This week we learned about three different roles that a coach can play while working with teachers, a few sources of coaching loneliness and how to combat them, advice for knocking your next co-teaching lesson out of the park, and more. Enjoy!

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Approaches to Difficult Conversations

Steve Barkley overviews three different roles coaches can play when working with teachers and why it's important to set expectations for each one.

" Many administrators and teacher leaders have different roles at different times. How does a teacher know which role the observer is in at any given time? . . . An instructional coach (IC) can function as a 'peer coach,' responding to a request from the teacher for observation and feedback. On another occasion the IC is more in the role of a mentor or technical coach providing feedback the teacher may not have 'requested' on district data or technical feedback related to a building wide professional development effort. In some cases, the IC can have a role very close to supervision."

Teaching With a Partner

Chrissy Beltran relays advice for how to plan for, participate in, and debrief from a co-teaching session.

"Co-teaching is such a unique and fun part of the coaching cycle because you get to be in the classroom. . . . You need to plan your lesson, who's doing what, what the behavior expectations are, who’s making what, who's bringing what, the list goes on and on. If you're not on the same page in every way, your [co-taught] lesson is going to be miserable! (Trust me - I'm speaking from experience!)"

Coaching is Powerful PD

Vicki Collet suggests that we coach for development and not just performance if we want to create long-lasting growth and improvement for teachers.

"When we coach, it is not just about making a single lesson better. . . . When we coach for development, we are cultivating understanding that leads to flexible use of practices and principles. Coaching for development calls a teacher forward to learn, improve, and grow, rather than simply sorting out a specific situation. Such a conversation is more rare, but it is also more significant."

Random Acts of Coaching

Stephanie Affinito shares a few ideas for creating a positive culture of learning in your building.

"As I thought about how these random acts of kindness with no expectation in return can make such a difference in our daily lives, I wondered how the same could be brought to our work as literacy coaches and leaders. . . . Your email signature can be a powerful coaching tool. Link to the books you are currently reading, add a powerful quote to ponder or even share a new resource each week. Teachers will come to expect these nuggets and even look for them."

Bonus: Infographic 🎉

Do you ever find yourself feeling lonely as a coach? If so, you're not alone! Coaching can be really tough at times, especially if you're the only one in your building or new to the role. Check out our (very shareable) infographic to learn three quick fixes from your peer, Fiona Hurtado. Bonus points for printing it out and hanging it up! 🙌 😀

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