Math Teacher Lounge

In this episode from Amplify's Beyond My Years podcast, host Ana Torres interviews Fawn Nguyen, Director of STEM Initiatives at Amplify. A 30-year middle school math teacher and K–8 math coach before she joined Amplify, Fawn shares practical strategies for teaching math in a way that values multiple solutions and makes every student feel like they belong. Fawn breaks down the routines that open math up to every learner and explains why stepping back to let students do the thinking is one of the most powerful moves a teacher can make. Then, Beyond My Years Classroom Insider and middle school science teacher Eric Cross joins Ana to reflect on why "I'm not good at math" is usually a scar with a story behind it. 

Show notes:

• Subscribe to Beyond My Years for upcoming conversations with Dan Meyer, Greg Trieste, and more leading math educators at.amplify.com/BMY.
• Listen to Fawn Nguyen's first appearance on Beyond My Years.
• Check out Amplify's Fluency Practice. 
• Get bite-sized advice from leading thinkers in math education on:
  • Math change management playlist
  • Student-centered math practices playlist
  • Find more videos on math instruction at amplify.com/MathClassroomAdvice
• Visit amplify.com/k-5-math for a wealth of resources and activities to help you move toward math that motivates.

In this recent episode from Amplify's Beyond My Years podcast, host Ana Torres interviews Kelly Serpa, Ed.D., STEM product specialist at Amplify and passionate advocate for inclusive math instruction. Together, they explore what it takes to develop students' conceptual understanding in math and why an asset-based approach makes all the difference. Kelly shares the "aha moment" that transformed her teaching practice and breaks down practical strategies for developing deeper math thinkers—from hooking every student in the first five minutes with routines like Notice and Wonder to building fluency in an asset-based way, without the pressure of a timer. 

Show notes:

• Subscribe to Beyond My Years for upcoming conversations with Dan Meyer, Fawn Nguyen, and more leading math educators at.amplify.com/BMY.
• Check out Amplify's Fluency Practice. 
• Get bite-sized advice from leading thinkers in math education on:
  • Math change management playlist
  • Student-centered math practices playlist
  • Find more videos on math instruction at amplify.com/MathClassroomAdvice
• Visit amplify.com/k-5-math for a wealth of resources and activities to help you move toward math that motivates.

In part two of its new math series, the Beyond My Years podcast from Amplify features Ian Brown, a second-grade teacher and author of the comic book I Hate Math. Listen to Ian’s conversation with host Ana Torres for strategies to reduce math anxiety and create positive math experiences. And look below for some new resources for math educators, including new YouTube playlists with information on math change management and student-centered math practices. 

Show notes:

• Get bite-sized advice from leading thinkers in math education on:
  • Math change management playlist
  • Student-centered math practices playlist
  • Find more videos on math instruction at amplify.com/MathClassroomAdvice
• Visit amplify.com/k-5-math for a wealth of resources and activities to help you move toward math that motivates.
• Read I Hate Math by Ian Brown.
• Subscribe to Beyond My Years for recent conversations with Dan Meyer, Keri Brown, Fawn Ngyuen, and more leading math educators at.amplify.com/BMY.

The Beyond My Years podcast from Amplify has kicked off a special math series, featuring two podcast episodes and a bundle of new resources (see below!) for math educators. In this first episode, host Ana Torres chats with Matt Cash, director of elementary curriculum and instruction for Lake Elsinore Unified School District, in California, about math leadership and change management. Together, Matt and Ana discuss the importance of listening to educators during adoption processes, the power of creating systems that support teachers, and the best ways to build unity around instructional approaches. 

Show notes:

• Check out the full change management bundle — including the change management playbook— at amplify.com/MathChangeManagement
• Get bite-sized advice from leading thinkers in math education on:
  • Math change management.
  • Student-centered math practices.
  • Find more videos on math instruction at amplify.com/MathClassroomAdvice.
• Subscribe to Beyond My Years for recent conversations with Dan Meyer, Keri Brown, Fawn Nguyen, and more leading math educators at.amplify.com/BMY

Angela Duckworth, Ph.D., the New York Times bestselling author of Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, recently joined Host Ana Torres on the Beyond My Years podcast to discuss her new landmark research on school cell phone policies. In this episode, Angela highlights the many complexities surrounding student cell phone use in schools and why there is a need to conduct research, such as her “Phones in Focus” study, to look at which phone policies are actually yielding the best outcomes. She also suggests four ingredients that set young people up to reach their goals. Finally, Ana and Beyond My Years Classroom Insider Eric Cross reflect on Angela’s insights, and Eric shares the strategies he plans to implement to provide mentors to his students.

Show notes:

• Subscribe to Beyond My Years at.amplify.com/BMY.
• Participate in Dr. Duckworth's research phonesinfocus.org
• Explore Angela Duckworth’s website: https://angeladuckworth.com/
• Read: Schools don’t know how well cellphone policies are working. You can help

Dan Meyer recently joined the Beyond My Years podcast to share some of his favorite strategies (and hard-earned lessons) for engaging students in math class. 

Listen in, as Dan joins host Ana Torres to share his journey in education, including his early struggles to engage students. In this episode, The right questions for the “wrong” answers, Dan provides models for grounding lessons in real life, giving students more opportunities to show off their personalities, and reframing mistakes and “wrong answers” as valuable answers to different questions. He also touches on technology use in the classroom and how to know when it's the right tool for the job. Ana and Classroom Insider Eric Cross then reflect on Dan’s insights, and Eric shares his top takeaways for the classroom.

Remember to subscribe to the Beyond My Years podcast to hear more insights and lessons from leading education thinkers. 

Show notes: 

• Subscribe to Beyond My Years at.amplify.com/BMY.
• Subscribe to Dan’s Substack, Mathworlds.
• Read Dylan Kane’s blog, Five Twelve Thirteen.

Host Ana Torres and Classroom Insider Eric Cross give you the first look at Season 2 of the Beyond My Years podcast, launching September 17, 2025. This trailer highlights what’s coming after an award-winning first season, including shorter episodes and more takeaways to help you extend your reach. Season 2 focuses on common classroom challenges, looking to the experts and to the research to get you answers. Ana, Eric, and guests will cover topics from finding your teaching style, to engaging students in math, to helping students develop critical thinking, and more! 

Subscribe now to Beyond My Years: https://at.amplify.com/bmy

(Not an Apple user? Listen on Spotify or the Beyond My Years website.)

To close out the year, we’re revisiting some of our favorite moments from the first nine episodes of the Beyond My Years podcast – and looking ahead at some of what’s to come in 2025! 

Listen to Beyond My Years: 

• Subscribe to Beyond My Years on Apple
• Subscribe to Beyond My Years on Spotify
• Listen to Beyond My Years via web browser

The latest episode of Beyond My Years features 2023 National Teacher of the Year — and math educator! — Rebecka Peterson.

On the episode, Host Ana Torres and Rebecka discuss their similar experiences as young immigrants to the United States. Rebecka shares all that she has come to love and appreciate about the K–12 environment after a tough transition from teaching college-level courses. She also reveals her most important lesson learned: Teach humans over content. Rebecka talks about her “One Good Thing” blog, where she documented daily positives in her classroom that transformed her perspective on teaching. She shares personal experiences of feeling like an outsider and how those experiences drive her to create an environment of belonging for her students. Rebecka stresses the significance of building authentic relationships with students as well as the impact of mentors in education. Taking all those lessons back to the classroom, Eric and Ana discuss strategies like “rebellious joy” that are essential to sustaining a long career in education.

Show notes:

• Subscribe to Beyond My Years: https://amplify.com/beyond-my-years
• Connect with Rebecka Peterson:
     - Instagram: @RebeckaPeterson_
     - X: @RebeckaMozdeh
• “Dear Ana”: Tell us about a seasoned educator who impacted your life!
• Listen: Hear from Missy Testerman, 2024 National Teacher of the Year! 
• Follow us on Instagram: @amplify.education 
• Connect with Eric Cross: https://www.ericcross.org/ 
• Connect with Ana Torres: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anayansi-ana-torres-m-ed-26a10654/

Quotes:
“That's how we build our joy, how we build our resiliency—when we do the work together.” —Rebecka Peterson

“I thought…I had to earn my seat at the table. I don't want any kid to ever think they have to earn their spot. I want them to know they are in, exactly as they are. There is no need to perform. They are loved on their good days, their hard days, whether they make the 'A' or not—they are in. And more than that,  they are celebrated.” —Rebecka Peterson

“It takes a lot of courage to stand in the present. It is mindfulness. It is joy.” —Rebecka Peterson

“This was like training my brain to become a good noticer and to take delight in my students’ quirks, and their genius, and their goofiness, as well as their beauty.” —Rebecka Peterson

Hi Math Teacher Lounge listeners! Here’s an episode from Amplify’s new podcast, Beyond My Years, that we think you’ll like. It features math teacher extraordinaire Fawn Nguyen, who you may remember from past appearances on this show.

On this episode, Fawn, a math educator with over 30 years of classroom experience, tells Host Ana Torres the story of her near-death experience being lost at sea while escaping Vietnam, and explains how it shaped the sense of gratitude she led within the classroom. She also discusses what it means to be yourself in the classroom, the importance of sharing your mistakes with your students, and the merits of advocacy vs. authority with students. Taking all those lessons back to the classroom, Ana and Classroom Insider Eric Cross then discuss connecting with students through shared struggles and challenges.

Remember to subscribe to Beyond My Years to hear more insights and lessons from people who have thrived over decades in the classroom: seasoned educators.

Show notes:

• Connect with Fawn Nguyen: https://www.fawnnguyen.com/ 
• Subscribe to Beyond My Years https://amplify.com/beyond-my-years
• Follow us on Instagram @amplify.education 
• Connect with Eric Cross: https://www.ericcross.org/ 
• Connect with Ana Torres: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anayansi-ana-torres-m-ed-26a10654/

Quotes:
“We spend so much time [in the classroom] day in and day out. For some of us, it's actually more interaction than we have with our own family. And it is family. So be yourself. You're going to make mistakes, but what's nice about it if we think of it as family, is that we get to apologize and tomorrow is a new day.” —Fawn Nguyen