IT'S KICK-OFF TIME!

     Hey I-Team...and Happy September! I hope you've been doing well since the last post. So as you know by now, schools across the country have returned to in-person learning. And although it's definitely been a joy seeing all the students back in the building after being away for about a year and a half, we know that we must continue to follow CDC guidelines while doing what we can to keep students healthy and safe. Speaking of being back, I'm especially happy to welcome back College and Professional Football! For me, when football season starts, that's one of the reminders that the weather outside will soon be changing from extreme heat, to cooler temperatures. Of course beyond the game, I love watching the halftime show...particularly the awesomeness of HBCU marching bands. In my opinion, Historically Black College and University bands bring out this wonderful spirit of excellence, showmanship, pride, and tradition. These qualities are what those long standing institutions of higher learning hold in high esteem.
     And even though seeing the marching bands in all their glorious excellence makes my heart happy, it also interest me to look over at the sidelines to see how the head coach interacts with the team while they're out on the field. I'm sure you've seen it...you have some coaches who call out plays while remaining calm and composed under pressure (i.e. retired NFL Coach Tony Dungy). And on the flip side, you've seen others pace frantically up and down the sidelines as though it won't take much for someone to call out their old jersey number and they get suited up so they can get out there on the field to show 'em how it's done...(i.e. College Football Coach Deion Sanders)...lol. But no matter the personality or passion of the coach, it's always interesting to watch the dynamics between a coach and his/her players.
    There are certainly similarities between coaching a sport and instructional coaching in the field of education. As I said earlier, the dynamics between the coach/player vs. the instructional coach/teacher play a major role in the success of the partnership. Along those same lines, establishing a goal and working towards it consistently gives all parties a chance to reflect, refine, and plan next steps in order to accomplish the goal. Now while it may appear that the instructional coach is working behind the scenes, our job is to work along side the teacher in a partnership that includes coaching strategies such as co-teaching, co-planning, and real-time coaching. In fact, that's what's happening right now between me and a few of the teachers at my school. As they work with me work in  a coaching cycle, we are working together to accomplish a high leverage academic goal that's attainable for their students. Grab a copy of the Coaching Kick-Off planning sheet that I use in my initial meeting with teachers by clicking here. Want to learn more?, then head on over to the Intentional Instruction Podcast to hear   how I use that time during a coaching kick-off to plan my work with classroom teachers.      

The Intentional Toolkit
Inside the Intentional Toolkit, I included a few articles that are timely and are connected to the blog and podcast discussion. To access them just click on the toolkit below. From there you'll be able to open the PDF. As always, I hope you find these articles useful.

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Well that's all for now, but as the month of September winds down, I'll be on the lookout for some great football and of course I'll be enjoying the sights and sounds of those amazing HBCU bands.  In fact, if you click on the video below the toolkit, you'll see just what I'm talking about when you watch the incomparable band known as the "Sonic Boom of the South"; the Jackson State University Marching Band. One of many outstanding HBCU bands!!! Enjoy, and until next time...go out there and Be GREAT!!!!!!!