We want to give you a peek inside our Coach Certificate & Mentorship Program. Coaches taking part in this academic-year-long journey have graciously given us permission to post some of their learning and reflections from the private coursework they are undertaking during this program. Where possible, we have shared the course and the action task to give context for the guest post.

The Topic: Phase 1: Find Clarity

The Task: Share your artifact and a written reflection on your learning during this phase.

What were your key “aha” moments during Phase 1: Finding Clarity?

The key “aha” moment during Phase 1: Finding Clarify was the need for me to clearly communicate my role to teachers. As a coaching team, we clearly communicate what coaches can do for them in our monthly newsletter, with one math idea a month, but I had never defined that as a coaching menu specific to mathematics as a whole. I decided during this module that I needed to better plan my initial meeting to help build a stronger relationship with my coachees, in addition to communicating the coaching opportunities available to them. The initial coaching conversations since this “aha” moment and artifact development have lead into nice discussions about the benefit of a classroom visits, which has started to create more effective coaching.

Did you face any obstacles during this phase of the program? How did you overcome them?

The obstacle I faced was the poor timing of starting this module at the beginning of the school year. I wish I had completed this over the summer to better prepare me for the start of the school year. The thing I knew I needed the most refinement around was communicating my role with mathematics teachers. Since I wanted this for the start of the school year, and it was the last thing in the module, I had to do the module out of order.

What artifact did you choose to create and share?

I created a 3 page document that I could share with teachers during my initial coaching conversation, and/or during follow-up meetings. It depends on how long our meeting is and what we have time for.
MODULE 1 ARTIFACT

1. The first page allows me to share my mission statement and a little about me. Then I ask about about them. I have found when I ask teachers to tell me an update about themselves and/or their classrooms or teaching, it lacked personal connection opportunities. Most teachers didn’t share personal information and it made it harder to find personal connections. I think this was because they were starting and I didn’t give examples. So I thought that if I start first, I can give personal information, which in turn feels like permission do the same, and now I’m finding more teachers start personally first over teaching.
2. The second page is used to go over the principles for coaching. I think it’s important that teachers know our work together is confidential, collaborative, and ultimately driven by them.
3. The third page is a coaching menu. I wanted teachers to fully understand what our work could look like. Sometimes, teachers know they want support, but don’t always know what support they need. When they see ideas, it can lead us down a nice path.

Why did you choose to create this artifact?

I choose to create this artifact because at the end of the 2021-2022 school year a principal shared with me that one of her 2nd grade teachers expressed confusion around what other work she could do with me. At that moment, I knew I needed clarity.

What did you learn in the creation of this artifact?

I feel more clear myself about a coaching cycle and what I can offer teachers. I’m also learning about creating documents that are more visually pleasing to teachers. I’m new to Canva, as of last year, and I’m feeling so much more confident in what I can create.

How has this artifact moved you closer to clarity in your coaching role or program?

Like I mentioned before, my team had clarity, but I myself as a math coach lacked clarity. At the start of the year, I shared out my math coaching menu with all math teachers and administration. Many teachers who booked time with me have shared that they reached out because of the menu and an idea it gave them.

Where are you at in terms of clarity in your coaching role or program right now?

I feel like I am in a great spot. I would like to see how the year progresses and refine as needed.

What are the next steps you need to take to further increase clarity in your coaching role or program?

Our coaching team does a lot of work with administrative leaders, especially K-5. However, I’d like to create a coaching menu for administrators to give them more ideas for what our work together could look like. That might be helpful and allow me to support more administrative leaders K-12.

Read more from The Coach participants as they share their learning from the certificate & mentorship program…

Tracy: Coaching Menu

Ian: Navigating Teacher Buy-in For Instructional Coaching

Kate: Reflecting on a Post Observation Conversation

Ashley: Measuring Your Impact as an Instructional Coach

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Level Up Your Coaching with The Coach!

If you are ready to dive deep into your coaching practice, to help you #coachbetter and build a thriving coaching culture in your school, please join us for our next cohort of The Coach!

Wherever you are in building a coaching culture in your school, The Coach will give you the strategies, skills and tools you need to make coaching a success and will empower you to confidently apply instructional coaching strategies in any situation – from building a coaching program, to having coaching conversations, to being a leader in your school community. We facilitate only one cohort each academic year so we can offer individualized support for each participant.

Coaches of all levels are welcome: you’ll start the program with a self-assessment to determine exactly what the next steps are for you!