TfT Bulletin #2 | September 26, 2024

Teaching for Transformation.

Transformation.

Formation.

Within the core and essential practices of Teaching for Transformation, there is the common principle of formation. All the practices intend to shape—to form—the learners (teachers and students) in a particular . . . peculiar . . . kind of way.

In A Bowl of Perfect Light: Stories of Forgiveness, Reconciliation, and Repairing the World, author Megan McKenna says the following about formation, or in her words, becoming:

We were created to be the friends of Jesus, the friends of God, friends with one another. . . . And so, we begin this journey of becoming, this way of being in the world guided by Jesus’s own words and actions that we will repeat over and over again in all our relationships and in so many moments of our lives.

Guided by the words and actions of Jesus, TfT attempts to bring this essence of becoming to the classroom. Students and teachers will have the opportunity to practice over and over again as learners within God’s story.

TfT Instructional Coaching Intensive: November 13-15, 2024

Registration for our upcoming Instructional Coaching Intensive at Delaware County Christian School has been very strong. As of now, there are only 10 spots remaining before we initiate a waitlist. It is so encouraging to see how TfT schools are responding to the significance of instructional coaching as a way of supporting teacher growth.

For travel purposes, the pre-intensive and intensive days begin at 8:00 AM, with all events wrapping up at 12:30 PM on Friday, November 15.

Learning-Centered Classrooms: Getting Smart

In previous TfT Bulletins, I have shared articles consistent with the practices of TfT that can deepen learning within our classrooms. This article from Getting Smart about shifting away from teacher-led classrooms shares many ideas for shifting towards learning-centered classrooms with high student engagement. Further, for each idea, there is a set of reflection questions that will empower teachers to take their next step in this area. This article could provide a whole year’s worth of opening circle prompts for staff development meetings!

Inviting Students into FLEx: The Use of Throughlines

This past summer, Elizabeth Benscoter (Instructional Coach at Grace Community and TfT Masterclass facilitator) casually shared a document that she had prepared for the teachers at Grace Community. The purpose of the document was to illustrate various ways of inviting students into FLEx by sharing examples from the FLEx resource on the TfT website.

Elizabeth’s work is simply tremendous and deeply helpful, so we asked her permission to share it via the Bulletin. With her gracious consent, we are excited to share her work in an ongoing series titled, Inviting Students into FLEx. Thank you, Elizabeth.

We also recognize the contributions of the numerous TfT teachers from across the network who have shared their TfT stories for the online FLEx resource. Each week a variety of these stories will be highlighted as examples of the type of FLEx invitation being illustrated. Thank you, TfT teachers.

We begin this series with the use of Throughlines as an invitation into FLEx.

TfT Masterclasses: Deep Hopes for Mathematics

This past summer, TfT offered seven masterclasses. Starting with Math, we will be sharing from each of the Masterclasses in upcoming Bulletins.

Mimicking a practice of getting to know the students in his math classroom using visuals, facilitator John Lamb invited the Masterclass participants to digitally draw a visual representation of their Deep Hope . . . in 10 minutes or less. Visualizing the Deep Hope provided the participants an opportunity to reflect on their Deep Hope (possibly leading to some redrafting) while providing John with an image by which he could remember the Deep Hopes of the participants. We are excited to share both the playful imagery and Deep Hope statements from this summer’s participants.

Further, I want to highlight an upcoming webinar for math teachers from PBL Works on Oct 9 @ 5:00 PM Central. This learning event may prompt ideas for your Math FLEx design.

The TfT Tips Trio

For another year, the ever-popular TfT Tips Trio is back for another run, led by TfT’s Director of Learning, Amanda Albright. Thank you, Amanda, for supporting the TfT network in this way.

This week’s tips offer ideas for engaging students with the Habits of Learning, with the hope that these habits become a way of being, a system that “catches” us as we fall into a rhythm for the year.

“We do not rise to the level of our goals. We fall to the level of our systems.”— James Clear

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