Today, I had to reschedule two coaching sessions due to another staff meeting, but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I had the chance to observe a co-taught lesson and discuss the lesson closure. Additionally, I participated in the 6th-grade planning session, sharing some valuable writing resources. I believe I also logged into 7th grade planning – the details are blending together in this busy but fulfilling week!
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I successfully completed a coaching cycle with one of our newer teachers, moving on to her second goal of injecting more engagement into her ThinkCERCA writing lessons - yes! On Wednesday, I met with our new 7th grade teacher to debrief her lesson, concluding another successful coaching cycle. She appears much more relaxed, which she attributes to collaboration with another teacher to navigate ThinkCERCA. She even came up with a creative vocabulary wheel activity using the Concept Circle idea I shared in our last literacy PL!

Wednesday was also dedicated to working with our dance teacher again, whose 6th grade students are affectionately known as her "babies." We focused on completing their definitions and word parts in the schoolwide academic vocabulary PowerPoint. These kids are adorable, and it seems they are getting the hang of navigating and using their vocabulary PowerPoint presentations. While a few are still figuring out the location on their computers, the majority seem to have mastered it.

As I reflect on this week's accomplishments, I'm genuinely thrilled with the progress made with these teachers, and it's heartening to see our dance students becoming more proficient with the technology and online tools. Looking forward to building on this momentum and continuing to make a positive impact in the coaching journey ahead!

What an eventful week it has been! Taking a moment to review my calendar, I am truly amazed at the array of activities and engagements that unfolded. The week began with a faculty e-meeting on Monday – admittedly, some details are a bit hazy, prompting me to recognize the need for improved organization of information from our weekly admin bulletins.

A notable highlight was the opportunity to model a lesson for our dance teacher. We delved into the schoolwide academic vocabulary PowerPoint, guiding students on effective navigation, saving, and sharing with their teachers. While it demanded some time, witnessing the students grasp these essential skills was extremely satisfying.

Conducting classes on Monday felt more seamless, thanks to the effort put into identifying specific page numbers for each text and activity in the online textbook. Yet, I find myself contemplating the best method to streamline the process. With students using both physical and digital resources, the challenge lies in establishing a unified space to access all of their work.

Various ideas have crossed my mind, such as having students capture a picture of the page in the book and uploading it to the learning platform. Alternatively, the option of everyone submitting their work through learning management system, whether copied and pasted from the online book or as a picture from the text, is under consideration. The only hiccup is that the online book only has limited functionality and requires multiple steps for annotations. It's a puzzle I am determined to solve!

Reflecting on the challenges and successes of this week, I am genuinely excited about refining my strategies to enhance the learning experiences for both myself and my students. Cheers to continuous improvement and discovering new ways to overcome pandemic teaching hurdles!

Today I held my first official pre-coaching cycle meeting with one of our classroom teachers.  I purposely neglected to mention anything about the goals our administrator set for her, and instead chose to just chat and ask about her experiences with coaching in the past.  Ironically, she identified the same areas that admin wanted me to focus on and shared her professional and literacy goals for this year as well.  This was great and I think it really helped to establish a good relationship for the year.

​I've decided to tell each teacher I coach that our conversations are confidential and to share the forms with the teacher before sending them to the administrators. The teacher and I set a date for me to observe, and I actually know what I’m looking for and have a form for that specific thing too.  I feel so efficient!   ​