Episodes

Do you find that you have a wonderful vision and instructional goals that your school should be working toward but you can't make progress toward them because of student behaviors? No one should have to spend all of their time and energy trying to solve this problem. At the same time, if the problem continues to exist, we cannot make progress with anything else, right?! How do we approach this issue? Where do we begin? In this episode, I'm guiding you through a root cause analysis protocol that ...

In this episode, I'm joined by Steve Ventura, founder/ owner of Advanced Collaborative Solutions and author of Achievement Teams: How a Better Approach to PLCs Can Improve Student Outcomes and Teacher Efficacy. Steve will be sharing the latest findings on the transformative effects of coaching and discuss a handful of simple yet powerful strategies to elevate the work of those who find value in coaching. Join us as Steve and I dialogue around the secrets behind effective coaching and how to seam...

Principals, are you ready to multiply your impact and strengthen tier 1 instruction? Introducing your greatest secret weapon: the instructional coach! Your instructional coach has the potential to drastically move the needle on student learning, but they cannot do it alone. The principal/coach relationship is crucial for growth. In this episode, Alissa Crabtree dives into the three ways the principal and coach can join forces and build momentum! Free Masterclass: Accelerate Your Instructional C...

What if you could shift PLCs to become TEACHER-LED instead of being the one who carries the meetings? We all know that this is how it should be- that PLCs were always meant to be led by the professionals in the classroom on a daily basis. But that just isn't always the case. In fact, more often than not, instructional coaches or administrators are holding the weight of leading PLCs. Because of this, PLCs can become less meaningful to teachers and more burdensome for the leaders trying to steer t...

In this episode, we're spilling the beans on how principals can utilize instructional coaches to make their school everything they want it to be! Join us as we dive into practical tips, inspiring stories, and real-world strategies that can turn any campus into a thriving hub of learning. If you're a principal eager to unlock your school's full potential or just curious about the magic of instructional coaching, this episode is for YOU! BONUS: I'm giving a SHOUT-OUT to several principals who have...

In this episode, we open the door to a world where instructional coaches and principals are not just colleagues but collaborators on on a journey! Join us as we jump into the heart of how coaches and principals align their goals, support one another's strengths, and unlock their full potential as educational leaders. There is a great transformation that can happen when instructional coaches and principals become a united force for positive change. Whether you're an experienced coach or just sta...

"I Connected Today: Team Engagement Cards": Get ready for some fantastic team-building tips and discover how these engagement cards, created by Talesha Savage, can foster stronger connections within your group. She will be sharing the origin story of these cards and explaining how you can use them to impact teams! Connecting with Talesha www.linkedin.com/in/taleshasavage www.twitter.com/tsavageconnects www.instagram.com/tsavageconnects 34 Morale Boosters and Celebrations https://tls-ed-consult...

In this episode with Naomi Hall, the Recovering Educator, we are thinking about how to support teams that experience stress! Here are the questions we're diving into: What are factors that cause stress in teams? How does stress show up in individuals or teams? What are major indicators? Can "stress" be contagious among team members? How does stress affect team dynamics? What can an individual do to alleviate their own stress and/ or support their team that is experiencing stress? How can l...

Sometimes you might think you want a do-over, but do you really want to experience deja vu as an instructional leader? Do you REALLY want to be part of a Groundhog Day movie?? Heck no! We want to see our people thrive and see our schools make progress! Here's how you know you're experiencing school leadership deja vu: 1. You notice yourself asking, "Didn't we do this PD last year AND the year before that? Why are we still having to do this?" 2. You get the feeling that people have been told w...

Whether you have found yourself saying or thinking THIS: "I don’t even know where to begin to make this better...," or THIS: "There are too many problems- I don’t even know where to start...," or THIS: "It is too hard to get people to implement this and I’m just one person...," you're going to want to tune into this episode! I know exactly how it feels to be the person in your position. Someone who desperately wants to lead change, to be a change catalyst, and to get people on board- but feeling...

I know your goal is to align curriculum and instruction so that unintentional learning gaps are decreased and teacher capacity increases (along with student learning). But isn't that always easier said than done? A lot of the time the attempt to get everyone moving forward on the same path ends up fizzling out (if it ever starts). Most leaders don't know that this happens because they don't have a framework for building capacity. And THAT is what this live is all about! Let's dig into what lead...

As an idea girl, I LOVE when people ask for ideas! But I can only help them and share valuable ideas if I have a more detailed picture of what it is they are seeking. For example, asking me for ideas for your son's birthday party doesn't really give me much information. I could provide better, more appropriate ideas if I knew his age, what he enjoys doing, what kind of party you're wanting to throw, how many people you'd like to invite, and how much you're planning on spending. It's the same wi...

Karle Delo​, a passionate and SUPER tech savvy educator, provides the most awesome tech tips on her social media platforms. She shares about everything from Google Docs, to Canva, to ChatGPT! I am always intrigued and excited by her content and I'm thrilled to have her as a guest on this episode! Catch our live conversation or the replay about ways leaders can embrace technology AND reduce teacher burnout! Karle Delo is an instructional coach with a specialization in technology. Before becoming...

As we begin to think about the year ahead, you are very likely considering how to support PLCs so they are effective and valuable instead of lame and something to check off a to-do list. I LOVED this Change Catalyst Conversation with Cory Camp about Blended PLCs and Teams! She brings her experience and expertise about what this looks like in schools so YOU can shape PLCs into what they were meant to be: PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITIES! When you decide to roll out this idea in your own school ...

In this Change Catalyst Conversation, I'm going to share about a Root-Cause analysis strategy known as the 10-5-5 protocol! This protocol will help you take a problem statement and drill down to determine a root cause that you then can strategically approach with reasonable solutions within your control. Bonus: I'm going to model what it looks like to go through this process with a problem MANY schools face! Connect with Casey on⁠ Facebook⁠,⁠ Instagram⁠,⁠ LinkedIn⁠, or⁠ YouTube⁠! Join the Faceb...

Being the "newbie" on the team or the "newbie" to the school as an instructional leader can be exciting, daunting, invigorating, terrifying- ALL the things! Because we can be eager and anxious to get started, it can be a little overwhelming to navigate the new terrain and take the right steps. In this live session, I'm sharing the 5 of the most interesting (and powerful) things I've learned about navigating being the "newbie" instructional leader! Grab the free download here: www.catchingupwith...

If you’re planning a summer PD for teams or thinking about how to spend time at the beginning of the year having teachers investigate standards, this will be super helpful! Sarah Henry, coauthor if Arrows: A Systems-Based Approach to School Leadership, will be sharing about how she mapping standards with teams. She'll be sharing about the strategies and processes necessary to map standards with teams in order to have the greatest impact on collective efficacy and student learning. Learn about L...

Instructional Leaders!!! This is an episode you don't want to miss! Here's the question we're conversing around: Is lesson design a lost art? If so, why? What should lesson design truly entail? And how does lesson design affect school teams? Join me with my guests, Alissa Crabtree, Jana Lee, and Michelle Ruhe for this hot topic discussion and then enjoy the resources we've linked below! From Alissa: Launch Your Instructional Coaching Journey - Online Course Crabtree Coaching Email List Rock th...

Last month one of my podcast episodes was all about Why Tier 1 Instruction is Collapsing. I reviewed response data from a variety of stakeholders about this concept and the evidence was clear- everyone knows that Tier 1 instruction is lacking and almost everyone wants to place their focus on improving Tier 1 instruction in their school. But what wasn't clear to stakeholders is HOW exactly to make that happen. You see, we can encourage staff to provide high quality Tier 1 instruction. We can even...

Let's talk about the POWER of Listening Tours, a way Sherry St. Clair has crafted to help lead change in schools confidently and competently! In this episode, Sherry St. Clair will share all about the effective practice of Listening Tours. We'll chat about how listening tours can be implemented by instructional leaders as well as what to consider before delving into listening tours. Join us to learn about the POWER this practice can have on the journey toward collective efficacy and sustainable ...

In this episode, I interview Carrie Rosebrock about how she leads districtwide PLC processes and structures! Talk about making change happen! This special guest is the co-author of the book, Arrows: A Systems-Based Approach to School Leadership. She has LOTS of great nuggets to share and I can't wait for you to listen! You'll learn about what she means when she says: "Tight-lose-tight" "Similar to Identical" "The burden of NO" "The right kind of meeting for the right kind of thinking" "Set...

I recently read a post on LinkedIn that read: "If you have 800 students in Tier 2, you don't have an intervention problem; you have a Tier 1 problem." That post blew up with comments! Hundreds of people engaged with the post. So, I started asking different groups the question, "Do you believe Tier 1 instruction is lacking or flat out missing? If so, why?" Again, the responses were intense! Tier 1 instruction is a hot topic with many perspectives to consider. In this Change Catalyst Conversation...

We all have mindsets that lead and guide us to take certain actions or say certain things or approach certain situations. Some mindsets are positive and some lead to something like "faux collaboration". In fact, there are five core mindsets that lead individuals and teams astray from collaborating well and reaching the vision or instructional goals collectively: 1. Mindset of control 2. Efficiency mindset 3. Mindset of avoidance 4. Task-oriented mindset 5. Socialite mindset It can be tric...

FAUX: made to look like something else that is usually more valuable : IMITATION, FAKE, INSINCERE... Does this really happen in collaborative settings and on collaborative teams? Is the collaboration just an imitation? Is it simply fake or insincere? Unfortunately, this probably happens more often than not. What looks like collaboration is often faux collaboration. Alissa Crabtree and I share our ideas and experiences with faux collaboration in this change catalyst conversation! We specifically ...