The Classroom Collaborative Podcast

Is homework appropriate for kindergarten? In this episode, Deedee and Adam share ideas that allow students to practice essential skills as homework, but it feels like play... because it is!  They will discuss some ideas that primary teachers can use in their own classroom with kindergarten and first-grade students that are fun.  Games are a great way to activate learning and they encourage more ti...

Deedee and Adam chat with Edna from Boddle Learning.  What is Boddle Learning?  It is a free 3D math game that makes learning fun and personalized.  This is not just for kindergarten!   Boddle Learning has curriculum-based learning for K-6 students!  Best of all... it is free for teachers. Teachers have control of the math games and activities that students experience.   In this episode, you will...

Deedee and Adam chat about what mastery is and how it should be assessed. This conversation was inspired by an email that Deedee received about assessing letter sounds.  The question circled around what are we assessing and how much support should be given while assessing? Are we really helping students in the long run if alter assessments?  Take a listen!

Deedee chats with Jan Burkins and Kari Yates about their blockbuster book, Shifting the Balance.  6 Ways to Bring the Science of Reading into the Balanced Literacy Classroom.

Deedee is joined by Marsha McGuire to discuss fine motor skills in kindergarten.   Marsha shares some ideas that every teacher can incorporate into their daily instruction that will strengthen students' fine motor skills. Grab your exclusive Podcast Free file: Podcast Free File Where can you find Marsha?: Differentiated Kindergarten Blog Follow her on: Instagram Facebook Teachers Pay Tea...

Deedee and Adam discuss some of the pros and cons that surround redshirting in kindergarten. SOURCES:   Samuels, Christina A. , 2017, August 29 , Delaying Child’s Starting Age for School a Tough Call for Parents, Education Weekly   https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/delaying-childs-starting-age-for-school-a-tough-call-for-parents/2017/08 Wong, Alia,  Updated, 2021, March 11, &...

Deedee and Adam chat about the upcoming Teacher Road Trip.  This is a series of teacher meet-ups that will be hosted by some amazing sponsors. Fort Worth Tailgate:  June 7 Atlanta Tailgate: June 11 Nashville Tailgate: June 14 Teachers must register at: The Teacher Road Trip Follow the fun on their Instagram Channel: @teacherroadtrip

Adam and Deedee chat about the #betheyellow movement and the worldwide celebration called Make Someone's Day Yellow! Visit www.makesomeonesdayyellow.com for more information! Get the FREE pack here: English Version Spanish Version

Deedee and Adam chat with Hilary Statum. Hilary is a teacher out of Tennessee!  In this episode, Hilary discusses her life in the classroom while balancing pregnancy, motherhood, and life! Here is where you can find Hilary Pencils to Pigtails Blog Instagram Facebook Pinterest

Deedee and Adam talk about ways to take learning outside!  The weather is starting to get warmer so why not take the kiddos outside! You can find some ideas in Adam's book, Teach, Play, Learn!: How to Create a Purposeful Play-Driven Classroom Here are a few additional places you can get inspiration! 63 Outdoor Learning Activities 130+ FREE Outdoor Learning Activities For Kids Unexpectedly Stu...

In this bonus episode, Deedee and Adam discuss the upcoming event of the summer - The Educator Summit! I am thrilled to announce that I will be a featured presenter at The Educator Summit!  The Educator Summit is a three-day virtual conference with over 30 sessions presented by nationally recognized educational leaders. As an attendee of the summit you will receive: ·  Over 30 hours of o...

Deedee and Adam share some of their favorite books and some top picks that are available now! Here are some of the books that were discussed: Mrs. Spritzer's Garden Just Read Jasper and Ollie My Teacher is a Robot Dude! Just Ask! Dancing Hands Are We There Yet?

Deedee and Adam talk about a few of their favorite teacher-related YouTube channel recommendations for teachers. Here is a list with links to their channels: The Lettered Classroom Kris Szajner (Tech) Pocketful of Primary IMSE (Orton-Gillingham Training) The Kinderhearted Classroom ESGI Assessments and Webinars TedX Talk Parent to Parent (Matt Glover writing)

Adam and Deedee are joined by their good friend, Cindy Price.  Cindy is a first-grade teacher in Delaware and has been teaching virtually since last March of 2020.   She explains how she maintains her energy despite being pulled in so many directions.  

Deedee and Adam discuss ways to support not only your multilingual students but all of your students through 5 specific strategies that were discussed in the Edutopia article. Read this article for yourself by visiting: Supporting Multilingual Students in the Early Grades You can find this free website for wonderful photos that will help spark conversations and help build student background knowle...

Deedee and Adam talk about ways to increase the writing your students do across all of the subjects. Why? "Writing about content material facilitates learning by consolidating information in long-term memory." Professor Steve Graham from the Teachers College at Arizona State University Having students write down what they understand about a topic, helps to identify gaps in their understanding. How...

Deedee and Adam chat with Katie Mense about her new book, Yani, the Yeti.   Katie shares about the process she went through to self publish her first children's book!   Katie offers her tips for finding an illustrator to make the story come to life. You can find this book on Amazon Affiliate link by clicking:   Yani the Yeti: and the Power of Yet Here are a few of the links to...

Deedee and Adam chat with Ryan Nevius from Illinois ASCD.  Every year, this is a massive Pre-K and Kindergarten conference that is going virtual this year.  Ryan shares how nimble they needed to be to bring amazing content to teachers everywhere!   Learn more about this conference by clicking. ILLINOIS ASCD 2021 PRE-K AND KINDERGARTEN CONFERENCE

Deedee and Adam discuss ways to check for understanding digitally.  Back in 2015, an article was written for The Reading Teacher, but it seems like it was made for 2020-2021!  Teachers today have expressed how challenging it is to keep students engaged during distance learning.   Some of these tools may help improve student involvement while also providing great feedback around...

Deedee and Adam discuss an article from The Reading Teacher on text selection and integration.  The article titled, "Five Steps Towards Successful Culturally Relevant Text Selection and Integration," walks teachers through the changing demographics and the need for culturally responsive pedagogy.  Here is some information that you might find helpful: The Reading Teacher Vol.71, NO.3 pp 2...

Deedee and Adam catch up after a long winter break and chat about some fun ways to make the 100th day of school as fun as possible in this ever-changing year of education!

Deedee and Adam sit down with Cynthia Kaye to talk about the exciting new learning platform from Alive Studios called Zoo Camp! Students learn letters and sounds with live teacher instruction and engagement. HINT: Adam is the teacher! Learn more: https://alivestudiosco.com/

Get your copy of PrincipalED From fighting wildland fires with the U.S. Forest Service to putting out fires in the classroom, education was the last place that Rachael thought she’d end up.  It wasn’t until a hard conversation with a base manager in Grangeville, Idaho did Rachael realize she needed to put her chainsaw down and make a bigger impact on the world.  Rachael is a member of th...

In this episode Deedee and Adam talked about trying to find gratitude in this moment in time.

Deedee and Adam continue their discussion on how to help students who are struggling to learn to read. They discuss the Orton-Gillingham approach to instruction. Join them! They discuss how using the science of reading and orthographic mapping to teach high-frequency words to move students away from memorization and guide them towards mastery. Read more about the Science of Reading Lesson format b...