Back to School Instructional Coaching Checklist, ep. 241

This episode is sponsored by IRIS Connect
Want a handy dandy back to school instructional coaching checklist? Read on!
In today’s podcast, I share my favorite books and resources to get you ready for the school year. You’ll hear about the things you need to decide before school starts. Plus, discover what you should spend your time on at the beginning of the year.
This episode is part of our series – Instructional Coaching Startup: Your Coaching Identity! The series is designed to help you think about what kind of coach you want to be this year.
Whether you’re a new or veteran instructional coach, you have to decide how you are going to show up for your teachers. You need to think about what you’re going to double down on and what you want to let go of before school starts!
To help you figure it all out, I created a FREE First 20 Days of Coaching Checklist!
If you want more support, Instructional Coaching Start Up is open right now! This course tells you exactly what to do each day for the first 20 days.
Below is a list of helpful resources and important things to consider before the school year begins. To make it easier to navigate, I’ve organized everything into four categories:
- Instructional coaching books
- Resources for back to school
- Decisions to make before school starts
- Tasks to invest time in during the first few weeks of school
Listen to the full episode to get all the details!
This post contains links to products from one or more of our advertisers. This means I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post when you click on links to those products. Thank you for your support!
Instructional Coaching Books
Start your year off right with a few great books. These are the ones I find myself returning to again and again.
Here are my top five picks for instructional coaches:
Student-Centered Coaching: The Moves by Diane Sweeney and Leanna S. Harris
The authors lay out strategies with classroom examples and instructions on how to make them work.
Onward: Cultivating Emotional Resilience in Educators by Elena Aguilar
This book helps you think about coaching through an equity lens.
The PD Book: 7 Habits that Transform Professional Development by Elena Aguilar and Lori Cohen
If you’re going to be providing a lot of professional development (PD) or are going to facilitate PLC meetings, this book is full of useful strategies to help you design professional learning with intent.
Get Better Faster: A 90-Day Plan for Coaching New Teachers by Paul Bambrick-Santoyo
This book offers practical coaching tips for supporting teachers who are struggling with structuring their day or lessons. Plus, it includes useful advice for the start of the school year.
I recommend this book because it helps you communicate with teachers more intentionally, rather than falling back into whatever feels natural for you. It’s especially helpful if you have trouble giving feedback or are unsure what to say at the end of coaching cycles.
Resources for Back to School
These are my favorite resources to help you start the year strong and keep you organized all year long! Want to learn more about each one? Be sure to listen to the episode!
Digital or Paper and Pencil
If you’re a new coach unsure how to manage your schedule and materials, you’ll need to decide: digital or paper and pencil?
Going Digital: Google Drive
If you choose digital, I recommend organizing your Google Drive (or other file system) as you go. You can utilize starred folders so you can easily find what you’re looking for.
Going Paper and Pencil: 3-Inch Binder with Dividers
I prefer using paper and pencil because I need to put my finger on things and flag pages with notes.
For this, I recommend using a big 3-inch binder. I organize my teacher binder with plastic pocket dividers for grade levels or departments, and paper dividers for each teacher. Behind each teacher’s tab, I keep documentation and coaching cycle notes to track what we talked about.
At the front of the binder, I keep a classroom visits spreadsheet with teacher names and interaction dates. This helps me notice if I haven’t had an interaction with someone in a while.
Notebook and Calendar
You’ll want to carry a notebook and calendar wherever you go. When I was a school coach, I used a small Eccolo notebook and a compact calendar because I could carry them everywhere. Now, working both in schools and virtually, I prefer a Big Steel Mill & Co notebook and Big Blue Sky calendar so I can fit more stuff.
Pens
There are so many choices for pens. When I first started, I used Flair Pens and Paper Mate InkJoy Gel Pens. Now I prefer Pilot FriXion Erasable Gel Pens because I have to reschedule things often.
Sticky Notes
Who doesn’t love sticky notes? There are lots of ways to use Post-It Notes as an instructional coach! I like the tiny ones for planning my PD calendar!
Colorful Paper
To make sure what you give teachers gets noticed, use bright, colorful paper. Teachers are more likely to remember handouts when they stand out.
Instructional Coaching Year Planner – Calendar + Checklists + Monthly PD Topics
Are you responsible for PD or PLC meetings? Try my new Instructional Coaching Year Planner! It includes a calendar, checklists, and tools to help you choose monthly PD topics.
Want more details? Check out my blog post about the PD planner to learn everything that’s included when you purchase it!
What Instructional Coaches Need to Decide Before the School Year Starts
Now we’re going to look at what you need to decide before the school year begins. Everything we cover here is included in my FREE Jump Start mini course. When you grab it, you’ll learn exactly how to identify each one.
3 Values
Choose three values you want to embody this school year. For ideas, listen to Episode 240 – Building Your Coaching Personality with Jessica Zimmerman.
3 Coaching Goals
Pick three goals that reflect what you want to accomplish with your teachers this year.
3 Strategies
Next, identify three strategies you want to focus on during the year.
Elevator Pitch
How are you going to introduce yourself? Knowing your elevator pitch will help teachers (and admins) have a better sense of your coaching role.
Your Coaching Schedule
Take time to think through your coaching schedule and build one that works for you. For tips, check out Episode 154 – Instructional Coaching Schedules.
Tasks Instructional Coaches Need to Invest Time in During the First Few Weeks of School
There are tasks you’ll need to do in the first few weeks of school, or maybe even before school begins. I teach you how to do all of them in Instructional Coaching Start Up, but here’s a quick overview to get you started!
Review Your Data and Create a System
Take time to review your data and create an organizational system for your work. This could be binders, a digital tool, or something your school already uses.
Principal Dialogue
Meet with your principal early on to clarify your coaching role and expectations. This sets the tone for your work and helps build a strong partnership.
Design Your Coaching Menu
Before you start working with teachers, build a coaching menu with clear, simple options for how you can support their work. To learn more, listen to Episode 117 – Using a Coaching Menu with Raymi Royo. You can also purchase an editable coaching menu in my TpT store.
Meet Each Teacher and Build Bridges
Spend time meeting each teacher and getting to know them. Let them know what you’re there to do and start building bridges to them.
Set Up Your Coaching Space
No matter the size of your coaching space, set it up to reflect the type of work you plan to do in it. Need ideas? Check out Episode 67 – What Goes in a Coaching Office Space?
System for Organizing Documents
Create a system to organize your coaching and instructional support documents. This can be digital or in a binder.
Plan and Schedule Coffee/Cookies/Cupcakes with a Coach
Kick off the year by inviting teachers to an informal meet-and-greet with coffee, cookies, or cupcakes. It’s a great way to introduce yourself and your role.
Visit Every Classroom
At the beginning of the year, pop into each classroom to see how things are going and start building your relationship with the teacher.
Create a Survey for Teacher Support
Send a quick survey to get to know your teachers. Ask teachers what types of support they are interested in and what they want to learn more about.
Develop a PD Plan
Meet with your principal to find out who handles PD and what’s needed most. You can also create a proactive PD plan that focuses on the topics teachers frequently ask about during different times of the year.
Need help? Check out Episode 199 – Why You Need a Proactive PD Calendar as an Instructional Coach or grab my Instructional Coaching Year Planner.
Back to School Instructional Coaching Checklist
I know this is a lot of information, but I hope you found it useful! If you want extra support getting through everything on your back to school instructional coaching checklist, grab Instructional Coaching Start Up while it’s open!
Be sure to listen to the full episode using the player below or wherever you get your podcasts to discover everything you’ll need to get ready for this coming school year!
Topics and Questions Discussed in Episode 241 – Back to School Instructional Coaching Checklist
- Your ultimate back to school instructional coaching checklist
- Instructional coaching books I recommend
- My favorite resources for instructional coaches
- Inside my coaching binders: How I organize my resources and teacher documentation
- Things to decide at the beginning of the year
- Tasks coaches need to invest time in during the first month of school
This episode is sponsored by IRIS Connect. IRIS Connect helps you streamline teacher development with the world’s most advanced PD facilitation system.
Ready to listen?
This post contains links to products from one or more of our advertisers. This means I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post when you click on links to those products. Thank you for your support!
Learn more
- Episode 28 – Coaching for Equity with Elena Aguilar, The Coaching Podcast
- Episode 194 – The Art of Transformational Coaching with Elena Aguilar
- Episode 237 – Instructional Coaching: More Feelings than You’d Expect with Leah Ruesink
- Episode 238 – What Is the Purpose of Instructional Coaching? with Erinn Cottman
- Episode 239 – What Instructional Coaching Is and Is Not with Jasmine Abbey Bell
- Episode 240 – Building Your Coaching Personality with Jessica Zimmerman
- Buzzing with Ms. B on Instagram
- Join My Facebook Group: Instructional Coaching with Ms. B
- Free Instructional Coaching Jump Start Mini Course
- First 20 Days of Coaching Checklist
- Join the Coaching VIBees
Helpful Resources
- Instructional Coaching Year Planner – Calendar + Checklists + Monthly PD Topics
- Instructional Coaching Menu Editable Template + Coaching Strategy Guide
- Instructional Coach Binder Megapack – Editable Forms, Calendars, Planning Tools
- Instructional Coaching Binder Megapack – Editable Forms, Documents & Tools on TpT
- Buzzing with Ms. B TpT Store
- Instructional Coaching Start Up Course
- IRIS Connect
Listen on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite listening app
Thank you for listening to Buzzing with Ms. B: the Coaching Podcast. Want more coaching ideas
Check me out at buzzingwithmsb.com and on Instagram @buzzingwithmsb.
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Podcast produced by Fernie Ceniceros







