Check out the writers, readers and teachers here. Thanks to Stacey, Anna, Beth, Tara, Dana and Betsy at “Two Writing Teachers” for creating a place for us to share our work.

Last week one of  my literacy team members had the opportunity to see and hear Dave Burgess, Teach Like a Pirate, with teachers in a district she serves.  Dyan shared this idea and then went on to use it yesterday in our professional development session. (“Novel idea, use the information gained from PD!”)

• What strategies are in place in your building?
• Have all teachers “revisited”  the strategies that may have been a part of previous training?
• What would teachers say right now?
• What would that discussion sound like in a faculty meeting?
• What would be used as the “winning criteria”?
• How rich would  these conversations be?

This bracket was begun with two ideas already included:  Think-Pair-Share and Question Answer Relationships (QAR).  Both of those have been included in work from the Iowa DE Academies in previous years.  You could easily give teachers one that was completely blank at this time of year when brackets are in play for state athletics and March Madness!

Dyan’s Challenge

What if the principal /  instructional leader in the building took the teachers’ strategies from the brackets and tallied or charted a status of the building based on the frequency of “seeing those strategies” in action in classrooms?  What if the principal reported his/her findings back to staff?  What if that data became a part of planning for future PD sessions?

Teachers using strategies could “partner up” and lead a short session for peers about the strategy and how they  use it. A quick review of the purpose, theory, and research could benefit all learners. Teachers could then have the opportunity to plan how they would use the strategy themselves.  Relevant PD led by  peers! Collaborative teacher leadership in action!

OR consider how you review strategies from previous year’s PD sessions.  Which strategies should teachers be using?  How can they be reviewed in a FUN and yet engaging, useful way as an example for classroom use!

Thanks, Dyan @dyansundermeyer, for not only sharing your learning but also for using your learning within our PD!

How could you use brackets to spark a debate or deepen content conversations?