The ClasStars Podcast

Teachers will not only tend to the education needs of their students, but to the “whole child”. That is why the term “Maslow Before Bloom” has become cliche. Edutopia had written a few blog posts on this topic and here is a link to a great one! https://www.edutopia.org/video/more-check-maslow-bloom-throughout-day. ClasStars helps teachers keep track of their Maslow and their Bloom! Listen to the p...

Jessica Lane is a data coach for a district in Cincinnati, OH. She also runs https://8817jessicalane.com/, where she puts systems in place to help school staff make informed decisions based on data. Jessica makes sure that teachers DO NOT hate collecting and analyzing data, and she will help you get organized with some spreadsheet magic. Listen to my conversation with her to find out how she does...

In 2013 Bill Gates gave a Ted talk titled Teachers Need Real Feedback. You can watch the entire talk here. https://www.ted.com/talks/bill_gates_teachers_need_real_feedback?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare. At ClasStars we agree that teachers need feedback, but we also realize that teachers need to feedback to be discreet and it can’t take too much time to get it. T...

Jessica came back for another conversation, this time with her husband and co-author, John Hannigan, to discuss their newest book, SEL From a Distance. They also reviewed and discuss the NEW ClasStars app! Learn more about ClasStars at ⁠⁠www. ClasStars.com⁠⁠

I’m thrilled to announce the upcoming ClasStars Pilot Program! It will be a fun week where we take a select group of great teachers and work closely with them as they learn how to use ClasStars, first outside of their classrooms, then setup their class, and finally use it with their own class! If you want to be a part of this, you can download ClasStars. FREE!! Download ClasStars for iOS: https://...

Chris Garland is an awesome teacher! Learn more about ClasStars at ⁠⁠www. ClasStars.com⁠⁠

We all know that humans are creatures of habit. Kids especially thrive in solid, structured routines. How can we provide that predictability when there is so much uncertainty, blended learning environments, and other unpredictable factors in our world? Learn more about ClasStars at ⁠⁠www. ClasStars.com⁠⁠

Dr. JESSICA DJABRAYAN HANNIGAN, is a professor of educational leadership at California State University, Fresno. She has published numerous books on implementing effective behavior/SEL systems in schools, such as the PBIS Handbook series, Building Behavior, Don't Suspend Me, Behavior Solutions, MTSS Start-Up Guide and SEL From A Distance. https://www.solutiontree.com/events/immediate-impact-in...

When you here the word “diagnosis” or “diagnostics”, we usually don’t think about teachers. Yet teachers are constantly making assessments and “diagnoses” about students’ performance in school. Perhaps we need to pay closer attention to the process of learning to help diagnose student struggles so we can provide more effective intervention. Learn more at www. ClasStars.com

Hedy Chang is the founder and director of Attendance Works. A nonprofit organization whose mission is to advance student success and help close equity gaps by reducing chronic absence. In this episode, Hedy talks about chronic absence in the context of COVID-19 and remote learning. How it is impacting students and what can be done about it. Learn more at www.attendanceworks.org Learn more about Cl...

As the new year begins, teachers are tasked with the responsibility to help children transition back from quarantine to a “new normal”. There is so much uncertainty about the future, frustration about the past, and it is to be expected that many students will struggle getting back to school. Teachers are also required to catch kids up on material that was missed last year, and teach everything tha...

This is a conversation that I had right before schools began to close because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. September is National Attendance Awareness Month, and who better to talk to about it than Hedy Chang. Hedy is the Founder and Executive Director if Attendance Works, whose mission is to advance student success and help close equity gaps by reducing chronic absence. They advocate for better polic...

What is the greatest power of a teacher? It’s the ability to look into the eyes of a child and let them know that you believe in them! More than anything, our students need our approval! ClasStars helps teachers know that they are doing this with each and every one of their students! Download ClasStars from the App Store of your tablet device! Also, you c an join the Teaching with Positivity Faceb...

I just started a new Facebook group for passionate teachers who want to try the ClasStars app and who want their teaching to be positive oriented. You’re welcome to join and find out more about it! https://www.facebook.com/groups/760819511388085/?ref=share Learn more about ClasStars at ⁠www. ClasStars.com⁠

It would be great if kids who needed help would always just ask us for help. Anyone who had been a teacher for more than a few hours knows that often kids struggle to reach out for help, but if you listen carefully, they express their struggles in many ways. Very often their misbehaviors are a call for help. By adopting a mindset that every misbehavior is a request for support, you will quickly de...

Preparing for a new school year is always a mixture of excitement and anxiety. This year feels more filled with anxiety than ever? Are we returning to in school learning? Remote learning? Some kind of blend? However we start, will is stay? So much uncertainty, it can certainly make us feel lightheaded! In this podcast I talk about setting the right expectations for preparing for a new year under u...

Driven by his passion for enhancing the learning process, Kevin started Kay-Twelve in 2009. Coupled with his experience in the contract furniture industry, Kevin has a B.S, in Mass Communications from Miami University and a MBA from The Ohio State University. Kevin is married with 3 kids and though Kay-Twelve keeps him very busy, he still finds time to coach his 3 kids in their various sports. Inv...

The COVID-19 Pandemic has turned the world on its head. Schools have been forced to make drastic changes in a short amount of time. There is still a great amount of uncertainty as what the next school year will bring. It’s important for teachers to be prepared and have the right mindset to adapt to these challenges. Listen to the podcast to hear more about it! As always, the ClasStars app is here...

Collaboration is a big buzzword these days, but the problem is that we only collaborate with the voices that we hear! Before we can have true collaboration we need to make sure that every voice is heard! This is not easy, but we can start with our classroom. Make sure that every child in the room has a voice and is heard. The ClasStars app helps ensure that every student in noticed and gets the po...

We have seen an explosion of technology tools for education, yet the greatest challenge remains training teachers to proficiently use these tools! In this episode I’ll share with you some of things we’ve been thinking about as we prepare the ClasStars app for the next school year! Learn more about ClasStars at www. ClasStars.com

Anthony Clemons is working towards his doctoral degree in education. He brings a clear and articulate research based approach that is very refreshing. Here are some links to learn a little more about some of the topics covered in this conversation. Learn more about ClasStars at www. ClasStars.com Attention Span of a Goldfish https://www.warc.com/newsandopinion/opinion/the-goldfish-myth/2806#:~:tex...

With so much going on in a classroom, it’s practically impossible to write everything down and record all of the necessary happenings to have an objective picture of a child’s performance. Unfortunately, this leads confusion and very often, bias against children. Learn more about ClasStars at www. ClasStars.com

Meaningful relationships are hard to build. They are often even harder to maintain under pressure. Parents will always advocate for their kids and they might be quick to throw a dedicated teacher under the bus if things go awry. Learn more about ClasStars at www. ClasStars.com Check out the ClasStars app for iPad: https://classtars.us19.list-manage.com/track/click?u=63d3daa39d65e8b0b84685ff9&i...

The school system has it’s injustices. It is set up for certain types of students to succeed and it ignores other types of students, and for yet another group of students, it traps them in a never ending cycle of disciplinary action. How can we improve this system? ClasStars looks to identify those students who struggle or who go unnoticed and shines a light on them so that their teachers can prov...

Just like the tip of the iceberg is all you can see, but we know the bulk of it is beneath the surface, so too with students’ struggling, very often all we see is the “tip of the iceberg “. It’s important to recognize that we need to look beneath the surface to really understand a student’s struggle if we want to help them in a meaningful way. Learn more about ClasStars at www. ClasStars.com