Learning is a gift. It’s not just something you do; it’s an opportunity to grow your skill set and elevate the social, emotional, and intellectual capacity of learners. Yes, I said learners because whether you are a student, teacher, coach, or administrator, everyone in an educational organization is both a teacher and a learner.

In your learning spaces, this dual role is essential. That’s because learning is an infinite process. Within that process, you are constantly learning, unlearning, and relearning: there is no end.

So, I ask: How can you empower others to continually leverage their learning for lasting impact on their communities?

My answer is…Keep the Learning Moving!

In order to make a real difference, it’s important to understand that meaningful learning takes time. In her new book Arise: The Art of Transformational Coaching, Elena Aguilar shares the following: “There’s generally an agreement that educators need more knowledge, skills, practice, and support after they enter the profession. Malcolm Gladwell, the author of Outliers: The Story of Success (2008), calculates that it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice — practice that promotes continuous improvement — to master a complex skill. 10,000 hours translates into about seven years for those working in schools. Teachers want this professional growth; they want to be more effective, implement new skills, and see students be successful” (p. 30).

Think about that. Seven years of dedicated practice to master the art of teaching is enough reason to keep the learning moving! This commitment highlights the dedication needed to elevate education. It is a journey that demands persistence, continuous improvement, and a passion for learning and teaching. The idea of 10,000 hours shows that mastery is ongoing. For educators, this journey is about more than gaining skills; it’s about becoming catalysts for student success and lifelong learning.

Recently, I had the opportunity to learn from Heidi Hayes Jacobs, coauthor of the book Streamlining the Curriculum: Using the Storyboard Approach to Frame Compelling Learning Journeys. This idea in her book about being in the driver’s seat of your learning resonates: “We are stewards of our own learning…Lean into what is possible, interesting, worthwhile, challenging, doable, into what has meaning and emotional resonance” (p.3). 

As I share in my book The Leader Inside: Stories of Mentorship to Inspire the Leader Within, “Given the ever-evolving nature of education, it is crucial that educators like you are equipped with essential tools and robust support systems to navigate the dynamic landscape, uplift others, tackle challenges, and adapt to change” (p.81).

This summer has been filled with planning learning experiences designed to help administrators and teachers advance learning priorities in meaningful ways. One standout experience was the Teachers’ Writing Camp I facilitated with colleagues. This was an opportunity to keep the learning moving, engaging, and fun—a chance to learn, unlearn, and relearn.

In the spirit of sharing my learning through reflection and writing…

Here are 5 Ideas to Keep Learning Moving:

1. Creative Collaboration:  

Great minds think together! I invited two other building-level administrators with expertise to plan and facilitate the learning. Planning together allowed us to bring our unique areas of expertise to the table and complement each other well. Together, we planned an engaging, interactive four-hour session, drawing in teachers from different buildings and sharing the planning responsibilities. This collaboration was extremely helpful as we had multiple priorities to address simultaneously.

One of my colleagues even had the fun idea to create a photo booth for summer professional learning pictures, which was a hit. We ordered props, made handheld signs, and created fun Canva stickers for the teachers’ writing notebooks. These are just a few of the ideas that came to fruition when great minds think together!

When administrators are involved in planning and facilitating professional learning, it shows teachers they are invested in the process and ready to participate and learn together in the same space.

2. Storyboard Planning

In the book Streamlining the Curriculum, Jacobs and Zmuda introduce the concepts of storyboarding. “Use storyboarding to plot out a visual map sequencing the units of a course to share the learning journey with students. It shows them where they’re going, the major stops along the way, and the various learner roles they will take on – for example, as investigator, researcher, or historian” (p. 6). So we took this concept and used it to communicate the Teachers’ Writing Camp purpose and plan instead of providing a traditional agenda. 

Essentially, storyboarding to plot out a visual map sequencing the plan for the learning experience. It shows the participants the purpose of the day through an essential question, the focus of each hour, and learning targets connected to each focus. A visual image is connected to each focus for participants to make a deeper connection to the connect and flow of the day.

Example of the Teachers’ Writing Camp Storyboard:

CLICK HERE to few our Teachers’ Writing Camp Storyboard

3. Bite-Sized Rotations:  

Break down the professional learning into manageable segments to maintain engagement and effectiveness. Teachers moved around to 15-minute rotations that included:

1. Quick Data Dives: Teachers reviewed student writing samples to identify a strength and an opportunity for growth based on grade-level writing checklists grounded in the New York English Language Arts Next Generation Learning Standards. They then selected a specific goal for the writer and chose a targeted strategy to teach them, ensuring the approach was personalized and actionable.
2. Modeled Writing: This station involved demonstrating the writing process by thinking aloud and showing students how to approach writing tasks. Teachers observed techniques for structuring writing, developing characters, creating a setting, and building a plot. This hands-on demonstration provided clear examples of effective  writing practices that teachers could replicate in their own classrooms.
3. Interactive Writing: In this station, teachers and students composed text together, with both contributing to the writing process. This collaborative approach allowed teachers to guide students in real-time, providing immediate feedback and fostering a deeper understanding of narrative writing. Teachers learned how to create a supportive writing environment where students feel comfortable sharing their ideas and working together. Interactive writing can also have a focused purpose, such as adding suffix endings to words or using dialogues to bring a character to life.

These sessions were led by me and two other administrators and each participant got to experience them all. This bite-sized professional learning approach allowed teachers to easily consume ideas for high-leverage practices, making them accessible for creation and implementation.

4. Leverage Teacher Expertise

Inviting teachers who are on the frontlines of learning with students to facilitate professional learning sessions is key to moving priorities forward and to keep the learning moving. For example, during formal observations and informal walkthroughs this year, I noticed that many teachers were brilliantly implementing a variety of instructional practices in their classrooms. These practices should not be confined to individual classrooms; instead, they need to be shared to benefit all teachers and students.

For the Teachers’ Writing Camp, we invited a teacher to share her techniques for small group and personalized conferencing to improve student writing. Another teacher shared insights on effective use of student feedback. Involving their perspectives enriches the learning experience and fosters a sense of community and collaboration. This cross-pollination of ideas helps to ensure that successful strategies are widely adopted, enhancing the overall educational environment.

5. Reflection to Implementation

How will you ensure that teachers feel calm, capable, and confident implementing the high-leverage practices shared during the professional learning experience?

Teachers walked away with both digital and hard copy folders containing one-pagers that explained each strategy they learned that day. Each one-pager included:

• What: A detailed explanation of the writing strategy.
• Why: The importance of the strategy for writing growth and development.
• How: Practical steps for immediate implementation with students.

Additionally, teachers were asked to reflect on their learning experiences by filling out a Google Form with questions such as:

• How do you feel about the teaching of writing now?
• What practice will you implement in your classrooms immediately?

They also responded to the prompt, “I used to think… but now I know…” This reflection process helps our team enhance and plan for future learning experiences, ensuring that each session is even more impactful and responsive to teachers’ needs.

Moving Forward:

Remember that learning is a gift and deeper learning takes time. That said, foster learning spaces where everyone feels empowered to create, innovate, and elevate education, unlocking the full potential of every teacher and learner.

You can do this. I know, there are a lot of priorities to move forward. But, you can keep the learning moving. Lean into what is possible. Provide experiences that enhance professional growth and, in turn, transform learning experiences for students. 

Let’s continue to work together to build learning communities where everyone is continuously growing and making an infinite impact on each other. Keep the learning moving.

You’ve got this!