Teach Me, Teacher

Hello everyone! Teachers are constantly being pushed to do more with less. Usually, this isn't a good thing. It ends up being just a way to cater to the high stakes testing environments we all experience. But what if we focused on what mattered? What if we decided to have our students practice talking to one another? What if we decided to do what's best for kids, but without a focus on using more...

Hello everyone! Today I am honored to share with you part 2 of my discussion with Eric Crouch (if you missed part 1, click here.) Part 2 is all about doing what's right vs being right. Meaning, we should all be more concerned with doing the best work for our students, so they can do their best work. Throughout the episode, we really hit on how Eric runs his classroom workshop, his view on his role...

Hello everyone! Today I am honored to share with you my discussion with the one and only Eric Crouch. Eric Crouch is a national award-winning educator from Columbus, Ga. Eric is also Harvard PZ Fellow, a Lowell Milken Center Fellow and currently serves on both the State Superintendent's Teacher Advisory and the Governor's Teacher Advisory Council for the state of Georgia. His work with project-bas...

Hello everyone! In a world where too many educators want the short and easy answers to literacy education, Evan and Laura Robb are here to help us see the value and purpose for putting in the real work and time it takes to learn our craft, and support kids the way they need to be supported. I couldn't be more excited for part two of this conversation! In part two, we discuss where public education...

Hello everyone! In a world where too many educators want the short and easy answers to literacy education, Evan and Laura Robb are here to help us see the value and purpose for putting in the real work and time it takes to learn our craft, and support kids the way they need to be supported. I couldn't be more excited for this one.  Evan, Laura, and I discuss what balanced literacy education is, wh...

Hello everyone! Today, we are diving even deeper into teacher self-care with part two of my talk with Dr. Woodly! This is by far the MOST REQUESTED TOPIC of the show, and I'm extremely happy to bring it to you today. If you missed part 1, click here. Teachers are stressed. Overworked. Guilty for working too much. Guilty for taking time for themselves. Worried they aren't going to survive the next...

Hello everyone! Today, we are diving deep into teacher self-care. This is by far the MOST REQUESTED TOPIC of the show, and I'm extremely happy to bring it to you today. Teachers are stressed. Overworked. Guilty for working too much. Guilty for taking time for themselves. Worried they aren't going to survive the next week, let alone this one. What to do? What about teacher self-care? I partnered wi...

Hello everyone! I can't possibly be more excited to bring you part 2 of this episode with Ron Clark Academy cofounder, Kim Bearden! In part 1, we really hit on the staff portion of effective communication. In this half of our conversation, we hit on the classroom, and how to support effective communication between the teacher and students. Both of us share stories from our past and current lives a...

Hello everyone! I can't possibly be more excited to bring you this episode with Ron Clark Academy cofounder, Kim Bearden! If you've listened to the podcast for any amount of time, you know how passionate I am about the work everyone at RCA does, and it was an absolute pleasure to be able to record this episode for you all. In this two part series, we discuss the principles of effective communicati...

Hello everyone! Today, we are discussing why teachers should be modeling themselves as readers AND writers, with one of my favorite Young Adult authors, Brendan Kiely. Brendan Kiely is The New York Times bestselling author of All American Boys (with Jason Reynolds), Tradition, The Last True Love Story, and The Gospel of Winter, and together, we discuss why modeling being a reader and writer can be...

Hello everyone! Today, we are discussing why teens need diverse fiction, with one of my favorite Young Adult authors, Brendan Kiely. Brendan Kiely is The New York Times bestselling author of All American Boys (with Jason Reynolds), Tradition, The Last True Love Story, and The Gospel of Winter, and together, we discuss the power fiction can have in our student's lives, and why we should make our li...

Hello everyone! Today we are taking part in part 2 of our Ron Clark Academy Reflection with @abubblyclassroom, otherwise known as Brianna Johnson. Brianna has become one of my friends over on Instagram, and I got a chance to sit down with her for an hour to discuss her trip to The Ron Clark Academy! We recorded this episode all the way back during the summer, and I'm amazed at how much of our conv...

Hello everyone! Today we are taking part in a Ron Clark Academy Reflection with @abubblyclassroom, otherwise known as Brianna Johnson. Brianna has become one of my friends over on Instagram, and I got a chance to sit down with her for an hour to discuss her trip to The Ron Clark Academy! We recorded this episode all the way back during the summer, and I'm amazed at how much of our conversation con...

Hello everyone! Today I have on Matthew Kay, the author of the AMAZING book, Not Light, But Fire, and we are continuing our discussion about how and why we should all step up and lead meaningful race conversations in our classrooms. It matters, now more than ever, especially if you're an educator in America. Teach Me, Teacher has never shied away from controversial or hard topics. This is a fact I...

Hello everyone! Today I have on Matthew Kay, the author of the AMAZING book, Not Light, But Fire, and we are discussing how we can all step up and lead meaningful race conversations in our classrooms.  Teach Me, Teacher has never shied away from controversial or hard topics. This is a fact I'm extremely proud of in the work of the show. We took on Betsy DeVos all the way back in season 1. We discu...

Hello everyone! Today we are discussing Sparks in the Dark: Lessons, Ideas and Strategies to Illuminate the Reading and Writing Lives in All of Us, a wonderful book and resource for teachers who want to ignite the fire that keeps their students' reading and writing lives rich and rewarding. In part one of this episode, Travis Crowder and Todd Nesloney discussed the beliefs that formed the book Spa...

Hello everyone! Today we are discussing Sparks in the Dark: Lessons, Ideas and Strategies to Illuminate the Reading and Writing Lives in All of Us, a wonderful book and resource for teachers who want to ignite the fire that keeps their students' reading and writing lives rich and rewarding. In part one of this episode, Travis Crowder and Todd Nesloney discuss the beliefs that formed the book Spark...

Hello everyone! I am so excited to bring back DeAnna Morgan for part 2 (you can listen to part 1 here) to discuss why we should all be practicing what we preach and modeling the behavior and actions we want to see in our students, as well as hitting on the WHY behind what we do. DeAnna opens up in part 2 of our discussion about a powerful moment she had with a student, and it's truly inspiring.  T...

Hello everyone! I am so excited to bring you DeAnna Morgan of Instagram fame to discuss why we should all be practicing what we preach and modeling the behavior and actions we want to see in our students. This is a timely and passionate episode, and one of my personal favorites. Overall, this is the core of great advice for teachers. We can't be lazy and bored and expect our students not to be. We...

Hello everyone! In part 2 with Monica Genta, we continue our discussion about amazingly small, but powerful ways, to take your class to the next level, and we are also discussing her amazing 21 day challenge for educators! I love Monica's advice in this episode because it's advice everyone can take to heart. It's broad enough we can all learn from her, and deep enough that it will bring meaningful...

Hello everyone! I've brought on Monica Genta to help us spice up our classrooms and bring our lessons to the next level! I love Monica's advice in this episode because it's advice everyone can take to heart. It's broad enough we can all learn from her, and deep enough that it will bring meaningful change to our lessons and practices. Monica is the author of two books, Game Changers and 180 Days of...

Hello everyone! Today, we are learning how to learn with Barbara Oakley PhD, and giving away some FREE BOOKS! Barbara Oakley is an amazing advocate for learners of all ages, and has put together an amazing piece of work along side her partner on the project, Terrence Sejnowski, PhD. This book is all about understanding the brain and how it processes and remembers information, and putting it in a w...

Hello everyone! Today, we are learning how to learn with Barbara Oakley PhD, and giving away some FREE BOOKS! Barbara Oakley is an amazing advocate for learners of all ages, and has put together an amazing piece of work along side her partner on the project, Terrence Sejnowski, PhD. This book is all about understanding the brain and how it processes and remembers information, and putting it in a w...

Hello everyone! You asked, so I delivered! If you're a new teacher, this episode is for you! I gathered my best advice, as well as some great advice from my friends over on Instagram, Megan Medina of Beauty, Brains, and Other Things, and Rachel Fairchild of Chalk and Coffee, to help you in your new year. This is your crash course! Make sure to take some great notes, and continue to dive into the b...

Hello everyone! Today, we are continuing our talking about social justice in our classrooms! Megan Forbes, otherwise known as @toocoolformiddleschool on Instagram and Youtube , brings the heat again and helps us not only understand why we need social justice, but what it looks like in the classroom. In this episode, we discuss: That education is political, but it doesn't have to be partisan How to...