Teach Me, Teacher

Hello everyone! Today, I have the honor and privilege of bringing you Adam Dovico, a first time principal at Moore Magnet Elementary in North Carolina, and co-author of The Limitless School with Abe Hege. Adam Dovico is an accomplished teacher, author, speaker, and professor. He began his career in North Carolina as an elementary school teacher, then worked as a teacher and the school implementation specialist for the renowned Ron Clark Academy, where he traveled across the country conducting professional development and on-site training to schools and districts for over 15,000 educators in thirty states. In this episode, we discuss not only Adam’s new book, but also what it takes to create great teams as a leader, make the right decisions, and even how to keep teaching when you’re a principal. But truly, this two part episode is about culture, what that means in our classrooms, and how to make it the best it can be. Culture isn’t on the admin to solve, it’s on all of us. If you have problems in your school or classroom related to the culture puzzle, then this episode is for you. You can grab The Limitless School: Creative Ways to Solving the Culture Puzzle now.  Share and enjoy! Don’t forget to subscribe and review the show on iTunes!  

Hello everyone! Today, it is my pleasure to bring you Sue Szachowicz, a retired principal of Brockton High School and now a Senior Fellow for the International Center for Leadership in Education, to close out our 3 part episode on how to change a failing school. She chronicled the turn-around of Brockton High in her book Transforming Brockton High: High Standards, High Expectations, No Excuses,and this week she is on the show to discuss exactly how she, and her team, did it. I can’t say enough positive things about this episode, as well as part 2 and part 1. Sue is a no nonsense educator. Excuses are cheap, and effort is king. It isn’t enough to want to change a school, you have to believe there is no other option. Don’t miss this one. Share and enjoy! Don’t forget to subscribe and review the show on iTunes!

What if I told you about something revolutionary? Something so BIG, that it could literally transform your students and your school? Would you be interested, or doubtful? What if I said it was the most high-tech, costly product? …but what if it wasn’t? What if it was free? What if it wasn’t technology? What if you don’t need to visit costly seminars to learn it? In part two with Sue Szachowicz, we continue our talk about how she, and her team, saved their failing school with the power of their literacy initiative.   We discuss her doubts about the process, criticisms she’s faced about her approach being “cookie-cutter,” as well as how she used basic skills, focus, and team work to accomplish a seemingly impossible task.   I believe this series with Sue is going to go down as one of the best of the podcast. She’s inspiring, honest, and above all, no nonsense about her approach. Got to love it! Enjoy! Don’t forget to subscribe and review the show on iTunes!

Hello everyone! Today, it is my pleasure to bring you Sue Szachowicz, a retired principal of Brockton High School and now a Senior Fellow for the International Center for Leadership in Education. She chronicled the turn-around of Brockton High in her book Transforming Brockton High: High Standards, High Expectations, No Excuses,and this week she is on the show to discuss exactly how she, and her team, did it. I can’t say enough positive things about this episode and Sue. Sue is a no nonsense educator. Excuses are cheap. Effort is king. Science is superior. It isn’t enough to want to change a school, you have to believe there is no other option…even if there are toxic people who resist getting better, and resist making the school better. Don’t miss this one. Share and enjoy! Don’t forget to subscribe and review the show on iTunes!

Hello everyone! Last week, I talked about how I had trouble naming our two-part episode with Todd Nesloney, but this week is different…because we dive DEEP into his new book STORIES FROM WEBB, and the amazing story behind this fantastic tribute to educators. But again, we didn’t just discuss his book on this episode, either. Truly, we discussed how community, and supporting communities, can be more powerful than any one book, idea, or person. We discussed how amazing educators are. We gushed over the Ron Clark Academy (both in part one and two). We give shout outs to all the teachers not on a podcast, or who don’t have books coming out, because of how great and amazing they are. We signal boost great educators doing their thing on the internet, like Adam Dovico, Hope and Wade King, Mary Howard, Kim Bearden, and Colby Sharp (part one and two for all). We unpack what it means to lead a school. We affirm what it means to be an educator. I couldn’t be more excited for you all to hear this two-part episode, and nab Todd’s newest book, Stories from Webb: The Ideas, Passions, and Convictions of a Principal and His School Family , as well as his other superb work, Kids Deserve It!: Pushing Boundaries and Challenging Conventional Thinking . Todd Nesloney is the Principal/Lead Learner at a PreK-5 school in Texas. He is an award winning author for his work in co-authoring “Kids Deserve It!” and “Flipping 2.0: Practical Strategies for  Flipping Your Class” and his brand new release “Stories from Webb”. He has also published a children’s book, “Spruce & Lucy”. Todd has been recognized by the National School Board Association as one of the “20 to Watch” in Education, by the Center for Digital Education as one of their “Top 40 Innovators in Education”, by the BAMMYs as the “National Elementary Principal of the Year” and the “National Elementary Teacher of the Year”, by the Texas Computer Education Association as their “Texas Elementary Teacher of the Year”, and by the White House as a Connected Educator “Champion of Change”. Enjoy! See you next week. Don’t forget to subscribe and review the show on iTunes!  

Hello everyone! I had trouble naming this two-part episode with Todd Nesloney. On one hand, I wanted to simply call it, Stories From Webb, since that’s the name of Todd’s fantastic new book. But as I edited the show this week, I realized this discussion was bigger than that. We didn’t just discuss his book. Truly, we discussed how community, and supporting communities, can be more powerful than any one book, idea, or person. We discussed how amazing educators are. We gushed over the Ron Clark Academy (both in part one and two). We give shout outs to all the teachers not on a podcast, or who don’t have books coming out, because of how great and amazing they are. We signal boost great educators doing their thing on the internet, like Adam Dovico, Hope and Wade King, Mary Howard, Kim Bearden, and Colby Sharp (part one and two for all). We unpack what it means to lead a school. We affirm what it means to be an educator. I couldn’t be more excited for you all to hear this two-part episode, and nab Todd’s newest book, Stories from Webb: The Ideas, Passions, and Convictions of a Principal and His School Family, as well as his other superb work, Kids Deserve It!: Pushing Boundaries and Challenging Conventional Thinking. Todd Nesloney is the Principal/Lead Learner at a PreK-5 school in Texas. He is an award winning author for his work in co-authoring “Kids Deserve It!” and “Flipping 2.0: Practical Strategies for  Flipping Your Class” and his brand new release “Stories from Webb”. He has also published a children’s book, “Spruce & Lucy”. Todd has been recognized by the National School Board Association as one of the “20 to Watch” in Education, by the Center for Digital Education as one of their “Top 40 Innovators in Education”, by the BAMMYs as the “National Elementary Principal of the Year” and the “National Elementary Teacher of the Year”, by the Texas Computer Education Association as their “Texas Elementary Teacher of the Year”, and by the White House as a Connected Educator “Champion of Change”. Enjoy! See you next week. Don’t forget to subscribe and review the show on iTunes!  

Hello everyone! It’s no secret that teaching is hard. Stress builds. Hours grow long, as the papers pile up. Mandates and emails come at us faster than we can process them…all the while teachers are thinking, “What about me?” In this episode, we continue our talk from last week with Amy Fast, and dive deeper into teacher wellbeing, and how administrators, and colleagues, can help teachers be the best they can be. If you’ve ever felt taken advantage of, asked to do more than you can manage, or simply ignored, this episode is for you, and the people making you feel that way. Enjoy! Don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes so you never miss an episode!  

Do we care about our teachers? Do we make sure to take their wellbeing into account, or do we keep asking more of them, never bothering to fill their tanks back up? Amy Fast, an Assistant Principal and passionate voice on Twitter, has a lot to say on this subject. With an honesty that’s refreshing and inspiring, Amy holds nothing back as she discusses the state of teachers, how many places aren’t treating educators the way they deserve, and what we can do to mend this wound in our amazing field. Many of the points she makes on this episode, and more, can be found in her book, It’s the Mission Not the Mandates: Defining the Purpose of Public Education. If you’ve ever felt taken advantage of, asked to do more than you can manage, or simply ignored, this episode is for you, and the people making you feel that way. Share and enjoy! Don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes so you never miss an episode!

Hello everyone! As more and more news outlets decide to condemn schools, more and more politicians find it to their liking to tell their version of what public education is (and is not,) it’s becoming extremely important for teachers and administrators to step outside of their bubbles and share their stories. I’d argue that educators don’t control their narrative right now. Everyone outside of us, the people who want to have a say in our pay, our funding, and how we are held “accountable,” control it. I think it’s time to take that control back, and I brought Colby Sharp to the podcast to help tell us why. Colby is a fifth grade teacher in Parma, Michigan. He’s been a classroom teacher since 2006. In 2011, he started the Nerdy Book Club blog with friend of the show Donalyn Miller. He co-hosts The Yarn podcast with Teacher Librarian Travis Jonker. He also serves on the Nerd Camp, a free literacy event that takes place in Parma, Michigan each summer. His first book, The Creativity Project, hits shelves April 10, 2018. In this episode, Colby says, “We need to share our stories, because if we aren’t sharing our stories, other people will,” and continues by sharing why he creates the many projects he does, and how it all goes back to helping the kids.  I couldn’t recommend this episode more. I believe in the message of this episode, and I believe in the power of sharing what we do as educators…Someone will either way, wouldn’t you want it to be us? As an added bonus to the conversation, we also briefly discuss his work in his classroom, his philosophy with teaching ELA, and all about his desire to give kids the love of reading. Enjoy!

Hello everyone! Teach Me, Teacher has been around for about a year and half, and I’m amazed at how many great educators I have had the pleasure to speak with. Local gems, like the fantastic Alan Small and Andrew Simmons, to names such as Donalyn Miller and Mary Howard (by the way, limiting that list to just a few names was extremely difficult.) In any case, today, I get to add to the list of AWESOME educators I’ve got to discuss teaching with. Jeff Anderson, also known as The Write Guy, is a phenom of writing education. His method of “Inviting” writers to notice patterns, and then use those patterns in their own writing, is a powerful force in the classroom. I’ve seen it in my own classroom, and thousands of educators around the world are finding success with his techniques. I brought him on the show to discuss his newest book, The Patterns of Power, but we also hit on his philosophy with teaching writing, what teachers should do (and stop doing,) and how we should embrace the messiness of writing education. He also corrects me on the proper way to say “aaawwubbis,” which was WIN all to itself. Teachers, enjoy and SHARE this one. It’s one of the best of the podcast, and you’ll get something from Jeff’s deep insight into how to teach writing in your classrooms. Enjoy!

Hello everyone! I’ve been wanting to record an episode on classroom transformations for a while now, so I’m super pumped to get this one out to you guys. I was lucky enough to discuss transformations with Ashleigh Estes, a 4th grade Science teacher in Aledo ISD, and we discussed everything from our most recent transformations, to The Ron Clark Academy and Hope King,to why teachers should be inspired to try something a little “crazy” in their classrooms. Enjoy!    

Hello everyone! In connection to our last episode about standardized tests (and should teachers hate it,) we have another episode about testing, but this time we dive into the money behind standardized tests, and why you should pay attention to your federal and local politics. You might have seen the figure of 13.4 billion dollars floating around the internet, when talking about the cost of standardized testing in Texas. I did, and that’s why I reached out to the guy who created the figure, Michael Messer, and picked his brain about where this number comes from, and why we should all care about it. A deeply fascinating episode, this is one you should listen to, and then share with anyone who has ever asked about the cost of standardized tests in our schools. Enjoy!

Hello everyone! We hear about it everywhere…The test. Whatever state you’re in might change what test you’re talking about, but it follows us. It infects our teaching, our conversations, and even how we view our jobs. But is standardized testing as bad as so many make it out to be? Let’s find out. Jeff Farely, a Texas principal, has a lot to say on the matter. He tackles why standardized testing exists, how teachers should think about it, and spends a considerable amount of time unpacking the loaded language we use when talking about “the test.” You’ll want to listen to this episode, and then share it with every educator you can. Jeff gives us an insight much needed in our job. Let me know what you think of the episode on Twitter, @jacobchastain_ Enjoy!

“I don’t want our conversations to be about strategies, I want them to be about practices.” And this is probably that best summary of my discussion with Dr. Mary Howard. Every word Dr. Howard says is fueled with passion and insight. I can’t tell you how much fun I had bringing this two-part episode to you all. In this episode, we continue our discussion about Fearless Learning, and how she is helping educators find that zone of fearlessness through Good 2 Great Twitter chats (#G2Great), as well as other tools for educators. Dr. Howard’s insight into how to lead conversations among educators is the highlight of this talk. We spend so much time talking about agenda items, that we never, or rarely, get to the ‘why’ we do what we do, and what that should look like in our classrooms. It’s my hope that every educator who listens to this episode, teacher or admin or academic coach, brings back some of her ideas to inspire their fellow teachers to do what they do best…learn and inspire others to do the same.   About Dr. Mary Howard: Dr. Mary Howard is known throughout North America as a leading expert in literacy, presenting seminars as an independent consultant and for the Bureau of Education and Research (www.ber.org) in all fifty states and across Canada. Mary has worked with countless educators to create a research-based literacy program grounded in the current brain research. An educator for more than forty years, she combines years of classroom experience as an elementary grade 1-6 special educator, grade K-12 reading tutor, reading specialist and Reading Recovery teacher with a multitude of experiences as a reading consultant, university reading instructor, professional storyteller, author and nationwide lecturer. Her blend of research and practical application has led many to describe her as a teachers’ teacher, demonstrating a clear understanding of the realities of the classroom by translating research into practice. Mary’s seminars are fast-paced and inspiring, filled with engaging strategies that can be immediately implemented into the existing curriculum. Her no-nonsense approach provides teachers with a deeper understanding of the learning process in order to transform the teaching process into a powerful tool to maximize the potential of every child. Get Mary’s Books here

Hello everyone! I can’t believe this show gets to release content like this… Dr. Mary Howard is a professional who is astounding in her insight, her dedication, and her effectiveness in communicating with educators. If you haven’t run into her on Twitter, you’ve probably run into the hashtag she co-created, #G2Great. If not, you’re in for a real treat for this two part epic. This episode is the piece that most clearly exemplifies why I created Teach Me, Teacher. It is an episode about empowering educators to grow, to learn, and to fight for their profession in the best way they can…by getting BETTER. I needed to hear what Dr. Mary Howard had to say on this episode, and so do you. Her literacy minded message, and her advice on how to grow professionally are among the best words I’ve heard on the subject. Enjoy and SHARE SHARE SHARE! About Mary: Dr. Mary Howard is known throughout North America as a leading expert in literacy, presenting seminars as an independent consultant and for the Bureau of Education and Research (www.ber.org) in all fifty states and across Canada. Mary has worked with countless educators to create a research-based literacy program grounded in the current brain research. An educator for more than forty years, she combines years of classroom experience as an elementary grade 1-6 special educator, grade K-12 reading tutor, reading specialist and Reading Recovery teacher with a multitude of experiences as a reading consultant, university reading instructor, professional storyteller, author and nationwide lecturer. Her blend of research and practical application has led many to describe her as a teachers’ teacher, demonstrating a clear understanding of the realities of the classroom by translating research into practice. Mary’s seminars are fast-paced and inspiring, filled with engaging strategies that can be immediately implemented into the existing curriculum. Her no-nonsense approach provides teachers with a deeper understanding of the learning process in order to transform the teaching process into a powerful tool to maximize the potential of every child. Get Mary’s Books here