This week we sit down with PALCS USP Biology teacher Jamie Castle to discuss her path through teaching. Jamie has a very interesting story that takes her from Queens, New York all the way to PALCS which includes stops in different styles of schooling and the battle to obtain her Pennsylvania teaching certificate.

We also discuss teaching labs in this setting, the benefits of blended learning and how Facebook- yes Facebook- can provide solid teaching developmental material.

Thank you for downloading and listening. Please enjoy and head over to iTunes to give us some ratings.

Mike and Brian are joined this week by PA Leadership Charter School guidance counselor Justin Bonner. They talk with him about his love for the job he does, what motivated him to get into the world of counseling, and how he reaches out to students in an online setting. It is an interesting look at a different aspect of the teaching profession.

 

As always, thank you for downloading, listening, and enjoying the show. Please, please, please go review us on iTunes so we can begin moving up the podcast charts there. Also, leave comments here on the blog and discuss with us all things good and bad about the show.

Season 2 of the Classroom Reflections podcast is up and running even if it is much later than we anticipated. However, there is good reason for that as the co-hosting duo has been splintered as Brian is off in a new building and Mike has left for other ventures.

Brian kicks us off this week talking about where we are headed with the podcast and he is then joined by a very special guest to discuss some things education related and how we move forward.

Please download, enjoy, and tell your friends so we can get back to moving up those iTunes podcast charts.

Mike and Brian are finally back with a very special episode of the podcast. A few weeks ago they presented to their fellow teachers during professional development about what podcasts are and how we can use them in the classroom in order to reach students.

So some of this is very visual but Mike and Brian give a great breakdown of what podcasts are and how they can be a valuable tool in the classroom.

Enjoy the live version of our show. Please keep listening, downloading, and rating us on iTunes.

Mike and Brian are back together this week for another exciting edition of the Classroom Reflections podcast. This week we welcome in John Conway who is a professional that recently finished his teaching program and is now on the hunt for a job.

We discuss with him what it was like to go through the program he went though, what were some positives of it, his experiences student teaching, and how it feels to be out looking for a job in this current climate. It is a really interesting look at how this process starts out for prospective teachers.

This is a little bit longer than we normally go but we liked the flow of the discussion. We will try not to make this a habit.

As always, thank you for downloading, listening, and enjoying the show. Please, please, please go review us on iTunes so we can begin moving up the podcast charts there. Also, leave comments here on the blog and discuss with us all things good and bad about the show.

Enjoy.

Another departure from the usual format. This time Mike is riding solo to talk about his experience at the AP US History Summer Institute. In this episode he  discusses:

-The rumors surrounding the break up of the dynamic duo (Brian and Mike)

– The AP US History class and exam

– The changes in the AP US History framework and the controversy that surrounds it

– The mountain of books that he acquired during these 5 days

– The struggles (which are real) in teaching this class in a cyber environment

Please download, enjoy, and review us on iTunes everyone.

Next time the dynamic duo will be back together. We promise.

A little bit of a departure this week as Brian is riding solo this week from the Holiday Inn Express in Bridgeville, PA. So many questions to ask and answer:

 

– What was he doing there?

– Why was he doing it?

– What does the future hold?

– Is your faithful hosting duo breaking up?

– Could I spare some change for gas? (read the title again)

All that and more will be answered in this Classroom Reflections minisode.

Please download, enjoy, and review us on iTunes everyone.

In this week’s episode Mike and Brian sit down with PA Leadership School teacher Anthony Mahon and figure out the formulas behind getting through your first year in a cyber school.

We also talk about how Anthony got into teaching, how he instills real world application in the subject, and what it was like coming from a long line of teachers.

Anthony talks with us about how he designs lessons to engage students and some of his plans moving forward.

All of that plus we hit two of our regular segments in this enlightening talk.

Thanks for downloading and listening. Please enjoy and send us any comments or feedback. Also, review us on iTunes if you are following us there.

Some last minute schedule conflicts led to us having to regroup and go back to where we all started- interviewing each other.

So this week Brian and Mike discuss what they have learned this year, how we we have grown through the podcast process, introduce a new segment to the show and tease where we are heading moving forward.

It’s a free form episode and hopefully you enjoy.

Keep downloading, keep listening, and thank you for your support.

In this week’s episode Mike and Brian sit down with PA Leadership Charter School Spanish teacher Carly Finkel to try and figure out why they can’t retain any Spanish knowledge.

We also discuss why Carly chose to teach Spanish, how it works online, and the importance of immersing oneself in the culture of the country you are studying.

She also touches on instructional design, using technology resources, and how one organizes educational trips in a cyber setting.

She also has a fantastic rationale for why studying a foreign language is important even if you struggle to retain it.

All that and more in this wonderful episode. Thanks for downloading and listening. Please enjoy and send us any comments or feedback. Also, review us on iTunes if you are following us there.

You can also follow Ms. Finkel on Twitter: @ms_cfinkel