You gave the directions. You explained the assignment. You told students how much time they had. You reminded them whether they could work together. Then, approximately thirty seconds later: “Can we talk?” (If you’re lucky enough to have students who ask first!) “What are we supposed to do?” “How much time do we have?” “Can…
The first year of teaching is a firehose of information and new experiences. In most states, the new teacher is assigned a mentor, but that mentor is usually a full-time teacher themselves. They may or may not receive training on how to mentor or release time. So the well-meaning plan to “meet regularly and talk…
Congrats! You’re a Teacher! You finished student teaching and you have a fresh new degree and teaching license. You’re about to start your new job and might be wondering where to start. There’s a lot to do in the first weeks of school: you need to set up your classroom, learn about a million new…
New teachers are usually given everything they might need but almost no help deciding what they need first. Handbooks. Curriculum documents. Schedules. Logins. Policies. Student records. Meeting dates. Advice from six different people, some of it contradictory. Then the school year starts. The information is necessary, but we end up with requirements and expectations without…
Do you know who it is in your school? Think about the person who always figures it out. The one who remembers the procedures nobody documented. Who smooths conflict before it reaches the office, catches the falling pieces before leadership ever knows they were falling. The one who stays late when the timeline is unrealistic,…
You made it to the end of another school year. And somehow, you feel worse than you did in February. The crash is what happens when a nervous system that has been running on adrenaline and obligation for ten months suddenly has nothing urgent left to hold onto. The urgency stops. You don’t. There is…
This time of year, leadership becomes highly visible. Hallways fill with awards ceremonies, countdowns, concerts, transition events, spirit days, and celebrations of growth. Schools are wrapping up the current year while simultaneously trying to build excitement for the next one. Improvement plans are being reviewed. Summer learning is being discussed. Staffing decisions are unfolding behind…
Stay Grounded for the last days of the year. You got this!
Some meetings take far more energy than the agenda suggests. You walk in expecting a discussion about a student, a schedule, or a new initiative. You walk out replaying every expression, wondering whether you missed something, analyzing what someone really meant, and mentally preparing for what happens next. The meeting may have lasted thirty minutes….
“What should we add?” When leaders see strain in a system, the instinct is usually to search for a solution. If outcomes are uneven, morale feels lower, or implementation appears inconsistent, the natural question becomes: “What should we add?” Schools are filled with improvement efforts born from this instinct because adding something feels active. It…