Hands On Heads Literacy Coaching 

Dear Principals,

I wanted to share with you, as a school leader, what I've observed over the past 5 weeks (and that's only this year!)- three common themes that continue to surface when working with schools that are working to lead literacy change (sustainably).

When we talk about leading literacy change, it’s rarely a lack of focus or intention that holds schools back. But, more often than not, it’s a SMALL number of predictable challenges that quietly slow momentum.

When the work is aligned, focused and grounded in theory AND practice, literacy improvement becomes both achievable and sustainably- the coaching way of leading.

As you reflect on your own context, you might consider:

• Where do our literacy practices feel aligned- and where do they feel disjointed?
• What shared beliefs about literacy are clearly understood, and which ones need to be made more explicit?
• How often are our leaders able to be in classrooms, observing, modelling and learning alongside teachers?
• What might need to shift to protect time for this work?
• Are we trying to do too much at once, or are we focused on the work that will have the greatest impact?
• How well are our pedagogy, planning and practice currently aligned?
• If we slowed the work down, what would we do more deeply- and more intentionally?

To your literacy success,