The Teaching Coach is a platform to help teachers, leaders and support staff by providing a range of quality pastoral, teaching and career resources.
You will find a host of resources here from form times and assemblies through to interview prep, application letters, professional development and guidance. Not to mention, lessons, schemes of work and learning resources.
If you can't see what you need, you can email me at: theteachingcoach@hotmail.com.
The Teaching Coach is a platform to help teachers, leaders and support staff by providing a range of quality pastoral, teaching and career resources.
You will find a host of resources here from form times and assemblies through to interview prep, application letters, professional development and guidance. Not to mention, lessons, schemes of work and learning resources.
If you can't see what you need, you can email me at: theteachingcoach@hotmail.com.
In this bundle, you will find a compilation of resources perfect for making your first applications to schools and for interviews.
This includes:
guidance on writing your first application
guidance on student panels
3 sets of potential questions for an ITT/NQT/ECT position
guidance on visits to schools and how to ace this first impression
15 questions to ask your interviewer at the end of your formal interview - always the worst part of the interview when your mind goes blank!
a 3 page guide to planning an amazing interview lesson including loads of top tips and advice
Please make sure you follow me: facebook.com/teachcoach
This resource is a second example application letter for the position of SENCo in a secondary school.
This letter should be developed by including your own examples of where you have completed the points referenced and the impact of that work as well as your learning from the work you have completed. This letter is for guidance only and should not used exclusively to apply for a SENCo role but instead used to support the writing of your own letter. Letters should always be tailored to the school you are applying to and your own experiences.
This template is 2 pages long.
This resource is aimed a secondary school SENCo role, but could provide ideas for other stages of education also.
Please note: covering letters should not exceed 2 pages in length.
I never recommend sending blanket templates for prospective roles and always advise an application is tailored to you and the school.
In this 5 page resource, I take you through things to consider when designing a successful ‘goldfish bowl’ activity to use on an interview for middle and senior leadership.
This resource outlines what a ‘goldfish bowl’ is, the potential challenges of using this type of assessment and provides a guide on how to design an effective activity for your interview.
This resource also includes an editable observation template for use during goldfish bowl interview activities.
This resource has been designed using thorough research and experience of gold fish bowls on interviews.
Please note: this is not an exhaustive list and all activities should be tailored to your school context.
REFRESHED FOR 2024
In this bundle you will find the following resources:
a covering letter/supporting statement example for the role of deputy HOY
a 6 page PDF with guidance and advice for assistant heads of year including how you can make the most from the role, top tips and lots of FAQs
5 Big Pastoral Questions and Their Answers - Set 1, 2 and 3 - detailed answers to 15 pastoral questions like ‘how do I build relationships with parents?’
Pastoral role interview questions Set 1, 2 and 3 - over 40 questions you might get asked on a HOY interview
pastoral interview questions and their answers - 15 questions and answers for supporting your prep
a list of common pastoral abbreviations - great to start to wrap your head around the common acronyms used!
40 Ideas for year group attendance, behaviour and rewards
40 Ideas fror Leading a Team and Working Across School
New to HOY role advice and tips resource - full of ideas to help you consider how you’ll make the most out of the role
In this bundle you will find 8 resources:
2 x SENCO application letter/covering letters
2 sets of questions which may be asked at a SENCo interview
10 questions with thorough and detailed answers to interview questions (compliment the sets above)
SENCo specific guidance on a prioritisation task in tray, including lots of top tips and an example for practice for a common task on interview
a general document giving guidance on touring and visiting schools (non-specific)
a general document on acing student panels (non-specific)
In this resource, we explore 10 questions you might be asked on a SENCo interview and 10 detailed possible answers. This resource is 7 pages long.
This is a complimentary resource to the set 1 and set 2 SENCo questions listed in my shop. It can be used in conjunction or on its own to help you prepare for interview.
We answer the questions:
Why are you interested in the role of SENCo?
What skills could you bring to our SENCO role?
Give us a summary of your understanding of the Code of Practice:
How would you use data to inform this role?
How would you demonstrate value for money in this role?
Tell us about your ability to work under pressure.
A parent arrives in reception angry about the support their child with SEN has received. What do you do?
How would you time manage as a SENCo?
A student with ADHD is struggling in their English lessons – they are not making expected progress and the teacher is challenged by their behaviour - how would you support the teacher to help the student?
Why have you chosen this school to apply to as SENCo?
Please note: whilst the questions are detailed and thorough, they are NOT a definitive list, and the answers are not exhaustive. You may want to select parts of the answers which apply best to your knowledge. You should also add to your answers using experiences of your own and include your learning from these experiences that you would take into the new role. You should never use generic answers in an interview setting. Always link your answers with what you know about the school and their priorities.
This booklet contains 40 ideas for Heads of Year to improve attendance and behaviour/rewards for their year group, providing both quick suggestions and long term ideas for improving behaviour and attendance for your year group. It contains 45 pages and lots of great ideas.
You can also find my 2nd booklet of this series here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/40-ideas-for-heads-of-year-leadership-in-and-out-of-school-booklet-resource-cpd-development-12396568. Booklet 2 focuses on ideas for leading your tutors, working across school and working externally.
Please make sure you follow me on: facebook.com/teachcoach
This brand new resource is a booklet which contains 40 ideas for Heads of Year on leading your tutor team, working across school and working outside of school.
It contains 49 pages and lots of great ideas.
This is booklet 2 of a series.
You can find booklet 1: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/40-ideas-for-heads-of-year-rewards-behaviour-attendance-booklet-resource-development-12393889
There will also be more booklets coming out over the next few months.
Please make you sure follow me on: facebook.com/teachcoach
This bundle contains my three sets of interview questions for the role of Head of Year/Head of House.
This resource contains 40+ questions which you may face in a pastoral interview.
These resources include space for you to write notes on your own answer.
Note: this set is NOT designed to be exhaustive. Please bear in mind you may only be asked 6-12 questions at interview - so this set is designed to give you a broad range of questions for prep.
This resource does not include answers.
REFRESHED FOR 2024
In this resource, you will find resources to help you prepare for a Head of Year or Pastoral Leader interview.
You can also find two smaller bundles here:
Pastoral Leader Interview Bundle 1: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/head-of-year-head-of-house-pastoral-role-interview-bundle-12348298
Pastoral Leader Interview Bundle 2: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/head-of-year-head-of-house-pastoral-role-interview-bundle-12425576
This ultimate bundle of resources contains everything to help you prepare for almost every area of an interview!
This includes:
3 x sets of pastoral interview questions - 45+ questions questions in total (no answers - just questions!)
set 1, set 2 and set 3 of my 5 big pastoral questions - these each include how to answer 5 common questions or scenarios posed in an interview (15 questions and answers total)
set one of my pastoral question and answers series - this details 15 questions with potential responses in bullet point form
NOTE: you may find duplication of questions in the resources above - however, they are all designed to give you breadth and depth of understanding in relation to the questions you may face on interview and the answers you could provide!
2 x data analysis prep tasks to help you hone your data skills - great for practicing data analysis as a pastoral leader
a form time quality assurance form - to help you be able to discuss what you’d look out for in a great form time and how you would quality assure your tutors
example year group planning and improvement planning documents for you to read and be able to reference ideas from
two booklets to read before your interview ‘40 Ideas for…’
a) improving attendance and behaviour
b) working across school and leading a team
guidance on the prioritisation in tray task
a 7 page PDF guide on getting ready for a pastoral leader interview including tips on what to expect, what skills you’ll need to show and what you can practice before the day!
a PDF on student panel guidance and how to ace a student panel - a task which has been included on every HOY interview I’ve attended
an example attendance improvement plan to give you plenty to talk about when you’re asked about how you would improve attendance
guidance on writing a response to a letter of concern from a parent - a common in tray task
a detailed guide to analysing data as a pastoral leader - full of top tips and hints for how to offer your best analysis from a pastoral perspective
my detailed guidance for new heads of year - this will give you a great feel for the role and how you will manage it!
A genuinely awesome bundle of resources to help prepare you for an interview. To aid these, there is also some free resources in my shop which you may want to consider adding to your prep.
Make sure you follow me: facebook.com/teachcoach
In this bundle, you will find 9 resources which would be useful for new or training teachers. These include a range of specific training teacher CPDs as well as generals CPDs and documentation or guidance which would be helpful to new staff.
effective seating plans CPD - how to use seating plans effectively in classrooms
the importance of routines CPD - how to establish and maintain routines for behaviour management and learning
differentiation CPD - how to differentiate for students of various abilities
stretching high ability students CPD - how best to stretch your more able students
a CPD on how students learn and revise including covering top tips on improving learning and creating new pathways in the brain
a video on how to be an awesome form tutor - tops tips on how to be a form tutor effectively
3 compiled lists of CPD courses - free from Future Learn and Open university and other websites - great to direct staff to for free training
1 compiled list of improving vocabulary development and resources - great boosting literacy in your lessons, which is key to access great grades and learning in any subjects
Remember to follow me on: facebook.com/teachcoach
In this 6 page resource, I explore how data interlinks with the role of SENCo, including the type of data you may collect/interact with as a SENCo, how you can successfully gather data and how to best analyse student data in the role to maximise the support you can provide students to help them progress.
This resource also covers, in detail, suggestions/tips and processes for analysing behaviour, attainment and attendance data as a SENCo.
This resource is intended for new or training SENCos but may also act as a useful refresher for existing SENCos.
Please note: this resource does not claim to be an exhaustive list of techniques for analysis but is a well developed and thorough consideration of how best to use data in the role of SENCo.
In this resource bundle, you will find:
a senior leadership role application/covering letter example
a set of 80 interview questions with follow up questions (no answers)
another set of almost 30 interview questions (no answers)
a guide to acing a student panel
15 questions to ask at the end of your formal interview
guidance on school tours for interview or application
guidance on goldfish bowl interview activities
guidance on how to ace a common in tray on leadership interview - the prioritisation task.
Please consider following me on facebook.com/teachcoach
In this resource you will find guidance on a Senior Leadership prioritisation in tray task. This guidance goes through the purpose of an in tray like this, including why they’re used, how to ace them and things to avoid!
This document also provides an example prioritisation task for you to practice prior to the interview.
This is a great way to prepare for a very popular in tray task on an assistant principal/SLT interview.
Please note: this resource DOES NOT include a worked example of the answers - this is because there is no correct answers for a priorisation task - you only need to make informed and educated decisions and justify your answers clearly.