my version of transparent, collaborative leadership...with a Teamann twist

Looking for advice or its been given? You can go your own way!

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Advice.

ədˈvīs/
noun
  1. guidance or recommendations concerning prudent future action, typically given by someone regarded as knowledgeable or authoritative.

Everyone has advice to offer. Sometimes it’s solicited, sometimes it’s not. Sometimes it is helpful, sometimes it’s not. I always get questions in the spring asking how to handle certain questions or how to prepare for interviews they have coming up. This is year 15 for me, and I have definitely had my fair share of advice offered up. I wanted to share some of the absolute worst advice I’ve ever been given, in hopes that you, as you move forward, can discern between what you should, and maybe what you shouldn’t, listen to.

**This all is ACTUAL advice I have been given. Now, for the most part I fully understand this was all shared with the intent of HELPING ME, and I don’t at all (cough, cough) question the motives.**

  • Quit with the twitter business. It’s not going to do anything for you.
    • Multiple LIFE CHANGING relationships, true friendships cross the nation, professional experiences and keynote opportunities later, I disagree.
  • Have you thought about wearing turtlenecks? People shouldn’t notice your outfit.
    • I’m not even dignifying this one. (I still have the notebook in which I wrote all the “gems” this one was shared with. I’m impressed with my calmness in writing it all. Sigh.)
  • Don’t mention the Troy Aikman stuff anymore, it makes it hard for people to take you seriously.
  • Those cutesy sign offs? Your staff won’t respect you.
    • When I started blogging in 2005 I used the same lil’sign offs that I do now. While I don’t use them a ton in my professional correspondence, using them here just feels right. They’re…part of the me-ness that I always want to come through. If I lose respect because of an email or blog sign off, I’m thinking I didn’t actually have it to begin with.
  • Technology or leadership, you have to pick.
    • Negative ghost rider. I don’t write code. I don’t build computers. I leverage the tools available to maximize what I do. In ALL facets of my life…my leadership role is no different. I can also talk about guided reading. It’s not a zero sum game… you can know about BOTH!
  • Poems? No one has time to read your poems. Your staff won’t respect you.
    • Teaching is hard. Days are LONG. If I can write a silly poem letting teachers have a jeans day or announcing the teacher of the month, and it’ll make them smile, I’ll take it. Admittedly, it won’t be everyone’s cup of professional tea, but it is what it is. I am what I am.
  • Talk less, smile more. Don’t let them know what you’re against or what you’re for.
    • BONUS HAMILTON QUOTE!!! I’ve never been actually GIVEN this advice but it’s from a Hamilton song (skip to 1:02), and doesn’t it SOUND like some people you’ve worked for? It does for me. I never want people to have to wonder what I believe in, or stand for when it comes to doing what we do. It’s one of the reasons I value this blog so much. I can chronicle my career (post 2005) and see the evolution of who I am as an educator. Yes, I’ve changed my mind on things…but mostly, I’ve used this platform to extrapolate why I’ve changed or shifted in my thoughts. You don’t have to wonder who I am, or what I stand for…it’s all here.

Now, I am fully biased in my sharing that none of this was given recently, or from anyone I currently work with. (Not surprising, huh?) In fact, when I first met with my current superintendent and mentioned how stressed I was in trying to separate my “Technically, Teamann” self from the principal role, he literally laughed and said, “It’s who you are, Amber. Embrace and OWN IT.”

Do you know how empowering that statement is? You’re never going to get away from WHO YOU ARE. Todd Whitaker talks about a superstar being a superstar no matter where they are employed in his “What Great Teachers do Differently”. It’s true…your gifts, talents, and passions are going to come to light no matter what role you are playing. I once volunteered in an animal shelter and got reassigned to the front office entering data reports and answering the phone because my “perkiness was wasted on the pekingese!”

Stop trying to hide what makes you you…and know that there is a place, a GENUINE PLACE that will take you, take your quirks, take your strengths and embrace them. Never feel like you have to change who you are in order to get a position. And if you did, and got that position? How utterly exhausting having to pretend to be something you’re not. It’s not worth it, friends.

 

Good luck this hiring season. I hope that your world is full of people who give REALLY GOOD advice…but if not, come back & share what you’ve been told here!

 

advice giveN,

Amber

 

 

Why should reading and writing be authentic? #taketwo

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At some point, as the adult in the room, we have to recognize that as long as students are reading and writing for a fabricated purpose, there is only so much energy and time that they will commit to the assignment. Churning out students who hate a subject but can perform in a standardized way isn’t doing anyone any good. While there definitely isn’t a chapter in your teacher’s manual that asks, “Why should reading and writing be authentic?”, it’s something that should be in the back of your mind while planning.  Even in the context of a classroom they can (and should!) be presented and taught as authentically as possible. When we present students with an authentic purpose, and have cultivated a reason for them to read or write that extends beyond an assignment or a classroom, then we will start to see their voice and passion come alive.  It may be an off the cuff assignment or look a little different from what the teacher down the hall is doing, but that is ok too.

As a fourth grade teacher, I had the pleasure of preparing our students for our state writing assessment each year. Have you ever tried to convince a 4th grade boy that writing is FUN? It was always a challenge! Realizing that the goal was to get them to find something they enjoyed writing about, or something that offered them a reprieve from a grammar worksheet became my mission. One year (pre Mrs. Teamann, of course…) we wrote letters to Troy Aikman, ℅ Valley Ranch and the Dallas Cowboys. The topic was “Why Troy Aikman should marry Miss Gattis”. Persuasive essay, check! Letter, check! We pored over and over those essays, edits and clarifications were flying through the room. No one wanted to let a typo get to Troy! (least of all Miss Gattis!)

Any subject that we teach has the opportunity to make an impact.

We work with students, children, who haven’t yet discovered that they have the power to change the world.

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Motivating students to be critical readers, to read for enjoyment and knowledge, is a gift that we can give them. Reluctant reader? I genuinely believe we just haven’t found the right thing for them to read yet. Everyone has a passion, we just need to find the right book. It’s up to us, as the adults, to help model what it looks like to be a lifelong learner…a lifelong reader. My elementary colleagues, it just gets harder as they get older…it’s up to us to make elementary school not only FUN but also never losing sight of what it means to have academic integrity. Do we make that a priority? Are we giving enough time in their day to read for pleasure? Are read alouds still happening? One of my 4th grade teachers still does a read loud and she is amongst the top in the district for growing students. She wouldn’t give yup that time for anything…and the books she chooses are MEANT to hook kids into reading, it is very intentional. 

We live in an incredible world, where students have the opportunity now to connect with anyone, and I mean anyone. I have teachers who tweet authors, or celebrities, and colleges, all while modeling to their students what it looks like to communicate in a digital way. Students can blog and share their reflections with an authentic audience. George Couros has shared this image with me before.

 

There are too many opportunities for our students to read and write, and connect globally, to not take advantage of their greatness!
I run into former students all the time…and I can’t tell you how many of them remember those letters we wrote. I bet you they couldn’t tell you one single prompt from an assessment from elementary school…but they all want to know if I ever heard back from Troy!

 

 

PS: I didn’t. Which may actually be a good, non-stalkery ending to that story! 🙂

 

Always a fan,

Amber

It’s spring…how can you support teachers when they’re tired?

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This is the time of year I struggle more than any other. Spring in Texas is just hard. The weather is wonky. It’s testing season. My teachers are exhausted. My students are spring fever-ing. Spring break is past, and there’s much to do before we can call it summer.

I can’t fix all the things.

I can buy more chocolate, but I can’t add hours to the day. I can bring in food, but I can’t take away testing stress. I can give you a break from a particular friend, but I can’t guarantee excellent behavior. I can smile and give high fives, but at this point that may actually be more annoying than helpful. Recognizing that everyone is tired is hard for me to handle. I am thankful we have a 4 day weekend coming up because I just want my people to be able to take a break. To refresh and renew. To pause and to reflect. Their commitment level is so intense, I recognize how exhausting that is…and I can’t take that away. But it’s in my very nature to WANT to!

What I can do is be supportive, be visible in my support. Keep buying that chocolate. Keep voicing my appreciation and encouraging them to finish.  I can show kindness…if that’s in the form of a pizza or a protein cookie, I can (and should!) know my  people well enough to be able to offer it up. I can be by their side, in the trenches, in whatever that looks like for them. The call to support and mentor my teachers is always important, but even more so when they are tired. I can maintain the calm, lessening the noise from outside that impacts their crucial final weeks. Provide opportunities to vent or to cry or to pause…and make sure they know that it is OK. It’s OK for passionate, committed people to be tired. That doesn’t make you any less awesome. It makes you human. It makes you an educator in the spring.

 

I would love to hear what you do, in particularly, for individual teachers, to support your team/campus this time of year!

 

CheerleadN,

Amber

All about changes? Remember this… #IMMOOC & an @ASCD giveaway

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It’s easy to have great ideas, or energy, or a big grand vision. The hard part is remembering  that it is your experiences that led you to a place where those ideas, or big changes you want to make, is your reality. Making changes is not inherently bad, unless it’s at the expense of damaging relationships or sacrificing the integrity of your campus/classroom. All of what you’ve seen or read, or been exposed to is what helped shape who you are today. From things that you remember or feel from when you were in school, from coworkers or administrators that taught you what you didn’t want to be, to the role and mindset you’re currently in…there are a variety of influences that helped create the educator you are, right now.

But that’s not where everyone else is.

You have to be careful in your passion and zeal to make an impact that you don’t leave your people behind. This is one of the reason they say significant change takes such a long time, there has to be a level of trust in place before people can take risks. I met an amazing educator at #EMPOWER17 who took a risk in opening up to a mentor, one who also happened to be his evaluative supervisor. At the end of the year, when his sharing and risk taking led to some evaluative push back, he choose to take a demotion and move to another district. That trust had been shattered and he knew he wouldn’t be able to ever feel safe taking those risks again. That district lost out on someone who wanted and was willing to be innovative and take risks.

I also think that it’s hard to drill holes in the boat, if you’re busy paddling. If you’re the only person moving your ship forward, for whatever reason, means there’s going to be plenty of time & room for people to be drilling. Keeping your team involved and feeling that they have a voice or say in what is happening will help keep them invested and feel as if they are a part of the change, instead of change being done to them.

 

What do you do to ensure your whole ship is helping you paddle? I have a copy of “Bold Moves for Schools” to give to some fabulous reader who comments below. I would love to hear how YOU are keeping your ship afloat!

 

Captain Amber

Reflection is personal power… & other people might grow too! #LeadLAP #IMMOOC, week 5

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I started blogging in 2005. It was something new, something different to engage my 4th graders. I didn’t even contemplate the power that using it for reflection would do later in my career. Permission from my parents was the easy part. More difficult was convincing the technology powers that be that it was safe and also purposeful. I had to present the whats and whys to the district’s technology department and convince them….awkward is an understatement.  At the time, literally, they told me, “We don’t think anyone will actually read it, but as long as you don’t mention our district/your school, it should be fine.”

Can you even?

Thankfully, I did it anyway. And whether anyone read it then or not, is irrelevant. I used my blog with my students, through David Warlick’s hosting tool, and it was amazing. I had to upload pictures to separate hosting site, and then code the HTML to get the picture to share to the blog. My fourth graders loved it…we used it for our version of homework and I tricked them into writing the best lab reports ever by promising to share the best ones with the whole wide world.

While much has changed, including the transition of my blog to being a tool used to teach/guide teachers while I was in the tech department, or administratively through my leadership roles, I still use it to share, to reflect, and to connect. The ability to chronicle my growth through the posts and experiences is irreplaceable. The comments and people I have met through this space has made me better.

Reflection allows continuous improvement, with both personal and professional implications.

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 It’s what I want for our staff, and our students. Of course I should expect no less for myself. By putting it out there, in a space that allows for feedback, and or criticism, it allows me to process in a completely different way than just talking to my peers when we have time. (ha!) Life is busy, and the days are long…I don’t see many of the people who push my thinking on a regular basis, but through blogging, I can definitely feel more connected, and vice versa. It’s where I genuinely hold fast to that the things I tweet or share, are aligned to my true thoughts. I never want to share something that isn’t aligned with my philosophy or vision…and my experiences via my blog back that all up. That matters to me. It’s why I don’t mind writing as casually as I do, because my favorite thing ever is when I interact with someone and they say that I am just like they thought I would be from reading my blog…(hopefully, that’s a good thing!)

How does that connect to #LeadLAP? I bought “Lead like a Pirate”  while at #EMPOWER17 last week. (To say I read it quickly is an understatement. I devoured it.) I so wish I’d had it my first year as an administrator and think there were so many valuable nuggets that resonated with me on a professional level. I highlighted and tabbed so many places…again makes me wish I could figure out the darn #booksnap wave! How this connects to this blog are the powerful words Burgess and Houf used in talking about reflection,  “…as leaders, we often rob ourselves of this much-needed time to stop, slow down, and improve our own practice.”

Just b/c we’re in the roles that we are in doesn’t mean we should be satisfied in staying where we are.

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If I want our teachers to move past “proficient” in TTESS (our state evaluative system), my word, shouldn’t I also have growth expectations for myself? I use my blog to set those goals, and to hold my self accountable. It’s the only way I know how to do this thing we call leadership, and I am thankful that there are others out there that are doing the same.

 

Blog writeN & accountability seekN,

Amber