Allisen Ellis, Amelia Lehman, and Joe Gwinn collaborate as a 4th grade team at Cascade Elementary, one of many PLCs across Eastmont that meet during Monday late starts.
What are teachers really doing on Monday mornings? At Eastmont, every school starts an hour later so teachers can meet in PLCs (Professional Learning Communities), or simply, their grade-level or subject teams. This built-in collaboration time is part of the district’s focus on a Collaborative Professional Culture, ensuring educators work together to improve student learning.
At Cascade Elementary, a veteran 4th grade PLC has been together for eight years. The consistency shows: their conversations are fast-paced, full of acronyms and inside jokes, and cover everything from data to behavior to upcoming units. On this Monday, the team mapped out writing instruction, coordinated getting extra support for students who need it through Extended Day (the after-school program), and reviewed math strategies that are getting the most students to standard.
Allisen Ellis explained the benefit of these mornings. “[This time] helps us be super intentional… student by student and across our team,” adding that PLC time allows them to stay on the same page while holding “super high standards for students and each other.”
Amelia Lehman called it their “best problem-solving time” and an “opportunity to share what’s worked in our classrooms.” In a profession where teachers spend nearly all day in their own rooms, PLCs create one of the only consistent spaces to swap strategies and compare challenges. Mondays give them a chance to bridge that gap and learn from one another’s experiences.
Joe Gwinn added that Mondays are essential for both short-term and long-term planning: “It’s our time to get our future weeks in line and problem-solve. You don’t want to just make decisions on your own…you want what’s best for your team.”
For these three, the trust built in PLCs matters just as much as the plans. They rely on one another in a way that ultimately benefits their students. The team often “divides and conquers” the workload, from designing lessons to reviewing student data. They focus on their “essential” priorities: the key concepts they will come back to again and again until students master them.
Although Cascade’s 4th grade PLC has its own unique dynamic, similar scenes play out across the district as educators meet in their PLCs or collaborate with specialists like psychologists, multilingual teachers, and special education staff. This dedicated time helps keep classrooms aligned and students growing.
For Eastmont teachers, Monday mornings aren’t just late starts. They’re a dedicated time for collaboration, planning, and problem-solving…work that strengthens instruction and benefits every student.
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