Stop and think for a moment. What are the things you find yourself saying to teachers over and over? What questions do you answer again and again? Which resources do you continually share email after email? What do you consistently need to demonstrate with multiple teachers?
Your answers to these questions will lead you directly to the easy buttons you need to create. Here are some possible easy buttons you might consider:
- An easy button on how to use a particular technology tool for instruction, like how to use Padlet to create virtual classroom libraries.
- An easy button demonstrating key instructional practices in your content area, like ways to make a word wall more interactive or how to plan for guided reading groups.
- An easy button for how to contribute to shared curriculum documents or complete Response to Intervention paperwork.
- An easy button offering your favorite websites to share, like my Padlet collection of digital texts.
- An easy button compiling videos of best practices and instruction, like effective classroom routines and transitions or how to use digital tools for reading response. Take a look at my collection below:
- How to harness the power of Emojis to track thinking and boost engagement while reading
- How to use Google Drawings to create inviting book talks
- How to use Mentimeter word clouds to discuss book themes
- How to use Flipgrid to share thinking about books
- How to use Padlet to create authentic reading shelfies, rather than reading logs
- Easy buttons for how to navigate a curriculum or assessment learning management system.
Since our coaching is unique to our school, teachers and students, our easy buttons will be, too, ensuring that coaching is responsive and personalized, even if on-demand. And easy buttons are perfect for virtual coaching, too.
Now, I am not saying there is anything easy about our work, but providing clear, explicit examples and explanations for teachers when they need them most can certainly make everyone's work a bit easier, more enjoyable and certainly more effective.
Since you may find yourself with a collection of these flipped coaching resources, you’ll need to house your creations in an easy-to-access space. It does no good to create these resources if teachers cannot easily access them when they need them most. Curate your resources in an easily shareable format (Padlet, Wakelet, Google Drive, or YouTube Channel) to encourage personalized teacher learning, just as teachers might for their own students. In fact, you might encourage teachers to create their own easy buttons for students as well!
One last thing: I've created a special collection of Easy buttons just for you to support your virtual instructional coaching. There are 20 carefully-sequenced videos to show you how to ease into virtual coaching, step-by-step-by-step. Join me! But hurry...I'm retiring this course at the end of 2021, so you can get it now for only $20!
What easy buttons have you created? Or, what easy button do
you need? Share your thinking in the comments below!
Hi,
ReplyDeleteAny website recommendations for virtual books or articles for older readers to make a virtual classroom library? Thanks in advance.
Hi Geri! Here is a collection of sites I use: https://padlet.com/stephanieaffini/digitaltexts
DeleteI like Newsela, CommonLit and Great Big Story!
I love these, too! Loom has been reaching the top of my list lately as well!
ReplyDelete