5

Making Every Minute Count

Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.

William Penn

The moment the instructor asked the question, I knew she would get a painfully honest answer. I was sitting in on a training session for a new math program. Some of the teachers in attendance said they were not making it through each math lesson on a daily basis. They were running out of time and leaving required activities unfinished. The instructor, who was not only a content and curriculum specialist but also a seasoned teacher, replied to the teachers’ frustration with one simple question, “How much time out of your fifty-minute math lesson do you actually have to teach math?” Without missing a beat, one teacher answered, “We have forty-one-and-a half minutes. We lose two minutes to the students entering the classroom, two more minutes to them exiting the classroom, then two more to taking attendance. We lose another two minutes to handing in homework, and thirty seconds to getting their attention to start the math lesson.”

Clearly the teacher had a very good handle on numbers. And perhaps we could tweak some of her classroom-management issues to improve the efficiency of the math lessons. But the real issue for this educator and for teachers, instructional aides, and administrators everywhere is that we are all constantly battling the sands of time.

Time is at a premium for every educator. Think about your own struggles with “getting it all done.” There’s a never-ending list of things to do:

I have a forty-minute prep period. Should I grade the writing papers and provide feedback for students, or should I prepare for tomorrow’s science experiment?

How am I going to finish report cards and prepare meaningful discussion points for parent conferences?

When will I have a chance to reteach struggling learners after I lost twenty minutes to a fire drill this morning?

How am I ever going to fit a fifty-minute lesson into forty-one-and-a-half minutes?

I have been in education for approximately fifteen years, and I can tell you from experience that there is never enough time in the day. Today’s technology makes some tasks faster, but teachers also have more daily responsibilities than ever before.

So when I hear frustration and opposition when I propose that educators are responsible for growing professionally, I get it. Professional development can seem like one more item on an already too-long to-do list. The question isn’t whether it is important to find time to learn something that will make us better educators. Of course it’s important, just like many of the items that are on our to-do list. The real question is, where do we find the time for PD in our already busy days?

We will never have a surplus of time, but if we look at our daily schedules and find ways to maximize the spare minutes we do have, we can ensure PD time becomes meaningful and relevant. Start by looking at your daily schedule. How much time can you conceivably use for your own professional learning? Go ahead, take a minute and map out your day. What time is available to you to learn something that will help you move forward as an educator? The time is probably limited to your daily prep period, your lunch period, and a few minutes before or after school.

Some schools and districts make professional learning a priority by sending students home early one afternoon a month. The teachers then have ninety minutes to two hours to dedicate to professional development. In one of my previous districts, we shortened the school days during the first and last weeks of school to provide ninety minutes of professional-learning time each afternoon for teachers to focus on learning new initiatives or programs, try out new computer programs or websites, or simply plan or reflect.

Not every school or district is able (or willing) to offer this dedicated time to teachers for PD on a regular basis. Regardless of how much time your school or district allots for learning, planning, and reflection, there are a few strategies and activities you can use to capture the time you do have and make it count.

Lunch and Learn

Lunchtime is a perfect time for professional development. The only thing I love more than learning something new is learning something new while eating. Can you relate? Whether you have a twenty-minute break or a full forty-minute period for lunch, choose to use that time productively.

Here’s how Lunch and Learn works: First, figure out the food. It might sound silly, but it’s critical to get that right. Lunchtime is a valuable commodity for teachers, and some days it’s the only downtime you’ll have. If you’re on a tight budget, a BYOB—Bring Your Own Bag—works nicely. If you have some money to play with, quick and easy options like pizza, sub sandwiches, or bagels and cream cheese are perfect. Then invite a few of your colleagues to your Lunch and Learn. Let them know about the food arrangements and what the topic will be. You could choose to discuss a new educational app or website or a trending instructional strategy. Or you could tackle an issue that is sure to spark discussion. Keep in mind, the best professional development sessions often start with a question.

List Your Learning

Set up a whiteboard in the faculty room or other key area where teachers are known to gather. Another option is to cover a table or wall with dry-erase paint. This type of paint is common in many paint stores, and covers a surface with a white paint on which you can write with dry erase markers. Post questions or instructional strategies for teachers, and allow them to add their own ideas or strategies. I use a small whiteboard next to our teacher sign-in, and I post a daily message. Sometimes I write an inspirational quote or message. Sometimes I pose a question or list a website or instructional strategy. Last week, I left copies of a questioning grid next to the daily message where I wrote “Take one” and drew an arrow. It’s a simple routine, but the clear message is that professional learning is important. In fact, when I’m late with the message in the morning, teachers will return later in the day to see what I’ve written.

#TechMexTuesday

One of the more successful professional development offerings I have used in the past is #TechMexTuesday. It combines the idea of Tech Tuesday and Taco Tuesday (LEGO Movie fans unite!) for a fun new twist. I suggest implementing #TechMexTuesday during those underutilized pockets of time just before school starts and just after it ends. The concept is simple: In the ten to fifteen minutes teachers are required to be in the building—either before students arrive or after they leave—invite them to learn about some kind of new technology and snack on some grab-and-go Tex-Mex treats. This may seem like a short amount of time, but fifteen minutes gives you the opportunity to share something worthwhile. Some educators may stay beyond the allotted time to further explore the concept or resource, while others may leave to explore on their own.

After the success of #TechMexTuesday in our school, we expanded the concept to the summer months. We hosted a half-hour session each Tuesday featuring a new tech resource or instructional strategy, then left a half-hour for exploration. Those in attendance loved it! We even had educators come from other districts, and long-distance connections were made. While summer vacation is the most precious of timeframes for educators, many educators are looking for professional learning opportunities during this time. Even if educators are using this much-needed time off to recharge and reenergize for the following school year, they might still love to continue learning throughout the summer.

Five-Minute PD

Another idea with which I have experimented is finding even shorter timeframes to expand teacher knowledge. With even five extra minutes, teachers can learn about a new resource or strategy to incorporate into their classrooms. When my district started implementing Google Apps for Education a few years ago, we wanted to provide teachers with a quick resource to help guide them. We sent out five-minute videos that explained how to use a particular feature or perform a certain function. What was great about the videos was that staff members could watch them again and again until they were able to utilize the tool. Offering up quick-hitting PD gives teachers the chance to quickly learn how to utilize a particular function of interactive projector software or even take a few minutes to explore a new website. Every little minute counts, and these informal sessions provided teachers with the support they needed to be successful.

1-5-15

Rob Sahli, an Assistant Principal in Minnesota, was seeking a way for his staff members to utilize available time to continue learning. Each week, Rob shares the 1-5-15 Bulletin. Each edition, created through Smore.com, features three links that help educators continue their learning. The first link takes approximately one minute to review, the second link only five minutes, and the third link takes just about fifteen minutes. Rob’s hope is that with just a few minutes, the content of the bulletin will have an impact on the teachers and their classrooms. With ever shorter timeframes to devote to professional learning, ideas like the 1-5-15 Bulletin can help inspire educators to continue learning.

#PopUpPD

If you have never heard of a Pop Up Shop or a Pop Up Restaurant, it is a store or restaurant that is opened in a temporary space for a limited length of time. It may often coincide with a cultural event or happening; for example, we might see Pop Up Shops opening during the Olympics or World Cup.

Professional Development is also something that should be happening anytime and anywhere. This is where #PopUpPD comes into play. Think about a great topic or question that may generate some great professional discourse. Write down the topic or question on a piece of paper and post it in the main office (where teachers sign in) or in the faculty room. Invite teachers to discuss, learn, and share, and to post their answers in a specific spot. You might leave sticky notes for colleagues to share resources, or you might ask them to share via a hashtag on social media (more on this in Chapter 6).

Check out fouroclockfaculty.com for printable #PopUpPD topics and questions you can easily share with colleagues.

Keep It Simple—Make It Fun

As you’re thinking about using those fifteen minutes after school when everyone is still in the building, remember that PD can be fun! At one after-school session last year, I shared a website called Geoguessr. This game site places players at some mystery location somewhere in the world. By exploring the area using Google Maps, players look for clues, using critical thinking and deductive reasoning skills to eventually guess the mystery location. When I showed the staff, the fifteen-minute session turned into an hour-long session, as the staff played the addictive game well beyond when I thought they would! The best part of hosting this particular session was that classrooms were abuzz the next day with students using those same critical thinking skills alongside teachers as they played the game together. Sometimes it’s the simple professional-learning activities that can have the most impact on the classroom.

Microlearning

I spend a lot of my time hanging out in a Dojo. I wish I could say that I am becoming a master of the martial arts, but I’m mostly watching as my children learn many skills that I hope will help them later on in life: hard work, determination, commitment to a goal, and how not to get hit during dodgeball at the end of class. As I’ve sat and watched, however, I’ve learned something about learning.

The owner and head of the gym also teaches the children’s classes. In a forty-five-minute session, he runs the students through twelve to fifteen activities. Each activity starts with a quick round of modeling followed by a quick round of guided and independent practice, and then the class moves on to the next activity. Many of the skills are repeated from class to class, and the repetition in short bursts helps the kids to master the skills.

This type of microlearning can work in a professional development setting as well. Microlearning, by definition, should be short. Once a week, host a microlearning opportunity. Think ten to fifteen minutes before or after school: for example, share a two-minute video on creativity in the classroom, and ask a follow-up question. Have colleagues discuss the question for two minutes, and ask how this might impact their instruction tomorrow. Or gather colleagues and spend five to ten minutes writing down all of the higher-order thinking questions you would like to ask students during the next week. Then share the questions.

Microlearning PD should allow the participants to learn about and practice skills that will help them become better educators. Stuck for ideas for your next microlearning section? Check out fouroclockfaculty.com for some great resources. Each microlearning video presents some great strategies and resources for teachers in a short video and ends with a call to action—a task that the viewer should complete following the video. These resources are perfect for microlearning opportunities in your professional setting.

Summary

Reflection Questions