Instructional Coaching Intensive

November 12-14, 2025

This year's annual TfT coaching intensive will be at Central Valley Christian School! We are excited to continue to provide training and support to our TfT schools around Instructional Coaching, and we are excited for our schools to experience the Central Valley Christian community.

In many of our TfT schools, Instructional Coaching has become a vital support tool for the ongoing development and growth of teaching and learning in the TfT classroom. Our Deep Hope is to grow in confidence, competence, and commitment as instructional coaches that empower others to play their parts in God's Story.

The learning targets that will guide our time are:

I can increase my competence by exploring resources and tools for instructional coaching.
I can nurture my confidence by adapting, (re)designing, and rehearsing instructional coaching practices.
I can grow in my commitment to lead as an instructional coach through the challenges and opportunities of school-wide change.

Over the course of this two-day intensive, we will offer four tracks for professional development:

level 100 description

Level 100 is intended for those who are new to instructional coaching in a TfT school and begins with an exploration of instructional coaching. Participants will unpack the needs of adult learners, the structure of a coaching conversation, and how to lead an ongoing coaching cycle. Participants will also be given the opportunity to practice these skills in a coaching conversation.

level 200 description

Level 200 builds on the concepts of Level 100, as participants explore the art of questioning and examine their own stories to identify strengths, challenges, and biases that could influence their coaching. Participants are given the opportunity to practice these skills in a coaching conversation with a teacher from the hosting school. Level 200 participants consider coaching at the institutional level through a session on developing learner agency and an introduction to learning walks.

level 300 description

Level 300 invites participants to share their current successes and challenges in coaching, explore practices that deepen the efficiency and effectiveness of their coaching practice, and investigate how to leverage data for instructional coaching. Participants are given the opportunity to practice their coaching skills by partnering with a Level 200 coach for a coaching conversation with a teacher from the hosting school. Finally, participants examine coaching at an institutional level by exploring coaching through reluctance and coaching as directional leadership.

level 400 description - School culture: shaping seedbeds for transformation

Level 400 is designed as a collaborative exploration of the process and practice of cultural transformation in schools. Intended for Heads of Schools, Principals, and Instructional/Curriculum Leads, Level 400 sessions will focus on shaping school cultures in holistic ways that enable the flourishing of all. Through research-informed frameworks, including the Flourishing School Culture Model and insights from the Cardus Education Survey on graduate outcomes, participants will consider leadership practices to nurture the seedbed of school culture, so that deep transformation can successfully take root.

Level 400 will be facilitated by Dr. Lynn Swaner. Lynn is the President of Cardus, US, a non-partisan Christian think tank dedicated to clarifying and strengthening the ways in which society’s institutions can work together for the common good. Her work focuses on flourishing educational systems and schools that enable students, educators, and communities to thrive. She is the editor or lead author of numerous books, including Future Ready: Innovative Missions and Models in Christian Education (Cardus & ACSI, 2022) and Flourishing Together: A Christian Vision for Students, Educators, and Schools (Eerdmans, 2021).

There is no requirement for Level 400 participants to attend Level 100 - 300 training, and the aim is to provide a space for Heads of Schools to join their Instructional Coaches at the annual Intensive. This will provide an opportunity of deep collaborative leadership for TfT schools.

This year we are offering two options for our pre-intensive day on Wednesday, November 12th. This day is optional.

Pre-Intensive Day: November 12

Pre-Intensive, Transformational Lesson Design
Within the context of the core practices of Teaching for Transformation resides the necessity for teachers to design daily and weekly learning plans. In the same way that TfT’s core practices shape both teacher and student, we recognize that the ongoing, daily design of learning practices are equally vital to the formation of peculiar people. TfT’s Transformational Lesson Design equips teachers to design the daily/weekly learning plans within the context of TfT. Join us on this Pre-Intensive day for training on the use of the Transformational Lesson Design Tools. Participants will be equipped to return to their schools and introduce this tool to their colleagues.

Pre-Intensive, FLEx Immersion
We invite you to join us for a day of investigating food production in one of California's most productive agricultural areas. We will invite, nurture, and empower you, as the learner, into the rich design of FLEx through the lens of sustainability and stewardship during this pre-intensive immersive experience." Through experiencing FLEx as a learner, you will be better equipped to teach, coach, and lead FLEx at your own school. It will be a day of field work, partnering with experts, and empowering ourselves to play our part in God's story. Building on the FLEx experiences of the past couple of years at the pre-intensive, we will be shifting our focus from “invite” and “nurture” to “empower.”

Pre-intensive registration cost is $129 per person; morning refreshments and lunch will be provided.

Location: Central Valley Christian School, 5600 W. Tulare Ave, Visalia, CA, 93277

Agenda:

November 12th: Preintensive Day begins at 8:00 AM
November 13th: Instructional Coaching Intensive Day #1: 8:00 AM- 4:00 PM
November 14th: Instructional Coaching Intensive Day #2: 8:00 AM - 12:30 PM

Price: Cost is determined by the number of registrants per school: $399/first person, $299/second person, $249/person for third person and everyone after. Price includes refreshments/lunch.

Registration deadline: October 10, 2025.

Airport: We recommend flying into Fresno International Airport (50 minutes from the school) or Los Angeles International Airport (about 4 hours from the school).

For your consideration: Think about staying for an extra night so you can take advantage of the school's proximity to some of the largest trees on earth in Sequoia and King's Canyon National Parks!

Accommodation options

Rate: $179/room with two queen beds
Reservations: Call 559-732-3900 and use code “TfT” or “Coaching Intensive” to reserve

Rate: $149/room with king bed; $159/two queen beds
Reservations: Use code "CIT" to reserve by calling 559-627-0600, using the IGH App, or accessing the IGH Booking Link

Rate: $149/room with two queen beds
Reservations: Book here online before Tuesday, October 21, 2025

TfT Instructional Coaching Intensive

Instructional Coaching Intensive

November 12-14, 2025