Instructional coach elevates students at Thunder Vista

Our school has an amazing treasure, Ms. Colleen Orotelli!! Ms.Orotelli is an instructional coach here at Thunder Vista, but she is so much more! She collaborates with teachers, teaches a leadership class, and is a friend to everyone she meets. Ms.Orotelli has collaborated with teachers to create a hands-on Science demonstration that highlights and connects to grade-level standards. Our students have learned so much at the Science demonstrations - how to create a mixture, how to identify states of matter, and she even created a glow room! Colleen works tirelessly to ensure that every student and staff member feels valued, and is an important part of our community. Colleen truly seeks to engage students, empowering each student to take ownership of their learning. We are so thankful for Ms.Orotelli!!!

Here is was Ms. Orotelli had to say about her time at time at Thunder Vista:

"I love my job -- I get to be a part of the AMAZING work our incredible teachers do to continually grow in their practice and provide rigorous and engaging learning opportunities for each and every child.  We strive to provide access and extension to ALL.  100%. Not 99.9% 100%.  Our staff are so inspiring and constantly working and collaborating to reflect on what they are already doing to support this goal and their own next steps to get even better."

"This year our theme for our professional learning is "Catalyst".  A catalyst is a substance that increases the rate of a reaction without being used up in the process.  We have as much fun as possible engaging in our professional learning and use this theme as a "catalyst" for our own reflection.  Our teachers are so incredibly committed to their work that it is a JOY to plan intentional time together.  Together as a staff we participate in collaborative, reflective learning that provides time for us to connect, laugh and therefore feel safe to be vulnerable with one another.  In this way, we maximize our own learning to grow our practice for the benefit of kids.  We are constantly asking the questions:  "How am I engaging my students in rigorous lessons that are relevant to them?" "How am I providing access (but not over scaffolding) and extension opportunities throughout the day for every standard?"  "Am I holding high expectations for ALL?"  "Am I celebrating my wins and reflecting on the areas of opportunity?"  "Am I thinking outside the box about how to give our students what they need and accelerate their learning?" I believe in the power of teachers to change the trajectories for kids and am inspired everyday to see how this plays out in each of our classrooms."

This story exemplifies our ELEVATE Focus Area: World-Class Staff. Sharing stories about how staff is compensated, supported and trained to foster student success and family partnerships.