How can we meet the needs of all elementary students when there is such a variety of learning styles and personalities in each classroom and home?

Gloria Taylor, a seasoned teacher for over 40 years, shares refreshing practices that are working to meet the needs of high achieving, average, and strugglign students, including helping them dump their "nervous energy."

Gloria's dynamic style and methods have fostered academic and emotional progress for her students in both the classroom and also in her learning center for tutoring and enrichment, which she has led for the past 20 years.

Are we over the top sports parents, or keeping ourselves together on the sidelines?

Are we pushing our kids too hard, or not enough?

How do we find our child's niche?

How does being part of a team benefit our kids?

Coach Brad Thurber was nominated by YOU to walk us through the answers to these questions and more.

Dr. Michele Borba, author of UnSelfie: Why Empathetic Kids Succeed in an All-About-Me World, explains that narcissism is up by 58% and empathy is down by 40% over the last two decades.

How can we help our kids in a world that values "me" more than "we?" 

The answers are surprisingly simple:  1- Teach empathy, 2- Practice empathy, and 3- Live empathy.  Dr. Borba shares small and simple ways we can do this in daily moments.  Her behavioral studies and examples in this book and in this interview give great hope that we can turn this around!

Find Dr. Borba on Youtube in one of her interviews on the Today Show, Dr. Phil, Dateline, The View, NBC Nightly news, Dr. Oz, Anderson Cooper, MSNBC, Fox & Friends, The Early Show, The Doctors, and CNN.

RESOURCES:

https://micheleborba.com/

https://www.amazon.com/UnSelfie-Empathetic-Succeed-All-About-Me-World/dp/1501110071

https://us.rootsofempathy.org/

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=michele+borba+today+show

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWAPs9LZVFQ&t=163s

Utah parents and educators put "safety and security" as the number one concern, priority and focus as students head back to school for the 2023-24 schoolyear.  This interview sheds light on the updates, commitment and dedication of the Utah School Security Task Force as Randy Watt, CEO of SRW (security company) walks us through the behind the scenes efforts and actions being made to keep our kids protected at school.

Randy Watt has combined his 36 years of experience in the police force and 33 years (and 10 months) of active duty in the military, together to help Utah, and other states, create SECURE and SAFE schools in 3 ways: 1- Physical Measures, 2- Technology, 3- Personnel Training/Activities.

*Stay tuned for the end of this interview for some of the pre-interview chit chat where Randy gives great life advice with his enthusiasm, optimism, and tips for success.

https://www.srwinc.us/who-we-are/

https://safeut.org/

https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0061.html

Have you wondered if your child has a learning difference (disability)?  What if you knew it might just be a matter of how ipad/device scrolling has changed your child's eye tracking movements?  Many teachers, like myself, see the difference in how students now struggle with regular left to right reading and tracking patterns.  The program highlighted in this interview can help with this, and any other neurological processes that could possibly be getting in the way of your child's learning abilities.

If you are discouraged or looking for possible ways to help your child, the mix of physiological and neurological therapy is one path that has helped countless students over the last 30 plus years.  

It can be frustrating to have your child on a waiting list to get help with a neurologist psychologist or other specialist, let alone the time and expense this may take.

There are many paths to helping a child with learning differences!

In this interview, Robbie and Fifi Clayton of "Learning Technics" (learningtechnics.com), share the personal journey of their own child and how the success of this program led to her improcements and achievements, and getting her skills up to grade level.

**This is an online program.  If you wish to try it out, USE THE PROMOCODE "SCHOOLED10" to receive 10 percent off.  Go to Learningtechnics.com

What are the best ways to support a military connected student and their families?

Jenn Rupp, a military educational therapist, knows the life of deployments, moves, making and re-making new friends all too well as she grew up as a "military brat" as she says, and is also married to a marine who she supported as he served all around the world for 27 years.  In this interview, Jenn helps us understand how challenging it can be for children moving around, re-rooting themselves in different schools, and/or experiencing deployment of a parent(s).  

Jenn shares 3 of her many strategies for helping children through the anxiety that many of these moves or parent deployments create in a child, and also shares great resources listed here:

https://dmna.ny.gov/family/docs/education

https://www.militarychild.org/

Is your child extra smart?  Does your child get bored at school?  How do you challenge a high level thinker at home or in the classroom?  What options are available for kids who may have become "turned off" because regular classroom work is too easy for them?

Meet exceptional teacher, Lyn Manning, who teaches in a fourth grade high ability classrooom.  In this interview, she gives great advice to parents and teachers for challenging kids who come with high critical thinking skills.  Ms. Manning also talks about the pros and cons of having an advanced learner.

https://www.lexialearning.com/?utm_campaign=21_LDG_C0_-_TOF_-_Remarketing_Aug_US_PPC&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=PPC&utm_content=

https://k12.kendallhunt.com/program/project-m3-mentoring-mathematical-minds-grades-3-6

https://www.secondstep.org/

https://www.google.com/search?q=passion+projects+for+kids&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS1017US1021&oq=passion+projects+for+kids&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i512j0i22i30l2j0i390l4.11782j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Meet children's author, Shelly Brown!  Shelly is the enthusiastic and witty author behind Ghostsitter, and the co-author with her husband Chad Morris, of Mustaches for Maddie, Squint, Willa and the Whale, Virtually Me, and also The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry, coming out this summer.

Shelly's books share strong messages of bravery, compassion, friendship, mourning loss, trust, and accepting yourself and others, which makes all who read these stories feel lighter on their feet.

In this interview, Shelly shares her advice on how to get kids excited to read, read, read and write, write, write!

https://shadowmountain.com/author-book/shelly-brown/

http://www.mustachesformaddie.com/

http://www.shellybrownwriter.com/about-the-author.html

Did you know that 19% of our students are NOT showing up every day? (this is a Utah Statistic but it is similar to neighboring states).  Absenteeism is a growing problem throughout the nation's classrooms.

This interview with (Utah) State Board of Education Prevention Specialist, Amy Steele-Smith, helps us understand the following:

• How to help our most missed students--Kindergartners!  Full day Kindergarten might be the solution.
• How to help an anxious child feel supported and needed at school, one step at at time.
• How to take that family vacation, but give the message to your kids that school is a high priority.

RESOURCES:

Prevention and Student Services - Utah State Board of Education

https://www.schools.utah.gov/prevention/absenteeismdropout

Attendance Works

https://www.attendanceworks.org/

School Superintendent, Daniel Linford, of the Davis School District in Davis County, Utah, answers questions and conerns regarding:

-The Summit Learning Program

-Getting back on track after Covid- mentally, socially, and academically

-Diversity and Racial Inclusion Initiatives

-School Safety

-Athletics vs. Fine Arts

-Dispelling "furries" and other rumors

https://www.summitlearning.org/https://www.davis.k12.ut.us/departments/office-of-equal-opportunityhttps://www.schoolsafety.gov/state-search-tool/utah