The EDVERYTHING Podcast: For Everything Education

It feels like now more than ever educators are reexamining classroom practices and procedures with a different lens; enter: 2020-2021 school year. An ever-changing learning environment calls on teachers to get creative especially when it comes to traditional classroom procedures like student note-taking. This week, Danielle and Nicole challenging student and teacher assumptions about note-taking as they ask 3 major questions and identify valuable criteria when deciding on a new note-taking approach. 

In this episode you'll hear 3 key questions every teacher should ask oneself: 

1. Does the style and organization matter? 

2.  Who are these notes for? 

3. How can provide explicit instruction on note-taking to my students? 

You'll also hear key criteria to consider when choosing a new note-taking system, procedure, or software:

1. Ease of transparency in sharing student to teacher and student to student

2. Accessibility of differentiation

3. Storage and organization options

4. Possible integration with past software

5. Compatibility with discipline and subject area

6. Cost to school and cost to student/family 

*bonus* is this tool and associate learned skill a  new addition to your #teacherresume? Can you update and revamp pre-existing content on TpT? 

Jen Gonzalez of @cultofpedagogy 

Many edupreneurs find themselves creating classroom resources to sell to other time-strapped educators. Marshall and his wife, Lindsay, decided to start a podcast, not for their fellow teachers or teacher side hustlers, but in an area where they saw a real lack: inspiring science education content. Combining Lindsay’s background in science journalism with Marshall’s passion for teaching middle school and his musical talent, the couple started Tumble, a self-described “science podcast for kids, to be enjoyed by the entire family.” In this episode, Marshall explains the process for creating each episode, how they gained the attention of brands early (and how they’ve recently leveraged this into a brand partnership), what role Patreon plays in his business (and what he’s learned that you can apply to your very own content creation account), and the invaluable role networking has played in the success of the podcast every step of the way.

To learn more about the Tumble Science Podcast:

As Summit and podcast hosts, we know a thing or two about pitching. We both receive and make pitches all the time.  Based on what we’ve seen first hand, we are breaking down some of the most important things to keep in mind in order to put together a quality pitch.

In episode 80, we talked about the homework that should be done behind the scenes before sending out that pitch so that when your message or application gains attention, those hosts are impressed with what they see from you in #alltheplaces. And while that episode was centered on you, much of what to do in the pitch itself is actually not.

Today, we are going to help put you in the right mindset and help you focus on the right things when it comes to filling out applications or making cold pitches.  In this episode you’ll hear:

-How even without having experience with pitching, you’ve probably done something very similar before in the form of cover letters

-The ways in which being specific— and making those connections outside of the pitch itself can be invaluable

-How the emphasis needs to be on what you offer them, not what just what you’ll get out of the experience or what degrees you’ve got

Links mentioned

Why showcase student work—and why not use the bulletin board

• Sends the message that you value student work
• Makes students collaborators in the shared space
• Reinforces the idea that the teacher isn't necessarily the only audience
• Gives others a glimpse into your classroom and what you are working on

Time to think outside the traditional bulletin board
Bulletin boards might be the most common method for displaying student work-- but that doesn't make it the only way to show what students can produce

As the new normal of working from home actually begins to feel a bit more normal, it may be time to make our digital classrooms feel a little bit more like the home away from home our physical classrooms have always been. So many teachers pride themselves on making their classrooms a comfortable, welcoming space, full of personality, and inspiration. But can we say the same for our virtual classrooms? Though this may have been overlooked when the sudden transition to remote learning occurred, now that it seems likely that many schools will be settling into distance learning for an extended time, potentially even ending the year in this way, we can turn our attention to the small ways that we can make our online classrooms replicate the physical ones we left behind.

Whether these customizations help you infuse a bit of your personality as a reminder to your students that you truly are there on the other side of the screen, instill a little humor or positivity to help brighten a tough time, or create motivation when it could be lacking, this effort helps make the continuation of learning feel like a true extension of the classroom you and your students have developed all year.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-Reasons why customization of your classroom benefits you, your students— and your side hustle

-How bitmojis can help you make your classroom feel more personal even without sharing an actual image of yourself

-Ways beyond the visual to make your classroom feel like your space

Links mentioned:

When school is in session, whether knowingly or not, you likely have a routine. That set of tasks you do regularly, perhaps even unconsciously, from the time you wake up through your commute and continue straight through til the final bell rings and you head home for the day. And while everyone’s typical routine may look a little different, the COVID 19 outbreak has almost certainly caused a major disruption to your daily schedule. With the sudden shift to remote learning, you may feel like you are at a loss for how to manage your time and what to prioritize when things seem so far from ordinary.

When working from home, it can be more challenging to put together routines, but it can also be that much more important for creating and maintaining healthy boundaries.  When your home is your office, it can be tempting to have no exact end time to your work day or to try to take each morning at a leisurely pace. While far from experts, we’ve each started settling into our new routine, and we are hoping that this episode inspires you to do just the same.

We know that everyone's routine will look a little different based on what your home situation looks like, what grade level you teach, what your school expects-- and a myriad of other factors. While we are routine enthusiasts, we don't think there is one right way to go about your day; as a result, instead of a prescriptive checklist, we have provided you with a framework—in the form of this very episode and a free, fully customizable workbook and checklist so you quickly determine your priorities and develop a routine for what actually works for you.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-What does NOT work for us in terms of our new morning routines

-Changes we’ve made to our classroom routines from day 1 of remote learning til now

-Why a classroom routine students can expect is great—but isn’t synonymous with being rigid

-A few things that you can celebrate crossing off your typical after school rings to-do list

-Why boundary setting is extra important during remote learning

Links mentioned:

-Episode 22

When a lesson is going really well, it seems like time absolutely flies by. But how often have we had that same sensation, not knowing where the time went, when our daily prep period comes to an end--yet you have nothing to show for it?

We want to instill time management skills in our students, but if we are being truly honest with ourselves, we don’t always use our own as strategically as possible.  When unexpected parent emails, makeup exams, and copying machine jams come up, we too often resort to dealing with what is urgent and not what should be a priority.  We’ve heard all the suggestions about setting boundaries and we want to bring home less school work, but how we can do that effectively when required meetings after school or providing extra help claims that chunk of time as well?  Add in the desire to grow your teacher side hustle account after the bell rings, and it can seem like there is no time at all left.

While actually getting more time is impossible, a handful of mindset shifts, online tools, and smart techniques can help you make the most of the time you do have, making those 2020 goals within reach.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

Why letting go of perfectionism is a vital first step for implementing almost any time-saving strategy
How templates can be the time-saver you need for regular interactions at home-- and how to keep those organized
The free website for lesson planning that helps you stay standards focused while saving time
What a social media scheduler is-- and how to pick one without getting overwhelmed
The monthly social media template pack, by teachers, for teachers, so you never post on Instagram without a plan again

Links mentioned:

EDverything Social

For many motivated teacherpreneurs, we strive to be successful in the classroom and online. But for so many teacher side hustlers, the latter half only takes one form, and that’s TeachersPayTeachers. Like many entrepreneurs, Brooke wanted to explore what multiple streams of income look like rather than limiting herself to the traditional classroom/TpT combo. For Brooke, the natural extension of her classroom lessons was to create and curate an Amazon Storefront.

Brooke’s Instagram account, like her Amazon storefront, is all-encompassing. You won’t find just Classroom Transformation products there. Brooke realized that serving all of a teacher's needs—from providing gift guides and outfits of the day to solutions for flexible seating— would yield the greatest profit and provide teachers with #allthethings they are looking for.

Stop thinking about Amazon as just the place where you shop for the next thing you need; it’s about to start looking at it as an opportunity for generating the kind of income you want while providing your fellow teachers with tried and true recommendations that they are looking for.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-Why making connections on Instagram is the first step— literally

-Why you shouldn’t just limit yourself to one category

-How to make your Storefront turn your Wishlist into a reality

-The Do’s and Don’t of starting your Amazon storefront

Links mentioned:

Aliana Lowe's @theyoungeducator episode 

https://anchor.fm/edverything/episodes/Episode-13-How-To-Document-Your-Teaching-Journey-And-Why-Every-Educator-Should-with-Aliana-Lowe-e2olre

@Teacherbestill

As teachers, we wear many hats: educator, support system, advocate, mentor. But how many of us--even knowing the benefits--participate actively in a relationship in which we are being mentored?

It goes without saying that we are big proponents of on-going professional development--after all, it's why we host The Total Teacher Summit each year. But many teachers mistakenly don't realize that being part of a mentor/mentee relationship can be an extension of that type of PD. It can be a way to combat the isolation so common in the field of education. It can be a way to take care of ourselves.

And it doesn't need to take place in person.

In this episode, we debunk some of the most pervasive myths about mentorship, and we focus on how to be a good mentee when your mentor is only someone you know in the digital space. Viewing those Teacher influencers we look up to on social media as mentors rather than individuals we follow reframes the conversation about who can be mentors--and we share some ideas on how to give back so these are the mutually beneficial relationships that the mentor/mentee experience should be.

In this episode, you'll hear:
-Why you probably already have a virtual "mentor" but you'd never put that label on it before
-Why passively "liking" posts is not enough--and what you should do instead
-How to ask questions in a way that truly helps the mentor


Links mentioned:
-Episode 30: How To Be A Good Mentor/Mentee

https://anchor.fm/edverything/episodes/Episode-30-A-How-To-Guide-For-Being-A-Good-MentorMentee-e3oufk

-Guest blog post link

Make sure to tell your story; your followers want to see you. It’s the advice that we hear time and time again when it comes to Instagram.

For Speech and Language Pathologist Macy Gilson, the individuals that she helps find their voice are a critical part of her story and the word she wants to spread, and nowhere is that more obvious than in her online presence on Instagram and the web. Nowadays, the word Instagram is nearly synonymous with the word influence. But what exactly are we trying to do with that influence?

As a Disability Advocate, Macy has leveraged these platforms to make children living with disabilities more visible. Her feed not only shows the behind the scenes of what her life is like as a telecommuting speech pathologist but also highlights the beauty and joy present in these exceptional children living with a wide range of disabilities.

Macy is on a mission to demystify difference, providing resources to help both educators and parents alike have what may initially seem like challenging conversations surrounding the topic of disability.

Do those who are differently-abled feel like they have a space and a voice in your classroom? Macy provides practical, simple solutions for making sure those who are differently-abled feel represented in the classroom as well as tactics to help students focus on areas of shared similarities rather than differences.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-What it’s like to be a telecommuting speech pathologist

-How literature can be leveraged to increase inclusivity

-How to increase the visibility of those who are disabled even in non-humanities/language-focused courses

-How Macy has used Instagram to create a community for parents of children living with disabilities

-How she creates an a cohesive Instagram feed even when so many of the posts aren’t directly about her or her story

Links mentioned: 

Macy's website including her blog, stories, resources, videos & more: 

If you are living the teacherpreneur lifestyle, you are potentially facing burnout on two fronts. Both teaching and entrepreneurship are time-consuming and energy-intensive efforts, evident in the high attrition rates in the field of education as well as the dismal percentage of small businesses that ever reach success. With so much to do and so much stacked against us, why are so many of making our lives that much more difficult by seeing teaching and our side hustle as separate rather than linked activities? With this simple mindset shift, we can save time and energy without making any sacrifices in terms of either career or ethics.

In episode 69, we talk about how to make your school time work double duty so you won’t have to.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• A simple solution for endless, authentic Instagram captions

• A strategy for long-form content post ideas

to put in your TpT, Etsy store, etc

• Questions to consider to help you find your next great product

• A trick for creating those often intimidating product lines

Links mentioned:

• Episode 54: The New Student Welcome Wagon

We teach our students not to judge a book by its cover, but if we are being completely honest, we probably aren’t living what we preach when it comes to how we act online. Even though intellectually we realize that we may be missing out on great teaching insight in a long-form IG caption, a blog post linked to from Pinterest, or a TpT product, without an appealing visual to accompany it, it will almost certainly be overlooked.

It’s time other teachers stop missing out on all you have to offer online. It’s time to get seen and heard, and it all starts with the visual message you are sending.

While we certainly hope you use a service like EDverything Social to help you fill your IG feed with quality images when you need stock photos, for the rest of your posts, make it personal. After all, your followers want to see you. It’s time to get out of our comfort zones and get in front of the camera. Having two of our own brand photoshoots under our belts, we are sharing all the lessons we learned first hand so you don’t make the same mistakes on your first go-round.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-What exactly to set goals around to get the most out of your photoshoot

-Why a secret Pinterest board can help make your day far more successful

-What to keep in mind when selecting your photoshoot site (and why scouting the location and the time of day/year need to be factored in)

-The mindset shift you may need to hear so you don’t feel out of place as a model

Links Mentioned:

EDverything Social:

Whether you are looking to make an impact in the classroom or on social media, being a teacher is all about making connections.  But in order to do that, you need to put yourself out there, and though that may sound simple, for many of us, that act is no easy feat.  In a helping-oriented industry, it can seem like talking about yourself is a way of putting yourself first, but that isn’t accurate. Those who already want to learn from you will only like and trust you more when you let them know who you are on a deeper level while those who may have initially been less intrinsically motivated might have interest in the subject matter you teach sparked by discovering you share similar tastes in something else.

Often we only think about getting to know our students and having them get to know us in return as something to dedicate time to at the beginning of the school year. But even months in, it isn’t too late; in fact, it may even be the ideal time now that students are no longer overwhelmed with the multitude of new faces to learn. Long after Meet The Teacher packets have been lost and Back to School Night seems like a distant memory, there are plenty of strategies and opportunities for us to infuse more of our personality into each lesson, getting students more invested in our class and more connected on a personal level.  From working small jokes or references into your regularly scheduled lessons to being conscientious of how you present yourself during spirit days, we want you to incorporate aspects of what matters to you without making the class, day, or lessons about you.

While you may be making the effort IRL, are you doing the same on IG?  So often we assume that because we want to add value that everything we post needs to be academic or classroom-centered but that would ignore the critical human element that you know is necessary to make true learning work.

It’s time to let the perspective and personality behind each lesson shine, in the classroom and online.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-How bell ringers present an easy opportunity to put a little bit of you (as in your bitmoji) into your regular warm-up activity

-Why you need to get involved in school activities like spirit days as an easy win and ice breaker

-About a simple test to put your IG feed through to see if you are showing up recognizably as “you”

-About the free guide that we made to help you come up with and remember the personal stories to share on Instagram (and how to get your hands on it)

Links mentioned:

Total Teacher Summit: 

Even with an increase in emphasis on career and college readiness, when will we ever use this is one of those perpetual complaints we hear from students.  It can be difficult to find time to meet all the standards while preparing students for standardized tests, leaving little room for covering some of the real-world skills that we know students need-- but don’t know where along the way they will learn them.  But Thom Gibson proves that we can cover some real-life financial literacy no matter what age group or subject you teach, all the while improving classroom management, students’ responsibility, and even saving you, the teacher, valuable time.

Thom is an award-winning middle school math teacher who realized the potential of creating a classroom economy that goes far beyond having rotating students fulfill a generic role each week.  Thom has customized the jobs-- and salaries-- that can be earned for each position, ensuring that he has incentivized students and covered tasks that help his classroom run more smoothly (never connect your own device to the projector again! 🙌).  Monthly student-run auctions keep students interested, allowing Thom to manage student behavior by making students pay “fines” (tracked by, you guessed it, a fellow student) and instilling in students the values of budgeting and investing, all in the background of his regularly scheduled lessons.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-How Thom’s background as an audio engineering major informed his YouTube channel growth

-Why classroom jobs aren’t just for the elementary school setting

-How to determine your classroom jobs--and have students apply for them

-How the one-time prep work of setting up the classroom economy can save you time in the classroom each day

-How to “pay” students, why make students pay “rent” on their desks, what students can bid on at auctions, and how to put all the pieces together to use it as an incredibly powerful classroom management tool

Links mentioned: 

Thom's Website:

When a lesson is going really well, it seems like time absolutely flies by. But how often have we had that same sensation, not knowing where the time went, when our daily prep period comes to an end--yet you have nothing to show for it?

We want to instill time management skills in our students, but if we are being truly honest with ourselves, we don’t always use our own as strategically as possible.  When unexpected parent emails, makeup exams, and copying machine jams come up, we too often resort to dealing with what is urgent and not what should be a priority.  We’ve heard all the suggestions about setting boundaries and we want to bring home less school work, but how we can do that effectively when required meetings after school or providing extra help claims that chunk of time as well?  Add in the desire to grow your teacher side hustle account after the bell rings, and it can seem like there is no time at all left.

While actually getting more time is impossible, a handful of mindset shifts, online tools, and smart techniques can help you make the most of the time you do have, making those 2020 goals within reach.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why letting go of perfectionism is a vital first step for implementing almost any time-saving strategy
  
• How templates can be the time-saver you need for regular interactions at home-- and how to keep those organized
  
• The free website for lesson planning that helps you stay standards focused while saving time
  
• What a social media scheduler is-- and how to pick one without getting overwhelmed
  
• The monthly social media template pack, by teachers, for teachers, so you never post on Instagram without a plan again
  

Links mentioned:

• EDverything Social

Those in education know that teacher attrition rates are alarmingly high. Inadequate preparation, unrealistic expectations, and little support early on are only a fraction of why people flee from the field. With meager salaries, long hours of lesson planning and grading, and the ever-changing standards and requirements on one hand and the seemingly endless opportunities presented by the internet on the other, the lure of leaving the classroom behind seems a pull too strong to resist, removing some of the best from this career path.

Mandy is on a mission to help great teachers right where they belong—in the classroom—while still achieving financial success and the larger impact they crave.

Mandy got her start in the online space on YouTube, teaching other educators how to implement a flipped classroom experience. She took what she had learned teaching high schoolers AP Psych using a flipped-classroom approach and turned these insights into actionable steps. From there, Mandy wanted to help her fellow AP instructors, giving them their own time back while still helping students achieve those coveted high test scores. Mandy began a membership website and explains how others can take their content area expertise and do the same.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-Why the flipped classroom approach is student-centered and student serving

-How to flip your classroom—without getting overwhelmed

-Why opt for a membership site instead of simply posting one-off resources for TpT

Links mentioned: 

Mandy's website: 

As educators, our goal is to have students learn, but what does learning actually look like? English teacher and workshop creator Ashley Bible has always felt like real learning doesn’t have the traditional look of students quietly sitting at a desk in rows; in fact, nowadays you’ll find her students striking yoga poses while performing close readings and creating art inspired by the literature instead of always writing about it. While her strong pedagogical beliefs didn’t align with the first district she was hired by and ultimately ended up costing her that position, Ashley’s ability to add the element of the unexpected to the high school English classroom appeals to students and is at the core of the resources she now designs and the professional development she offers for fellow educators.

In our conversation with Ashley, we discuss how utilizing our creativity (and asking students to do the same) doesn’t mean that you need to sacrifice high standards or deeper, critical thinking. By reframing the same task in a slightly different way, we can spark students’ interest and make them feel like engaging with the content can be challenging while also being fun or relevant.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-The exact, devastating feedback that Ashely received that no first-year teacher wants

-How the vibe from a children’s bookstore inspired Ashley to network with like-minded educators— and eventually create an annual, in-person workshop for teachers

-Why experiencing wonder shouldn’t be reserved for the elementary school crowd

-A completely free, nearly zero prep time method of creating a classroom transformation

-An easy to follow framework for adding wonder into any lesson— regardless of subject matter or grade level

Links mentioned:

Ashley's website:

Whether it is helping us save time, adding an interesting new spin to an otherwise routine classroom activity, or allowing us to make our classrooms a little greener, we can’t get enough of technology. Hardly an episode goes by when we don’t reference at least one piece of technology we’ve been using, but in today’s episode, tech takes center stage.

In today’s episode, we count down our tried and true favorite tech things of 2019. While we certainly aren’t abandoning our perpetual go to’s (Socrative and Kahoot will always have a place in our lesson plans!), we want to bring some new-to-us pieces of tech to your attention this holiday season. As winter break draws nearer and attention spans (for you and your students) become a little shorter, these websites and apps will keep your students engaged and focused until the last bell rings.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-Why the time before the upcoming holiday season is the perfect time to introduce these new tech items to your class

-A language teacher’s answer to finding a safe space for authentic, real-time chat

-An app that allows you to bring oral presentations into the 21st century— and gives you a format students will feel familiar with

-Two new review games to help you mix things up (whether you need students to value accuracy or you need an added fun element on that given day)

-The must-have teacher app for managing BYOD iPads

Links mentioned:

Episode 5: 5 Mistakes Your Making When Teaching Vocabulary

Now more than ever, teachers have a lot on their plate. In addition to the regular responsibilities of lesson planning and grading, additional pressures to foster classroom community, focus on student wellness, increase standardized test scores, and keep up with the competitive Instagram teacher community can leave anyone feeling stressed and pulled in many different directions. But Melissa wants to help teachers feel more in control, helping them use their time more effectively by offering high quality, research-based curriculum products and actionable advice so teachers no longer just get by but truly thrive in the classroom each and every day.

Melissa is the curriculum designer behind Teacher Thrive. Melissa explains how her foray into curriculum design happened organically, long before she had even heard about TeachersPayTeachers and while she was very much in the trenches of the classroom herself. What was a gig to craft curriculum for her district ended up aligning with her stage of life all the better, and Melissa has never looked back. Now, Melissa’s blog and shop allow her to reach even more teachers, giving them the tools they need inside the classroom and the advice they need to hear.

While Melissa has crafted curricula for many different areas, Melissa deep dives into strategies for reading fluency, providing tips that can be immediately implemented no matter what grade level or subject you teach.

In this episode, you’ll hear,

-How your own district may be just the place to start when designing curriculum

-Why teacher wellness (and particularly your sleep) play a big role in your success in and out of the classroom

-What exactly reading fluency means—and the strategies you can use in your classroom to promote reading fluency

Links mentioned: 

Melissa's website, blog, and ready-made downloads

Episode 60 is here— and with it, we have a very special guest! Leadoff Total Teacher Summit presenter and absolute organization guru Kelly Jackson comes to us all the way from Germany to give us her best advice when it comes to getting your classroom in order— and keeping it that way.

In our interview with Kelly, we chat all about how to troubleshoot common trouble areas in the classroom in terms of organization. Whether you work with little kids or big kids, students (and teachers!) require a lot of stuff— and it is up to you to make sure it all has somewhere to call home. Kelly explains how classroom organization isn’t a matter of vanity, but a necessity, showing that organization and classroom management go hand in hand. Kelly provides practical, actionable tips to get your classroom in order because after all, a classroom in working order is classroom where students can actually work!

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-Why organization isn’t a 'set it and forget it' item on a teacher’s back to school list

-Why ANY teacher can get organized, no matter your personality type

-Why you need to be organized no matter what grade level you teach— and what high school educators can learn from their elementary school teaching peers

Links Mentioned:

For many new mothers, heading back to the classroom after maternity leave presents new challenges and many changes. Tune in as Danielle shares her experience and major takeaways from the lense of a new mom and experienced teacher. 

In this episode, you'll hear how Danielle: 

• Broke bad habits
• Created more realistic timelines/expectations for herself and her students 
• Developed more strategic, streamlined grading 
• Leveraged technology 
• Utilized resources others have already made 

Links mentioned: 

The grading system created by Emily Aierstok of @readitwriteitlearnit 

For many of us, making our students feel seen and heard is a major priority. After all, we want them to feel valued and to know what they have to offer matters. While it may be easy for ourselves, as the educator in the front of the room, to recognize what we bring to the table inside the classroom, when we leave that environment and enter the supersaturated, competitive space that is Instagram for Teachers, we may find ourselves feeling a bit lost in a sea of seemingly similar voices. How can we find our specialty and deliver our message to those we connect with? Alissa, a teacher turned visibility coach, is ready to share just what it takes to turn that desire into a reality.

Alissa is self-taught at finding traction on social, but she approaches it from a business perspective first, given her own background as a small business owner. A once local business owner with her sister, Alissa taught herself the ins and outs of marketing for small businesses, and others started seeking her out so they could follow the same strategy. Nowadays, Alissa is applying this same framework to help fellow teachers grow their side hustle online, helping them with the element they need the most improvement with : getting visible.

Links mentioned: 

Alissa's website:

This week Danielle & Nicole debrief after Nicole's experience at Create & Cultivate's first-ever Small Business Summit. 

As blossoming small business owners ourselves, we're always seeking the opportunity to communicate, connect and learn alongside others especially in the presence of the greats (um, hellooo Marie Forleo!) Nicole took the opportunity to join 500 other small business owners on their journey. This all-day NYC event featured icons like Courtney Quinn, Arielle Loren, Puno Dostres, Lisa Price, Sophia Bush and Stacey London, and of course, Jaclyn Johnson. 

In this episode, Danielle interviews Nicole on her experience at the Small Business Summit and how some of her key takeaways are relevant and applicable to the classroom, a growing small business, and beyond.  

You'll hear some of the top content and advice from the experts mentioned above, but one key piece that Nicole walked away with is crafting a true "pitch". In the link below, you'll get a true tutorial of how to do this for your own platform. 

Check out Puno Dostres' take on the ultimate pitch. 

This week on the Edverything Podcast, we feature Stacey Ogden, the founder of @SideHustleTeachers. Stacey is a veteran music educator turned blogger turned podcaster, turned edupreneur coach. Stacey is an incredible example of owning her role as a teacher, but not allowing this to define every aspect of her life so that she can fully embrace her multiple passions and encourage others to do the same (and maybe make a little extra income along the way!) 

Stacey created a free online community which allows her to deep dive with teachers who want to start a business as a way to stay busy over the summer, or want a different way to pursue their passions, or make a little extra income, or are looking to transition out of the classroom altogether. Stacey is so very present with her community to not only offer free resources, support, real-time feedback, but she offers a free 15-minute call with each new member to truly learn about how she can support and guide their transition to side-hustling. 

Stacey’s goal is to help her clients become equipped with the skills, knowledge, and confidence to run successful businesses, and boy, does she do it well. 

In this episode, we hone in on some of the main reasons teachers hesitate committing fully to a side business, why we need to stop learning and start doing,  3 major questions to ask yourself before starting a side hustle, and how to avoid major pitfalls associated with the early stages of side businesses. 

If you do anything after today’s episode, I hope it is to join @sidehustleteachers on Facebook. Did you know there are over 2,700 members?!

Links mentioned: 

Stacey's website: 

While using holidays as a source of inspiration for lessons is a common practice in the lower grades, tackling a day as serious as 9/11 can yield important and productive teaching moments at the high school level.  While some may shy away from this topic, it is possible to incorporate a respectful and meaningful lesson on Sept. 11 that connects and enhances the curriculum for your subject area discipline.

Why Discuss 9/11 in the Classroom

New year, new me...well, sort of! Danielle & Nicole debrief after the Total Teacher Summit 2019 and share how watching more than 20+ talks put on by experts from around the world really changed their perspectives as the new school year approaches. In hearing talks that ranged from best practices for teacher self-care to automizing systems in your classroom to ultimately take less work home with you, it's safe to say that there were many major takeaways from this weekend. 

You know that you need to make your students give presentations. Being able to present is a lifeskill they need to have and it may even be part of your Common Core Standards. But oral presentations might inspire you with just as much dread as your students. Whether you are filled with trepidation knowing how anxiety-ridden some of your students will get at at the thought of standing in front of the class, exasperation at the monotonous subject matter that too often fills the speeches, or downright resentment as you watch the rest of the class tuning out the speaker from their desk, pleased to do the bare minimum as they skate by for the class period, oral presentations seem like a stale vestige of what education looks like. 

In this episode, Danielle and Nicole discuss how reframing the traditional oral presentation as a virtual summit breathes new life into this tired assignment. Though virtual summits are only now gaining traction in the online education and entrepreneurship communities, we think they have incredible potential for the classroom setting as well. From having students practice soft skills to increased critical thinking and options for demonstrating that they truly know their audience, we dig into why we believe that a class-wide virtual summit would be a great addition to your the projects your planning for your students this upcoming school year.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

-How the typical oral presentations have the same pitfalls as essays

-How to save class time by using making use of the Flipped Classroom concept 

-How using “Chat” makes for a more authentic way and engaging way for the “viewers” to participate

-How student ownership and virtual summits go hand in hand

Links mentioned

Organization is on the top of our minds—that is what we’ve been doing! The Total Teacher Summit is keeping us busy, and we are organization central! Scheduling talks, coordinating with our nearly 2 dozen speakers at this point—it can be a lot to manage.

But we know that we aren’t the only ones that have to think about organization…as we approach August, now is the time to start thinking about all the systems to put into place, because, honestly, if you think things will just fall into place…they won’t. You need to be intentional.

-Fitting for the final episode of the Summer Series Playlist— this is the logistics episode!

-When thinking about those first few days, don’t forget about the time before 

Episode 31: Flexible seating with Nicki Dingraudo