Hello everyone! It is that time of year when everything can start feeling...dull. I mean, with testing, meetings, and everything else that pops up in February and March, our classes can start to feel a little less than exciting. But does it have to be that way? Not if Megan Siclare has anything to say about it! You might know Megan as @sparkles_and_pompoms on Instagram, where she is always smiling, dressing up as characters, or transforming her room into something amazing. (You might also know her as the "morning meetings queen," though you'll have to wait for part 2 of our talk for that genius advice!) Regardless! Today we are talking about trying something new in the classroom. Where do the ideas come from? What does it take? What does it cost? How do you overcome the fear of failure? And much more! I love this talk so much, and I know you'll get so much out of listening to Megan's advice.   This episode is sponsored by Heinemann—the leading publisher of professional books and resources for educators—and their professional book, Between the Commas: Sentence Instruction That Builds Confident Writers (and Writing Teachers) by Martin Brandt. A veteran English teacher at San Jose Independence high school, Marty Brandt was flat-out frustrated with the quality of his students’ writing, and doubting himself as a writing teacher. Realizing that part of the problem was the traditional, painful methods of grammar and sentence instruction he was using, Marty set out to reinvent writing in his classroom. Between the Commas shares the novel approach to grammar and sentence instruction he created for the students in front of him. Marty’s laugh-out-loud sense of humor and live-from-the trenches stories will engross you in one teacher’s journey out of the duldrums of old school grammar instruction and into the light of what’s possible as a writing teacher.  To learn more, visit Heinemann.com to download a sample chapter.