My involvement with Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) often revolves around establishing learning goals/outcomes for students and collaborating to map out the strategies to achieve those goals. This process inherently incorporates differentiation into educators’ planning. It begins with recognizing varied objectives based on each students’ initial levels. Different goals necessitate diverse student learning behaviors to enhance […]

As I was assisting a high school leadership team in the midst of initiating some instructional coaching opportunities with their staff, I uncovered the need to explore if the WHY of their plan had been communicated to staff. Teachers were not responding to the availability of coaching even though all the assurances of autonomy and […]

Just as teachers use a focus on communicating interest and positiveness to inspire, motivate, and foster a positive learning classroom environment, coaches need to communicate the same with their coachees. Interest and positiveness can impact an individual’s self-esteem, motivation, and performance. Communicating interest and positiveness is not just about what you say but also how […]

“If a leader wants to be seen as trustworthy, he or she needs to build a connection through rapport”, shares Mike Gilmour, elementary principal, and the author of “The Power of Rapport.” Mike walks through six focus areas for building rapport, all of which can be consciously practices and coached: Body Language, Communication, Authenticity, Consistency, […]

Dr. Mark Wilson, a past national principal of the year and a current coach to school leaders, shares insights and strategies from his new book, “What They Didn’t Teach You in Fancy Leadership School.” Mark addresses team building, communication, and expectations. He highlights the many similarities among the roles of teachers, instructional coaches, and principals. Leaders […]

Phyllis Fagell, parent, school counselor, private therapist, and author shares insights for parenting with Tweens (ages 10-14). She combines her personal experiences with research findings to support the engagement of tweens in conversation when at times they appear to be disinterested. Several “myths” are uncovered. Visit Phyllis’ website here.  Follow Phyllis on Twitter: @Pfagell Subscribe […]