3 Simple Rules to Guide Your Team

I recently traveled to Nashville, Tennessee, for my niece's high school graduation.

My sister and her daughter

The ceremony was held at Lipscomb University, where legendary coach Don Meyer was the men's basketball coach for 24 years.

Hanging in the arena where graduation took place. 

A retired player's number and a recognition for Coach Meyer.

Not familiar with Don Meyer? Just Google his name. Read about one of the most influential mentors, teachers, and coaches in the sport of basketball and life. (Watch the video at the end of this post, too.)

Coach Meyer passed away May 18, 2014, but his 3 Rules are timeless. He demanded the following from his players and coaches. 

1. Everybody takes notes

We should all be learning all the time. We take notes to pay attention and to later go back to and re-read and reflect.

2. Everybody says "Please" and "Thank You", "Yes, Sir" and "No, Sir"

We extend courtesy because it's the right thing to do, not because we think it will be reciprocated. Just like the Fred Factor, we decide the kind of person we will be towards other people.

3. Everybody picks up trash

No job is too small to make a difference, and no job is beneath us to make a positive difference. Leave the situation better than how you found it. 

Whatever team he was coaching, including his very popular summer camps, the rules were always in place. Taught, reviewed, and reinforced.

These 3 rules are simple on the surface but run deep, and implemented with fidelity can develop a culture of learning, respect, and hard work. The three rules remind me of Chris Brogan's 3 words for the new year. 

Can it really be this simple?

If you had 3 rules for your team, what would they be?

Coach Don Meyer Tribute

If unable to view video above on device, click here:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9f1lryv06QE  Property of ESPN Productions

Dialogue vs Discussion: A New Tool for the Toolbox

Something that I share with aspiring administrators and current school leaders is the importance of being a connected educator. Creating an online network allows school leaders to find people in similar positions who have had similar experiences who can give advice, perspective, or simply listen. 

One group that I am a part of is on Voxer and is called Women in Education Leadership. This group has been invaluable as a “safe place” for us to discuss ideas, situations, and lean in. I am amazed at what these school leaders are doing or have done and the benefits that we reap for our students, staff, and ourselves as we learn from each other.

Recently, one of our members, Melinda Miller, shared a strategy that she uses at her school called Dialogue vs. Discussion. 

I love how she distinguishes between Dialogue and Discussion and that her staff has created a common language to deepen understanding of the role of a conversation among stakeholders. 

Along with an understanding of the outcome of a conversation, creating a dialogue allows for different ideas to be shared without the pressure of finding the “better” idea. It opens up sharing since the ideas are simply different and “on the table.” 

Peter Senge, author of The Fifth Discipline, The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization, distinguishes between dialogue and discussion similarly. He writes that dialogue is an opportunity to explore complex issues from opposing points of view. In a dialogue, people have a larger pool of knowledge than they would have alone, and the emphasis is not on winning. In a discussion, the emphasis is on having one’s ideas accepted by the group. The result of a discussion is a decision of the best idea.

Senge also says this:

"Reflection and inquiry skills provide a foundation for dialogue" and "dialogue that is grounded in reflection and inquiry skills is likely to be more reliable and less dependent on particulars of circumstance, such as the chemistry among team members.”

How do you see that making this distinction with your staff would make a difference?

How can student learning be influenced by using this in the classroom?

What do School Leaders do in the Summer?

My friends find it interesting that I am a 12-month employee. 

What do administrators do in the summer? They ask.

Well, depending on the school and responsibilities, there are all kinds of things that school leaders do in the summer, such as...

• Inventory textbooks
• Hold registration
• Host professional learning days for teachers
• Work on students' schedules
• Get organized for the next school year
• Oversee summer cleaning of classrooms and buildings
• Attend professional development conferences
• Interview teachers to fill vacancies

When the students are gone and the hustle and bustle of the school day is no longer, it's a time for school leaders to slow down, reflect, plan, and LEARN.

I've set some goals for myself for this summer, and I'm sharing them here as part of my own accountability. (Ask me at the end of the summer if I met my goals!) I also share my goals here because if YOU are planning to learn about the same thing, or if you have expertise in an area and can help me learn, I would love to collaborate with you!

The biggest thing I want to learn about is Google Classroom. I use Google Drive daily, and I want to use Google Classroom next year with teachers so that I can easily collect required documentation from them such as lesson plans. Our teachers of ninth graders have been using Google Classroom since our ninth graders were using Chromebooks this year, so I l plan to tap into their expertise as well as the knowledge that I can easily curate from the Internet and my PLN. 

Another goal is for the next few weeks. I plan to create an app (using Yapp) for our school's PD schedule. A teacher or staff member will be able to download the app to their phone, and check dates and information about our sessions from their phone without having to log in or check a website. Cool, huh?! (Can't you just picture teachers at the pool or park, checking their phones for the next PD time and date?)

My summer learning plans include attending ISTE, CLAS, and AETC, as well as the Closing the Achievement Gap Conference, featuring keynote speaker, Dr. Stephen G. Peters. I love learning and being a part of conferences where the people who are in attendance are excited to be there, too. I'm also looking forward to spending some face-to-face time with my online PLN!


What about you? What's on your list of learning for the summer?

Canva: A New Option for Creating Exciting Visuals

As you know from a previous post about my design fail, I'm no graphic designer. I DO, however, love to create pictures and signs for my blog posts, Pinterest, Twitter, and our school Facebook page. 

Picmonkey is a terrific (and FREE) photo editor, and I use it to crop photos, create collages, add layers, and add my blog watermark to pictures. 

I've found a new FREE tool to create awesome visuals, and it's called Canva. Canva has a ton of free graphics, fonts, and photos that can be used in many ways to create beautiful visuals. 

When you create your free account, the dashboard will start with "Create a Design." If you click the plus sign on the right side, it will add more options:

Social Media Posts, Social Media & Email Headers, Marketing Materials, Documents, Blogging & eBooks, Events, and Ads. You can also use custom dimensions. 

Below are some of the graphics I've created:

Graphic for Twitter to promote #USedchat

Facebook header for the FB group I led last month

Graphic to share on Twitter

Graphic posted on our school Facebook page for parents/students

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Welcome sign for our recent PD day 

(The librarian turned it into a poster for us)

Graphic for a blog post

There are many ideas you can get from the free templates to the eye-catching fonts and pictures. 

I would love to hear how you use Canva. Be sure to tag me if you share your graphic on Twitter! (@jennifer_hogan)