Engaging with What’s Your Leadership Story? by Gretchen Oltman and Vicki Bautista will help leaders – especially newer ones – articulate their purpose and bring their whole selves to school each day. School leader Sarah Cooper appreciates the book’s practical honesty.
Teaching guru Dr. Barbara Blackburn’s MiddleWeb articles – often written with new and novice teachers in mind – are crisp, succinct, practical, filled with examples, and respectful of teachers’ time and the challenges they face. We’ve gathered a dozen of her most popular posts.
When DeAnna Miller became assistant principal in 2019, she could never have anticipated the challenges pandemic schooling would bring. Looking back now, she identifies her most important lesson learned: “Real leadership is recognizing that we must serve the people we lead.”
Rather than label just some kids talented, we need a new approach that serves all children, writes performance coach Lee Hancock. Among his strategies: embracing failure as progress, spending time in deep practice, and fostering in kids a love for their own special interests.
Whether it’s our students or our colleagues, the mentor relationship is a win-win for mentor and mentee. As mentors, we can realize a unique personal fulfillment and grow as a listener, a coach, a friend, a leader. And one day, our mentees may decide to “pay it forward.”
Effective class management begins with dynamic planning and engagement, writes instructional specialist Miriam Plotinsky. Teachers who focus not just on delivering information but responding to student feedback in the moment can avoid “helicopter teacher” syndrome. Here’s how.
Questioning for Formative Feedback by Jackie Acree Walsh is full of insightful, thought provoking, and practical ways to infuse a classroom with formative questioning, encourage dialogue, and lead to deeper learning for students. A great professional learning adventure!
As described by Kathy Perret and Kenny McKee in Compassionate Coaching, understanding compassionate coaching causes us to reflect on our practice and deliver planned actions to shift everyone’s performance to benefit students. Consultant Helene Alalouf finds lots to implement.
By putting strong relationships at the fore, you can cultivate an environment in which each of your students can grow. Through her many years in the classroom Stephanie Farley has hit upon keys to encourage kids to thrive. At the center – kindness and getting to know each one.
When we incorporate literacy assessments that honor students’ assets and identities, we take an essential step toward creating an inclusive classroom that values students’ cultures and centers them in their learning. Teacher educators Sean Ruday and Katie Caprino show how.
