The Student-Centered World Podcast

Episode summary: On today's podcast, I had the opportunity to chat with 14-year teaching veteran Steph Sperber who is currently teaching in a middle school classroom. I met Steph in Spring 2020 through our Student-Centered World mastermind Facebook group; Steph was so instrumental in helping teachers in our group transfer their classrooms to a digital setting. I bring up Steph a lot when I talk to other teachers because I specifically remember her saying that, given her regular classroom was already student-centered, she actually had more time on her hands when school went digital. No one ever believes me when I tell them that, but it's true. The teachers that I've trained and the students that are learning all had the same sentiment that there is more time because of the nature of how the classroom is run. In talking to Steph today, you'll hear exactly how it's done.

Episode transcript: For the full transcript of this episode, please visit studentcenteredworld.com/classroom-adaption

Programs Discussed:

Actively Learn: activelylearn.com

G Suite for Education: edu.google.com/products/classroom

Peardeck: peardeck.com

Doodle Notes: doodlenotes.org

Bitmoji: bitmoji.com

Nearpod: nearpod.com

Seesaw: seesaw.com

Flipgrid: flipgrid.com

Screencastify: screencastify.com

EdPuzzle: EdPuzzle.com

Support Steph's Mask Business:

Steph’s Quilty Pleasure: etsy.com/shop/StephsQuiltyPleasure

Want to learn more?

- For more podcast episodes: studentcenteredworld.com/podcast

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/

Follow Student-Centered World on:

Pinterest: pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/

Facebook: facebook.com/studentcenteredworld

Instagram: instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.

Episode summary: Today I wanted to take a couple of minutes to talk about routine in the classroom. So, if you listened for the last two weeks, you know that the first episode that we had talked all about engagement. It was clipped out of the engagement webinar that I was giving over the summertime and then last week, we talked to Bridget Burlage, who talked all about how she engages her students through routines in the classroom. But there are some questions because my engagement piece was all about switching things up in the classroom and keeping the kids on the toes. Then Bridget went in and talked about how you have to have very distinct routines and it seems like they're conflicting thoughts, but they are not. And I wanted to take a couple of minutes today to explain how they both work together in perfect harmony in the classroom.

Episode transcript: For the full transcript of this episode, please visit studentcenteredworld.com/Classroom-Routine

Programs Discussed:

Google Classroom: Classroom.google.com

EdPuzzle: EdPuzzle.com

Want to learn more?

- For more podcast episodes: studentcenteredworld.com/podcast

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/

Follow Student-Centered World on:

Pinterest: pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/

Facebook: facebook.com/studentcenteredworld

Instagram: instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.

Episode summary: In our very first interview of season three of the podcast, I was able to catch up with one of my former coworkers, Bridget Burlage, who is a high school English teacher and also teaches AP students. She has absolutely found her stride and a hybrid classroom and has some fantastic tips and tricks that she uses that are not only successful for the day-to-day, but it's also fully preparing her students through consistent engagement and relationship building. It all comes down to the structure in the classroom that she has created, and her students have adapted. Bonus: her tips are not for high school only; you can use them in any grade level, you just obviously have to change it a little bit for your content area and age appropriateness, but then you will be set to go. 

Episode transcript: For the full transcript of this episode, please visit https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/classroom-structure/ 

Programs Discussed: 

Google Classroom: Classroom.google.com 

Teacher Made: teachermade.com 

SeeSaw: seesaw.com

NoRedInk: noredink.com

Nearpod: nearpod.com 

Jamboard: edu.google.com/products/jamboard/

Google Meet: meet.google.com/

Quizizz: quizizz.com

Haiku Learning: my.haikulearning.com 

Mentimeter: mentimeter.com 

Want to learn more? 

- Contact Bridget Burlage: [email protected] or https://www.twitter.com/theburlage 

- For more podcast episodes: https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/podcast 

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/ 

Follow Student-Centered World on: 

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/studentcenteredworld 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.

Episode summary: 

To say this year (2020) has been a roller coaster is an absolute understatement. Every moment, it seems like something has changed, something has been altered, something has been thrown at us some type of curveball that we had no idea was even coming in the first place. 

And it's been hard. 

It's been really hard to be a human right now, let alone to be a teacher. I feel like we've gone through such a roller coaster of respect and disrespect in the field. We've been trying so hard to find ways to strike balance to do our jobs and to teach our kids all the things that we normally do. But now we're wearing masks, or maybe now we're doing it through a screen. In March when the school shutdowns first started, we created our Facebook group, and we were trying to help one another in there and just figure out how to manage this. While we've found a lot of ways to manage it, we're still trying to figure things out at the same time. One of the issues that have come to the surface and it happened in the spring, it's happening in the fall, even as some schools are going back to school full time, it's still an issue is the idea of classroom engagement. 

When you're all digital, the concern is are the kids even there? Are they logging in? Are they doing the assignments? What's going on with them at home? When they're in school? Maybe it's hybrid, so they're only there for a short period of time you want to get the best bang for your buck...but maybe they're not interested or when they are home and they're doing online work? Are they really doing it the way that you envision it? If they're in the classroom? Are they distracted because they have to wear masks or they have some type of shield between them and their friend and they can't be within three or six feet of one another and they can't walk down the hall or use the water fountains? 

There's just so much going on right now. 

I really felt that in this first episode, I should hone in on the stuff that I have been saying about classroom engagement. There are ways to certainly focus on this. If you know me at this point, you know that I say everything to be successful just takes a mindset shift, and then putting it into practice. This first podcast is the audio from our Hacking Student Engagement webinar. The teachers who have listened to this advice are finding themselves much less stressed and their students much more engaged. I hope you find the same.

Episode transcript: For the full transcript of this episode, please visit https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/student-engagement-workshop/

Want to learn more?

- For more podcast episodes: studentcenteredworld.com/podcast

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/

Follow Student-Centered World on:

Pinterest: pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/

Facebook: facebook.com/studentcenteredworld

Instagram: instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.

Everything is up in the air for fall 2020 in the classroom, but most districts are seriously considering blended learning. This podcast episode discusses what blended learning is and how you can be successful with it (and...spoiler alert...if you plan for blended learning, you can still do it effectively in the classroom...but it's very hard to be successful at traditional teaching online!)

#blendedlearning #teachertips #distance learning

Want to learn more?

- For more episodes, check out https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/podcast

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/

Follow Student-Centered World on:

Pinterest: pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/

Facebook: facebook.com/studentcenteredworld

Instagram: instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.

As teachers, we so often rely on our own experience each year that passes in the classroom when it comes to developing lesson plan ideas. Currently, we are in a unique situation in education. Teachers have been thrust into an atypical version of distance learning. While distance learning can be very effective in some scenarios, it turns into quite the bit debilitating attempt to keep continuity and consistency in our classrooms that have now turned virtual.

Want to learn more?

- For more episodes, check out https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/podcast

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/

Follow Student-Centered World on:

Pinterest: pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/

Facebook: facebook.com/studentcenteredworld

Instagram: instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.

Teacher evaluations and classroom observations are nerve-wracking for any teacher. Make it easy for an administrator to know how to write a classroom observation for you with these ideas and teacher observation examples that will work in all classrooms.  By following these instructional strategies, you will demonstrate not only effective teaching but will rock your teacher evaluation comments through whatever teacher evaluation system your district uses with this teacher observation checklist.

You can read more about this topic here: https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/teacher-observation-tips/

Want to learn more?

- For more episodes, check out https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/podcast

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/

Follow Student-Centered World on:

Pinterest: pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/

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Instagram: instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.

Hopefully, you haven't been there and you've only heard the horror stories, but when you work in a toxic school environment, everyone you love about education gets washed under a sea of anxiety. There are three options to come through on top of the situation. Don't let a bad school ruin your love of the game.

Want to learn more?

- For more episodes, check out https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/podcast

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/

Follow Student-Centered World on:

Pinterest: pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/

Facebook: facebook.com/studentcenteredworld

Instagram: instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.

Remember back to what probably seems like a lifetime ago. You became a teacher to:

But the changes we are facing every day in policy, procedure, and expectations are making it seem like a pipe dream. The truth is, even if you’re not getting the support you need from your administration, parents, and even students, you can still recapture that “new teacher” energy. You just need to take care of yourself first.

Want to learn more?

- For more episodes, check out https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/podcast

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/

Follow Student-Centered World on:

Pinterest: pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/

Facebook: facebook.com/studentcenteredworld

Instagram: instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.

Teachers have been thrust into distance learning, but did you know that it will, unequivocally HELP teaching once everyone returns to the classroom? What seems like a complete uprooting is actually one of the greatest silver linings we have ever received in the educational world. eLearning and distance teaching is going to make all teachers better at their craft for a very specific reason. #distancelearning #elearning

Want to learn more?

- For more episodes, check out https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/podcast

- Join the Student-Centered World Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/293751971607485/

Follow Student-Centered World on:

Pinterest: pinterest.com/studentcenteredworld/

Facebook: facebook.com/studentcenteredworld

Instagram: instagram.com/studentcenteredworld/

Interested in learning about some programs that will grade FOR you? Yes, you read that right! Sign up for our free "Self-Grading Program Roundup" now.