# 01 — Teacher Guide & Best Practices
*Written so a first-year teacher can survive and a 20-year teacher can thrive.*

## Part A — Stance: What Kind of Teacher This Course Asks You to Be
Leadership is **caught more than taught**. You are not the sage on the stage —
you are the **lead learner and the architect of the conditions** in which
adolescents practice leading themselves and each other. Three commitments:

1. **Predictable structure, unpredictable thinking.** Routines are rigid; ideas
   are not. Students take risks only when the container is safe.
2. **Practice over presentation.** Aim for at least **60% student talk/do** in
   every lesson. If you are talking more than 15 minutes straight, stop.
3. **Reflection is the curriculum.** Skills don't transfer without metacognition.
   Every lesson ends with a written or spoken reflection.

## Part B — The First 10 Days: Non-Negotiables
If you do nothing else, do these. They are the foundation of everything in
Weeks 2–20.

- **Day 1:** Learn every name. Greet at the door. Co-create norms by Day 3.
- **Days 1–5:** Run the *Daily 5* (see `03-daily-weekly-monthly-rhythms.md`) every
  single day, even if you feel rushed. Routine is your salary.
- **Days 1–10:** No phones during circle, no exceptions. Model it yourself.
- **Day 5:** Friday Circle (closing circle). Even if it's awkward. Especially if
  it's awkward.
- **By Day 10:** Every student has spoken in a whole-class setting *at least
  once*. Track it on a roster.

## Part C — Facilitation Moves (steal these)
Keep this list under your podium.

- **Wait time:** count to 7 silently after asking a question. *Always.*
- **Cold call with warm-up:** "I'm going to call on three people in a minute —
  take 30 seconds to think." Then call. Reduces shame, raises rigor.
- **Pair → Square → Share:** pair talks, two pairs combine, then share to whole
  class. Triples participation without raising risk.
- **Talking piece:** in circles, only the person holding the object speaks.
- **Name three:** "Give me three ideas before we move on." Forces depth.
- **Re-voice:** "What I hear you saying is ___. Did I get that right?" Models
  active listening; students will copy you.
- **Press for evidence:** "What makes you say that?" Every time.
- **Affirm the move, not the person:** "That was a brave question" (not "you're
  so smart"). Builds growth mindset.

## Part D — Classroom Culture
- **Room arrangement:** circle or U-shape by default. Rows kill leadership class.
- **Walls:** post the *Roseville Leader Profile*, the class norms, the "Parking
  Lot" sticky board, and the *Leader of the Week* board.
- **Greeting:** stand at the door, handshake or fist-bump, eye contact, name.
- **Closure:** every period ends with a 1-minute reflection. No exceptions.
- **Phones:** in a numbered caddy on the way in. Returned at the bell.

## Part E — Restorative & Trauma-Informed Practices
You will get hard stuff in this class. Plan for it.

- **Pre-frame consent:** "We talk about real things in here. You can always pass."
- **The pass rule:** any student can pass on any question with no penalty, *one*
  time per circle. Honors autonomy, prevents shutdown.
- **Repair, don't punish:** when harm happens, use a 4-question repair circle —
  What happened? Who was affected? What do you need? What will you do next time?
- **Notice the body:** if a student is dysregulated, offer a "reset card" — 5
  minutes outside the room, no questions asked, return with a one-sentence
  check-in.
- **Mandated reporting:** know your district policy. Tell students Day 1: "There
  are three things I have to tell another adult about — if you or someone else is
  being hurt, hurting themselves, or being abused. Everything else stays here."

## Part F — Differentiation
Every lesson has three tiers:
- **Foundational** — for students new to the skill or with language scaffolding
  needs. Provides sentence frames, partner support, fewer choices.
- **Core** — the lesson as written. Most students.
- **Stretch** — extra complexity, leadership role within the activity, or option
  to teach a peer.

For multilingual learners (ML/EL), provide vocabulary cards (English + home
language) and use the *Pair → Square → Share* move heavily. For students with
IEPs/504s, the Friday Circle reflection can be written or audio recorded.

## Part G — Assessment Philosophy
- **Grade growth, not performance.** A shy 9th grader who speaks once in circle
  by Week 5 gets the same recognition as a confident senior who does it daily.
- **Portfolio over points.** 60% of the grade comes from the Leadership
  Portfolio (see `02-assessment-and-rubrics.md`).
- **Self + peer + teacher:** every major assessment uses all three voices.
- **No zeros for missing work.** Use "Incomplete — re-engage by [date]."

## Part H — Year 1 vs. Year 20 — Where to Spend Your Energy

| Years 1–3 (Survive)                          | Years 4–10 (Refine)                | Years 11+ (Reinvent)                      |
|----------------------------------------------|------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------|
| Follow the lesson plans verbatim             | Customize do-nows and exit tickets | Re-write 1 unit per year with student input |
| Master the Daily 5 routine                   | Build your own facilitator moves   | Mentor a Year-1 leadership teacher          |
| Use the rubrics as-is                        | Tighten rubrics with student data  | Co-design rubrics with students             |
| Prep one week at a time, on Sundays          | Prep a unit at a time              | Prep a semester at a time, leave room       |
| Find one mentor in the building              | Lead a PLC                         | Present at CASL / ASCD                       |
| Survive Fridays                              | Love Fridays                       | Make Fridays the highlight of the school    |

## Part I — Common Pitfalls (and the fix)
- **"My students won't talk."** → You're rescuing. Use wait time. Use pair-share.
  Try anonymous Padlet/sticky-note responses first, then verbal.
- **"They roll their eyes at 'leadership' language."** → Drop jargon. Use their
  words. "Leader" can mean "the kind of person you want to be."
- **"One kid dominates every circle."** → Talking piece. Pre-assign roles.
  Privately give that student a "facilitator" job — channel the energy.
- **"I ran out of time for reflection."** → Then the lesson didn't happen.
  Reflection is non-negotiable. Cut the mini-lesson, not the close.
- **"The capstone is falling apart in Week 18."** → That's normal. Don't rescue.
  Use the *project autopsy* protocol in Week 18, Day 3.

## Part J — Self-Care for the Teacher
This class is emotionally heavy. You hear stories. Build in your own routine:
- A 5-minute decompression between classes (door closed, water, breath).
- A weekly debrief with a colleague — *not* about students, about you.
- A hard stop time at least 3 nights per week.
- A "joy file" — keep student notes and wins. Read on the hard days.

## Part K — Resources & Recommended Reading
- *Dare to Lead* — Brené Brown
- *The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse* — Charlie Mackesy (use excerpts!)
- *Drive* — Daniel Pink
- *Tribes* — Seth Godin
- *Multipliers* — Liz Wiseman
- *Restorative Practices Handbook* — IIRP
- CASEL Program Guide (casel.org)
- The "Better Lesson" leadership coaching library
- *Habits of a Successful Leader* — School Reform Initiative protocols