I just took a new position as Assistant Principal at Central High School in Providence, RI. You might be wondering, "But Michaela, I thought you were teaching? Wait, weren't you a principal at one point? Don't you run your own business now? I can't keep up!"

Two positions have made my heart happiest over the last 20 years, teaching special education and being an assistant principal. Of course, I love running my company, because I get to help teachers and leaders transform their experiences, but my experience inside the classroom and as AP have allowed me to be close enough to the work to be a great coach, too.

My path here certainly has not been linear, and there has been a lot of pain, but I can say with 100% certainty that I've followed, and sometimes carved, the path meant for ME. And that is freeing.

Contact me or find resources about classroom management and culture support by visiting my website https://www.drkeeganjedele.com

When it comes to professional development, most (if not all) learning is best done educator to educator. Our 5 panelists are teachers from around the country (and Canada!), and they each share their authentic approach to building a strong classroom culture that keeps them and their students motivated, especially during challenging times.

Here is how you can follow our panelists:

Chad Pettit: @that.teacherguy on TikTok

Jessica Starcher: @jstarcher on TikTok

Vanessa Drew: @mrsdrew_teachesfrench on TikTok

Manny Ruiz: @iammannyx on TikTok

Dr. Andrea Blair: @aeblairLearning on Twitter

Visit www.drkeeganjedele.com to learn how to access free and paid resources and trainings on classroom management and classroom culture

If connecting with students comes easily to you, you probably understand how those connections can be what gets you through stressful days and how fun teaching can be. If connecting and building relationships with students is challenging for you, I encourage you to listen to what Vanessa Drew says about how she relates to her students and how those connections have impacted her as a teacher.

Vanessa has spent the last 16 years high school French and Indigenous Studies teacher in British Columbia, Canada.

She has recently launched a website, ouifrenchteachers, (we french teachers) designed to help French and language teachers connect so they can support one another, build and find resources they can share, develop diversified lessons, and to keep current with today’s research in their field. Her particular interest is going beyond grammar and vocabulary by integrating culture into the language classroom. There is a shortage of French teachers in Canada, especially in English majority Canada, and so supporting language teachers is a priority for her. She has also recently started a group for French language teachers of independent schools in British Columbia.

You can find Vanessa online here ouifrenchteachers (Instagram), mrsdrew_teachesfrench (tiktok)

www.ouifrenchteachers.com (website)

To register for Self-Taught, visit www.drkeeganjedele.com

Amber is a full-time Kindergarten teacher and Teacher Burnout Coach. After struggling with burnout for most of her teaching career, in 2016 Amber created Burned-In Teacher. Using her podcast, book, and online course and community, she coaches teachers through her 8 step BURNED-IN process to help them use burnout as an opportunity for growth so they can live a more fulfilled career and life.

Amber takes us through her journey as a teacher, which includes burning out to the point of quitting, and tells us how she got herself “burned-in” again.

I asked Amber how people who are on the verge of burnout or are experiencing burnout get out of living in burnout? She says it’s not easy but it’s worth it. Here are some of her recommendations. Listen to the episode for her 8-part process!

• Gain clarity in why they do what they do

• Where they want to go

• What steps to take to get there

• Change our circumstances

• Look at what can work instead of what doesn’t work

• Consider how you might be holding yourself back from the life you want to be living

You can find Amber at www.burnedinteacher.com and you can follow her on Instagram @burnedinteacher

To sign up for "Self-Taught", click here

Spend some time with Chat Pettit, and you'll understand why he's one of America's favorite TikTok Teachers. I met Chad on TikTok (you know, my new favorite place to hang out), and I was immediately drawn to his genuine take on the teaching profession, mental health and, of course, his humor.

The thing is, while being funny is certainly entertaining, Chad has a way of connecting with students and teachers that is comforting and safe. His authenticity is refreshing and needed, and you will walk away from this episode ready to stake your claim to the teaching profession again.

Find Chad at www.chatpettit.com and follow him on social media: @that.teacherguy on TikTok; @chad_pettit1 on Twitter and Instagram

To register for "Self-Taught", click this link!

Wow! What a crazy couple of years for educators! Phew...almost everyone is out and can relax, reflect and get ready to have a fantastic next school year!

Our summer series is focused on how to create the teaching year YOU want.

To attend our free, live, virtual summer event "Self-Taught: How to Teach the Year YOU Want!", click here!

To contact me about show topics, email me [email protected]

This week's episode features commentary by yours truly. The approach to this episode is intentional. It's not a fiery, explosive commentary on all the things that went wrong. Rather, I use the experiences I've had as a teacher, assistant principal and principal to talk about what we need to consider moving forward.

Want to join in on the conversation? Send me an email at:

[email protected]

I talk with Stephanie Lueras about the challenges we watched our students grapple with this past school year, especially around knowing what is expected in school and some of the underlying causes of those challenges. I love how she said that we have a generation of students who are going to learn differently.

23:00 We also talk about Stephanie’s journey with fitness and the program she has developed to teach others and her advice for exhausted educators who want to prioritize wellness but feel like it’s such a struggle because of the feeling of burnout.

Heartandsolefit.com

@heartandsolefitnessandwellness on social media platforms!

As always, you can find me at www.drkeeganjedele.com

It crushed me to arrive at the realization that I needed to leave my first role as principal after only 4 years. It wasn't until recently that I realized that what would have kept me in it would have been a work environment that was psychologically safe for me.

Ron Reich joins us to talk about his work with leadership development with a focus on empathy, emotional intelligence and psychological safety. You can find Ron on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.

As an expert in the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT)/ Tapping, Lauren offers a fresh perspective on what is keeping people feeling stuck both physically (with chronic pain) and emotionally stuck.

Our underlying beliefs and emotions—whether or not we're aware of them—can affect our happiness in life. Learning how to better manage our emotions, and release any associated stress can be a complete game changer!

Find Lauren on her website https://www.mindshiftwithlauren.com/ and check out her Youtube Channel (under her name) for quick videos on EFT Tapping.

Sign up for a FREE EFT Tapping session for teachers Wednesday, May 4th @ 8pm EST by clicking here.