Always a Lesson
Teacher Essentials for Classroom and Career Success
1. Edition March 2024
336 Pages, Softcover
General Reading
Further versions
Step-by-step advice to help teachers master classroom management, lesson design, student engagement, and beyond
Always a Lesson: Teacher Essentials for Classroom and Career Success is the book that can turn every good teacher into a great teacher. The art and science of teaching can be difficult to navigate. There are moving pieces that change how teachers should approach instruction, like unique student needs year after year, curriculum changes, updated research on best practices and more. It's essential that teachers of all levels continue to learn and develop their craft so that they can best manage these moving pieces. Using personal stories and tangible next steps gained from her experience as a teacher and teacher leader, author Gretchen Bridgers can level-up your teaching, filling the gap left between traditional teacher-training programs and the real world.
With high teacher turnover rates in the wake of the great resignation that occurred post-COVID, teachers need support more than ever. Always a Lesson offers a systematic process for strengthening the skillset of any teacher. The sequence of what teachers work on is the key to move through obstacles and increase effectiveness. No matter their level of expertise, Bridgers takes the stance that all teachers are learners. By applying the principles and strategies in this book, novice to veteran teachers will see a positive impact on student learning and their proficiency as an elite educator.
K-12 teachers, teacher mentors, instructional coaches, school administrators, and anyone else with an interest in improving teacher retention will thank their lucky stars for this book.
Part One The Beginning, the Pathway, and the Formula 1
Prologue Where It All Began 3
Lessons from the Trenches 3
Introduction The Teacher Success Pathway 17
How to Use This Book 18
How This Book Will Help You 20
Chapter 1 The Formula 25
More Than a Toolbox 25
The Teacher Success Pathway 29
Part Two Brick 1: Lesson Design 33
Chapter 2 Obstacles to Lesson Design 35
Less Time to Plan 36
Too Much to Plan 36
The Lesson Plan Vortex 37
Less Time to Collaborate 38
Chapter 3 Lesson Design Phase Overview 41
Backwards Design 44
Gradual Release 48
Chapter 4 Effective Design 51
Pacing/Time Management 52
Checks for Understanding (CFUs) 53
Transition Routes 55
Teacher/Student Actions 56
Material Organization and Distribution 56
Differentiation 57
Chapter 5 Getting Started with Lesson Design 59
Lesson Plan Components 59
Sample Practice Script 66
Chapter 6 Mastering Lesson Design, Part 1 69
Standard, Objective, and Assessment Example 72
Direct Instruction Example 73
Guided Practice Example 74
Independent Practice Example 76
Chapter 7 Mastering Lesson Design, Part 2 79
Creating In- Class Data Collection Procedures 81
Developing Your Own Systems and Habits 83
Lesson Design Scenario Practice 89
Part Three Brick 2: Classroom Management 93
Chapter 8 Understanding Classroom Management 95
The Three Rs of Classroom Management 95
The Impact of Classroom Management 101
Chapter 9 Getting Started with Classroom Management 105
R1: Relationships 105
R2: Routines 108
Chapter 10 Addressing Misbehaviors 117
Chapter 11 Mastering Classroom Management 131
R3: Rope Students into Your Lesson 133
Part Four Brick 3: Student Engagement 145
Chapter 12 Understanding Student Engagement 147
What Student Engagement Does 147
Why Student Engagement Matters 151
Chapter 13 Getting Started with Student Engagement 157
Approaching Engagement from Three Directions 157
Building Engagement into Your Lesson 162
Chapter 14 Mastering Student Engagement 169
Strengthening Student Engagement 170
Part Five Brick 4: Student Choice and Ownership 179
Chapter 15 Understanding Student Choice and Ownership 181
Why Student Choice and Ownership Matters 183
Building In Student Choice and Ownership 187
Chapter 16 Getting Started with Student Choice and Ownership 191
Characteristics of Student Choice 192
Chapter 17 Mastering Student Choice and Ownership 199
Communication 199
Decision-Making 200
Environment 202
Equity and Equality 203
Co-create Norms 206
Data Collection and Reflection 207
Flexible Seating 208
Peer Evaluations 209
Project-Based Learning (PBL) 209
Part Six Implementing Your New Learning 215
Chapter 18 Teacher Success Next Steps 217
Chapter 19 Ongoing Learning 221
Ongoing Learning Opportunities 224
Continuous Collaboration 227
Chapter 20 Conclusion 235
Appendix 1: Reproducibles 239
Appendix 2: Using This Book to Mentor Others 295
References 305
Acknowledgments 311
About the Author 315
Index 317
--Melissa Emler, Chief Learning Officer, Modern Learners
"Always a Lesson by Gretchen serves as an indispensable guide for instructional coaches and mentors, articulating the Teacher Success Pathway with precision. It lays out a strategic framework for coaches and mentors to identify and focus on key areas for teacher development, ensuring efforts directly amplify teacher proficiency and student success. Gretchen's insightful approach equips coaches with the tools to effectively prioritize and advance teaching excellence."
--Nicole S. Turner, Author and CEO of Simply Instructional Coaching Inc.
"Teachers of all experience levels will benefit from reading Always a Lesson as Gretchen Bridgers expertly outlines a pathway of success as though she is your personal teacher mentor. Readers will walk away with actionable insights and an abundance of bonus content in downloadable resources."
--Linda Rhyne, Owner of Linda Rhyne Consulting, North Carolina
"Classroom teachers along with those who mentor them would greatly benefit from the insights shared in this book. Gretchen helps shift the perspective of readers to realize more tools do not equal more success, but it's the implementation of the tools which make the difference while providing a clear pathway that will enable readers to know which tools to use when."
--Jamal Maxsam, M.Ed., CEO of Lead Like A Champion L.L.C.
