Hello everyone! As school doors re-open, close, and vacillate under the pressure of the pandemic, one inescapable fact is that our children are feeling anxiety, grief, and trauma on higher levels than we've seen, possibly in our lifetime. Because of this, it has never been more important for educators to be mindful of the lives students are currently living, and how we can help improve their mental states. To guide on in this act of compassion, I have brought on Krista St-Germain. She is a mom, grief expert, and life coach for widowed moms and host of the Widowed Moms Podcast. When her husband was killed by a drunk driver in 2016, Krista's life was completely and unexpectedly flipped upside down. After therapy helped her unfurl from the fetal position, Krista discovered Life Coaching, Post Traumatic Growth and learned the tools she needed to move forward and create a future she could get excited about. Now she coaches and teaches other widows so they can love life again, too. In this episode we discuss: What grief is and how it manifests differently Nuances with trauma The role schools play in supporting students who are experiencing trauma or grief The myths around grief This episode is sponsored by Heinemann—the leading publisher of professional books and resources for educators—and by their new book Teaching Writing in Small Groups by Jennifer Serravallo. Everyone's turning to groups in this unique school year so they can teach more efficiently and spread the learning further. Jen shows you how to make the most of small groups. She gives you seven different options that help meet any students' needs. Like strategy groups, guided writing, writing clubs, and more. She provides writing progressions to help you decide which students to group and why. There's even video that demonstrates Jen's teaching in a variety of classrooms. If you don't have Teaching Writing in Small Groups, head on over to Heinemann.com to read a sample chapter. Find out what you're missing and order yourself a copy today. Planbook has been the established leader in online lesson planning since 2010, offering collaborative lesson sharing, flexible administrator access, and even student view tools for just $15 a year. Using Planbook, educators can build customized school years, classes, and lessons 100% online, directly inputting class materials and up-to-date standards from all over the world. Enter code "TeachMe" (one word, no space) at sign up to join over 800,000 Planbook teachers today and get your first year for only $5!