Welcome to "let's circle back after the holiday season! With that being the case, it is essential to have a clear plan for how you close out the calendar year and your return to school in January. To vacay in peace, you can finish what you can, pause the things you can't, and know what you will do upon your return.
Some Things to Wrap Up
Assessment analysis from the baselines
Post-observation conferences and reports that are incomplete
Open investigations
Some things to Press Pause On
Implementing large-scale changes
Starting new beef with staff, unless absolutely necessary
Things to Do When You Return
Be intentional about how you welcome students and staff back into the building (not everyone will have a merry and bright holiday)
Schedule your to-dos, don't overload, and give yourself grace if you don't accomplish everything.
Have a wonderful holiday season. Take time to rest and do as many things as possible that bring you joy.
-L
Gems from LH
Your work and outcomes are only as strong as the team you develop and lead. If you are wondering why the progress toward achieving your goals and vision seems slow, one place to look is at the performance of your teams.
The holiday season is also a perfect time to reaffirm your commitments to your team and celebrate the excellent work done so far. If done authentically, it will help to build trust.
Find ways to spread holiday cheer; if that isn't your jam, designate someone on your team to lead the way.
Quote of the Month
"We are each other's harvest; we are each other's business; we are each other's magnitude and bond." ― Gwendolyn Brooks
What We Are Reading/Listening To
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni
This book explores the fundamental causes of organizational politics and team failure (Wikipedia, 2022).
The Speed of Trust by Stephen Covey
Covey shows you how to inspire immediate trust in everyone you encounter - colleagues, constituents, the marketplace - allowing you to forego the time-killing and energy-draining check and balance bureaucracies that are so often relied upon in lieu of actual trust (Google Books, 2022).
Tools We Are Using
If you would like to assess your team's perceptions of performance, check out this tool. Try it with a large group like your Instructional Leadership team and smaller teams like grade levels or the SLT and compare the results.
Organizations You Should Know About
Creative Mornings Their resources and field trips can help to expand your creative experiences. In addition, they have one of the few newsletters that I find to be useful.
As always, you can find us at www.creativestion.org, by email at info@creativestation.org, or on Instagram at creativestationnyc.