Team Magic: The Power of Partnership

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"Highly effective teams know what we're working on, why we're working together (what our team's mission and vision is), and how we'll work together."  - Elena Aguilar, The Art of Coaching Teams

If you've ever been on a dream team you're going to know what I'm talking about in this post.  A dream team is the kind of team where you look forward to ANY opportunity to gather around the table and talk about the work being done.  A dream team is the kind of team where you know EVERYONE has your back.  A dream team is the kind of team where you can toss around tough challenges and new thinking without fear.  Across my teaching career, I've been lucky to be on a number of teams.  I learned a little something in each one of them.  Along the way, I've sat beside teachers who were amazing team members.  I think I learned a lot by watching the way they worked with the rest of the team.

This past month, I've had the privilege of joining teams across our district as they dig into the literacy data we have collected since the beginning of the year.  The goal for teams has been to take a look at the information collected, add what they have learned in side-by-side opportunities, consider the reading and writing work learners have been doing, and find the story for their literacy learners.  These meetings provide an opportunity to look for patterns, plan an instructional focus, determine next steps, and figure out how we will monitor growth.  They also allow an opportunity to harness the power of team in thinking about literacy learners who might have greater need.  

It's interesting to watch teams work together.  As I've sat beside teachers, I've come to realize that the team's relationship with one another is equally important to the work they are doing.  I'm fascinated by the teams that just seem to find a rhythm and go.  I've been thinking about the characteristics that make these teams work and here are a few things I've noticed:

They believe in doing what's best for kids.  Teams who work well together seem to have an understanding that we're here to do what's best for kids.  Their conversations stay focused on learners. These teams don't spend time blaming kids, parents, or past teachers for where a student might be, but instead look for strengths and next steps for learners.  These teams seem to think know they can make a difference.  

They respect one another.   This seems obvious, but it makes a big difference.  Maybe it is more than respecting one another, maybe it is members understanding their role in taking care of the people around them.  It seems these team members know the strengths around the table and reach out to learn from them.  They also hold carefully to turn-taking and listening to one another to consider new ideas and perspectives.

There is great trust.  I have to say in my month of sitting beside a variety of teams, I've been struck by the trust some teams have with one another.  Our work isn't easy, and I've heard teachers openly share their struggles with their team.  On strong teams, these statements aren't judged in any way.  As teachers, we've all been in tough places.  Instead, these statements are met with understanding, careful listening, and tender problem-solving.

I have to say this month of working alongside teams, I've become intrigued by those who seem to have some magic as they come together.  I think I would have once said a team needs to have common beliefs, but honestly I've sat beside teams who have very different beliefs, but are still able to have very powerful conversations.  I think once upon a time I would have said teams need to have similar strengths, but I have learned through my own participation on teams that different strengths make for a powerful team.  In these magical teams, it seems that everyone steps toward common understandings as their time together unfolds.

For those with this magic, savor it.  For those still searching for this magic, I hope you find it.  Having been on teams where there is a synchronicity, I know I will always do all I can to make that happen in my future teams.  The work is too hard to not have people around me to support the work I do, to push when I need a push, and to help me over tough spots.  I'm grateful for the team members along the way who have shared their magic with me.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on characteristics of strong teams.  How have they impacted you in the work you do?  What do you think makes a strong team?  How do you see your role on a team?

What Do We Do When Our Truths Aren't the Same?

What do we do when our truths aren't the same?

When my daughter was young I would often notice how different our truths were.  It was not uncommon to find myself frustrated by her take on the way things had happened.  She worried about things that, in my opinion, weren't really about her and, yet, have difficulty taking responsibility for her part in events.  Often I felt she wasn't being honest with me in conversations, but across time I began to realize she truly had a different perception of the way many things happened.  I could be in a room with her when something happened yet her perception of the event was always so different from mine.  She had a soft heart so often things that happened felt very personal to her.  Of course, my truth came from a different place of experience.  Over the years, I had to learn to take my truth out of the conversation and try to understand her truth.

As educators, we often sit beside people who have a different truth than we have.  Whether working with our teams, sitting with parents, or listening to specialists we can find our truths do not match.  Whether teaching, coaching, or leading, we run up against those who have a different way of seeing situations.  So often in these situations it seems we choose a fight or flight strategy.  I've watched people shut down when someone begins muscling their truth into situations.  I've seen people dig their heels in when faced with a truth different from the truth they hold.  This can lead to "this or that" confrontations when the truth - and the solution - is likely somewhere in the middle.  We see these extreme poles in conversations of phonics, technology, grammar, timed fact tests, conventions, and other educational hot-button topics.

What do we do when our truths aren't the same?

Five Tips to Help Us When Our Truths Aren't the Same

1. Listen More, Talk Less: I've been in enough situations where once I unraveled a truth I could begin to see the point of view of the person beside me that I've learned to listen more and talk less when my truth doesn't match the person beside me.
2. Ask Questions: When our truths don't match, it's hard not too over-infer or read more into what is being said. This is why this is the perfect time to start asking questions to help to better understand. So often after asking clarifying questions I begin to understand more the other person's point of view.
3. Stay Curious: Instead of trying to be right, if we work to stay curious we can begin to work toward understanding the point of view of others. In our work, this is essential to finding better solutions to complicated challenges.  
4. Build a Bridge:  Listening more, asking questions, and staying curious can help us to build a bridge to a common truth, understanding or solution.
5. Find the Place Where You Stand Closer to Common Ground: There is always a common truth somewhere in what two people believe. Sometimes it just takes a bit of conversation to find it.

My daughter went to college and graduated with a degree in social-justice advocacy. She has learned to see everything from the perspective of others. Now it is she that often reminds me of the other points of view in this complicated world of opinions. I like to think all of those conversations as she grew up made her the advocate for others that she can be. She's learned to use these strategies above to understand the truth of the person sitting beside her. Her experiences have helped her to develop skills for handling difficult conversations. She weighs her words carefully, asks thoughtful questions, and works to level the conversation.

We certainly live in a time where people hold tightly to their truths, but what could be improved if we learned to listen more when our truths aren't the same?