What a fantastic second class meeting! I must say, the level of conversation we are reaching in only our second face-to-face class has truly astounded me! I feel that it will only get better and better as each cohort member feels more and more comfortable with each other.
Today, we had a full agenda. The class started off with a presentation from one of our Teacher Leadership Program graduates who provided in-depth discussion regarding an Inquiry (focused on co-planning), which she conducted as she hosted a first-year resident in 2014-2015. Not only were cohort members able to listen to the process she went through, but also gained insight as to how Inquiry is developed, cataloged, and presented - which is something we hope our cohort members will participate in this school year. The cohort members asked several questions and were able to identify areas in which they can be better coaches for their residents.
After the presentation, I conducted a community building activity (protocol) in which they were to listen to a story I was going to read aloud to them. Before I read the story, I had each small group select an object they would need to use as their "token" for the activity. I let the teams know that while I was reading the story, the words "right" and "left" would be read. Every time they heard those words, they would have to pass their "token" in that direction. I modeled an example of it - all cohort members quickly understood. I began reading the story and the movement of the object became the focus of the small group - not the details of the story. When I finished reading, I asked several questions about the story and a handful of cohort members remembered the details. The point of this activity was for cohort members to maintain focus on the story, not the distractions of "left" and "right". I connected this to the way they had been feeling about their assignments, grades, discussions, etc. which became distractions to the real purpose of the course - to become more effective teacher leaders within our classrooms, our schools, and our community.
Upon completion of the community building activity, we transitioned into our co-coaching text and their assignment for the day. Each cohort member were to bring in two copies of a t-chart that we created at our first meeting, but this time with individualized information based on their interactions with their residents. On the left-hand side, they were to list their expectations/strategies to use when working with a resident. On the right-hand side, they were to describe, in detail, their observations. Additionally, they used a survey, created by one of the cohort members, to gain insight into their resident - personally and professionally, in order to drive their development of the t-chart. In small groups, they discussed their findings. Then, they handed in one copy, while cutting the other copy into pieces - dissecting the observations and creating two piles. One pile were all of the observations they found that were positive, and the other pile which were "less than desirable" observations. As a class, we looked at the "less than desirable" observations and discussed how we can provide support for each other AND the resident. There were fantastic recommendations and conversations - truly creating a community feeling amongst the group.
We concluded the class with an exit ticket: How can we use the strategies we discussed in class to help co-plan (and coach) our residents? I am excited to see what the next class brings!
Today, we had a full agenda. The class started off with a presentation from one of our Teacher Leadership Program graduates who provided in-depth discussion regarding an Inquiry (focused on co-planning), which she conducted as she hosted a first-year resident in 2014-2015. Not only were cohort members able to listen to the process she went through, but also gained insight as to how Inquiry is developed, cataloged, and presented - which is something we hope our cohort members will participate in this school year. The cohort members asked several questions and were able to identify areas in which they can be better coaches for their residents.
After the presentation, I conducted a community building activity (protocol) in which they were to listen to a story I was going to read aloud to them. Before I read the story, I had each small group select an object they would need to use as their "token" for the activity. I let the teams know that while I was reading the story, the words "right" and "left" would be read. Every time they heard those words, they would have to pass their "token" in that direction. I modeled an example of it - all cohort members quickly understood. I began reading the story and the movement of the object became the focus of the small group - not the details of the story. When I finished reading, I asked several questions about the story and a handful of cohort members remembered the details. The point of this activity was for cohort members to maintain focus on the story, not the distractions of "left" and "right". I connected this to the way they had been feeling about their assignments, grades, discussions, etc. which became distractions to the real purpose of the course - to become more effective teacher leaders within our classrooms, our schools, and our community.
Upon completion of the community building activity, we transitioned into our co-coaching text and their assignment for the day. Each cohort member were to bring in two copies of a t-chart that we created at our first meeting, but this time with individualized information based on their interactions with their residents. On the left-hand side, they were to list their expectations/strategies to use when working with a resident. On the right-hand side, they were to describe, in detail, their observations. Additionally, they used a survey, created by one of the cohort members, to gain insight into their resident - personally and professionally, in order to drive their development of the t-chart. In small groups, they discussed their findings. Then, they handed in one copy, while cutting the other copy into pieces - dissecting the observations and creating two piles. One pile were all of the observations they found that were positive, and the other pile which were "less than desirable" observations. As a class, we looked at the "less than desirable" observations and discussed how we can provide support for each other AND the resident. There were fantastic recommendations and conversations - truly creating a community feeling amongst the group.
We concluded the class with an exit ticket: How can we use the strategies we discussed in class to help co-plan (and coach) our residents? I am excited to see what the next class brings!