want to take
a look at:
This video, with a model
and explanation for using popsicle sticks to strengthen the concept of 10:
How to be a teacher
leader:
A useful whitepaper on
close reading, by Ray Reutzel:
This idea for 15-minute Writing
Fridays:
Shadowing a student provides
instructional insights:
That’s it for this week. Happy
Coaching!
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