Teacher Clarity in the Classroom

Why is teacher clarity in the classroom important? Teacher clarity is important for teachers because it brings purpose and fulfillment to a career that is otherwise demanding. Without a why to return to, it’s easy to spiral into dissatisfaction. It’s important to students so that they can buy into the purpose and relevance of their learning.

What’s helped you gain clarity? I’ve gained clarity through working with other people, iterating my practices, and consulting outside sources, but my first line of clarity always comes from the values I hold and my vision of what those could look like.

Creating clarity in the classroom is a lot like planning a vacation. I love planning trips, and I’ve heard that anticipating a trip can be just as if not more enjoyable than going on the actual vacation. So today you’ll not only learn how to create clarity in your profession, but how to plan a really great vacation. You’re welcome! If you’d like to see the Facebook live version of this post, you can check it out here.

It’s Like Planning a Vacation

So, here are 7 ways to create teacher clarity in the classroom that you can use today, and 7 ways to bring your dream vacation to life.

1. Dream about how you want the vacation to look and feel. What are my non-negotiables? Before I even choose a destination, I set iron-clad intentions. Am I looking for a relaxing vacation? Do I want to feel adventurous? What must I absolutely experience? In teaching, this question considers the full context of the classroom. How do you want to feel? What do you imagine yourself doing? What does the classroom look and feel like? The students? What kinds of growth are deeply important to you? These are your non-negotiables.
2. Ensure your non-negotiables are included. This is where I choose my destination. If beach time is non-negotiable, I am going to choose a location and time of year where that can happen, and not just happen, but be really great. In the classroom, this is dreaming up the summative assessments that will snapshot your non-negotiables. Just like the “pics or it didn’t happen” phrase, if it’s not assessed, it didn’t happen to the extent that it was that important. Of course, to take the actual snapshot, you’ll have to get specific about what standards you want to assess. Equally important, you’ll want to choose a form that preserves the look and feel you want to create.
3. What are some special opportunities? Once I’ve decided on a specific location and time, it’s important to explore the area. I didn’t go to every beach or just any beach, I went to one in particular. What local flavor can I add to anchor me to a time and place? In teaching, this looks like creating inspiring and authentic transfer assessments. After summative assessments, I like to design these extension activities that bring the learning into real life a little more. I can also use it as an opportunity to reteach for students who didn’t show mastery on the summative. Rather than send them to a remedial wasteland, I prefer adding more context and authenticity. Sometimes they actually do better because there’s more variety in the form.
4. Anticipate the journey. Once I know where I’m going, what I’m doing, and when, it’s time to plan. How will I get there? What could go wrong? What do I need to pack? When I anticipate the road toward my final assessments, I can anticipate and prepare so that students have everything they need for the journey—any preskills, knowledge, and ample practice that will help them shine. I’ve traveled with people who are quick to announce their frustration when there’s a setback. “This isn’t what I expected,” they’ll say. I rarely feel this way, because I expect there to be challenge and spontaneity, and I delight in it. Things still “go wrong,” but it doesn’t ruin my vacation. Same for the classroom. Despite my best preparations, there will be other unexpected occurrences. It doesn’t mean my whole unit is a failure. I just get the opportunity to model for students how my own learning is unfolding alongside theirs.
5. Infuse the journey with scenic overlooks. A trip that is all about preparing for the worst is no fun at all. Each day should feel like vacation (yes, even a travel day!). You can make the best of it by finding scenic overlooks. On a road trip, these are the places where you can stop and stretch your legs, taking in a beautiful sight, and always take a picture. It’s the journey, not the destination, right? In the daily grind to get to the assessments, we can lose sight of the scenic overlooks. Again, go back to that overall vision of how your classroom should look and feel. That should happen every day. And be sure to take a snapshot (a.k.a. a formative assessment) to track the journey’s progress.
6. Follow a routine. So often, we lose sight of routines on vacation because we are outside of our everyday routines. Some of us may even look forward to that break from monotony. But our routines are what help keep us healthy and happy at home—that still applies on the road. I do my morning and evening routines while I travel, abridged as necessary, but still touchstones that serve my health. I eat very similarly as well. I don’t forget all about my good eating habits (the ones that make me feel good) just because I’m not at home. If anything, I try to make better choices to support my body when so much else is different. My classroom routine is using my literacy lesson plan. It doesn’t matter what’s happening each day in class, I can always use the lesson plan to design our work and keep us “healthy,” focused on the essentials of reading, discussing, and writing as a classroom community. Students know what to expect, so even when I throw new challenges their way, they can trust in the routine to care for them.
7. Trust a guide. Have you ever come home needing a vacation from your vacation? That’s a sign that you could use some help. Hire a travel agent or read a travel blog. Let them build the itineraries for you. Then all you have to do is show up and take care of yourself while you do it. I would love to be that guide for you. My forthcoming course is like those itineraries. Trust in a solid design, then show up and take care of yourself.

Teacher Clarity Resources

How are you feeling about creating clarity? You may be feeling like this all feels like too much, like you know you need a vacation but you have no time to plan it. Start with my lesson plan.