powerED Up

Summary In this episode, Matt Rogers and Ken Ehrmann discuss the upcoming paternity break for the Powered Up Podcast. They reflect on the podcast journey and the impact it has had on their teaching identities. They also discuss the future of the podcast and the importance of setting boundaries as a new parent. They share their experiences and insights on re-entering the classroom after a break and...

Summary Ryan Rydzewski, co-author of the book 'When You Wonder, You're Learning,' discusses the enduring lessons of Mr. Rogers and their relevance in education today. He emphasizes the importance of relationships in the classroom and the need for teachers to bring their passions into their teaching. Ryan also highlights the impact of Mr. Rogers' methods on student learning and the...

Summary In this conversation, Christopher Scott Wyatt discusses his experience with being diagnosed with autism later in life and the shifting nature of diagnostic labels. He emphasizes the importance of individualized approaches in education and the need to focus on students' strengths and weaknesses rather than their labels. Wyatt also discusses the benefits and limitations of labels and the...

Summary In this conversation, Kathy discusses the importance of social-emotional learning (SEL) and its impact on teaching. She shares her experience in incorporating SEL into the classroom and emphasizes the need for teachers to set clear boundaries for communication and grading. The conversation also explores the challenges faced by teachers and strategies for self-reflection and personal well-b...

Summary In this episode, Matt Rogers discusses his career in education, with a focus on special education. He shares his passion for working with students with special needs and the challenges and rewards of teaching in special education classrooms. Matt emphasizes the importance of collaboration and stakeholder involvement in supporting students with special needs to be included in regular educat...

Summary In this conversation, Suzanne Dailey, an instructional coach, shares her experiences and insights on creating a positive classroom environment, supporting multilingual learners, promoting teacher wellness, and practicing happiness as a discipline. She emphasizes the importance of validation and asking questions in coaching conversations and staying in touch with the classroom as an instruc...

Summary In this conversation, Ken Ehrmann and Gary Whitehead discuss the changes in high school English education, including the impact of technology and online teaching. They also explore the influence of being a poet on teaching and the importance of analyzing poetry with students. Gary shares his experience as the advisor of the school newspaper, discussing its history and transformation, as we...

Summary In this conversation, Pablo Munoz, a former superintendent of schools, shares his personal and professional journey in education. He discusses the importance of personal stories in education and how his background influenced his leadership style. Munoz also introduces the concept of the leader's algorithm and the personal theory of action, which he used to guide his work as a superinte...

In this conversation, Meghan Sheriff and Gretchen Gales discuss various aspects of teaching writing, including engagement, balancing content and writing skills, providing feedback and revisions, the value of writing conferences, and peer editing strategies. In this conversation, Meghan Sheriff and Gretchen Gales discuss their experiences teaching writing and running a tutoring business. They highl...

Lori Danz is the Wisconsin 2023 State Teacher of the Year. A career-long high school biology teacher has leveraged the unique opportunities of her district to add a whole other facet to her day.  She manages and teaches the outdoor forest for her school district.  All teachers, K-12, can come experience the forest for instructional purposes. Utilize the resources available in your district to crea...

In a rare opportunity, we had the pleasure of speaking to a superintendent and a long-time school board president in the same conversation. PJ Caposey, Illinois Superintendent of the Year, and Bryan Wills, school board president, are colleagues, friends, and co-authors of the book Cracking the Coaching Code. PJ and Bryan share their experiences as district leaders and the insights one can learn fr...

Grace Stevenson is focused on creating positive mindsets and habits for teachers.  After leaving a career in the business world, she launched a twenty-year teaching career in the trenches. Her experiences, passion, and research have driven her new career. She is focused on identifying why she has a positive experience and helping other teachers find the same joy. Creating practical small habits to...

Kimberly Radostits is the 2022 Illinois Teacher of the Year, and she is focused on supporting students to grow and take flight to their maximum potential. She has spent her entire career building a program that targets at-risk freshmen to increase the graduation rate dramatically.   Community-based program for at-risk freshmen to help them sustain a successful high school career. New teachers have...

Dani is the 2023 Massachusetts Teacher of the Year and clarified why in this conversation. She is dedicated to the quality education for every child she interacts with daily.  She spends most of her time supporting the students who need it most. Dani acknowledges her strengths and weaknesses as a teacher and how that helped her find her best position in alternative education. Bias is all around us...

Kyle Niemis, now a former teacher, comes back to the podcast and works for Quizizz. He joined us to provide an in-depth look at this fantastic online tool, highlight its best features, and share some big updates. We trust Kyle, and we endorse the use of this fantastic online tool.  Kyle provides countless examples of fantastic instructional practices that Quizizz can enhance. A variety of question...

Dr. Michael Ida is the 2023 Hawaii Teacher of the Year and a long-time math teacher. More recently in his career, he started teaching computer science, and this transition has created a huge shift in his teaching approach and education mindset. The focus of his teaching and the design of the lesson has transferred over to student experiences and interactions. Michael’s approach to teaching compute...

Bryson is an elementary music teacher who is passionate about inclusion. He quickly learned how music teachers are not prepared to include special education students in the classroom successfully. This podcast is inspirational for every teacher, regardless of content area.  Be aware of the sensory inputs in your classroom and how it is triggering students. Classroom management strategies for allow...

Leana Malinowsky is a passionate, qualified, and impactful educator who is changing readers' lives. She shares key instructional strategies to help support young readers and allow their learning to thrive.

Renee Jones is the 2023 Nebraska Teacher of the Year, a high school English teacher who provides incredible experiences for her students.  She is focused on their development as individuals and in the curriculum content.  She focuses on creating key success criteria to help them flourish and grow. Classroom cell phone policies in the school and the classroom. Renee shares her policies and how the...

Robert Dunlop is a quality educator, speaker, and author. He has had such a diverse experience in education that offers our audience a quality listen. Our conversation rolls from pedagogy to classroom management to feedback, the focus of his book, striving for happiness. The expectations we have for students can impact our approach to instruction. More importantly, when we have more confidence in...

Betsy Hill brought our podcast new information, perspective, and valuable content. She focuses on studying the brain and, more importantly, the cognitive skills for our brain to learn. There is a lot for teachers to keep in mind to see how we can best support the growth of students. For information to reach long-term memory, we are either auditory or visually dominant.  It will not stick well if s...

Cohens Mugisha is an incredible educator, changing the lives of the students he works with in his community of Ibanda, Uganda. His classes are focused specifically on writing and speech, but it is evident throughout the conversation these are only leverage points to create real-world learning experiences for students. Technology integration is a pursuit of all educators; it’s just a means of what...

Amber Trout is an experienced educator who navigated her career through different experiences and leveraged her expertise to support her colleagues and teachers best. She gravitated towards educational technology to create the best learning experiences for her students. One of the leading criteria for ed-tech should be ease of use. It should make the life of a teacher easier or more efficient. The...

Sensei Miwako was an incredible guest to join our podcast.  Since moving to the United States, she has spent her time teaching students math through abacus. This conversation was a great learning experience for Matt and Ken. Miwako provided great insight into how this tool can help build foundational mathematical skills for students. Self-paced classes on her website to learn these systems and ide...

 Mark Housel is a passionate, dedicated, experienced educator.  His career has been in physical education, but his wisdom will impact all teachers.  He provides a thorough analysis of strategies he utilizes in his classroom that each and every teacher can take and apply. Physical education is the only subject that has the ability to affect how people feel each and every day for the rest of their l...