Category: General

Strong teacher collaboration is intentional, organized, and grounded in norms of mutual respect, trust and professional relationships. And while collaboration can be fun and engaging, it can also require planning and at times, difficult conversations. Having a plan for collaboration is essential for ensuring that the time you and your team spend together is productive and efficient. 

Start by establishing why and when you will collaborate. In some cases, collaboration will take place during time allocated by your administrators during staff meetings or professional learning days. In other cases, you may want to carve out some time with your colleagues during a planning time or when the team is voluntarily available before or after school to focus on more practical matters, such as cross-curricular unit planning or planning for a specific group of students.

Make the most of your collaboration plan by establishing a clear outcome for the meeting – you or one of your colleagues may feel comfortable taking the lead on creating objectives, or as a team you can determine the objective through email or a casual conversation. Establish a timeframe and honour that time – don’t be afraid to refocus the group if the conversation goes off-topic, or remind the group when time is winding down. You might even mutually agree to assign these roles to each other if the group is big enough, just as you would with your students!

Finally, ensure there is time at the end of the meeting to plan next steps and possible follow-up meetings or emails. Keep everyone in the loop that should know what is happening: support teachers, DECEs, administrators, or even students and families.

Attributes of Strong Teacher Collaborators

To collaborate effectively with others, we also need to intentionally be good collaborators ourselves. Over the years, I’ve had opportunities to work with so many effective collaborators – and those who were not so effective – which made me realize how much I still had to improve myself.

In my current role, I have the unique privilege of seeing teams work together. What strikes me about the teams that work best are their ability to talk openly with one another, even when disagreements arise. They understand the importance of each other’s time, make an effort to ask questions about each other’s lives outside of school, and maintain a professional dialogue that is authentic and respectful. They prioritize their own well-being and that of their students, and understand that everyone plays a role in reaching successful outcomes for the school community.

Let’s explore some attributes of strong teacher collaborators.

Relationship Building

Good collaborators understand the importance of relationship building: establishing trust, getting to know your colleagues, and valuing the strengths they bring to the table. You are probably already building strong relationships with your colleagues without even realizing it – hallway conversations about your families, weekends, commutes, or shared interests are some small ways we build vital connections with others. When these personal connections are in place, it can be much easier engage in deeper professional discussions about teaching and assessment.

Growth Mindset

“Growth mindset” is a familiar term for many teachers, particularly in the context of math. It is important to bring the same growth mindset when we collaborate with other teachers. It is all too easy to get accustomed to our own way of doing things, especially when we see success. But there is also so much to learn, try, and explore, and many of your colleagues may have ways of managing their classroom or developing a learning activity that will enable you to enhance your practice.

Active Listening

It’s no secret that teachers like to talk, and as a teacher you may have been in situations with teachers where the talking never stops or people even start talking over each other! When collaborating, the act of listening actively and attentively is critical. Honour the ideas of your colleagues, ask follow up questions, and listen more. You might be surprised at how much you can discover about others and learn by being an engaged listener.

Generosity

Don’t hesitate to be generous when you are collaborating. Be generous in your praise and encouragement where it is due, share your own knowledge, resources and ideas, and offer help when you have the time and resources. You will not only receive generosity in kind, but bring positive energy into your collaboration for strong professional relationships.

Ready for Hard Conversations

There will be times where discussions will lead to hard conversations. Sometimes you may be faced with someone that wants to confront, to question your statements, or simply is not interested in changing the way they work. It can feel challenging if not impossible to collaborate in a situation like this.

When you do find yourself in these conversations, stay focused on the work and utilize protocols for collaboration established by your school or board. If there is an agenda in place to guide the planning you are engaged in, use it keep the conversation moving. Keep in mind what matters most: that you are working together to optimize the learning environments of the students you teach.

Winter has arrived and I’m celebrating! I want children to enjoy the outdoors and feel connected to nature in every season.  We all need the vitamin D from the sunshine so let’s get out there and do explorations and investigations about snow, ice, friction, sound, habitats, survival and more.

There are obstacles to getting students outdoors.  Appropriate winter clothing is one that is easy to solve but what about attitudes? There is a prevailing attitude in society that winter weather is dangerous. The media tends to put out warnings that create fear and anxiety in our students, their families and school staff.  I agree that driving conditions can be treacherous but when it comes to recess time, outdoor p.e. classes, science experiments, daily physical activity and neighbourhood walks I believe we should embrace this beautiful season.

A few years ago I was attending the Reading for the Love of It conference in Toronto and the session I attended had attracted people from across Canada (it was the incredible illustrator, Barbara Reid – but that’s for another post).  Teachers at my table were from Saskatchewan, Northern Ontario, Newfoundland and Southern Ontario. I learned that attitudes toward winter weather vary across the country. The teacher from Saskatchewan said, “we go outdoors in all kinds of weather or we wouldn’t ever get outside!”. They gave examples that in parts of Canada children arrive to school by snowmobile. I bet they live by the saying, “There’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing”.

What is wrong with hunkering down for the winter months with movies, video games and books? If we do too much of that we miss the chance to develop a positive relationship with the natural world. In the big picture, we know this disconnect means that children do not grasp our role as humans in the natural ecosystems where we live.  We want these students to grow up to be adults who understand the need to protect the natural world and minimize negative human impacts.

For some students, their families may not do any outdoor winter activities.   Even if you just do a few winter outdoor activities this season, your students will be thanking you.  You may even help us have less fear and anxiety in schools about winter weather. 

Enjoy the season!

For many educators, December can be a fun, albeit busy, time of year. It is also a time of the year that brings about much controversy in regards to how we celebrate the season. While many people around the world celebrate Christmas in a similar way, many do not. And with an ever changing population, it is imperative that we, as educators reflect on our past and current practices.

We might ask ourselves:Whose traditions, values and worldviews are we highlighting in the classroom?
When I reflected on that question, I realized that for many years of my career, I emphasized colonial and Western traditions with my students. Many writing and reading lessons previously centered around a jolly man with a red suit, his elves, and of course his famous reindeer.
In an effort to promote cultural diversity and increase feelings of inclusion amongst students, I have been making a conscious effort to avoid work, games or activities surrounding Santa, elves or Rudolph this season.

In addition to rethinking past activities, I have also sought out materials I could use to highlight worldviews that are different from Western or colonial worldviews. If you want to utilize culturally oriented techniques and generate excitement, foster learning and create community, music is a well-known strategy. As a starting point, I utilized a resource I have found useful for teaching music virtually and in-person over the past few years. Joyti De published on Musicplay Online in the Holi unit is sung in the Hindi language. Because I do not speak (or sing) Hindi, I really appreciate that India-born, educator Manju Durairaj partnered with Musicplay Online to offer this song to educators. If you are interested in accessing this content and do not subscribe to Musicplay Online, the lesson can be found on YouTube as well.

Joyti De is often sung during Holi (Festival of Colours, Hindu religious) and is a call and response song in which the students’ response is Joyti De. I explained that Joyti De translates to Give Light in English. With Manju’s guidance, the other lyrics were explained too. My students were also recently familiar with the book I am Love by Susan Verde which focuses on sharing the love and light within us with our friends, family and community. In the follow up activity I connected the song with the book. Students coloured and cut out three candles. Students kept for themselves to remind themselves to be self-compassionate, loving and kind to themselves. The remaining two they gave to others to symbolize giving their light or sharing their love.

I cover teachers’ preps and therefore am in a number of classes throughout a week. What resonated with me was that my Hindi speaking students could connect with the lesson. In one Grade 3 class, a student new to Canada proudly stated “I know that is Hindi”, and translated the song for me and his peers. In another primary class, a young girl heard the song and said, “I hear that (language) in my country, Pakistan”.

Give Light (Joyti De) is a good reminder for all of us at any time of the year and because this song is traditionally sung during Spring, I look forward to revisiting it with my classes later in the year.

On December 19, 2017  we lost a lovely colleague, Joyce Snoek-Hoekstra, in a car accident.  There were poor road conditions that night and she was almost home when it happened. Joyce was a kindergarten teacher who had embraced the job with her whole heart.  She could see the good in absolutely every one of those children and she believed in them.  I covered her class for her prep time so I saw how dearly she loved her work.  I mourn her loss but I also celebrate the gifts she brought into so many lives.  

The last time I heard Joyce’s voice she was on the public address system during the lunch break. I had never heard her on the PA system before.  There was a book she was determined to read to her class during her gingerbread theme and she couldn’t find her copy, It was The Gingerbread Pirates.  As she finished her announcement she giggled a bit and said, “Bye!”, as she hung up. I saw her in the hall shortly after and she was still giggling about the whole thing.  Stepping out of the comfort zone, laughing at her mistakes, going easy on herself for being human, these were qualities that I saw in Joyce.  She was so positive and encouraging with her students, always cheering them on to reach their individual goals.

December’s long dark nights give me a chance to reflect with gratitude on the joys of teaching.  That can be difficult to do with the stress of the teaching job.  It’s a great month to pick up my gratitude journal and double my efforts.  It’s a time to pull back from the noise of the day and appreciate the people who have helped me along the way and remind myself why I’m in this profession. Our students may need that time as well.  Classroom activities that focus on kindness and gratitude are a wonderful way to show students these skills of reflection and appreciation.  I’m going to do a kindness countdown with my early intervention groups.  They will be practicing some literacy skills and building a stronger class community at the same time.  

Take care.

Collaboration is a word used frequently by teachers: we expect our students to develop collaborative skills, and we are often placed in positions where it is essential to our work with colleagues. Building collaborative relationships, however, can be tough for teachers who are new to the profession or new to a school. It can be stressful to find your place with a new team and in an unfamiliar working environment. You may feel that it is better to simply observe, stay quiet, or ‘go with the flow.’ And while you should certainly take your time to get oriented in your surroundings, you may actually find that your work life will be much easier over the long run if you start collaborating as soon as possible.

Who you collaborate with will largely depend on the teaching role you have been assigned. For example, if you are a homeroom or classroom teacher, you will likely work most with other teachers that  also teach the same grade level, that support your class in areas like special education, ESL/ELD, or planning time subjects. Do you teach a subject like core French? You may find that you need to collaborate most with homeroom teachers and other French teachers in the building. By collaborating with teachers who work with the same students or in the same subjects, you can gather valuable insights on students or share content and strategies that you can use in your practice.

Getting Started with Collaboration

Strong teacher collaboration is intentional, organized, and grounded in norms of mutual respect, trust and professional relationships. Of course, friendships often emerge in the process, but it is certainly not a condition or an expectation. Though it may seem like introducing yourself and sharing details about your day is just ‘small talk’, these interactions form the basic foundations of a professional relationship that can evolve into productive collaborations as the school year unfolds. 

In most cases, opportunities to collaborate will be orchestrated and structured by your administrator or team lead. It is completely normal to start out feeling overwhelmed, shy, or unsure of what you want to say in these meetings, especially if you are a new teacher! Keep in mind that collaboration skills will not always come to us naturally. We become better collaborators by thinking critically about the way we interact and communicate with others in a professional context. 

When teachers plan for productive collaboration, and think critically about how to work more efficiently together, they can benefit from the expertise, resources, experiences, and strengths that they collectively bring to the workplace. Let’s take a closer look at the benefits of collaboration, and how it can enhance the learning experiences of students. In the second part of this blog, we will explore some of the the attributes of strong teacher collaborators.

The Benefits of Teacher Collaboration

While it can be tempting as a new teacher to focus solely on your own planning and classroom, remember that collaboration is incredibly rewarding and can actually make your workflow much easier. Here are some of the best reasons to collaborate with your team.

1. Gather Important Information and Insights About Students

The students in your classroom are diverse with unique cultural, linguistic, and family backgrounds that you will want to know about so you can plan lessons that are relevant and responsive to their identities. Your colleagues will be able to share so many insights about the learners you teach, either because they taught them in previous years, work with them in activities like clubs or sports, or have access to information in their student profile or portrait. When you build collaborative relationships with your colleagues, you will find it much easier to get to know the students in your classroom.

2. Save Time on Planning Your Programs

There are so many demands on the day-to-day practice of a teacher, from assessment to classroom management to communicating with families. When you make time to collaborate with other teachers in your team, you can share lesson plans, resources, assessments, and other activities that you might otherwise have to research and plan. Thinking of planning a literature circle but cringe at the idea of reading through a stack of young adult novels? Divide and conquer the work with your team. Looking for a summative social studies assessment that will work for an emergent speaker of English? Your colleague may have something they have already used with success. There is no need to reinvent the wheel when you have so much experience and expertise at your fingertips.

3. Start a Co-Teaching and Co-Assessment Practice

Co-teaching and co-assessment are often overlooked when we collaborate, and can be the perfect way to take some of the the stress out of teaching while also having fun. Why not use your collaboration time to co-plan lessons and instructional cycles where you team teach a single group of students? There are many ways to do this: for example, you can try mixing classes into a large group, teaching a single part of a lesson while your colleague teaches the other, or having one colleague lead while the other circulates and assesses. 

4. Collaboration Makes Work more Fun

Teaching has its tough moments, and having the support and input of a colleague or team of colleagues can make the journey much more fun and rewarding. Collaboration is a great avenue to connect with your colleagues and simply enjoy the process of teamwork, sharing experiences, or just being with another group of adults!

Moving Forward

This is just a handful of the reasons you should make an effort to collaborate more with the teachers you work with. In the next article we will go into more detail about what it takes to be a strong teacher collaborators.

Each year as we get closer to the end of 2022, I think about what ways we can celebrate the end of the calendar year as a class. When I first started teaching in 2014, I brought in a Christmas tree for my class without thinking that perhaps my class doesn’t celebrate. This year as we are learning about surveys and analyzing the results of these surveys, we decided to pose the following question to the class, “What do you celebrate in December?” This is similar to the question I asked my class last February, “What are the things people celebrate in February?” Students had the chance to pass if they preferred not to say but I found most students were excited to share what they look forward to as 2022 draws to an end.

From here, we graphed the results and saw that almost all of our students celebrate Christmas, many celebrate New Years Eve, two celebrate Diwali (which my student suggested was a winter holiday) and many students just enjoy celebrating two weeks off to themselves. After displaying this graph on our math wall, I brought in some decorations and students decorated the class making sure to have all celebrations equally represented. From there, we started learning about other celebrations and students started to share that they had never heard of them before. We listened to Kwanzaa stories and heard about the history of the day. Later this week, we will listen to stories from other cultures. We also have a calendar with 31 squares on it where each day, the previous student of the day selects a friend to have a treat. This is selected based on who they think has been trying their best and should have a treat. This is a simple way to take a holiday item and turn it into a student-led initiative (non-holiday related).

Next week, once again students in our school will be learning about a variety of Winter Celebrations by helping with crafts and lessons shared by other teachers in the school. Even though December is filled with holidays, it will be important to recognize holidays in the other months that they occur as we need to continue to be mindful of all celebrations equally.

A student in grade three asked me this question the other day, “Why can’t we say the word Christmas?” which I thought was a very important question. I hope I helped him understand that we can say it but not everyone celebrates it. So it is important to know if someone celebrates a holiday before we just assume that they do and before we wish them well on that day.

How do you celebrate the holidays in December with your class?

In my previous blog post “Lost in Translation” I discussed the many unexpected benefits of maintaining first language — and what might be lost if we do not.  Moving from the lost, to the found, I offer these free websites as possible tools we can use to build a multilingual framework in our classrooms. The following links contain books, articles, and guides translated into many languages.  A good number of these websites have audio functions built into them, allowing students to listen to content in both English and home languages. For those that do not, opening them on an iPad and using the accessibility “speak” function will usually allow audio readings in most languages.

 

Unite for Literacy      

https://www.uniteforliteracy.com/

Storybooks Canada   

https://storybookscanada.ca/

World Stories  

https://worldstories.org.uk/

World Languages  

https://www.av2languages.com/listing.php?authkey=6aeqfo

Story Weaver

https://storyweaver.org.in/

ERGO Live Well Books            

https://www.ergo-on.ca/Classroom-Resources.htm

BBC News in Your Language

https://www.bbc.co.uk/ws/languages

World Wildlife WWF

https://wwf.org/?global=show

Canada Food Guide Multiple Languages

https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/canada-food-guide/resources/snapshot/languages.html

United Nations Global Issues

https://www.un.org/en/global-issues/children

 

At the time of posting, all of these websites were up and running. May they continue to be for many years to come.

Happy Reading!

How do these December spirit days sound to you?

• December 2nd:  Be Festive!
• December 9th:  Sweater Day
• December 16th:  Character Day
• December 23rd:  Be Cozy!

Our Student Council is a group of grade 6, 7, and 8 students led by my colleague Lisa Flanagan. Lisa and the students have created inclusive spirit days and activities. For this blog post, I interviewed Lisa and the executive committee, hoping that you will be as inspired by them as I am.

How was the Student Council Created?

Executive– At the first meeting, anyone in grades 6, 7, or 8 was welcome to sign up. We created a grade 7- 8 executive committee, which includes people with previous experience. There are a bunch of committees: decorating, announcements, fundraising, Tilley TV, yearbook, Audio/Visual, General Helpers, and Spirit. There are executive members on each committee.

James – We stress teamwork. The different committees collaborate on the activities we are doing with the school. Like when it was time for fall door decorating and the photo scavenger hunt, we all worked together. (everyone nods in agreement)

How did your spirit days come about? We used to call the spirit days by other names.

Coral: You mean like Crazy Hair Day? No, we don’t use “crazy” like that anymore. You have to use the right language. Like we don’t have March Madness spirit month, we have March Moments.

Franklin – Also, you can’t imitate someone’s hairstyle from their culture and call it crazy. That’s not ok.

Lisa – We want to shift the focus more on how to be rather than specifically what to wear. It gives more room for creativity and self-expression. The March Moments spirit month includes: Be a Fan, Be a Star, Retro Day, and Titans Day (school colours). On Be a Fan day, you can choose anything you’re a fan of; it doesn’t have to be sports. Also, when decorating, we focus on the seasons rather than the specific holidays.

What other opportunities have you enjoyed with the student council?

James – Right now, we have the fundraiser and donations for Bethesda House (a local agency that supports people dealing with abuse and gender-based violence). It’s been really successful with donations of food and gift cards. It’s great when we work together, and you see the payoff.

Destiny – I presented our plans to the parents on the school council. I was nervous, but they really liked our ideas and were happy I was there.

Rose – We also have grade 7 students who help on grad night. They are really important, and grad wouldn’t happen without them!

Leslie – We have fun! We are building independence and handling new responsibilities too.

Years ago, we used to have an elected student council. The nominees would have to give a speech to the class, and then the class would vote for two representatives. What do you think of that?

Franklin – Honestly, it would just be a popularity contest, and people would be left out. The way we do it gets more people involved.

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I’m so proud of our student council and their work with Lisa. They are terrific role models! They help on pizza day, run the music station at special events like the Terry Fox run, and are on the daily announcements. I’m looking forward to seeing how they develop as leaders at our school. If you have suggestions for our student council, please leave a comment.

*Students’ names have been changed.