Leading Up to Teacher LEADership Development Summit Part #3.

Are you excited for the KDP Delta Rho Teacher LEADership Summit in two weeks? I know I am! As time gets closer it also becomes more real for me as one of the leading officers and hosts. 

I know that despite my nerves and concerns for how everything will run that day, (and not to mention the surprises that always come with technology,) I know helping host this will accelerate me as a teacher leader because I am pushing out of my comfort zone. My chapter officers and I have hosted small conferences and workshops before, but never in the era of Zoom where many more can attend, so this is a new road for me to travel on. 

This brings me to my mini blog series leading up to our summit. We've explored L- learn, E- engage, and this week we will see the next letter- A is for Accelerate! Just like how I mentioned that accelerating myself as a leader means stepping out of my comfort zone, I think this is an important notion for all educators who are teacher leaders, or who aspire to be teacher leaders. In my opinion being a teacher automatically makes us leaders, but we don't always see ourselves as one. Sometimes (like I just mentioned,) we say we are growing into the role. This means we have to see how we can continue to grow or accelerate our growth.

Have you ever thought about presenting on a topic you love to other teachers? Ever wish you could get something published? Have there been times where you see another teacher struggling and feel compelled to offer assistance? These are just a few examples of ways you can accelerate your leadership skills.  Perhaps you've already explored one of these ways, but you want to move to the next step, or even try something new. Don't just wish for it- take the first step to get started! Although presenting or writing might seem like "big" ideas at first, start small! Perhaps you can start by sharing a weekly newsletter with families or other teachers in your school or district with a resource and a reflection. Try speaking about a topic to a local college class about your experiences in the classroom- you don't have to start at large conferences! You could even meet with colleagues from your school or an organization you belong to and lead a book or podcast study... There are many possibilities for gaining speed with your journey!

Leaders do not grow by doing the same things they always have. They figure out what they need to try to experience something new and learn from others. This is when our skills as leaders sharpen and improve. 

Finding what makes you feel energized about teaching will help accelerate your leadership skills and help you to continue to grow as a teacher leader. Just like we talked about last week for "engage," we have to take the time to consider what we are passionate about and the avenues we want to take to get there. Sometimes by starting many small projects we find that they don't get completed. However, starting small and selecting one thing has a better chance of yielding success. Consider how you want to "hit the gas pedal" this week and accelerate. 

One way to start is by joining us for the summit!

Final Thoughts: Keep thinking of ways you want to accelerate yourself as an educator and teacher leader. Keep thinking about small steps to take in that direction and then hit the gas pedal... stepping on it without direction will cause you to crash! Keep thinking about the areas you wish to see change and what skills you have to bring to the table. Finally, keep learning and engaging because those will automatically help you accelerate! 

Register for the summit using this link!