At Phoenix Support, coaching is a process based on an ongoing relationship with a mentor for the purpose of professional learning and continuous improvement. Our mentors all have at least 10 years experience in the field of education and care. Research shows that coaching support for early childhood educators leads to improved practice and supports outcomes for children's learning.
As an Educator and/or leader, you can work with one of our coaches to:
- Improve your curriculum planning
- Develop your pedagogy and practice
- Understand and plan for children's behaviour
- Implement the National Quality Framework
- Design supportive learning environments
- Apply strength based leadership.
Coaching & Mentoring Packages
Bespoke packages to meet your needs.
Hourly Face to Face
For as little as $298 per hour, you can connect with your coach and get started. These sessions can be delivered at your service (travel costs may apply) or via online zoom web meetings. Our facilitators are based in QLD, NSW, and VIC, and we all travel to all corners of Australia and beyond. (Yes, we also love to travel to rural and remote locations).
Intensive Quality Improvement Package
In this intensive package your coach becomes your critical friend. You'll build a productive and supportive relationship and share goals for your service over a long term support period. 3 months? 6 months? 12 months? It's up to you. Together, you'll develop Quality Improvement Plan actions, and at the conclusion of the package, your coach will provide you with a thorough QIP report.
Professional Conversations
In addition to coaching and mentoring, your coach can facilitate whole team staff meetings with transformative professional conversations. Bring your team together to deep dive into reflective conversations led by our strength based facilitators. We bring ideas from solution focused practice, strength based practice, and positive psychology to ensure your staff meetings bring out the very best in your team.
Evidence Based Application
Our coaching packages take into consideration research around effective coaching programs.
Observation and Feedback
Your coach will visit you in your day to day setting to observe practices and provide on the spot feedback, as well as written feedback in the form of Quality Improvement Plan Actions.
Goal Setting
You will develop goals with your coach, who will check in and help you measure, track, and celebrate your achievements.
Reflection
Your coach will guide and support your critical reflection by posing useful questions and providing relevant readings and activities.
Are you looking for Professional Development that comes to your education and care service during work hours?
Does your team need support and coaching from an experienced and fully qualified professional?
Would your team and leaders benefit from in-service support during hours that children are in attendance?
Phoenix Support for Educators offer coaching and mentoring to ensure your Professional Development experience is meaningfully customised to your service.
Phoenix Support learning facilitators can visit your service during operational hours to meet with individual team members, observe learning environments, and/or model programs and strategies.
Coaching & mentoring promotes and facilitates change and learning to ensure your team get the most from their PD opportunity.
Ask Us About Coaching and Mentoring
Make an enquiry and have us help mentor you and your team.
What To Expect From Your C&M Visit
If you have already booked a coaching and mentoring session with us, and your professional learning date is approaching, this information is for you!
Customised coaching and mentoring for your team
There's no 'typical' coaching and mentoring session. Each one is unique to your service, team, and needs. But here's some of the things that you can expect...
Customised to your needs
Your facilitator will tailor support according to the needs of your service throughout the visit.
During this time you will receive customised advice around continuous improvement according to observations as well as questions from educators.
Recommendations and advice
We will spend time providing verbal advice to leadership staff based on observations.
If you would prefer, you can schedule time for this advice to be provided by way of a written QIP recommendation on the day of your visit. We will provide one QIP recommendation per 30 minutes of allocated note writing time.
For example, if we are visiting from 10am to 3pm, you can schedule 1 hour during this time for written notes, and you will receive 2 QIP recommendations on the same day.
In-situ
We will visit your learning environments to observe the environment, program, and curriculum decisions. During this time we can discuss concerns with key staff, and you can invite us to role-model some examples.
As structured or 'go with the flow' as you want it to be
Educators will have the opportunity to ask questions and discuss challenges in a one-on-one coaching conversation with facilitator at any time during this day.
This can be very relaxed and we'll go with the flow. Or if you prefer, you can timetable a schedule outlining preferred times of environment visits and goals. Simply download the planning template HERE and give the completed timetable to your facilitator on the day.
An Important Note About Safety and Supervision of Children
If you have already booked a coaching and mentoring session with us, and your professional learning date is approaching, this information is for you!
Educators will have the opportunity to ask questions and discuss challenges in a one-on-one coaching conversation with facilitator at any time during this day. If the educator is counted in educator:child ratio at the time, they might want to get into a deeply involved conversation with the facilitator, but will also need to be mindful of the active supervision of children.
We strongly recommend planning for an additional staff member to be available on the day to maximise the time that the facilitator is visiting the learning environments. This allows for the lead educator or other staff to have focused conversations with facilitator. This also ensures that the need for active supervision of children does not impact on your professional learning opportunity.
In the event that you are unable to staff above educator:child ratio on the day, please be aware that educators who are supervising children will need to be actively supervising, and it is the responsibility of each educator and the nominated supervisor to ensure active supervision occurs while having discussions with your facilitator.
Please also note that facilitators are not to be included within the educator : child ratio under any circumstances. Additionally, facilitators are not to be expected to supervise children, or be left alone with children at any time. For the purpose of definition, "left alone with children", means to be out of ear shot and / or eye line of a supervising educator.