From the Dugout

In the education world, the biggest battle for the classroom has Helicopter Parents who think their child is perfect and will go to any measure to maintain that perfection versus Preacher Teachers who are out to deliver the gospel of their agenda (currently Critical Race Theory) one classroom at a time.

In this episode, Coach shares how the majority of parents and teachers should approach each other to return civil dialogue and truly do what is best for the child (spoiler alert: don't assume the other is a Helicopter Parent or Preacher Teacher).

How does your school handle Christmas?  I think we can agree a public school shouldn't be preaching the religious aspect of the holiday, but just as  wrong is the erasing away of any mention of the it on the boards and walls of the school. After a brief rant, Coach then shares his views of the Best Non Traditional Christmas Movie, Worst Kid Classic, and more.  Hope you enjoy it and Merry Christmas!

The latest Tik Tok challenge lead to a nationwide alert for schools on Friday. What is driving kids to choose to do some of the most evil acts?  Coach discusses three ideas, the "Look at Me" culture, Lacking Boundaries, and Nihilism as possible causes and offers solution.  You may listen and disagree, but hopefully it will challenge you think for deeper, underlying causes to what we all are seeing.  

In classrooms during this holiday season, some teachers tapping into the excitement of their students by introducing them to Elfie, the Elf on the Shelf (or one of his many brothers & sisters) while other teachers criticize it.  Coach shares his perspective and shares two ideas that need to be in a diverse classroom, one deals with the curriculum, the other deals with the personality & trust in the person leading the class.

My Thanksgiving Lesson...I promoted the event we refer to as the "1st Thanksgiving" as a multicultural celebration, other teachers as crime perpetuated by the Pilgrims.  What approach is your child's teacher taking?  Which of us are teaching inaccurate history? Listen to find out

In this episode, Coach asks, "Why do you post on social media?" both personally and as a teacher.  He offers ideas that he has implemented on his personal accounts that hopefully will bring rationality & civility to his discussions (while admitting he hasn't always been perfect) including why its a GOOD thing to unfriend and block people.  As a teacher, he shares how Twitter has helped him both improve in his craft and allowed his student's parents a window into what is happening in his classroom.

The return to Standard Time and changing the clocks has Coach thinking about change and continuity.  How do you find stability in the sea of change? What happens if we teach our children, our students that life is all about change with no regard to continuity or that we hold that status quo and refuse to consider change.  How are we addressing these issues?   

How teaching during the COVID lockdowns had me turning to simple lesson formats that my students knew and realizing that familiarity provided stability in a world of massive change and how it led to a lesson for me as a parent of the responsibility I have in providing stability to my own children in a world that is forever changing.

My first podcast...The COVID lockdowns of Spring 2020 changed my approach to teaching in a dramatic way.  No longer was I inside the cocoon of the classroom, but inside the homes of my students.  As a parent, I realized how important communication was by my kids' teachers.  And the lasting effect of the deeper parental involvement during this time exists today, and I believe, its for the better.