Two weeks ago, Laurie Schultz invited me to coach in her kindergarten writing workshop at John T. Waugh Elementary School in Lake Shore. I’m always grateful to work with Laurie. Her energy is incredible, and she sustains her compassion for even the most challenging kids in her care. She also maintains a high bar for her students, regardless of any label that’s been imposed on them. My Rationale: When we met to discuss the mini-unit…
This post is the fifth in a series about research and writing in Heather Bitka’s kindergarten classroom. To learn more about this project’s purpose and outcomes, you might want to read the first post. If you are interested in understanding how this project enabled the teachers and coaches involved to position themselves as learners, you can click through to the second post. This post demonstrates the beginning of instruction, where researchers applied strategies that helped…
Last week, Lou Cercone introduced me to his 9th grade English students at Lockport High School, and we spent two short days beginning to define what quality idea development looks like together. Writing instruction is a district-wide learning focus, and Lou was interested in observing a lesson that was reflective of what we’ve been learning for the last several years. He asked that I position myself as the leader of this coaching experience. This is…
As an independent literacy coach, the districts that I serve contract with me to provide coaching inside of their schools as they work to identify those who may want to assume these positions internally over time. Part of my work involves supporting potential coaches as they learn more about what this work entails and how they might approach it themselves. Over the last two years, I’ve put several different opportunities in place for those who…
I’m looking forward to many new adventures and learning opportunities in the coming year, some of which are documented inside of this month’s Coaching Connection. These newsletters are designed specifically for the WNY teachers that I coach, but others might enjoy them as well. Glad to be back! Here’s to a happy, healthy, and productive new year! January Coach Connect
My learning and my work as a literacy coach is significantly enhanced by the people of the web. Here are some of my favorite tools that allow me to connect with them. Where did I learn about them? Online, of course! My blog is a vehicle for communicating with those that I coach. Posts are often developed in response to their needs. For instance, this year we’ve begun building internal capacity for coaching in several…
I’ve been spending this morning planning my literacy coaching work for the year ahead, and I’m realizing that the way I approach technology integration as a coach has everything to do with how likely teacher efforts might truly improve student learning. Those in my learning network often question the effectiveness of leading these efforts by focusing on tech tools first, and I couldn’t agree more. Facilitating processes that enable teachers to identify the learning needs…
In her book Literacy Coaching: The Essentials, Katherine Casey shares her experiences and the wisdom gained from her work as a school-based literacy coach. Casey was fortunate enough to find herself mentored by teacher-leader Lucy West. The second chapter of her book highlights the important ways in which her relationship with West enabled her to grow into her role as a coach: “During our teacher-leader training sessions, whenever we complained about teachers who were, in…