I just got home from an epic family trip to Africa and if you follow me on Instagram you might have seen some of our adventures. We explored, we navigated new terrain, had a lot of fun, and made lifelong memories. Inevitably when you are in a new place, you find guides to show you around—some are structured tours, some are taxi or Uber drivers, and some are people you connect with along the way. One of the things that I spent some time thinking about as we toured new environments was how the guides supported our learning and experiences. Whether it was rafting, exploring a village, or on a safari, I couldn’t help making connections between my learning experience in a new place to those of learners in many classrooms.
As a new school year begins, many of you will have the opportunity to be influential guides for learners—both students and educators—throughout the year in your classrooms, schools, and districts. What stood out to me in my travels and what I believe is most impactful for our school systems, is that the best guides had the following characteristics:
- Relationship oriented: They made connections and got to know about us.
- Goal focused: They took note about what our goals were and helped us get there.
- Responsive & flexible: They were readily available to answer our questions and pivot based on our goals and needs.
- Experts: They shared background and highlighted important information and sights.
This week I want to highlight a teacher's strategy to learn about students in order to guide them throughout the school year.
With Gratitude,
