6 Things Not To Do Before, During, and After Your Teacher Observation (EP23)

Hey, everyone, and welcome to another episode of Elementary Math Chat. Today we are going to talk about something that might make your stomach turn just a little bit; we’re going to talk about teacher observations.

I think this is a great time to talk about observations because at this point, you’ve probably had one or two observations. More than likely those were your unannounced, which means coming up, you have your planned observations. So, the one you create a lesson plan for in turn in, and the one that you know is coming. 

So, over the next two weeks, I am going to share tips on what to do and what not to do before, during, and after your observation. This week, I’m going to start with six things not to do, and then next week, I will go into six things that you want to make sure that you do.

Let’s kick things off by talking about what not to do before your observation. So, this is in your planning stage when you are preparing for what you’re going to do in that lesson. This first one I have personal experience with, and I will share the story behind this tip.

Don’t overcomplicate things and pack too much into your lesson.

I made the mistake of doing this the first year I taught fourth grade, and I think we can all relate to my situation. I was just nervous. It was my first observation at a new school, and so I tried to do all the things. I wanted to make sure I used manipulatives. I wanted to show all the Kagan strategies that I knew, and it was just too much.

By the way, this was on subtracting whole numbers with regrouping, and that’s a tough lesson in and of itself, and I could sense pretty early on that things were not going as planned. Things were taking much longer than I thought they would. You guys, my lesson that day was over an hour long, which is about two times as long as it should have been to be honest.

The worst part about this lesson was when one of my students who was actually one of my higher students said out loud, “This is so confusing!” I can assure you that this is the last thing you want one of your students to say during your lesson. I can obviously laugh about it now, but at the moment, it was really embarrassing, but it taught me an important lesson that I carried with me throughout my future observations.

What I learned that day was when it comes to your observation, it’s best to keep things simple. If you try to do too many things in that one lesson, it can overcomplicate things and lead to confusion.

Let’s move on to number two. The second thing not to do before your observation is don’t try something for the very first time.

I was never brave enough to do this, because there are always things you don’t consider until you put them into action, and you don’t want the unexpected to happen when someone is observing you and writing down every single thing you’re doing and every single thing you’re saying. So, my advice is just to take things that you’ve already done with your students that worked well and go from there. 

So, for example, if you are doing a Think-Pair-Share, your kids should know what that means. If you’re doing a Turn and Talk, they should know what that means. If you’re doing Quiz-Quiz-Trade, Sage “n” Scribe, or Numbered Heads Together, they should know what that means.

You don’t want to have to keep explaining directions on something new and answering questions. You want it to run smoothly. And trust me, I know it’s tempting. If you find something really neat, you might want to try it during an observation. But I recommend to just save it for another day. And that way, if something does go wrong, you won’t stress so much about it in that moment.

The third thing not to do before your observation is do not lie to your students about why your administrator is coming.

I will admit I am 100% guilty of this one. I remember once I told my class that my administrator was coming to check in on them. I don’t know why I felt the need to say that and not just be honest with them. I think they’ve been a part of enough observations to know the truth, and I’m sure they knew I was not being truthful. So, number one, I felt bad about lying. But number two, I realized there was no need to lie in the first place.

So, after that, I decided to be totally honest and tell them that I was being observed and that all teachers get observed so we can become better and help each other. I also made a point to tell them that I was excited for the principal or the assistant principal to come. They were going to get to see how hardworking and responsible and respectful our class was. Pretty much everything I wanted them to show during my observation, I mentioned during this pep talk.

And there’s also nothing wrong with giving them a little incentive to be classroom A, as I always say. Maybe it’s a BINGO card they get to pull or class points they get to earn. That’s what a behavior management system is for. So, use that to your advantage.

Another thing I told them was not to be nervous, I assured them that I was not nervous, and there was no need for them to be nervous. So, my advice was to just carry on like normal and be the best version of themselves. It always feels good to be caught doing the right thing, and that’s what we want when our administrator comes in our room.

So, those are my three tips on what not to do before your observation. Let’s go ahead and move on to what not to do during your observation.

The first thing not to do during your observation is do not panic if something goes wrong. More than likely nothing major will happen. But you may have some behavior issues come up, or you may realize that you forgot to assign something or you don’t have a copy of something that you need. Or you may realize that the way you are teaching the lesson isn’t working.

These are all things that happen to teachers on a regular basis. So, if they happen during your observation, I don’t want you to panic, but I do want you to have a plan in place. 

What are you going to do if you have students who are being disruptive? Is there another adult in the room like a TA or a special ed teacher that can help you with that? If so, tell them ahead of time that you’re being observed, and that way they can be on alert and step in right away if something happens.

Now you might be thinking, okay, what would I do if I was teaching a lesson and it just flopped? My advice to you is something I wish I had done during the lesson I talked about earlier when my students were struggling with the subtraction lesson.

Take a moment and pause the lesson, just for a minute or two, just to get some feedback from them. Ask your students a few questions and listen to their responses. Questions like, what part are you understanding what part is still confusing to you? Is there a certain word I’m saying that’s confusing?

One thing that really helped me is to ask if there’s a student who is understanding to explain it in their own words, because sometimes it may just be a word or two that you’re using that you don’t think is confusing to them. But if another student can just reword it in a different way, it might make things more clear.

That feedback was really helpful, because then when we went to work in small groups, I could make changes to better help them understand.

Now I get it, this kind of puts you in a vulnerable state, but feedback is actually on the rubric, and using feedback from your students to make your lesson better is not a bad thing.

The idea of getting feedback from your students also helps you in the Respectful Culture section on the rubric. Here’s what it says about respectful culture. “Teacher-student interactions demonstrate caring and respect for one another.” So, in my opinion, asking for that feedback, and making changes to your instruction really does show that you care about your students and you respect their feelings.

Before we move on to the after section, I have one little bonus tip. Don’t forget to smile. Your administrators, I’m telling you, they are so thrilled to be in your room. They are in meetings all day. They are dealing with behavior issues. They cannot wait to see you teach, and they want to see you having fun.

So, even if you’re nervous, make sure you smile. And by the way, smiles are contagious. So, when you smile, your students are more likely to smile back, and it will help create a positive classroom environment, which is also on the rubric by the way. So that’s an easy one that anyone can do.

Now let’s talk about what not to do after your observation.

The first thing not to do after your observation may seem like a no-brainer, but I am telling you this from experience, and I’m telling you this for a reason. Do not share your scores with other teachers. I will get to an exception here in a bit. But for the most part, if someone asks you how your observation went, just say something like, it went well or it was good or it was fine and I’m so glad it’s over.

The reason I suggest not sharing your scores is it can make others feel uncomfortable, especially if your scores are really high. Think about how a teacher who didn’t do as well as they would have wanted to would feel hearing about your amazing observation with these high scores. They’re going to feel discouraged. They’re going to feel jealous, maybe even envious. So, when it comes to your scores, just keep them to yourself.

Now if you want to share them with your spouse or your significant other, go for it. My husband was my biggest supporter, and of course, I shared my scores with him every single time.

I mentioned earlier there was an exception to this. If you are really discouraged about your scores and you want to confide in a teammate that you trust, then that’s a different story. They might have advice to help you improve your scores, or they might have a similar story to share that makes you realize that you’re not the only one who has had a disappointing observation.

So, in the end, it might be a good thing. If you feel like you want to share this with a teammate and talk about it, just be careful who you tell because you don’t want to share this with someone who might go and tell others. So, if you are going to share it with someone, make sure it’s someone that you really trust.

And you know, as hard as this is to hear, don’t forget that your observations are meant to give you constructive feedback. If there’s an area you didn’t do well on, use that to make you better, and that is a great segue into my next suggestion of what not to do after your observation.

Do not get discouraged if your scores aren’t where you want them to be. I remember early on in my career I got a low score on pulling small groups, and this was when the idea of small groups really started to get some buzz around it.

That low score was justified because I hadn’t yet figured out how to pull small groups. I think at that point I had a small group table, but I used it on more of an as-needed basis, I wasn’t giving a formative assessment to check to see if they understood, and therefore I really didn’t have a system. So, I knew I needed to improve this area.

Instead of getting upset at that score, I made a few changes. I started giving a quick daily check assignment, and I started intentionally working with students who struggled on that assignment the following day. It wasn’t perfect, but it was a starting point. Had it not been for that low score, I probably would not have made those changes.

There was another time I was being observed, and it was clear I had an extremely chatty class, and I was struggling with it. So, I didn’t do so well on the classroom management portion of the rubric. And while I was disappointed with that score, I also got some really good feedback from her.

She noticed that I had to get up from my small group activity several times to control the volume of other students. So, her advice to me was to come up with a quick signal where I wouldn’t have to get up and I wouldn’t have to stop what I was doing. Then once I got to three signals, it would have to be zone zero.

This advice was so helpful because I no longer had to get up from my group. I just gave them the warning signal, and that got them back on track. Now I know a lot of you have your callback signals like class class, yes yes. I found that to still be kind of a disruption.

So instead, I used something called a No Yell Bell, and all I had to do was turn the bell upside down, and it would make the sound. I think there were like seven or eight different sounds that you could choose from. I found this to really be the least disruptive way to get my kids back on track. So, if you’re interested in looking at a No Yell Bell for your classroom, I will have that linked in the show notes for you.

You can also use your ring doorbell. I know a lot of you probably have one of those. So, just set that as your warning signal, and they will know if you beep that once they need to get quiet. If it goes off three times, it’s zone zero.

I was so grateful for this advice. I think at that point in the year, I had just accepted that I had a chatty class and there was nothing that I could do about it. I think we forget that our administrators not only have their own years of experience, but they spend their time in a lot of different classrooms. So, never underestimate the value of the feedback you get from your administrators.

And listen, I know sometimes it is hard not to take it personal. But that’s what your administrators are there for. They are there to help you, and they are there to make you better. So, those are my six things to make sure that you do not do before, during, and after your observation.

We will continue this conversation next week where I share six things to make sure that you do when it comes to your observation. But before I let you go, it is time for today’s teaching tip of the week.

I know at this point in the year, you might be struggling to come up with morning meeting questions, and today’s tip is one that you can use on a Monday after you’ve had a long break. What I used to do after a long break was, I would ask them to share highlights about what they did over break. And you know, a lot of kids would go on vacations and go to the lake or go skiing or whatever, and this was great. They enjoyed sharing it.

But I kind of got the feeling that not everyone had such a good break, and this kind of made them feel a little jealous or envious or even embarrassed that they weren’t able to do anything. So, I ended up taking a different approach, and instead, I had them share what they were looking forward to in the next few weeks.

Did they have a recital coming up? Do they have a birthday party or a baseball game? This kind of question gave us all something to look forward to instead of thinking backward about what we had done, and it was also a great chance for me to follow up with them later and see how these events went. So, if you need a morning meeting question after a long break, this one is a good one.

Alright, friends, that is the end of today’s episode. Have a great week and I will see you next Tuesday!