Starting Point for Literacy Coaches

I became a Literacy Coach 5 years ago. When this happened, I felt like I was on my own. The school I was working in was also on an accountability list, which meant that we were under the close eye of the district and state. To most people, that may seem unfortunate, and in a few ways it was. But, fortunately for me, I was blessed with some of most gifted support specialists I've ever come across. I wanted to be just like them. So, I copied everything they did, until I was able to develop my own coaching style. It was at that time that I came up with the Literacy Coach's Checklist. And, the really interesting part about it is that I have now trained many brand new coaches as well as seasoned ones using it. They have commented how the checklist has helped them become better too. My new resource not only includes The Literacy Coach Checklist, but also step-by-step instructions on how to use it. You can train your own coaching eye and open up discussions with your teachers. In addition, I have described 5 Different Scenarios you may encounter with your teachers and the guided discussion frameworks for each. You will know just how to present the checklist to your faculty and guide them into coming to you for support. And finally, there are detailed descriptions stating exactly what to look for in each of the areas of focus on the checklist. You may purchase the entire 10-paged resource in my TPT store: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Starting-Point-for-Literacy-Coaches

 It came about right before a state review. I wanted our teachers to be as prepared as possible. The document we were sent about the review discussed effective teaching practices and was over 20 pages long! So, I condensed this document into brief bullet points. I let the teachers know that I was going to do walk-throughs using the checklist and then we would debrief about it. 5 years later, I know this is not the correct protocol, but I was new, and didn't know any better. The checklist was eye-opening to the teachers as well as myself. I have tweaked this checklist and made sure NOT to take it out of the teacher's classroom (big no-no). Since then, it has really helped develop my "coaching eye." I can now walk into a teacher's room and quickly determine effective teaching practices versus a pretty class. I now use it as a tool to foster the coach/teacher relationship and to provide direct feedback to teachers during the debriefing process. It also helps teachers become more reflective and because of this has impacted student learning.