A LEADER’S GUIDE TO INSTRUCTIONAL EXCELLENCE IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS: TWO-PART SERIES

Most schools articulate student expectations for each grade-level, but not enough schools take the time to articulate what quality learning and teaching look like in classrooms to ensure every student can excel. As a leader—and as a school—it is imperative that you build a shared understanding for hiqh-quality, equitable instruction. We’re here to help. In this workshop, you’ll explore best practices in English Language Arts (ELA), assess the quality of a learning task, observe a lesson, and align on what rigorous, culturally relevant, and standards-aligned ELA instruction looks like for all students. When everyone in a school raises expectations for instruction, they help to create classrooms free from bias and limitation. Investing the time to ensure high-quality learning is accessible to all yields significant student gains. 

Instructional leaders do not always need to be content experts, but to truly support their teachers, they must create safe spaces for teachers to sharpen their lenses on instructional practices in ELA that lead to more equitable outcomes. This workshop explores how to establish and lead collaborative planning sessions for teachers. From task analysis to targeted instruction, you’ll gain the tools and protocols needed to shift mindsets, align on look-fors for student mastery, add interventions and accelerations without sacrificing core content, replace exclusionary practices, and provide culturally affirming, engaging and meaningful learning tasks to all students. When led well, collaborative planning sessions allow teachers to work together to enhance, sustain, and scale best practices in ELA across a grade level and ideally, the whole school community.