About two weeks before the start of school, the what ifs start.

Whether you are a first-year teacher or a 33-year teacher and administrator (like me), the what ifs take over down time and sleep time. They start relatively innocently with, What if I haven’t accomplished all the items on my summer checklist as a principal? They grow into, What if the materials we ordered do not arrive at school on time? As my team is planning for the teachers to return, the what ifs become more intense, with, What if the teachers hate every professional learning session we have planned?

Then, of course, there is this series of what ifs:

• What if I can’t connect with the teachers?

• What if there isn’t enough time built into in service week to create amazing spaces for learning?

• What if I am not able to put my own classroom together?

• What if my students don’t feel connected to me, or to the material I am sharing or to each other?

I have learned many lessons about education during my tenure in schools. These lessons have helped me calm the what ifs so I can focus on a great school year.

The biggest solution to the what ifs centers around connection. Making sure that I ask myself and my team the right questions before the students begin helps quell all the what ifs we are all feeling. Here are some of my go-to questions around connections:

• How can I proactively connect to the teachers I will work with?

• How can I ensure that my classroom environment builds connections between myself and my students, my students and the content and my students and each other?

• How can I take these questions and ensure that I continue to ask them throughout the school year?

Connecting with Teachers

Erika Garcia-Niles shares in Hacking School Leadership,

“Remember that your teachers want to be seen as humans whose basic needs are considered. Though often told with good intentions, the narrative that teachers are superheroes or magicians can be harmful. Teachers are hardworking humans who need the help and support of their administrators to minimize distractions, set realistic targets, and help prioritize work-life balance. Teachers want to be cared for, thought of, seen, and appreciated,” (p. 182).

As administrators begin to plan their calendar for the school year, they should make sure to schedule time to visit classrooms. If they ask teachers to set goals for their work this year, they should make sure to keep track of these goals, look for evidence of them in their visits, and take time after visiting to write a note that recognizes their work towards achieving their goal. They should take the time throughout the year to leave notes for teachers recognizing their hard work and create opportunities for teachers to share how they can support them and then how to get out of their way, so they can do their work. They should take time at the beginning of each faculty meeting to have teachers celebrate their achievements and recognize challenges.

Garcia-Niles shares that “teachers already know their why; it’s kids and their learning. The problem is that teachers can’t access their why because of so many barriers,” (p.182). Just as we ask teachers to minimize the barriers that might be placed between students and accessing material, we also need to consider the barriers for our teachers.

Connecting to Students

I have long been a follower of Carol Ann Tomlinson’s work on Differentiated Instruction. When considering our connection to our students and their connection to the material, this quote helps us see where we need to focus as we design learning activities for our students.

How would we assume to teach a particular student well without knowing about her dreams, how she feels about school and the subject we teach, and what has brought her to that feeling? Without understanding her culture or her peer group identity and how that factors into her sense of herself as a learner? Similarly, how could we plan in a way that ensures tomorrow’s lesson will move a student forward with critical content if we don’t have a sense of where his understanding was last week, or how what we did today affected his understanding? And yet, how often do we attempt to do just that?
Tomlinson, C. (2021). So Each May Soar: The Principles & Practices of Learner-Centered Classrooms, Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

When considering how to differentiate a lesson or material for your students, you need to consider three elements about your students:

• What prior knowledge do they bring to the classroom?

• What is their learner profile?

• What are the interests that they bring to the classroom?

If you consider these elements as you plan, your students will be able to connect through one or all three of these elements.

I have seen some beautiful classrooms during my time in Jewish education. One idea that has stuck with me is to make sure to leave room on the classroom walls empty as you are getting ready for the school year. You want your students to see where their work and contributions to the classroom will go. When your students see that they have a space to fill, they will better connect to you, to the classroom, and to the material.

Keeping What Ifs from Fading Away

Finally, how do we keep these what ifs from fading away, and keep the ideas developed because of the what ifs at the forefront of school conversations? At my school, we have a weekly faculty meeting. We have created a schedule for the year ensuring that these topics are programmed throughout the year so the conversations stay alive and the connections continue to strengthen.

May this year bring us many opportunities to connect, to grow, and to learn together.