Starting the school day doesn’t have to be chaotic or rushed. In this episode, I’ll explore how soft starts are transforming classrooms by offering a calm, low-pressure beginning that allows students to ease into their day.

Soft starts accomplish more than just setting a calm tone—they’re a powerful tool for promoting social-emotional learning and giving kids the autonomy they need to feel in control of their learning, fostering self-regulation, self-direction, and self-management.

I’ll break down why this approach is beneficial (and super simple to implement!) for all age groups, from elementary to secondary students, and share practical ways to implement it in your classroom.

Soft starts don’t require a monumental shift in your daily routine, but provide a powerful opportunity to create a foundation of calm, focus, and connection that will ripple through every lesson.

If you want your students to learn how to gauge their own needs and choose activities at the beginning of class that help meet those needs so they’re prepared to learn, soft starts might be the perfect option.

Get the shareable article/transcript for this episode here.

Ever feel like you're spinning your wheels trying to improve your teaching, but not seeing the results you want?

In this episode, we delve into the transformative power of sequential lesson design with Gretchen Bridgers of Always a Lesson.

Gretchen is a teacher coach and trainer who has spent more than 2 decades mentoring and coaching educators, and leading professional development. has a fantastic podcast called Always a Lesson's Empowering Educators podcast which I often recommend to Truth for Teachers listeners, as there's a lot of overlap between Gretchen's mindset and areas of interest and my own. Her advice is really practical and spot-on. And, she recently published her third book, called, Always a Lesson: Teacher Essentials for Classroom and Career Success.

In our conversation you'll hear today, Gretchen breaks down some key ideas from that book. She counters the common narrative that classroom management is the first and most important thing to nail down, and reveals why lesson design is actually the secret sauce to transforming your classroom.

Join us as we explore:

The pitfalls of improving instructional skills in isolation
The "Teacher Success Pathway" and its four foundational bricks: lesson design, classroom management, student engagement, and student choice
Why a well-thought-out lesson plan can prevent classroom disruptions before they start
The importance of creating strong habits to free up cognitive load for both teachers and students

Learn how to identify and fill gaps in your current instructional strategies, avoid common pitfalls that even veteran teachers fall into, and use simple ideas like video self-reflection to revolutionize your teaching. Gretchen's fresh take on reusing what works (instead of constantly reinventing the wheel) is a total game-changer for busy teachers.

Get the shareable article/transcript for this episode here.

Even young students can learn how to understand and combat misinformation, and it's a key information literacy skill in 2024.

In this episode, I'm talking to Melanie Trecek-King of Thinking is Power, because I love how her approach to the topic of misinformation is characterized by compassion and empathy.

Melanie emphasizes that everyone is susceptible to misinformation, and falling for it doesn't indicate a lack of intelligence. This perspective humanizes those who believe in conspiracy theories or disinformation, so we can view them as people who--like ourselves--have unknowingly accepted false information.

Melanie and I discuss 3 primary reasons we fall for misinformation:

Confirmation Bias: Our tendency to interpret information in ways that confirm our existing beliefs. Once we believe something, we see evidence for it everywhere, reinforcing that belief. Skepticism is crucial for protecting oneself from misinformation, but it's most challenging when information confirms our biases.

Appeals to Emotion: Emotions, particularly anger, outrage, and fear, can trigger the part of our brain that hinders critical thinking. Many forms of misinformation specifically appeal to our emotions to convince us without evidence. When we feel emotionally triggered, it's a good time to slow down and practice emotional skepticism.

Reiteration Effect: Also known as the illusory truth effect, the reiteration effect means that the more we hear something repeated, the more likely we are to think it's true, even if it isn't. Our brain equates ease of processing with truth, so repeated exposure to false information can lead us to believe it.

We also discuss the problem with "doing your own research," and why Melanie sees 2024 as a the post-trust era, not the post-truth era, and how we can respond.

The remainder of our conversation is centered on how to teach information literacy to students. Melanie provides actionable tips and ready-to-use resources to help you:
1. Demonstrate to students that they can be fooled (e.g., through personality reading exercises).
2. Discuss how beliefs are formed using non-triggering examples (e.g., historical witch trials).
3. Include misinformation in lessons to help students recognize its characteristics.
4. Use tools like the FLOATER toolkit to help students evaluate claims systematically.
5. Have students create misinformation to understand its techniques better.

While these concepts are typically taught at the college level, they can be introduced as early as middle school. Even elementary students can begin to understand concepts like author's purpose and recognizing persuasive techniques.

Understanding misinformation is crucial in our daily lives, yet it's often absent from educational standards. Check out Melanie's site for lots of free resources to teach about misinformation using humor and non-triggering approaches to help students recognize it in the real world.

Get the shareable article/transcript for this episode here.

Yes, we’re talking about accommodations FOR TEACHERS…

I recently asked educators on social media if neurodivergent staff were being offered any support, and folks had a LOT to say! In this episode I’ll share:

• What we mean when we talk about neurodivergence
• Why neurodivergence isn’t a deficiency, just a difference
• What teachers say about accommodations that are (and aren’t) happening in their schools
• The legal rights that U.S. teachers have under the Americans with Disabilities Act
• The types of supports you can request and the logistics of making them happen

From there, I’ll share the commonalities and patterns in the response from educators about what’s been helpful and what’s needed.

I’ll talk about the 5 ways schools can offer support to neurodivergent educators and what these recommendations look like in practice:

#1: Allow for flexibility and autonomy, especially within breaks
#2) Designate quiet areas and mitigate the effects of overstimulating environments
#3) Communicate proactively about scheduling and changes
#4: Give clear directives, so the invisible expectations become visible
#5) Differentiate PD and offer topics related to executive function and organization
Additionally, I’ll make the case for universal design: that’s what good for neurodivergent educators also benefits neurotypical educators, and that these practices can (and should) be implemented school-wide.

Listen in to hear more about what’s helping neurodivergent teachers thrive, and how to advocate for the support YOU need in your school.

"Transformative change means feeling different, having different experiences every day, not just little changes that feel like a band-aid."

These are the words of today’s guest, Elena Aguilar, an instructional coach whose latest book is called Arise: The Art of Transformation Coaching. (https://amzn.to/3Srseot) Through her book and our conversation today, you’re invited to teach in a “human-centered, compassionate, wildly optimistic way.”

Listen in as we discuss:

• What “transformation” looks like and how it applies to the work of classroom teachers
• Why transformation results from addressing the Three Bs: beliefs, ways of being, and behavior…
• and why that order matters Which conditions allow for beliefs to change and how we can implement them in our classrooms
• How our “ways of being” as teachers tie to transformation

As we look toward the start of a new school year, I hope that Elena’s thoughts will help you reimagine what’s possible in your classroom, and create conditions for both student transformations and your own.

Get the shareable article/transcript for this episode here.

Here’s an innovative way to get student buy-in for your cell phone policy, reduce distractions, and maximize class time.

Today you’re going to hear from Ashly Hilst, a secondary teacher at North Clackamas Christian School in Oregon City, Oregon. Ashly has taught high school English for 7 years in both public and private schools.

For the 2024 Summit for the 40 Hour Teacher Workweek, Ashly unveiled her innovative approach to managing cell phone use in the classroom, and it was so impactful I wanted to make sure more teachers had a chance to hear about it.

Her method focuses on conveying the message that "phones don't make good moments, people do," drawing from personal experiences to connect with students.

In this episode, you’ll learn from Ashly how to establish clear expectations and consequences for phone use while allowing flexibility and gentle reminders.

Discover for yourself how Ashly's approach reduces stress levels and enhances the teaching experience by promoting responsible phone habits in the classroom.

Get the transcript + free copy of Ashly’s slideshow here: https://truthforteachers.com/truth-for-teachers-podcast/how-to-get-true-student-buy-in-for-your-no-cellphone-policy/

It seems like every tech tool we use has now integrated generative artificial intelligence. Open a Google Doc, you’re prompted to use Gemini to help you write. Read a post on Facebook, Meta prompts you to “ask anything” via their AI. It’s powering our phones and our email, and the customer support chatbots on nearly every website when shopping online and even with utility companies.

AI is everywhere, and it’s designed to help save everyone time. So, why not let it help you in your role as a teacher, too?

I talked at length in episode 304 about the pros, cons, and drawbacks of AI, so if you’re worried about AI, please make sure you listen to that episode for the context.

In this episode, though, I want to show you possibilities. That’s my job. Your job is to decide what’s right for you and your classroom.

So let’s talk about possibilities.

Listen in for 5 easy ways I see currently for AI as a tool to automate teachers’ workloads:

• Differentiation
• Assessment
• Writing
• Tedious tasks
• Creative expression

And if you’d like to stay up-to-date on all the latest with artificial intelligence, check out the new 40 Hour AI membership.

Get the shareable article/transcript for this episode here.

We know there’s potential…but let’s talk about the larger implications for the profession.

In this episode, I’m sharing how AI has already transformed the way many teachers work, and exploring the ethics, best practices, and future trends for AI in schools.

Listen in to hear:

• What surprised me in a survey about schools' AI policies
• 3 principles that guide my approach to AI
• Why educators MUST shape the direction of AI (and not leave this to tech companies)
• My favorite ways to use AI to streamline teaching tasks, including differentiation and assessment
• When you might want to use ChatGPT in place of a search engine
• My recommendations for the best free AI tools for teachers
• 3 crucial mindsets to develop as you plan how to incorporate AI in your work

Let's explore the big picture overview of AI’s impact, its strengths and weaknesses as a tool for teachers, and specific ways fellow educators have used it to reduce their workload responsibly.

Get the shareable article/transcript for this episode here.

Learn about 40 Hour AI here.