Brave New Teaching: A Podcast for High School and Middle School Teachers

2021 is coming to a close and it's the perfect time to share our top 9 from this year. We're listing our 3 favorite things that we have in common as well as each of our favorite book, resource, and recipe! This Top 9 activity is so fun to do with your students as well and can be used in several different ways. Don't worry, we'll give you ideas on how you can use it in your clas...

Nothing compares to the dreaded Sunday scaries after a long break. Fear not, friends. Let’s talk through how you can make decisions in December that will make your life easier that first day back in January. We guarantee that anxiety will decrease if your copies are made and lesson plans are drafted before break starts. We’re going to help you prepare now so that you aren’t scrambling the day befo...

End-of-semester grading, gift giving, party planning, parent phone calls, and IEP updates are just some of the many many tasks on your shoulders during this time of year. Are you feeling the weight of getting everything done before you walk out of your classroom door for winter break? We have solutions for you as we help you backwards plan your way to freedom. SHOW NOTES:  bravenewteaching.com/hom...

Happy Thanksgiving, friends! We are so very thankful for YOU and all that you do to support this podcast. We wanted to do something fun for today's episode, and if you know us then it probably comes as no surprise that fun sometimes comes in the form of formative assessments! Specifically, a Sesame Street Quiz. That's right, we've got a Thanksgiving themed Sesame Street Quiz on toda...

In episode 3 of our discussion series, we’re sharing part of a real pre-recorded classroom discussion. This took place in 2020 during virtual teaching and the topic of this conversation was crossing cultural and moral lines when it comes to Halloween costumes. You will hear how students interact with each other during the conversation and our feedback on what went really well and what could be imp...

Planning classroom discussions is not a one size fits all. Every class looks different, and you likely have some students who always dominate the conversation while other students have extreme anxiety around speaking. So how do you scaffold their work and support them emotionally and academically? Where do you even begin?! We're sharing several ways that you can troubleshoot challenges that a...

Grab a notebook, because we’ve got a mini PD session coming at you for the next three episodes all about classroom discussions and ways to teach important speaking and listening skills. In part one, our focus is on possible goals and strategies for student-generated classroom discussions. As with many things, if you want to get the most out of it, you need to do it often! You can tune in next week...

This season is “supposed” to be incredible and filled with Hallmark movie moments. But, when you add in COVID, flu season, work overwhelm, and pressure from family, it often ends up being super stressful instead. This year, we invite you to prioritize the things that are meaningful to you so that you can spark joy rather than dread over the holidays. Consider this our “Marie Kondo Your Holiday Cal...

There's so much to celebrate during the season of Fall. Pumpkins, apple picking, sweaters, lattes, and YOU. Today's episode is a reminder to take a breath, reflect on how things are going for you, and to indulge in the season by doing things that make you truly happy. We'll share our definition of self-care and why we like to focus on the small moments of joy throughout our day. Let...

Your classroom is a magical space. It's a place where you and your students spend a good deal of time, and you can design it in a way that fosters a sense of community, inclusivity, comfort, and inspiration. This episode is from The Spark Creativity Teacher Podcast, and will share several ideas on how you can get creative in creating a classroom space that's right for you!  SHOW NOTES: b...

Today's episode is a re-run of one of our very favorite episodes where we share the voices and ideas of some of our favorite teachers out there. We recruited six phenomenal English teachers to share their favorite ways of taking inspiration from the season to create engaging, challenging, and fun lessons for their students. We hope you are inspired by their ideas and can implement them in you...

If you haven't checked out our previous episode [episode 66] go check that out! This is part two of our banned books discussion. We're looking at what to do when the professional decisions you've made in regards to text selection are challenged by parents and/or administration. How do you respond without getting defensive? How can you be well prepared for questions you're bound...

In celebration of banned book week, we are addressing what our role is as a teacher when it comes to challenged books. In the first part of this two-episode series, we discuss the decisions we have to make when selecting texts, what to consider if a text or author is challenged, getting our students involved in the conversation, and more!  REGISTER FOR THE FREE BNT FALL FESTIVAL ON TEACHING DYSTOP...

It’s no secret that we are so passionate about inquiry. Inquiry is more than just questioning. It’s a whole view of how to approach teaching. Today we’re doing a deep dive into what inquiry is and what it isn’t, and why we use inquiry to drive curriculum. Better yet, we’re sharing how inquiry can decentralize the text and the teacher, and in turn allow students to take control of their own learnin...

As the great Ms. Frizzle says, take chances, make mistakes, GET MESSY! The same rings true when using a makerspace in your classroom. You name it, it’s possible in a makerspace. In this episode, Amanda is sharing how to get started with building a makerspace, simple materials you can use, and specific examples of activities to try out. She also walks through one of her favorite projects she implem...

Does giving your students choice come easily to you? For some teachers it does, but for others it can be extremely difficult to release that control! Incorporating choice requires a major mindset shift as you learn how to navigate your students all doing something different. In this episode, we're showing you how you can allow students to have choice without letting go of having a central foc...

Using picture books is one of our favorite strategies for opening up a unit or individual lesson. Without fail, it always  sparks interest and gets students excited to learn about the topic at hand! Tune in to hear us walk through a lesson plan using one of our favorite picture books to introduce a unit in Dystopia. REGISTER FOR THE FREE BNT FALL FESTIVAL ON TEACHING DYSTOPIA: https://www.curricul...

If you aren’t already on the dystopian band wagon, we’re fairly confident that you will be after this episode. We’ve taught dystopia for YEARS, and it hasn’t lost any steam along the way. Can you say that for other genres?   So, why is dystopia as a specific genre so gosh darn exciting? Why is it something we believe should be in every single ELA classroom? We couldn’t even begin to count the reas...

Kids have a magical way of looking at the world. Sadly, overtime this magic begins to dim. But what if it didn’t have to? What if you could play a part in holding on to that joy of discovery? Our guests today are going to help you do just that. We are joined by Ashley Bible, Jenna Cooper, Abby Gross, and Staci Lamb. They are the powerhouse team from Keeping the Wonder.    Ashley, Jenna, Abby, and...

Grab your pen and paper because you may want to take notes on the magic that happens in today’s episode. We’re doing a LIVE essential question workshop, which we haven’t done since last year ( by the way, doesn’t last year feel like a decade ago? ).    The point of this workshop is for Marie to plan and prepare essential questions for an upcoming 12th grade literature course. The end goal is to he...

Imagine stepping into your classroom at the beginning of the new school year. What do you feel? Excitement? Overwhelm? Maybe all the Pinterest images you’ve been staring at all summer start to run through your head. Whether you’re stepping back into your old room, a new room, or your FIRST EVER classroom, it’s your space and it’s important to feel good in it.  Before you go and make a zillion trip...

Look, we’re not going to sugarcoat it.  Your first few years of teaching are TOUGH. It’s the beginning of a new career and it takes some time to find your footing. Don’t even get us started on the constant meetings that you can’t even pay attention to because you’re SO overwhelmed. There’s a reason why more teachers leave this profession in their first three years than any other point in their car...

Well hey there podcast besties! It’s been a hot minute, but we are back in action for season three and could not be more excited! Lately we’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to be brave. As teachers, there will likely come a time when you have to make big career decisions that aren’t easy to make. It takes a ton of bravery to envision yourself doing something other than being in the class...

In this week's episode, we take a look back at the first year of Brave New Teaching & reflect a bit as we move forward to the end of this school year. We've learned, grown, and changed in surprising ways... Enjoy! CLICK HERE FOR SHOW NOTES Mentioned in this episode: Get more Brave New Teaching each week: Join BNT Happy Hour Here! "Send us a message - please include your contact...

This week's episode is a walk-through of the absolute best formative assessment you'll ever give your students. It asks students to synthesize their understanding of content, explain that understanding through concise writing, and can be adapted to ANY CONTENT AREA. That's right. Any subject. Enjoy! CLICK HERE FOR SHOW NOTES Mentioned in this episode: Get more Brave New Teaching eac...