What's Sassy, Savvy, Simple's NICHE?!?!

Over the past few weeks I've sat down multiple times thinking of how to start this blog post for my readers. I don't know necessarily the proper way to get going here, so I will just be myself & put it out there. In fact, that was what I learned while I was learning at the Teachers Pay Teachers conference in Vegas a few weeks ago. I learned to show everyone what I do each day.

Many things stuck with me from the conference, I had too many "for real" & "ah-ha" moments. To read more about my learnings from the Teachers Pay Teachers conference click HERE. But what I really took away & kept thinking about was finding my "niche" & sharing that. Over the past, almost 2 years, I haven't shared all that much here on my blog or on my collaborative blogs about my "niche". I hate to admit this, because I don't feel like I'm EVER this type of person but I was scared. It was like cautious grounds for me, because I am my hardest critique. My "niche" was not at all on my radar in my career in education. It kind of just happened in my life. I was nervous, because I'm not a seasoned veteran. I was nervous because I'm always juggling multiple methods of educating myself better. I was nervous that I didn't have all the answers. Then I realized, that's exactly what I do at work. Every single day, I tell my teachers to tell me what they want & need. If I don't have an answer for you, we'll find one together. I am very resourceful & I will do just about anything for my teachers. My "niche" is really all about sharing my love of reading with teachers.

So for the first time in full, I am a K-5 Literacy Coach. I have finally put in enough years in this role to actually feel comfortable at it. So with that & the most valuable take-away from the conference I will be sharing what it is I do along with my love for reading here. Yes, I will still continue my new Harper Jane Line [my little spunky red headed girl] with my new love of toddler/Pre-K activities. You can check that out HERE.

So to kick it off today, I want to first say that everything I put out will be what I do & what works for me from my professional learning & experiences. There is not one right way to be an effective coach, but there are lots of things you can do to be an effective coach.

I have 2 words of advice that I practice each day. These 2 words keep me real in my work. I highly believe that starting each day with the right professional mind set is the start of successful coaching to our class, not of students, but of teachers.

I don't know what else to really tell you all about the 2 words of advice above. Mindset is everything. When you have the right mindset, the teachers you work with will see you for that & appreciate it.

Next is my list of my personal top 10 tips to be a successful education coach on a daily basis. These are the things that I do & I feel work for me in my daily interactions with my teachers.

So here we go...

1)      Build Relationships: Genuinely take time to know about employees, their lives & their families. Making personal level connections beyond the school building will help you. Teachers need to know you actually care about them.

2)     Make daily Time for Non-Instructional Means: Every morning after announcements [if I don’t have a meeting to be in], I walk pass the hallway door or through the classrooms cutting through bathrooms just to say hello. I never say anything about instruction. A real quick hello or good morning to the teacher & the students goes a long way. I ask if they need anything & remind them to get a hold of me if they do later in the day. 

3)     Be a Good Listener: Sometimes you will have planning periods or Professional Development time when you are the only ones talking. But you also need to make time for you to be a listener. Sometimes you may just facilitate a meeting & sometimes you just need to listen. Classroom teachers need to know they can be open or honest with you & that you aren’t always telling them what to do.

4)     Be Visible: You need to make sure every day or every other day each teacher sees you on campus. Whether this is visiting their classroom or planning period, it can also be in passing with a wave & a hello. They need to see you as part of the community of teachers on campus.

5)     Help with Teacher “things”: If a teacher needs help putting a bulletin board up, cutting, laminating, organizing, copies, bathroom break coverage, help them. You are helping them with time, energy & their stress levels. In return, they will listen & appreciate you when you need them to.

6)     Be YOU: Not everyone is going to like you in life. But, being yourself is what teachers want. They need to see that you are a real person with real feelings & your own real problems. This helps them connect to you rather than being superficial.

7)     Don’t act like you’re better than them: Just because you are in a leadership role doesn’t make you better than anyone else. There are a million teachers still in the classroom that are awesome. If you are not on the teacher side, then you will not be valued in their eyes.

8)     I do – We do- You do: Book up your calendar & give teachers a block of time. When modeling use the same method you used with students. Be there for all 3 parts of I do – We do – You do. Meaning same time every day for 1-2 weeks. Remember it takes 21 days to break a habit, plan to be there for at least half of that time & go back for check ins.

9)     You walk a fine line between administrators & teachers. You have to find the balance & stay neutral. I feel like on paper, you work for your administrators but in reality, you actually work for the teachers. You are their support system, you are their listening ear, you are their leader. You have to remember, we are all in education to help the students. So helping the teachers who spend every minute with the students is your number one priority.

10)   Have fun! I am like walking entertainment for my teachers! I usually can always make them laugh & smile. Enjoying what you do & with whom you do it will go a lot further than anything else. Stay grounded in life with them! Enjoy each others’ company on & off campus.

To grab these FREE posters click HERE to head on over to my TpT store! A grounded mindset is one key to success!

Hopefully for all educational coaches that read this, you find something here that is beneficial for you along with classroom teachers as well! Remember, never stop learning! Being a life long learner will only better you as an educator!