In this episode, Phyllis and Joe are joined by Todd Brist, principal of Watertown Middle School in South Dakota and author of AMLE's forthcoming book Successful Middle School Advisory to talk all things advisory. Why should schools have them? What should they accomplish? And how do you convince reluctant teachers its worth the time?  

This episode was recorded LIVE at the AMLE22 Annual Conference. 

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.

Recording LIVE from the #AMLE22 Annual Conference, Phyllis and Joe are back! In this first episode of the season, they talk with the middle schoolers and educator sponsors whose project on saving the bee population won the grand prize in the 2022 Solve Together Digital Career Exploration Challenge. The team talks about the importance of student choice and exploration in the middle grades, and some of the skills kids will naturally develop when you integrate these key concepts.

Thank you to students Michael Snono Thomas Esposito and from Franklin Avenue Middle School in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey for representing Team Passion Project, as well as their teacher Alyssa McAloney and instructional coach Gina Aiello. To learn more about the Solve Together contest visit  https://asasolvetogether.org/

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.

Middle schoolers are undergoing an incredibly important and significant developmental phase meaning...they're going to make mistakes from time to time.  Phyllis and Joe talk about helping kids come back from mistakes and creating school structures that support students learning from them. They also talk about staff burnout and what administrators and teachers can do to boost morale as the school year ends and recharge over the summer. Finally, they talk about proactive strategies to cultivate a collaborative school community as we think about the year to come. Phyllis and Joe close out this season of Middle School Walk and Talk by invited listeners to join them in Orlando or San Diego for AMLE's Institute for Middle Level Leadership. Learn more: amle.org/leadership

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.

Phyllis and Joe are joined by Jae Lee, a principal in Maryland. Jae shares his own experience as an English learning middle school student whose family had recently immigrant to the United States, and how that informs his approach now as an administrator to creating capacity for empathy within his school community. Jae works from the assumption that all students want to be liked and want to learn and shares practical approaches he’s found successful in meeting students where they’re at and with what they need.  

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.

Phyllis and Joe are joined by educational psychologist and best-selling author Michele Borba to talk building agency and resiliency with middle schoolers. They share a wealth of simple, easy-to-implement strategies to support students struggling socially and emotionally amid another challenging school year. Michele also offers insights on how educators can partner with parents to amplify the results for kids.  

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.

Special guest Brooklyn Raney joins Joe and Phyllis for this episode to talk about One Trusted Adult, a movement to ensure that every young person has an accessible, boundaried, and caring trusted adult. They discuss why this concept is so important in the middle grades and share resources and strategies to help educators and parents build strong connections and healthy boundaries with middle schoolers. 

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.

Omicron…finding joy at school despite disrupted learning…social media challenges…Phyllis and Joe asked students about some of the challenges schools face right now. As usual, middle school students had a lot of insightful things to say about how educators can best support them, and vise versa.

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.

Joe and Phyllis are joined by special guest Ned Johnson as they discuss how to use our understanding of young adolescents' development to help drive intrinsic motivation, develop executive functioning skills, and promote positive behavior.

Ned Johnson is the founder of PrepMatters, a tutoring and educational advising company in Washington, DC, and the co-author with Dr. William Stixrud of What Do You Say? How To Talk With Kids To Build Motivation, Stress Tolerance, and a Happy Home, The Self-Driven Child: The Science and Sense of Giving Your Kids More Control Over Their Lives, and of Conquering the SAT: How Parents Can Help Teens Overcome the Pressure and Succeed.

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.

Delta Variant...devious licks...quarantines, mask policies, and more school closings...a school year that we thought might bring a return to normalcy has instead presented new challenges for school communities. In this episode, Joe and Phyllis set out to normalize the feelings of stress and burnout being felt by educators around the world and talk about strategies they're using to address it in their own lives.  

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.

What do students have to say about how good they're feeling about school - and overall? How can we foster a sense of belonging for all students in our schools? Phillis and Joe chat with Phillip Marcus, Director of Equity, Inclusion, and Wellness at Chappaqua Central School District. The results of their student voice survey showed some surprising trends that have informed their culture building moving forward. 

Middle School Walk & Talk is a production of the Association for Middle Level Education. Learn more at amle.org.