In this episode, Lee and I have an informal chat about the end of summer and the start of the school year on the two very different planets we live on (Massachusetts and Texas). We will do our best to avoid political landmines… let’s see how this goes.

Show Notes:

How do you feel getting the school year started?

Lee: Cautiously excited. I’m ready to meet kids, do some science with them, and help them love learning. I’m ready to try ungrading with my IB class. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t anxious about starting school in an environment where masks cannot be mandated per governor’s orders. I also can’t distance my kids as we are being made to seat kids in groups of 4–my district drank the Kagan strategies koolaid over the summer, and we are expected to use the training we got.

Aaron: Feels like a bit of a black box

What are some of your “getting to know you” activities that you use with students?

Lee: I’m having kids create a Flipgrid to teach me how to pronounce their names, and we are doing an activity with Oreos--Do Double Stuf Oreos Have Double the “Stuf?”

Aaron: I’m going to use Flipgrid for Introductions and I’m writing something up using Algae Research Supply as a hook for one of my first units.

Any Ideas for podcast discussions we should have in the coming school year?

IEPs, 504s and accomodations

How to teach Self-Efficacy

How to collaboratively plan with colleagues

Designing revision into your curriculum

How do you teach cross curricular classes?

Listeners, if you are interested in joining the panel or being a guest on Life of The School, please DM me on twitter @MrMathieuTweets or @lifeoftheschool

Credits:

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Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/LOTS

Music by: https://exmagicians.bandcamp.com/

Show Notes at Lifeoftheschool.org

You can follow on twitter @MrMathieuTweets or @lifeoftheschool