The Thoughtful Teacher Podcast

Send us Fan Mail Policy researcher Weade' James shares research that she and her colleagues at the Center for American Progress conducted regarding new teacher induction programs. In this episode we discuss the findings of her research and what supports new and experienced teachers should receive from induction programs.

Send us Fan Mail Cheryl Randle is an instructional specialist helping teachers and administrators support students. In this conversation she shares how she approaches finding the clues to help teachers motivate students. Cheryl's website

Send us Fan Mail No student ever was successful without developing self-regulation skills, which is harder than ever for students to develop. In this conversation, Danielle Larsen shares how she teaches yoga in the classroom specifically to promote and develop self-regulation within students. We discuss how she approaches her work and Danielle shares some tips for teachers. Rise Yoga -Danielle Lar...

Send us Fan Mail In the second part of our series on building communities of practice around social emotional learning through the Social Emotional Learning Alliance, we share a conversation with Megan Lyons and Beth Rice. Megan and Beth joined with a group of educators in North Carolina to form the Social Emotional Learning Alliance for North Carolina or SEL 4NC. In this episode they share the wo...

Send us Fan Mail Jim Vetter the executive director of the Social Emotional Learning Alliance for the United States-SEL4US- shares how this collection of state alliances supports classroom teachers and schools to develop and promote strong social emotional learning initiatives. This is the first of a two part series featuring the work of educators within SEL 4US. Links https://sel4us.org/ Social Em...

Send us Fan Mail Does your school's detention program do little to teach students how to make better choices in the future? Many do because detention is not used as a learning opportunity. In this episode Leslie Trundy shares how talking students on a hike as an alternative to after school detention actually works as a teaching opportunity and changes detention from punishment to community bu...

Send us Fan Mail Aspen Institute Senior Fellow Laura Schifter shares about her work at This Is Planet Ed -part of the Aspen Institute's Energy and Environment Program. This Is Planet Ed an initiative to unlock the power of education as a force for climate solutions to empower the rising generation to lead a sustainable and resilient future. In this conversation we discuss why learning about c...

Send us Fan Mail It's happened to all of us we have to teach grammar and our teeth clench because we hate it. Almost all teachers have some writing instruction, but the grammar lessons remind us of all the red ink on our own papers when we were in school-so we find work arounds and avoid. In this episode Patty McGee, co-author of the new book Not Your Granny's Grammar, shares that it doe...

Send us Fan Mail School-based nature educator Kyra Stephenson shares how she developed the nature-based learning program at her school in New York and shares stories about how this program promotes learning with her students.  Links from episode Children & Nature Network Resources for Schools Nature Mind Solutions website Rochester Ecology Partners website-partner organization mentioned in epi...

Send us Fan Mail Christina Cipriano led a research team that studied over 250 social emotional learning programs worldwide again demonstrating that SEL is effective and essential to promote positive outcomes for all students. In this conversation we discuss why SEL is so important and how your school should approach developing daily, quality SEL interventions for students and why every teacher mus...

Send us Fan Mail Anne Podolsky of the Learning Policy Institute shares the latest research trends in effective teacher professional learning. Some of the findings-particularly on learning environments for experienced teachers may be surprising. What is not surprising is that the collegial professional learning environment of a school has a huge effect on student academic and social emotional learn...

Send us Fan Mail National Teacher of the Year for 2024-2025 Missy Testerman uses her position to advocate for the teaching profession. In this conversation, she shares how even in times of stress and upheaval there is great joy and positivity in the education profession. Links RAND study on teacher stress Earlier Rand study on teacher stress Neurolaunch editorial on professional stress

Send us Fan Mail She taught, she founded schools, she was published widely, she demonstrated that women and girls could achieve academically at the same levels as men and boys. She became one of the most famous women of her time in the 19th century. Yet, almost none of us have ever heard of Catharine Beecher (even those who know of her famous younger sister). In this episode biographer R. Lee Wils...

Send us Fan Mail At both the local and national levels PBS stations are facing serious challenges. Yet, they keep providing some of the most helpful and robust resources for educators. In this conversation local PBS educator Robyn Stringfellow shares how PBS stations support the work of teachers-and will continue to do so in the future! Links WTCI TV Chattanooga -the local PBS station we discuss P...

Send us Fan Mail Every interaction with every student is important, but how we structure (and yes, even plan) our conversations have an enormous impact on how students learn and achieve. In this conversation Erika Bare and Tiffany Burns, authors of Connecting Through Conversation: A Playbook for Talking with Students , share their strategies building connecting relationships with students.

Send us Fan Mail English teacher and author Matthew R. Kay shares how to build the classroom ecosystem for having meaningful conversations in the classroom, especially conversations about race in America. In this conversation he shares several interventions he uses and discusses how to craft great questions that lead to quality conversations in the classroom.

Send us Fan Mail Matthew Hawn used to be a social studies teacher until he was fired. He had his day in court and won, but instead of being reinstated the school board appealed. In this conversation, Matt shares his story, his thoughts on teaching controversial issues and how the community and particularly his former students have reacted. Despite many setbacks, he continues to be optimistic about...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever noticed that tree-lined streets and neighborhoods with lots of trees seem appealing? Have you ever thought that your school or the area around campus could use more trees? Well, it turns out that trees do more than just make things look nice: having a lot of trees on campus and near a school actually improves achievement (yes for real!). In this episode of The Though...

Send us Fan Mail Most teachers know that the physical space in schools and classrooms matter for student learning, health and wellness. But often teachers are using guesswork when they make decisions about physical spaces that are conducive to learning. Design consultant Bill Browning and architect Jim Determan are practitioners and researchers on biophilic design. In this conversation they share...

Send us Fan Mail In this conversation, self-described "bad student" Jerry Kolber shares insights from his work producing kid friendly media and how good storytelling can help teachers connect with students. Jerry is co-founder of Atomic Entertainment which produces kid-friendly programming like Brain Games and the podcast Who Smarted.

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Maggie Brodkerick shares her past experiences as a music teacher and her current work as a professor to tell how teachers can create a culture of caring in their classrooms-while also maintaining academic rigor. Many students are sometimes not connected to teachers or other students for a variety of reasons, but teachers can integrate the arts and social emotional learning to...

Send us Fan Mail While still a teenager, Sydney Guerette founded a nonprofit where youth run the show solving problems within their communities and promoting mental health. In this conversation Sydney and Scott Lee discuss how she got started on this journey and how educators and caring adults can support youth who are making a difference in their communities.

Send us Fan Mail Amy Richter founder of Music Workshop shares how music education can be transformative experience for students. In this conversation, Amy shares that funding cuts at her children's school meant no more music education. She decided to take action and find a solution by founding the non-profit Music Workshop. Now Music Workshop is available to 6 million students around the worl...

Send us Fan Mail This episode features a conversation with Vince Shorb, CEO of the National Financial Educators Council. In this wide-ranging conversation we discuss the problems many K-12 educators face in developing a quality personal finance program at all grade levels and Vince shares his ideas for improving outcomes and implementing serious reform initiatives.

Send us Fan Mail Education researcher and advocate Dr. Nancy E. Bailey shares why educators should be concerned about literacy programs that claim to be based on the "Science of Reading". While there is no consensus on what the term "Science of Reading" means, many reading programs may only meet the literacy needs of some students. In this conversation we discuss what to look f...