SamTastic Weekly Tip: 5/8/23 - Schedule Exit Interviews

This week’s tip: Schedule Exit Interviews

You can learn a lot from people who are leaving your school or district. Consider scheduling time to discuss with departing staff their experience with you and the school. Here are four focus questions:

1. What did we do together that helped improve your practice?

2. What could I have done that would have been more helpful?

3. What are we best at as a staff and school?

4. What should we work at to improve?

Exit interviews with students can be helpful, too:

1. Tell me about teachers who you learned the most from.

2. If you were going to change something at our school that would improve student learning what would it be?

3. Which adults at school will you miss?

Taking time to listen can be valuable in your work to improve teaching and learning.

All five keynotes and five selected breakout sessions from the l6th Annual, 2023, National SAM Conference are now available in HD video: https://bit.ly/3AlRxyX

SamTastic Weekly Tip: 5/1/23 - Look at Your Time Working with Groups

This week’s tip: Look at Your Time Working with Groups

TimeTrack users generally spend more instructional time in work with groups than any other action. The instructional descriptors, Decision Making Groups and Committees and Professional Development, are generally first and second.

Open your dashboard. You’ll see the five groups you spent the most amount of time with this year, chart on the bottom right. Take a look at the group you spent the greatest amount of time with this school year and reflect:

1. Is the group you spent the most amount of time with the one that needed you the most?

2. Can you identify ways your time spent with the group improved teaching practice?

3. Can you identify a specific group member who directly benefited from your participation in the group throughout the year?

4. Click on the bar for one group. You will see a breakout of the time spent. Click the frequency button and you’ll see a very different view of your time. Was the connection with the group consistent month to month? Is this important? Is there a connection between the frequency of your interaction with the group and your impact?

All five keynotes and five selected breakout sessions from the l6th Annual, 2023, National SAM Conference are now available in HD video: https://bit.ly/3AlRxyX

SamTastic Weekly Tip: 4/24/23 - Breathe

This week’s tip: Breathe

How do you take care of yourself? Your staff? Your SAM?

Your work as a school leader, principal or SAM, is stressful and can never be completed. Think about it. No matter how much you do today there will still be more. That’s the nature of working in school. There is always more you can do to help others move forward.

Look at your TimeTrack. Have you scheduled any “BLUE” time? Blue is personal time. It may be counter-intuitive but taking 15 minutes of personal time can actually increase your effectiveness. When you are tired and out of energy you can react in ways that won’t move your work forward. You have to be on the top of your game, in the moment and present and when you work with teachers, staff, students and parents.

Think about the time during your school day when you are at your worst. Consider scheduling a “BLUE”, or personal break. Here’s a few ideas:

1. One SAM principal goes to her office at 1:30 PM each day, shuts the door, turns off the lights and rests for ten minutes. She returns refreshed and ready to do good work.

2. A SAM principal leaves his office and walks around the perimeter of his school grounds. He says this 10 minutes of quiet and solitude makes an amazing difference in his outlook and ability to focus on his work improving teaching and learning.

3. A SAM takes a ten minute mindfulness break at 2:00 PM each day. She goes to her car, reclines her seat, and concentrates on her breathing. She returns to the office refreshed and ready to do even more for students, staff and parents.

You can learn more about mindfulness by viewing HD videos from the 9th Annual, 2016, National SAM Conference. Here’s a link to Kristen Olson’s keynote: https://bit.ly/3H9QkOZ

All five keynotes and five selected breakout sessions from the l6th Annual, 2023, National SAM Conference are now available in HD video: https://bit.ly/3AlRxyX