Taking Your Teaching Skills to the Next Level: Be Receptive to Coaching

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How do improve as a teacher?
How can I become a better teacher?
Kris Cole's Biographical Information:
SELECTED TEACHING & COACHING AWARDS
Envirothon - Wildlife Division - State Champions - 2012
Soils Division - State Champions - 2002 & 2004
Envirothon - State Finalists - 2002, 2003, 2004, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2020, & 2024
Became Winningest Envirothon Coach of All Time for Seminole County with 8th win - 2020
“Seniors’ Choice Award” out of over 200 faculty - 2010
Teacher of the Month - 2000 & 2009
Highest Advanced Placement Environmental Science pass rate in SCPS - 2001, 2003, & 2004
Disney Teacherrific Award - 2003
Selected by Phillips Petroleum to film a video about the Florida Scrub Jay that was distributed
to schools nationwide - 2003
Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers - 2000 & 2001
Awarded OEE “Program of Excellence” - state’s highest environmental education award - 2000
Seminole Soil & Water Conservation District - Teacher of the Year - 1999
Girls Basketball Assistant Coach - State Champions - 1999 & 2000
SELECTED SPEAKER APPEARANCES
Presenter - Everglades Foundation Literacy Conference - Integrating Civics and Environmental
Advocacy Into Your Curriculum - Case Study of the Florida Scrub-Jay for State Bird Campaign. (July 19, 2022)
Presenter - LEEF Annual Conference - Integrating Civics and Environmental Advocacy Into Your
Curriculum - Case Study of the Florida Scrub-Jay for State Bird Campaign. (April 2, 2022)
Presenter - Winter Springs High School - Amazing Animals. (December, 2002)
Presenter - Boy Scouts of America - Florida’s Reptiles. (2001)
Presenter - Learn & Serve Florida - Chuluota Wilderness. (February 5th, 2001)
Presenter - SEALS Conference - How to perform a Terrestrial Species Survey. (November 13 - 14
2000)
Presenter - SCPS District Wide Advanced Placement Pre-service Day - How to effectively analyze
& use data to increase AP Learning Results. (2000)
Presenter - District Pre-service Science Day - Florida Scrub-Jay - A Stately Bird? (August 4, 1999)
Presenter - Winter Springs High School - Amazing Animals. (April 23, 1998)
Presenter - SEALS Conference - How to Perform an Aquatic Species Survey. (November 5 - 7, 1997)
My Students & I:
• Made history by convincing the Seminole County Board of Commissioners to designate the Florida Scrub-Jay as the “official bird of Seminole County”. (2022)
• Presented the reasons to designate the Florida Scrub-Jay as Florida’s State Bird at the Center for Biological Diversity’s “Ales and Wild Tales” event to educate the public about the issue. (2022)
• Testified before the Florida Wildlife Commission in an attempt to earn FWC’s endorsement to designate the Florida Scrub-Jay as Florida’s State Bird. (2022)
• Founded the inaugural Seminole High School Wildlife Conservation Club. (2021)
• Completed species surveys at Lyonia Preserve. (1999 - 2003) & (2006 - 2009)
• Cleaned up Lake Monroe & filmed a Public Service Announcement as a joint project between the City of Sanford, Seminole High School, Keep Seminole Beautiful, & the Central Florida Zoo. (2007)
• Assisted Seminole County Natural Lands with species surveys in the Chuluota Wilderness Area, Geneva Wilderness Area, & the St. Johns River. (1998 - 2004)
• Educated elementary and middle school students about the importance of bats to the ecosystem in a presentation called “Going Batty”. This resulted in a Disney Teacherrific Award. (2003)
• Testified before the Florida House of Representatives' Water Resources Committee regarding the Florida Scrub-Jay bill. (2000)
• Participated in Jane Goodall's Roots and Shoots program at Disney's Animal Kingdom. (2000)
• Partnered with Seminole County Emergency Response to create Community Emergency Response Teams in the event of a natural disaster. (1999 & 2000)
• Participated in a SEALS (Summit of Environmental Action Learning Service) Conference at Wekiwa Springs State Park. (2000)
• Testified before the Florida Senate’s Governmental Oversight & Productivity Committee regarding the Florida Scrub-Jay bill. (1999)
• Worked with St. Johns River Water Management on testing water quality in Lake Jessup. (1997 - 1999)
• Stenciled “do not dump drains to lake” signs on storm drains. This was a joint project between St. Johns River Water Management District, the City of Winter Springs, and the Environmental Program at Winter Springs High School. (1999)
• Rebuilt a new Hydric Hammock Trail at the Environmental Center for the Seminole County’s 5th graders after tornadoes touched down. (1998)
• Made recycled art and displayed it across campus for Earth Day. (1998)
• Assisted St. Johns River Water Management District with their “Sock it to Lake Jesup” campaign by collecting over 1500 socks. (1998)
• Presented at the SEALS (Summit of Environmental Action Learning Service) Conference hosted in Oleno State Park. (1997)

[@Streznick]

Very humbling point, had a non-masonry person critique me the other day, and I shrugged it off, later, thinking about what he said, I tried it, and it helped, so you’re never too old or too professional to take advice. A truly humbling experience. Enjoyed as always, and blessings.

[@colestersclassroom-teachin105]

Great advice Phil! Thanks for sharing!