School+-+Echuca+East+PS

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 * Echuca East Primary School ** is situated approximately 200 kms North of Melbourne. We are responsible for around 380 students, consisting of 16 grades. Our priorities for 2009-2012 are Literacy and Numeracy. This year our whole school is involved in an uninterrupted Literacy block for the first two hours of each day. All staff are involved in this two hour block, providing support programs for our students and coverage for staff. (This provides staff the opportunity to partake in peer observation professional development). It has been an exciting and awesome start to the year in literacy learning, with both staff and students giving 110%.

 **Lindy Burke -My journey so far...** This year I have the opportunity to be out of the classroom and focus upon the literacy coordination and coaching. Although I have done little coac ﻿ hing at this stage...( I have been learning from our Regional Koorie Literacy Coach...) and trying to build my own coaching skills... I still have a long way to go! Currently I over see the literacy block - by working in all classrooms over a 2 week period, demonstrate sessions as requested and provide small group support, provide weekly timetables for support and peer observations and coordinate On Demand an NAPLAN assessment.

**Establishing Literacy Coaching in our School** - I am looking forward to what the 'Establishing Literacy Coaching in your School' can provide me / our school. I am very new in this role, have much to learn and of course, like us all, want to succeed! Let the magic happen! LOL=== Looking forward to catching up with Joan on Wednesday for our school visit!


 * Reflections - **
 * Day One- **Wow! It was definitely a BIG day - lots of things to think about! I loved the introductory activity - sharing our photos regarding 'literacy learning' - it was interesting what others saw when looking at just a 'snap shot'... Some great conversations and interesting learnings... and many wonderings... an activity that we could take back to our schools and do as an entire staff - just what do people see is going on in the classrooms? Do others see what we intended? hmmm... quite thought provoking!

**Day Two & Three **- Ok, so I missed these 2 days due to sick leave... but I have done some homework regarding these days. I downloaded all the material on the wiki and read through the presentations. I think I was fortunate that Heather Ridge - from my region - was one of the presenters - as I have worked with the Foundation Literacy framework and quite familiar with this approach. I was also fortunate enough to attend the 2 day Coaching Conference held in Melbourne earlier in the year... here I managed to get a glimpse of coaching conversations in action, an introduction into Triads, and some time to 'dabble'... I was sorry that I missed these 2 days... but after going through the material covered, thankfully, I don't feel that I was 'too much' disadvantaged by not being there... But hey, I'll be at the next one and can't wait to see Cathy Toll in action. Again, I am fortunate to get a glimpse of her this Friday (16th July) in Bendigo - a PD within our region - Looking forward to it! Day six & seven - Wow, it was great to get the head back into BASTOW mode... time sure does get away when you are so immersed in the world of education! I was still quite aware that much of my formal coaching has been more of a consultancy one - sharing skills, knowledge and resources - more than a collaborative one - but at least, I am aware. I will attempt to move more in a direction of collaborative - as opportunities present themselves - and hopefully, then, I will start to initiate them myself. I loved watching the snippet of Inanimate Alice - it is just amazing - I cant wait to look at the other parts of this series. It was great to get the opportunity to work with Joan - in the workshop of whole school literacy coaching. Very valuable indeed. Lots of things to consider and think about in our ever busy world back at school. I loved catching up with Dana re her 'Beyond buddy reading program'. It's something I look forward to implementing into our school in 2011 (If I am still in this position - which is never guaranteed!) It was another 2 full pack, head spinning 2 days!
 * Day Four - **Well, it took some time to get my head into the right head space - after missing day 2 & 3... and I did appreciate the triad catch up first up. It was great to hear about others' worlds and what they are planning to implement as a result of this course - still quite a lot of uncertainties... which at least made me feel a little more normal... The session after break - analysing our students work using the matrix.. I found quite difficult. I think I may have benefited from an example of the process... but I do believe that as I don't have my own grade - it was difficult to assess the students work - as I didn't know the students well enough... but I did find value in the moderating of students writing data (even if I marked way harder that the department examples) after lunch. Some interesting discussions - especially when examining the purpose of moderation.. is it just an assessment tool? Or is there more benefits - like using the information to drive our teaching? Of course there is... but looking at our school - we tend to moderate in preparation of reports... hmmm an area we could improve on already... a need to make these a regular part of our level learning meetings (also it would be an excellent form of continual professional development - "the more we know, the more places we will go" De Suez)
 * Day Five - Cathy Toll "Coaching teachers as Learners'- **<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This lady is awesome! I could listen to her all day! Loved the 2,4,8 activity - a great way to get to know and learn from others - created some great conversations. And it's alway good to reaffirm that "where I am, is where I am" on this learning journey. We are all on a learning journey - individual ones and it is important that we all recognise this - remember those that do not appear to be moving are not rocks - but beams of light - always visible - just not always, to everyone, all the time! I also loved the term "ANCORA IMPARO" (Michealangelo) quite simply meaning " still I learn". This session was very similar to the PD I attended a few weeks ago - yet "still I learn" LOL - I loved the discussion regarding classroom observations and will keep Cathy's point in mind - as we (our region) continue down this path... But then Cathy has worked quite intensively with our region.. I wonder if there is a fork in the road in the not so distant future..... A couple of refreshing thoughts from Cathy ... "It's not a coaches job to get a person to somewhere, but it's what they learn along the way that is the magic" - Remember "Should" is a judgement - coaches must avoid this term. - And finally, "It's not about what's right or wrong - it's whether it effective or ineffective that matters". Amazing! Cathy Toll, you make it all seem so easy!!!!!

**Some Thoughts and Wonderings along the way....**
 * (4/6/2010)** -<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Well it was great to catch up with Joan on Wednesday! Thank you Joan! A very positive discussion, it's always great to get some reassurance regarding what we are doing and the direction we are traveling. But sometimes despite the best plans... things end up changing.. like my focus... back to the drawing board on that one.. I will explain another time - again I have something to think about... hmm where to go from here?


 * (11/7/2010)**<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> - Ok, so it's back to plan A... which is a good thing! It's still based around building teacher capacity - based around the Foundation Literacy elements, about having explicit literacy focuses, but mainly to ensure a new teacher, a smooth transition into our school and grade. The plan is to work with a new staff member who has just taken on a 6 mth contract in Level 4 (The Level I have been teaching in for the last 3 years). I hope to 'coach' in a manner that supports both students and teacher in all aspects and areas. I am sure over time, my coaching 'hat' may change (from mentor, expert, novice, cognitive, even a learner) ... but ultimately, I hope to achieve 3 main things. One is to make Sarah's time here at East a rewarding and successful one. The second is for the students in this grade to continue on their successful literacy learning journey (and increase their outcomes), and finally, to better my own skills in creating coaching conversations - so that they are natural, informal and effective... I am going for the trifecta - is this too ambitious? No. I hope not... but the coaching conversations, for me, will still be a challenge! But I'm excited about what the term will bring... hmmm let the journey begin...


 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">(1/8/2010) **<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> - So Joan is back on Friday... it will be good to reflect on the last couple of days and what journey is ahead of us... I still am unsure of my direction - I am still working with a new teacher - to continue to build literacy capacity... but I am still very interested in the peer conferring (between grades) as described by Dana - Spring Parks PS... I wonder if this is something I could dabble in also???

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif;">(19/8/2010) <span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> - Thanks Joan, you make it all sound so easy! It was great to clarify the evidence of impact presentation... Joan helped to put my mind at ease... I still would like to create something ' wow' - but may have to accept that on this occasion... it just needs to be 'real'. We looked at the (Ambrose) Change matrix which reaffirmed that I was on the right track - and I am meeting a very real need that is evident in many schools. I think that will continue to be a handy resource in the future too - especially in relation to my current role anyway... I had already modified one of the literacy mapping tools to help track Sarah's progress and the impact of this project... so far so good - I guess we will continue putting in the hard yards - and hopefully all will reap the rewards...

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Change Matrix (Ambrose) <span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Mapping Tool - Audit <span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Prior to this program I thought being a literacy coach meant <span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">: to be an expert in the area of Literacy! That of course freaked me out! I am far from an expert! My experiences were mainly in the middle to upper parts of the school - so of course was concerned I had little (if anything) to offer the lower part of the school. <span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> I was still coping with the idea that I was the literacy leader.. not just a classroom teacher doing my job, working with kids - my role had turned into something much, much bigger, something I couldn't fully understand. It was bigger than anything I had managed before... mainly working predominately with adults! The journey ahead was quite daunting to say the least! Of course I had been heavily involved in setting up the peer observation culture within our school - so was aware that part of my role would be to coordinate that component and model elements to staff as required. I also knew I would be responsible for timetabling additional literacy support, tracking student outcomes, and supporting staff as needs arose... but as for the coaching part... I had a lot to learn!
 * <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Reflection: Then and Now **

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Now I believe that being an effective literacy coach means: <span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> Now, I realise that Literacy coaching is way, way more than just knowing about literacy and being a literacy leader in the school. (Of course this is also an area that I have grown considerably this year!) I have learnt to tap into additional outside resources, to run professional development sessions, to build a rapport and trust amongst my colleagues that enables a successful learning environment. Building such relationships has been a priority and has been ever so rewarding. I too have learnt more than I can put into words here on this wiki space.. the journey has been amazing. I have had many informal coaching conversations with staff - many whom have come to me with a question, concern or just something to share - and that opportunity alone, has led itself to some deep and valuable conversations. I have also completed the Cognitive Coaching course - which has also provided me with additional skills and confidence in this area. (especially with regards to my questioning skills) I have also been involved in some more formal coaching conversations with Sarah (teacher I have been predominately working with). Just watching Sarah grow and the skills and knowledge she has picked up along the way is encouraging to say the least. The ability to have the time to analyse data and share that with staff, posing questions that provokes thought and possibilities have also been rewarding (in both student and staff learnings) Yep, I have learnt so, so much!