The Instructional Coach’s Guide to Planning PD Without Losing Your Weekend

The truth is you didn’t become an instructional coach to spend your Saturdays making PowerPoint slides. Yet somehow…that’s exactly what happens. It usually starts innocently enough. “Can you lead PD next Thursday?” asks your Principal. You reply: “Absolutely!” Then reality sets in. You open a blank PowerPoint. You start searching Pinterest. You dig through old…

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The 4 P’s of Effective Collaborative Planning

Collaborative planning is a strategy whereby teachers sit together to develop cohesive, aligned lesson plans for all subject areas. Schools utilize this process in various ways which impacts the results. When expectations differ among school sites, the effectiveness of the developed lesson plans differ within the same district. Over time, poor collaborative planning habits create…

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CH Bonus: Collaborative Planning Teams

Planning as a team is essential. Many times, though, we find that time to plan is not on our side. Listen in on this Clubhouse Chat as we discuss how to structure collaborative planning teams with teachers! Quotable Sometimes conversations need more time. Splitting up that time throughout the week allows for those deeper conversations.…

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Powerful Lesson Planning

Graphics created by Alina Veja, Aileen Miracle, Teacher Laura, and Glitter Meets Glue   Planning is the foundation of a successful lesson. But it has gotten a pretty bad rap lately as administrators and state regulators clamp down on teacher freedom to instruct students. Despite its decrease in favoritism, planning can be creative and joyful…

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Long-Range Planning

The latest fad in my school district is providing teachers with a “Quarterly Planning” day. Substitutes take over the classroom for the day while the team of teachers meet together in a central location and plan for the quarter. The belief is that by allowing teachers time to plan effective lessons, students will become more…

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No Planning Week

Are you productive when your team comes together for planning or all-staff professional development meeting? For me, I generally am productive. However, there are particular times in a teacher’s schedule when everything comes to a close and you about lose your mind trying to tie all the loose ends together. This generally happens at the…

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Scaffolding Learning: Breaking Down Learning for Student Success

Scaffolding learning is one of the most effective ways to help students access challenging content without lowering expectations. Think of scaffolding as the temporary support students need on the way to independence. Just like scaffolding around a building is removed once the structure can stand on its own, instructional scaffolds should help students understand, practice,…

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How to Differentiate Without Overcomplicating It

Differentiation is one of those words that can make teachers immediately feel behind. You may picture multiple lesson plans, different assignments for every student, complicated grouping systems, and hours of additional preparation. Before long, you are trying to create five versions of the same lesson while also managing behavior, grading papers, answering emails, and figuring…

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