The Elephant and the Teacher

Inspired by a high school science teacher’s provocative lesson plan, Michelle dives into the archetypal story of Bluebeard. Michelle relates the tale as a powerful metaphor for the internal "predator" that exists within every educator and leader. This internal voice often demands we maintain the status quo, warning us that looking too closely at the systemic failures or personal biases in our schools is a dangerous endeavor.

Michelle challenges listeners to embrace the "stains" of truth that cannot be unseen, arguing that once we acknowledge a difficult reality in our classrooms or districts, we are empowered to change it. Curiosity is not a trap; it is a rescue mission that allows us to move past self-doubt and the fear of "rocking the boat." Tune in to learn why facing the messy, painful truths of leadership is the only way to evolve and lead with a truly clear heart.

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In this vulnerable episode, Michelle Roundy explores the raw experience of making a public mistake and the emotional "elephant" that often follows: shame.

Moving beyond her personal story, Michelle uses the wisdom of Brené Brown to distinguish between guilt and shame, illustrating how the latter can shut down our ability to learn. It’s a must-listen for anyone looking to foster a culture where both students and adults feel safe enough to fail, repair, and ultimately grow.

Ask a Question: Have an "elephant" you want Michelle to address? Fill out our listener form [Linked Here].

Support the Podcast: If this episode moved your thinking, please leave a 5-star review and tag @DearMrsRoundy on social media!

In this insightful follow-up episode, Michelle Roundy dives into the casual and often unconscious ways we describe our students. Drawing inspiration from her conversation with Drew in Episode 12 and a poignant quote in Ocean Vuong’s Emperor of Gladness, Michelle challenges the notion that rethinking our language is merely about “toxic positivity” or sanitizing the truth. Instead, she argues that our words create a shared reality and a “self-concept” for the students we serve. 

This episode serves as a call to action for educators to recognize that language is a leverage tool – one that can either reinforce barriers or open doors to new and effective instructional strategies. She offers five specific reframes to help you move from complaint-based talk to strength-based action. 

Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong

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In this special episode, I’m sitting down for a heartfelt and practical conversation with a very special guest: my husband, Drew Roundy. Drew serves as a Sergeant and the School Resource Officer (SRO) at the high school where I work, giving him a unique vantage point on leadership, safety, and the power of human connection.

We’re diving into the "one thing" that defines our relationship and Drew's leadership style: the intentional use of elevating language. Drew explains his "people-first" philosophy and shares how speaking highly of his team creates a "transfer of trust" that allows them to solve problems and handle high-stakes situations with confidence.

Ask a Question: Have an "elephant" you want Michelle to address? Fill out our listener form [Linked Here].

Support the Podcast: If this episode moved your thinking, please leave a 5-star review and tag @DearMrsRoundy on social media!

In this episode of The Elephant and the Teacher, Michelle Roundy tackles a heavy "elephant" in the modern classroom: the growing sense of paralysis and fear among teenage students. From a visceral fear of failure to the "shield" of social media, our students are standing on the edge of the adult world, and to them, the drop looks steeper than ever.

Michelle shares a personal story of jumping off a six-foot rock into a waterfall pool in Mexico to illustrate how we can support students through their own "skyscraper" moments. We explore why today’s teens struggle with the unpredictability of real-life interactions and how we, as educators and leaders, can help them find their footing.

Ask a Question: Have an "elephant" you want Michelle to address? Fill out our listener form [Linked Here].

Support the Podcast: If this episode moved your thinking, please leave a 5-star review and tag @DearMrsRoundy on social media!

Imagine sitting in a room of the most brilliant minds at Google, surrounded by cutting-edge tech, only to feel like you’re drowning. Last month at the Google Campus, Michelle Roundy hit a wall. Between the high-speed "vibe coding" demo and the pressure of a multi-day orientation, her brain shut down. There were tears and an urge to walk out.

In this episode of The Elephant and the Teacher, Michelle takes us inside that high-ceilinged room at Google to dissect why we "freeze" when learning gets hard. She reveals the exact executive functioning skills she used to manually restart her brain and why our students (who don't yet have fully developed prefrontal cortexes) need us to be their "outsourced" executive function.

Prompts for Metacognitive Engagement in Content and Language Objectives

Ask a Question: Have an "elephant" you want Michelle to address? Fill out our listener form [Linked Here].

Support the Podcast: If this episode moved your thinking, please leave a 5-star review and tag @DearMrsRoundy on social media!

In this episode, Michelle sits down with Morgan Hahn – Wyoming’s 2025 State Teacher of the Year – to tackle the "elephants" in the modern classroom. From the dusty archives of American history to the cutting edge of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in education, this conversation explores how we can keep the "human" at the center of learning.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The Power of Primary Sources: Why Abraham Lincoln’s Lyceum Address still matters for today’s students.

• AI as a Teaching Tool: How Morgan moved from "burnout" to using AI to offload soul-sucking administrative tasks like rubric creation.

• Civic Agency in Rural Schools: The unique opportunities for Wyoming students to connect with local government and see themselves as active participants in the "American Experiment."

• Storytelling in Teaching: Morgan’s journey from a Yellowstone whitewater raft guide to an AP History teacher, and how "showmanship" helps students care about the Gilded Age.

Whether you're a "history nerd" or a teacher looking for an ethical way to integrate AI literacy into your curriculum, this episode offers a grounded, hopeful perspective on the future of the classroom.

Ask a Question: Have an "elephant" you want Michelle to address? Fill out our listener form [Linked Here].

Support the Podcast: If this episode moved your thinking, please leave a 5-star review and tag @DearMrsRoundy on social media!

What does it actually feel like to be a new teacher?

In this episode of The Elephant and the Teacher, The Elephant and the Teacher host Michelle Roundy explores the neuroscience, psychology, and emotional weight of being new at something, especially when it’s public. She discusses the overwhelming cognitive load of a first-year teacher and how it relates to her experience learning to snowboard. 

Research shows that nearly 44% of teachers leave the profession within their first five years. Why? It’s not grit. It’s not toughness. 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• What cognitive load really means for first-year teachers

• Why new teachers experience nearly 3x the cognitive demand of veterans

• The role of the nervous system in teacher burnout

• How co-regulation impacts teacher retention

• Why “equal” workloads are not the same as equitable support

• Practical leadership strategies to better support novice educators

Whether you are a new teacher navigating self-doubt, a veteran educator who has forgotten what it feels like to snowboard instead of ski, or a school leader committed to teacher retention, this episode invites you to reconsider how we support the humans doing this work.

Want to learn more? Click on this link to access a list of further reading and resources that dive deeper into this topic.

Ask a Question: Have an "elephant" you want Michelle to address? Fill out our listener form [Linked Here].

Support the Podcast: If this episode moved your thinking, please leave a 5-star review and tag @DearMrsRoundy on social media!

What happens when a classroom teacher stands in the room where laws are made?

In this episode, I’m taking you behind the scenes of a moment that felt both surreal and deeply grounding: my address to the Wyoming House and Senate. As the State Teacher of the Year, I was granted "privilege of the floor," but I found myself wrestling with a very human experience: the feeling of being "small" in a space of such immense power.

I realized that what I had to offer wasn't a lecture, but an invitation. Drawing inspiration from Pablo Neruda’s Ode to the Table, I share the speech I gave to our legislators, reframing public education not as a set of budgets or policies, but as a table. It’s a place where we gather, where we argue, where we feed each other, and most importantly, where our students find their agency.

Read Pablo Neruda’s "Ode to the Table" here.

Ask a Question: Have an "elephant" you want Michelle to address? Fill out our listener form linked here.

Support the Podcast: If this episode moved your thinking, please leave a 5-star review and tag @DearMrsRoundy on social media!

In this episode of The Elephant and the Teacher, Michelle Roundy dives into a truth we’ve all felt but rarely discuss: the awkward, sometimes painful "pushback" that happens when a student or colleague is recognized for excellence.

From the "oohs" and "ahhs" of a classroom to the staffroom murmurs of favoritism, Michelle explores why negative reactions to success are a normal part of human tribal psychology and why we must change them to build healthier organizations. Drawing on social theory and psychological archetypes, she breaks down the shift from "peer" to "sovereign" and identifies the "shadow responses" (the Wounded Warrior and the Wounded Mother/Sister) that can erode trust in a school community.

Michelle provides actionable strategies for leaders and teachers to transform school culture by making recognition transparent, reducing gossip, and building psychological safety. By reframing individual success as a collective win, these tools help shift organizations from a mindset of scarcity to one of shared growth and abundance.

Ask a Question: Have an "elephant" you want Michelle to address? Fill out our listener form linked here.

Support the Podcast: If this episode moved your thinking, please leave a 5-star review and tag @DearMrsRoundy on social media!