We’ve been working with Dr. Kristy Andre, principal at Peters Canyon Elementary School, for the past 2 years. She is a thoughtful instructional leader who has been working hard developing her leadership knowledge and skills in relation to elementary mathematics. In prior posts, we talked about the importance of principal learning. In this post, we asked about the type of knowledge that principals need, particularly to be instructional leaders in elementary mathematics. We asked Kristy to share a reflection about what she has learned about leading improvement efforts in mathematics at her school. Below she shares her reflections.
Curiosity Creates the Conditions for Growth
One of the most important lessons I’ve learned as a principal is that I don’t need to be the expert in the room. I need to be the lead learner.
When schools begin implementing a new initiative or new curriculum, there is often pressure on leaders to have all the answers. But real change doesn’t happen because a principal knows the most. It happens because a principal creates a culture where everyone is learning.
Throughout our math journey, I’ve found myself regularly saying, “I’m curious about…” or “I wonder…” Those simple phrases communicate something powerful: we are learning together.
In Evolving Learner: Shifting from Professional Development to Professional Learning from Kids, Peers, and the World, Rowell, Andre, and Steinmann challenge the traditional view of professional development as something done to teachers. Instead, we advocate for professional learning fueled by curiosity, reflection, and learning from kids, peers, and the world. That belief has shaped how I approach mathematics leadership. Rather than positioning myself as the expert, I strive to learn alongside teachers as we deepen our understanding of math.
When leaders embrace curiosity, it begins to seep into the culture.
Reflection Turns Experience into Learning
As our teachers engaged in math, I realized that learning was happening every day, but we weren’t always stopping to recognize it. That realization led me to create Evolving Through Problem-Based Math: A Teacher’s Learning Cycle.
The purpose of the cycle wasn’t evaluation. It was a reflection.
One teacher shared that the reflection cycle helped her realize there were instructional moves she hadn’t yet considered. Rather than using the tool as a checklist, she used it as a roadmap for growth. She identified areas she wanted to strengthen—facilitating richer mathematical discourse, deepening partnerships, and using centers and interventions more intentionally. Throughout the year, she revisited the cycle to celebrate her growth while identifying her next steps. That reflection not only transformed her instructional practice but also contributed to a grade-level team where nearly 90% of students finished the year at or above grade level in mathematics, an increase of about 10 percentage points from the previous year.
Consistency Creates Momentum
Instructional change doesn’t happen because of a single professional development session. It happens through consistent conversations.
At our school, math learning lives in weekly PLCs, classroom visits, coaching conversations, and informal discussions in hallways. Every week we return to what matters most: student thinking, grade-level learning, and how our instructional decisions impact outcomes.
Teachers believe learning is important when they see leaders consistently investing in it. Learning cannot be something we talk about once a month. It must become part of the rhythm of the school. Over time, those conversations create momentum, and momentum begins to shape culture.
Meeting Teachers Where They Are
Growth requires both challenge and support. Teachers need environments where they can take risks, ask questions, and learn from mistakes. The author Coyle explains that successful cultures are built when people feel safe enough to be vulnerable. Learning something new requires vulnerability.
Meeting teachers where they are does not mean lowering expectations. It means recognizing that everyone is at a different point in the learning journey.
Sometimes support looks like a coaching conversation. Sometimes it looks like modeling. Sometimes it is a quick micro-coaching moment in the middle of a lesson. And sometimes it means continuing to invest in the relationship while holding firm to the vision.
For resistant teachers, I’ve learned not to back down and not to water down the work. Instead, I keep building the relationship while keeping the focus on student learning. The data will eventually speak for itself.
No one enters education because they don’t want to make a difference. When teachers see themselves as learners, they become more intentional about their decisions, more curious about student thinking, and more willing to refine their practice. Those small shifts create better learning experiences for students—and that’s what this work is really about.
The ideas in this post are influenced by the following: Kristy Andre, Daniel Coyle, Lainie Rowell, and Lauren Steinmann
The Evolving Educator: 
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