"So what exactly do you do?" I get this question a lot from people both in and outside of education. "Instructional Coach" just sounds broad and foreign and nearly always needs further explanation. I struggled for awhile with how to explain what I do. Some of my early responses included: "I support teachers" (again, too broad),  or  "I help teachers with things like integrating technology into their lessons" (too narrow) "I am a teacher of teachers" (not quite accurate), or  I would just absorb the blank stare and change the subject.  It's not that I wasn't doing important work or that I was unclear on my role. The problem was that I could not articulate my work simply and effectively, and that felt embarrassing. Then, just over a year into the position of instructional coach someone asked me that  dreaded question about what I do. In a magical moment, these words came spilling out of my mouth: "I provide ...