Jessica and Jen confer after co-teaching a lesson.
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Night Terrors: Let the Coaching Begin!
Jennifer Allen
It's mid-July and I received an email from Jessica, one of our newly hired 4th grade teachers. I can sense her energy through the cable line. Jess has just finished setting up her classroom, and she is thrilled with the layout of the room. She has her desks in groups and enough chairs for all her students. She is especially proud to share about her classroom library and how she has organized the books. She has been buying books on eBay to add to her classroom library. Jess also shares her thoughts on the professional reading she has done over the summer. She has enjoyed Nonfiction Craft Lessons by Ralph Fletcher and Joann Portalupi and now plans to incorporate nonfiction into both her reading and writing workshops. She has even started designing an integrated unit on Egyptian mummies to kick off the year.
I immediately email Jess back in support of all of her thinking and new ideas. I truly am excited for Jessica and all the work she had done. I know that Jess was ready for the school year and think to myself that Jess will be an amazing teacher.
Then a week later I get another note from Jess. This note is different - full of fear. The gist of this note is that Jess is petrified of starting the school year and is having nightmares. Visions of out-of-control students fill her dreams at night.
Jess and I meet the following week for lunch. We talk for over two hours and laugh off the vision of a room full of 4th graders ruling the classroom! Again she shares all of her brilliant, thoughtful ideas about starting the school year right down to her behavior management system. Her excitement and energy was contagious - I find myself secretly wishing I was back teaching in the classroom!
Halfway through lunch I finally ask, "Why are you so petrified?" She shares that now that her classroom is set up, her fears of not knowing what to do are settling in. We talked about what the first day of school might look like and the importance of routines and a predictable schedule from day one. I ask a lot of questions and do a lot of listening. I also tell her if she wasn't anxious and nervous about the beginning of school I would be worried about her. What educator is not nervous about the start of the school year? I know my own nervous energy starts to kick in by the beginning of August.
My interactions and informal conversations continue with Jess throughout the summer, and they make me realize that coaching doesn't have to start at the start of a "school year." It can begin through emails, phone calls, and notes as soon as new staff is hired. I realize as a literacy coach working to support new teachers and staff I need to take advantage of the summer months to start fostering these new relationships. As a teacher I never waited for the first day of school to get to know my incoming students. I always started my summer by sending out postcards to my new students, encouraging students to write to me throughout the summer. The same can be done to start building relationships with new staff as a literacy coach. I believe coaching works best if there is a trusting relationship between the coach and the teacher - not something that can be created on a set timetable.
These small reflective moments bring new insights into my role as literacy coach. As a result of our emails and conversations, Jess and I are comfortable with each other already, on our way to building a trusting relationship. Jess is excited to collaborate with me in her classroom and I am eager to catch some of her energy and enthusiasm for teaching! She has reminded me that my work needs to start before the first day of school. I will certainly take time to send cards out to the new teachers and let them know that I am available to listen to their thinking and support them now.
©Jennifer Allen. All rights reserved.
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About
Jennifer Allen
