Literacy Coaches Working with Individual Teachers

The importance of a Literacy Coach is to provide professional development for teachers in a way that is deemed approachable.

When starting, a Literacy Coach is either new to the school or new to the position but both need to establish themselves in the role. Some ideas presented to gain a sense of trust between teachers and themselves are:

1. Be accessible- A new coach should be seen around the building. Teachers should fell like he/she are always around to help
2. Initiate activities and seek responsibilities- Alway be willing to help if the teacher has not asked yet. 
3. Develop a sense of trust- Spend time with teachers in the teachers room or eat lunch with them. Informal conversations can help to develop relationships and show them you care about them as individuals. 
4. Start with willing- Literacy coaches must work with all teacher but start with those who volunteer and ask for help. When working with one teacher a coach in hone in their own skills in a supportive environment.

When working with individual teachers there are different approaches a Literacy Coach can take

1. Demonstrating and Modeling- The literacy coach can model the strategy she wants the teachers to know. By modeling, teachers get a better understanding of implementing the strategy and if they feel that their students will benefit from it. Modeling needs to be planned if conducting it with a teacher and they can also have some role if planned correctly. 
2. Coplanning- Some teachers may welcome the coach to help plan a lesson. They develop a strategy to teach students and implement a planned lesson in which the teacher and the coach co-teach. 
3. Problem Solving- Problem solving can be a fulfilling activity which benefits the students as well as the teachers and coaches. Coaches will build their sense of trust with the teachers while they think of how to solve an issue the teacher might have. 
4. Observing- An effective coaching approach to professional development is to observe work of teachers and provide feedback. Observing can give the coach an understanding of what kind of teaching occurs in which he or she can either provide reassurance or suggest a different approach. All in all this is a great way to work with the teacher. Feedback should be seen as a suggestive help and be agreed by both the teacher and the coach.