Book an observation

One of the best ways to improve your teaching is to be observed. However, it’s not always easy to organise observations, especially if you’re working as a freelancer. Now, all that can change though – you can book an observation with me.

Formats

You have three options: recorded observations, live observations or unseen observations.

Recorded observations

1. Arrange a pre-observation meeting. This should be a maximum of 2 working days before your lesson and a minimum of 2 hours, in case you want to change anything in your lesson preparation in light of our discussion.
2. Get permission from your students, parents (if recording under 18s) and the institution where you are filming if applicable.
3. Record your lesson.
4. Send the video to me – it can be a full-length video of the price you have paid for. I will aim to watch them within 5 working days of receiving the recording, but will let you know if I expect it to take longer.
5. (Optional, but recommended!) Watch the video yourself and make notes of comments and questions you have about the lesson.
6. Arrange a post-observation meeting to discuss your lesson. This can be any time after I have watched the video.
7. Receive a written summary of your feedback, including your strengths and suggestions of areas you could work on. This will be accompanied by advice for how to build on your strengths and work on your action points.

You pay for: Pre-observation meeting + Observation of the relevant length + Post-observation meeting + Written feedback (live/recorded)

Live observations

1. Arrange a pre-observation meeting. This should be a maximum of 2 working days before your lesson and a minimum of 2 hours, in case you want to change anything in your lesson preparation in light of our discussion.
2. Get permission from your students, parents (if working with under 18s) and the institution where you are filming if applicable.
3. I observe the lesson live over Zoom. If you are teaching near Reading, UK, you can arrange an in-person observation but will need to cover travel costs.
4. (Optional, but recommended!) Make notes of comments and questions you have about the lesson.
5. Arrange a post-observation meeting to discuss your lesson. This can be any time from the working day after the lesson.
6. Receive a written summary of your feedback, including your strengths and suggestions of areas you could work on. This will be accompanied by advice for how to build on your strengths and work on your action points.

You pay for: Pre-observation meeting + Observation of the relevant length + Post-observation meeting + Written feedback (live/recorded)

Unseen observations

Unseen observations are an alternative to traditional observations, in that nobody is present during the lesson, but you are still able to discuss it before and after it happens. Find out more about unseen observations.

1. Arrange a pre-observation meeting. This should be a maximum of 2 working days before your lesson and a minimum of 2 hours, in case you want to change anything in your lesson preparation in light of our discussion.
2. Teach your lesson – I will not observe it.
3. (Optional, but recommended!) Make notes of comments and questions you have about the lesson.
4. Arrange a post-observation meeting to discuss your lesson. This can be any time from 2 hours after the lesson, to give you time to reflect on what happened.
5. Receive a written summary of our post-observation meeting, including your strengths and suggestions of areas you could work on. This will be accompanied by advice for how to build on your strengths and work on your action points.

You pay for: Pre-observation meeting + Post-observation meeting + Written feedback (unseen)

Fees

---

Special offer!

Get 5% off the total price when you book your second (or later!) observation with me.

---

Once you’ve chosen the type of observation you would like, you can work out how much it will cost using the table below.

Observation length (live/recorded)	Fee
30 minutes	£30
45 minutes	£43
60 minutes	£55
90 minutes	£75

Other components	Fee
Pre-observation meeting (30 minutes)	£30
Post-observation meeting (45 minutes)	£45
Written feedback on live/recorded lesson	£5
Written summary of unseen observation	£15

For example:

• A 30-minute live observation (£30) + pre-observation meeting (£30) + post-observation meeting (£45) + written feedback (£5) would cost £110.
• A 60-minute video observation (£55) + pre-observation meeting (£30) + post-observation meeting (£45) + written feedback (£5) would cost £135.
• An unseen observation consisting of a pre-observation meeting (£30) + post-observation meeting (£45) + a written summary (£15) would cost £90.

Please note: I must receive payment for each stage of the observation process before I conduct it or send the feedback. You can pay in a single lump sum, or in instalments for each stage for an additional fee of £5.

Paperwork

As with any observation, there’s always a little paperwork, but hopefully it won’t put you off! It will help me to know more about your lesson and what you want to get out of the observation. You can send them to me in any format you choose (including a photo of handwritten notes!)

• A short summary of lesson aims, personal aims, how the lesson fits into the course, level and age (if relevant) of the student(s) and anything else you think it would be useful for me to know about the student(s), shared with their permission if it might be sensitive (for example, SEN).
• Your lesson plan, in the format you would normally use in the lesson. Please DON’T write or type out a special lesson plan just for me. If you think I won’t be able to follow it, don’t worry – I have a lot of practice! The important thing is that you can follow it. And if you don’t produce any form of lesson plan, that’s fine too – just let me know. It’s important for me to see your typical planning process to help me offer you the most useful advice.
• (For live/recorded observations) Evidence of permission from the student(s) or parents (if under 18).

What are you waiting for? Book your observation now!

Go to Calendly to reserve a time for your pre-observation meeting. It will ask you for a 45-minute slot, but don’t worry! When booking, please state exactly what kind of observation you would like (live, recorded or unseen), and preferred times for your live observation if applicable. When I reply to you, I will arrange the time for the live observation if necessary. I may be able to do live observations outside my standard working hours, though this will depend on my workload at the time.

Notes:

• Calendly automatically creates a Zoom link when you book, and should add it to your calendar too. Please check your spam if you don’t receive the email with this link.
• Google Calendar users who have not previously emailed me will need to click ‘I know the sender’ in the email they receive from Calendly for it to be added to their calendar (get help here).
• I need at least 14 days notice for observations, possibly more depending on my workload.

I’m looking forward to working with you!

Photo by Karol Czinege on Pexels.com