Episodes

• 2021

• Episode 150 Creating a Local Learning Experience...Staring Brent and Molly Watson

  I went to grade school in a small town. Our school was right on Main Street in the town center. A few of my most vivid memories were the brief class excursions into town. On various days, we visited the post office, the dairy, the glass blower, and the bakery. I had no aspirations to be a postman, a dairy farmer, a glass blower, or baker. Regardless, I loved these field trips. It got us out of the stale classroom. It unveiled to us how products that we regularly consumed were produced and distributed. I loved these experiences and my classmates did too. We’d cheer every time a new scenic detour was announced. Those experiences happened 50 years ago. And here, dear listener, is where Brent and Molly Watson make their dramatic appearance. Brent and Molly have created the Garden Learning Lab. It’s an awesome community resource. It’s exciting and humbling to think that in the year 2071, some old-timer will be waxing eloquently about the trip they made to the Garden Learning Lab all the way back in 2021.
  May 13, 2021

  42 min

• Episode 149 Get your Students out of their Bubbles Courtesy of the American Exchange Project...Starring David McCullough III

  The bubblefication of the United States is much written about and much talked about. We tend to live around, interact with, watch media outlets populated, and are entertained by...people who think like we do and probably look like we do. That’s too bad, because while bubbles can feel safe, they are also limiting. The scary part of our bubbles is that they are reflected in our schools. Many American students learn in monochromatic settings. Their peers largely look like they do and probably think like they do as well. Youth should be a time of healthy exploration. What can be done? Today I’m going to talk to David McCullough. He has an interesting idea on how to get students at your school out of their bubbles. His creation, the American Exchange Project offers a 10-14 day summer experience for graduating seniors. It’s like a mini gap year. Students will live and experience, for a brief time, a community that’s different than their own. This experience is: Free Open to All
  April 15, 2021

  43 min

• Episode 148 Utilizing Assessment to Bond with Kids...Starring Layne Neuhart

  This seems like a totally incongruent title. How in the world can you use assessment to forge strong relationships with students? And yet in this episode. My guest and I will attempt to answer this question. The key is student revision based on teacher feedback. Two tech tools that are instrumental in this process are the Google extension Mote and an app called Voxer. Both will be featured in this episode. Educators need to stop conducting assessment as an event and transform it into more of a process. Students learn so much when they go back and fix and improve. Successful revisions typically take a healthy collaboration between students and teachers. That, dear friends, is fertile ground for relationships to evolve. To help in this interesting exploration, I conscripted one of my students. Layne Neuhart is a wonderful person. She has a bottomless intellectual curiosity and is a blast to interact with. She’s going to be a champion at forging positive relationships with the lucky students that will one day be in her language art class.
  April 3, 2021

  43 min

• Episode 147 Do your Kids Know CRAP about Evaluating Online Resources...Starring Kaylie Callihan and Josh and Hilgenberg

  The attack on the capitol should be a wakeup call for educators. We have a moral obligation to help students evaluate online sources. Perhaps through our efforts, kids will develop a healthy skepticism about all sources. Unfortunately, many contemporary adults have trained their young to reserve their skepticism only for those sources that emanate from the other side of the political divide. Contemporary media literacy should encourage a healthy skepticism toward all sources.
  March 9, 2021

  43 min

• 146 Moving Past COVID...Starring Ryan Mocarski

  I’ve always been fascinated as to how calamities, such as war, lead to innovations that benefit humankind long after the conflict abates. WWII, for example, sponsored all of the following: Antibiotics Radar Jet Aircraft Computers Satellites The old adage Necessity is the mother of invention could be applied to each of these quantum technological leaps. In each case, one side in the conflict was attempting to develop advantages that would lay waste to their enemy. The unintended consequence, however, was that these inventions vastly improved civilian existence after the conflict. I could not fathom my life without any of these WWII byproducts. This realization got me thinking. I wonder if the catastrophe of COVID will spawn better ways to educate kids. To help explore this rhetorical question, I tapped a former guest, Ryan Mocarski. 5 years ago, on Episode 31, Ryan promoted the idea of self-directed learning. In this episode, we’ll speculate about transitioning out of COVID.
  February 20, 2021

  40 min

• 145 The Legacy of a Lesson...Starring Ty DeLong

  The best thing about social media is that it keeps you connected with significant people. It’s kept me connected to many former students. I’m going to talk to one today. Ty DeLong was a student in my Economics class almost 2 decades ago. Ty lives in Nashville. He’s a software engineer. He’s a devoted husband and father. I’m really proud of him. A few years back, I ran into Ty’s parents at a local store. My wife and I caught up on the doings of Ty and his siblings, but at one point in the convo, his parents mentioned the positive impact of a lesson from my class on Ty’s life. WOW–that thrilled me. Today’s episode is going to be on that lesson, why and how it impacted Ty, and the incredible responsibility and potential for every educator whenever the bell rings each period and each day.
  January 14, 2021

  38 min
• 2020

• 144 Middle School Science Teacher Shane Neiffer Explains HOW to Make Your Class Enthralling

  Last week was exhilarating. My wife and I had become determined to install a subway tile backsplash in our kitchen. I thought to myself, There’s no way I’m going to pay someone to do that. I’ll learn how and do it. Of course, I went to the greatest educator in the world–YouTube. I watched a number of how-to videos, gathered my courage, and then installed that backsplash. It was a profitable and empowering exercise. I love my new backsplash and the experience gives me confidence to take on more such challenges. Are you willing to gather your courage and try something new in your classroom? Covid has forced us to adapt and take risks and wouldn’t you agree that there have been experiences over the past few months that have evolved you as a teacher? I’ll wager that when this crisis abates that you’ll find yourself teaching differently than before Covid. Times such as these afford you the opportunity to try new things and take risks. And this, dear listener, is where Shane Neiffer makes a glorious appearance. Shane is a middle school science teacher in Eastern Pennsylvania. She’s developing a sparkling reputation as an innovator. She takes a subject that many students dread–Science and makes her class the one her students are gabbing about around the dinner table that evening. In this episode, we’ll talk about exactly HOW she does it. It’s one thing to hear about someone doing something, but it rises to a whole new meaningful level when they demonstrate. Think back to my subway tile backsplash example. Without YouTube, I’d have been lost. That is the magical thing about what Shane has done for you in this episode. You simply must navigate to my show notes and then access the link to Shane’s Resources. This doc is a student engagement roadmap. She indicates the objective and then provides the tool to fix it. She’s compiled 30 different tools that can be utilized to achieve the various objectives she has listed. This is a powerful resource that I’m going to apply in my classes next semester. I challenge you to take a look and NOT find something that you’re going to use tomorrow. That is why in the title of this episode the word HOW is in all caps. Shane, like YouTube, gives you the how. This is a magnificent resource for Covid and beyond. If you’re an administrator and you're looking for PD for your teachers, Shane would be an excellent choice. I definitely see instructional coaching in her future. But after having said all those wonderful things about her, I would be remiss if I left out the most important part–she’s a really neat person. I’ve known her for a grand total of two weeks and I feel like I’ve known her most of my life. This woman is a technocrat and a highly engaging person. That dear friends, is a wonderful combo. I love this interview!
  December 5, 2020

  61 min

• 143 Helping the Technologically Disadvantaged Student...Starring Jalen Wells

  Covid has forced educators to take portions of their instruction, or all of their instruction, online. It’s quite an adjustment for all concerned. But imagine, and perhaps you’ve faced this, that a significant portion of your student’s home technology setup is inadequate, or non-existent. What do you? In this episode, we’ll ask Jalen Wells this question. Jalen teaches history at Great Mills High School in Great Mills, Maryland. Many of his students have such technological obstacles. Covid has multiplied exponentially this digital divide. Jalen will talk about what his school has done and what he has done to help these students.
  November 2, 2020

  41 min

• 142 Four Ways to Dramatically Improve your Next Zoom Call...Starring Bernard Johnson, Christian Manna and Emily Montgomery

  The first time I was a participant in a Zoom call, I was so impressed. It felt so futuristic. I thought highly of it and was excited to do another. Covid however, like with many things we treasure, wiped out this euphoria. Zoom calls sprouted up everywhere. I grew to dread the dreaded Zoom call invitation. Here are some reasons why: They’re too many participants. They’re not engaging. They’re too long. Most are time and place bound. In this episode, I’ll offer a remedy to each of these problems. Here are four objectives that I follow in my engaging Zoom call quest: small intimate experiences highly engaging preparation and discussion prompts 30 minute call limit recorded and made available to non-participants I’d like to take each of these objectives and go into a bit more depth
  October 27, 2020

  47 min

• 141 Veteran Music Educator Robert Trocchia Takes us to the Mountaintop

  In the fall of 1979, I was a freshman in a college dorm trying to adjust to my new surroundings. One thing that I’ve always done to ground myself has been to play the music that I love. I grew up in a small town in Southeastern Ohio that was not diverse. And yet, my musical taste was totally urban. I loved the Isley Brothers and the Brothers Johnson and Earth Wind and Fire. One transformational afternoon, I put on some of my jams, which inspired a guy a couple of doors down to walk to my room, pop his head in, and then joyously proclaim, “I can’t believe you're listening to these jams. I didn't think anyone on this floor loved the Isley Brothers.” That guy was Vince Trocchia and a lifelong friendship evolved from this initial interaction. In October of that magical year, Vince invited me to his house for dinner. I eagerly accepted. I was treated to a magnificent Italian meal and met Vince’s wonderful family. I was so intrigued by his dad Robert. Robert was the iconic local music teacher at Fairfield Union High School in Breman, Ohio. His choir from a small Ohio town: Performed in many of the great cathedrals in the western world Appeared on nearly fifty TV shows And was named one of the top high school choirs in the United States. It was evident from the moment that I met him how much Robert loved his life. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my future at this point, but his example impacted me. I viewed him as immensely rich. This evaluation had nothing to do with his stock portfolio. Robert is now 86-years-old. You would never guess that when you listen to his powerful voice. He seems exactly the same to me as he did forty years ago. When I learned that Robert authored a book about teaching, I knew that I had to get it and that I had to have him as a guest on this podcast. Mountaintop Moments is a wonderful book for any teacher, at any grade level, teaching any subject. Embrace the message of this wise sage!
  October 15, 2020

  70 min

• 141 Veteran Music Educator Robert Trocchia Takes us to the Mountaintop

  In the fall of 1979, I was a freshman in a college dorm trying to adjust to my new surroundings. One thing that I’ve always done to ground myself has been to play the music that I love. I grew up in a small town in Southeastern Ohio that was not diverse. And yet, my musical taste was totally urban. I loved the Isley Brothers and the Brothers Johnson and Earth Wind and Fire. One transformational afternoon, I put on some of my jams, which inspired a guy a couple of doors down to walk to my room, pop his head in, and then joyously proclaim, “I can’t believe you're listening to these jams. I didn't think anyone on this floor loved the Isley Brothers.” That guy was Vince Trocchia and a lifelong friendship evolved from this initial interaction. In October of that magical year, Vince invited me to his house for dinner. I eagerly accepted. I was treated to a magnificent Italian meal and met Vince’s wonderful family. I was so intrigued by his dad Robert. Robert was the iconic local music teacher at Fairfield Union High School in Breman, Ohio. His choir from a small Ohio town: Performed in many of the great cathedrals in the western world Appeared on nearly fifty TV shows And was named one of the top high school choirs in the United States. It was evident from the moment that I met him how much Robert loved his life. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my future at this point, but his example impacted me. I viewed him as immensely rich. This evaluation had nothing to do with his stock portfolio. Robert is now 86-years-old. You would never guess that when you listen to his powerful voice. He seems exactly the same to me as he did forty years ago. When I learned that Robert authored a book about teaching, I knew that I had to get it and that I had to have him as a guest on this podcast. Mountaintop Moments is a wonderful book for any teacher, at any grade level, teaching any subject. Embrace the message of this wise sage!
  October 15, 2020

  70 min

• 140 Formative Assessment that’s Engaging and Relevant...Starring Aurora Dollins, Brianna Pasco, and Alex Staton

  Formative assessment is not done enough. I believe that part of the problem is that teachers simply don’t know enough about it, or how to do it. I was unclear on both of these counts a decade ago. It makes me sad to think of all the students who matriculated through my class before I became aware of this powerful tactic. Hopefully, this episode will inspire and enlighten you. I finally have students joining me once again. Aurora Dollins, Brianna Pasco, and Alex Staton are students in my Assessment class at Muskingum University. I love interviewing Education majors because they have a unique perspective. They get what it’s like to be a student, but they are constantly evaluating how they will utilize approaches and tools once they become instructors. 
  September 24, 2020

  32 min

• 139 Path 44...Starring Dr. Dorothy VanderJagt is Prompting you to Pause

  Dr. Dorothy VanderJact and I have recently become friends. Dorothy is veteran educator from the great state of Michigan. She’s been a middle school teacher, an elementary principal, a central office administrator, and a college professor. That’s, a lot of perspective. Two months ago, her brand new book Permission to Pause was released. Her timing was perfect. This book will help discombobulated teachers get their bearings and evolve into a state of well-being. While her timing on releasing this book is perfect, it’s worthy COVID or not. Dr. Dorothy wants teachers to pause and reflect. I’m a big fan. In this episode, she’ll tell you why it’s important to pause and reflect and how you can do it!
  September 1, 2020

  44 min

• 138 Path 9...David Crowell Talks Student Motivation

  Path 9 in my new book Teaching in Magenta is about Venerating a Veteran. I’m going to read Path 9: One negative aspect of aging is the feeling that you’re losing relevance. I’m fortunate in that younger teachers sometimes reach out to me for guidance. When they do, it makes me feel awesome. I try to give them solid advice, and many are grateful. What they don’t realize is how energizing it is for me when they ask. Today, seek out an older colleague and pay them a compliment or ask for advice. You’ll be doing them (and you) a great service, and they just may give you a wonderful suggestion. Today’s episode is in the spirit of Path 9. Recent episodes that I’ve produced about specific paths in my book have been short. This one, is an exception. This is an extensive conversation with Pennsylvania teaching and coaching legend David Crowell. So–while I’m certainly venerating a veteran, we delve into the provocative topic of motivation. How can educators motivate students? Because this topic is so rich and important, we went on for a bit. I learned about Coach Crowell from my friend the innovative instructional coach Michael Brilla. Michael has been a guest on this podcast twice and like a lot of my guests, we’ve become friends. Michael predicted that Coach Crowell and I would hit it off. He was right! There was only one divergence, however. Coach is more nostalgic than me. But other than that, I found myself doing a lot of head-nodding as I listened to David stress the transformational potential of relationships. While David has retired from the classroom, he’s still coaching wrestling, and is a frequent presenter with the National Wrestling Coaches Association.
  August 24, 2020

  70 min

• 137 What did you do During the Pandemic Path 40

  Well–ready or not, school will be starting soon, For some of us, it's already started. My first day is next Wednesday. Many colleges, like mine, are in session for 3 months, they then adjourn at Thanksgiving, and then don't resume till January. It'll be the longest winter break that I've ever experienced. That actually sounds pretty awesome. If you're like me, the idea of jumping back in the saddle comes with joy, but a few mixed feelings. There have been aspects of my life over the last few months which have been positive. I'll touch on some of those in this episode. Last spring, I taught virtually like everyone else. This fall, I'll be teaching a blended class. It's a new challenge for me and I'm excited about it. Without a doubt, I'm mostly glad I'm returning next week. But, I haven't been physically in front of students for months. While I'm looking forward to it, there's a small tinge of, Can I still do this? I imagine I'm not alone in this emotion. My prediction is that the vast majority of us will feel totally at home and thrilled to be back in our natural habitat. This program might stoke some ideas for that first week with students. Are you going to talk about the long absence from school? Are you going to address virtual learning last spring? On a TYPICAL first week of school, educators often incorporate some type of prompt which challenges students to reflect on their summer vacation. This first week of school year won't be a typical.
  August 11, 2020

  13 min

• 136 Path 57 Close Your Door

  For the next five weeks, I'm going to try an experiment. My new book Teaching in Magenta was inspired by Niki's gift. My book is divided into 5 sections based on qualities of magenta: Compassion Optimism Balance Adaptability Contentment I'm going to read 1 path from a different section each week. Today, I'll focus on Path 57, which can be found in the section on Balance.
  August 4, 2020

  10 min

• 135 Teaching in Magenta–The Elevator Pitch

  Imagine that you and I step into an elevator together. Secured under my arm is a copy of my new book Teaching in Magenta. You notice the book and ask me about it. Your question instantly makes me realize a couple of things: This is a classic scenario for an elevator pitch. I better make these next few seconds count before the doors open and you disappear. So–I lay on you my elevator pitch for Teaching in Magenta: This book provides 100 ways to CREATE a magnificent day in the classroom. Once you start stringing some Magenta Days together, you and your students will experience profound well-being and deep joy. Thankfully, you receive my pitch positively and then inquire, “That sounds interesting. Why did you write it? Why is Magenta in the title? How does one teach in magenta?” This podcast answers those questions. I’m so excited to bring you this new book Teaching in Magenta. Over the next few weeks, I’ll do 5 short podcasts which detail paths directly from the book. I’m going to help you create 5 magnificent days in your classroom. But today, I’m going to lay some groundwork. Today’s episode will: Explain why I started writing books a decade ago. How I got that book published. Explain why I wrote Teaching in Magenta. Describe Teaching in Magenta. Please check out my book Teaching in Magenta. And if you’re not ready to hit the buy now button on Amazon, but you’re intrigued and you’re willing to listen more as we ride the elevator up a few more floors, check back soon and I’ll describe one path to create a magnificent day for you and your students.
  July 29, 2020

  20 min

• 134 Dr. Traci Tuttle Encourages you to Forge a Partnership with Higher Ed

  I was a Poli-Sci and History major in college. My senior year, I made the decision to obtain a teaching certificate. I wasn’t certain what I was going to do, so I decided that I could teach a few years while I sorted it out. One of my first Education classes was Audio Visual Resources. We learned such mystical skills as using a laminator, threading a movie projector, producing copies on a mimeograph machine, and manipulating a film strip. Even at the time, these technologies seemed dated. I couldn’t believe that I was paying tuition for this. That was an easy A. I had other Education classes that were relevant and challenging, but I secured my teaching certificate without too much sweat and promptly forgot about my preparation experiences once I got my first teaching job. Many educators have similar stories. I’ve heard many a colleague describe their teacher preparation majors as a series of irrelevant hopes that they had to jump through. And this, dear reader, is where Dr. Traci Tuttle makes a dramatic entrance. Traci is the Education Department Chair at Muskingum University. Traci totally understands frustrations with educator preparation programs. She experienced them too. Consequently, she's highly motivated to create a different experience for the Education majors at Muskingum. In this episode she talks about this some, but what really motivates her is her objective to foster partnerships with K-12 educators. I believe she gets this because she spent many years as a K-12 teacher. You’re going to enjoy this convo and hopefully it will inspire you to seek out a partnership with an institution of higher learning.
  June 29, 2020

  60 min

• 133 Restorative Practices and Trauma Informed Teaching...Starring Dora Riggs

  I enjoy conducting professional development, particularly when I’m commissioned to present on teacher wellbeing. I take the audience on a journey of various challenges a teacher faces during different stages of a 30 year career. Because I logged 34 years in a public school classroom, I have plenty of material. I enjoy describing my struggles at various junctures. Generally, I recreate a challenge that was unique to a phase I was navigating. Rarely in these stories, am I the hero. I love to talk about learning valuable lessons–that I often learned the hard way. One such lesson happened 7 years into teaching. I call it my 7-year-itch lesson. I was 32, and I felt stymied. All the incentives in education were internal. Your compensation was based on experience and education level. There were darned few avenues of advancement. You could become an administrator, or a head coach, but neither of those options appealed to me. I felt trapped. So I left teaching and went into the private sector where I’d be compensated based on what I did, not who I was. I have a good skill set for being successful in sales. But just because one has potential, does not mean one should select a certain career path. I had no idea how much I’d miss my students. The interactions I had with sales clients could not compare. These interactions were highly transactional and sometimes confrontational. I desperately missed my students and went hightailing it back. This experience was immensely valuable, because I learned that my love for the relationships that blossomed between students and me far out shadowed frustrations I had with the job. My sabbatical, consequently, was hugely beneficial to my wellbeing. I bring this up, because today I’ll interview a teacher that took such a similar hyattus. This episode is also special because Dora Riggs used to be my student. She not only left a cushy teaching gig in an affluent suburban high school, but she returned to an urban district. Her students and the community where she now teaches, while only 10 miles from her previous school, could not be more different. Dora will talk about her teacher gap year–and more interestingly how it and her new surroundings have impacted her. She loves her new school. She’s become a trauma informed teacher and a disciple of restorative practices. She’s a different teacher–a more empathetic teacher. Dora is going to explain why and how.
  June 4, 2020

  70 min

• 132-Coach Mike Burgener and the Quest for Mentors

  When I retired from teaching high school last year, I worried about losing all of the social interaction that I got from teaching 150 students daily. So, I secured an adjunct position teaching aspiring educators at Muskingum University. I also teach refugees how to speak English. These teaching gigs have been a joy, but it’s a different life because I’m only teaching 3 days a week–which is also a joy. My new-found freedom affords me the opportunity to explore, grow, and take risks. I also want to keep expanding my human capital. Relationships make life worth living and I love forging new ones. One area of growth that I’ve been exploring this year is fitness. I have so much more time to workout now and I love it. I researched ways that I could challenge myself physically and grow myself socially. At the end of my exploration, I concluded that I should join a Crossfit gym. Crossfit significantly challenges you physically and promotes community. Crossfit gyms are highly social places. That was exactly what I was looking for. I found an excellent local gym–Crossfit Polaris . Kristi Eramo is the owner and a prominent games athlete. I love her teaching style and was excited to learn from her and the other coaches at Polaris. Unfortunately, the Covid 19 Pandemic short-circuited my plans. After just 3 introductory classes, the gym was forced to close. I was left high and dry. So, I got busy coaching myself. I pulled the workout of the day (WOD) off the Crossfit site and started doing them. I watched training videos and listened to podcasts hoping to improve my olympic lifting form. Lifting is a key part to Crossfit. I decided that I was going to take one of the most challenging olympic lifts–the snatch, and learn how to do it. Here’s a description of a snatch: The snatch can be described as jumping a barbell through a range of motion and receiving it into an overhead squat. And here’s a brief video if you’d like to see a young woman perform one expertly. You have to be strong, mobile, explosive, coordinated, and courageous to perform this lift. I’m starting from ground zero, but I’m determined to learn this lift. When I searched for Olympic lifting techniques on Google, YouTube, and podcasts, one name kept materializing–Mike Burgener. Now all of you who’re inclined to exit this podcast because you’re not interested in learning about performing an olympic snatch, stop yourself. This program is not about lifting, it’s about teaching. And Mike Burgener is one of this nation’s premier educators. Here’s a bit about Coach Burgener: He has a BA from Notre Dame and played on their 1966 National Championship Football Team. He has an MS from the University of Kentucky in Exercise Physiology, where he was also the strength coach. He was a captain in the Marine Corps. He’s a Senior International Weightlifting Coach for the United States. He’s considered the Godfather of Olympic Lifting for Crossfit. And for decades, Coach Burgener was a proud public educator–teaching high school physical education in California. I got to know Coach Burgener because I sent him an email asking a question. The next thing I knew, I was in his Level 1 weightlifting class. This is a special man and he’s going to talk about his mentors and challenge you to not only listen to the ones you already have but to be open to new ones.
  May 4, 2020

  65 min