Shows
PD for the SOULThe Margins are the MapDear Educator,In this episode, we delve into the essence of strategic planning with a focus on proactive and thoughtful approaches. Laneshia emphasizes the importance of designing lessons for students on the margins, highlighting that these students are not a detour but the map itself. By planning with intention and clarity, educators can create a ripple effect that benefits all learners. Join us as we explore how to protect prep time, strategize teacher moves, and ensure every student feels seen and supported. Tune in to discover how thoughtful planning can transform educational outcomes.Grab your...2025-07-2716 minPD for the SOULBridges to Belonging: Building the Foundation for High School Math SuccessDear Educator,What does it mean to truly prepare students for what lies ahead—not just academically, but emotionally, socially, and intellectually?In this episode of PD for the Soul, we’re building Bridges to Belonging with instructional leader Tara McCormick. Together, we unpack how to create the kind of math classrooms where students not only master the content—but feel seen, capable, and ready to take on the challenge of high school.Tara reminds us that belonging doesn’t begin in high school—it’s built in m...2025-07-2053 minPD for the SOULEvery Mind. Every Moment: Teaching Beyond the LabelDear Educator,What happens when we stop treating disability, race, and learning needs as separate conversations—and start seeing the whole child?In this episode, I sit down with Leroy Smith, founder of Realize Curriculum Solutions and a passionate advocate for equity in education, to explore what it means to teach at the intersection of identity and ability.Together, we challenge outdated notions of who belongs where and what success should look like. We talk about the power of culturally responsive pedagogy, why high expectations must be ro...2025-07-131h 08PD for the SOULReaching the Edges, Impacting the WholeDear Educator,What if the question that transforms your entire approach to teaching isn’t “What am I teaching?”—but “Who am I teaching for?”In this episode, we center a powerful truth: when we design our lessons for the margins, we don’t lose anyone—we reach everyone. Imagine yourself standing at the center of a circle. If your reach extends all the way to the edge, then everything in between is included. That’s the power of intentional design.We explore:What it looks an...2025-07-0618 minPD for the SOULTeaching from Within: The Power of Identity-Aligned Practice feat. Dr. Tami DeanDear Educator,What if the most powerful tool you have in your teaching practice… is you?In this episode of PD for the Soul, we’re joined by Dr. Tami Dean of Dragonfly Rising to explore the deep and transformative power of identity-aligned practice. Teaching from within isn’t a luxury—it’s a necessity for sustaining joy, equity, and authenticity in your work.Dr. Dean shares her journey as a liberatory educator, inviting us to consider how our personal experiences, core values, and lived identities shape the way we show up...2025-06-2953 minPD for the SOULCapacity Isn’t Just About Skills, It’s About SelfDear Educator, You’ve been told to protect your peace. To set boundaries. To rest. But no one talks about how—especially when the work is demanding, the days are long, and the stakes feel high.In this episode, we’re unpacking three powerful truths:Capacity isn’t fragile—it’s flexible. Growth doesn’t come from doing less; it comes from doing what matters, in a way that builds you rather than breaks you.Boundaries are not walls. They are invitations—to check in, not check out. To honor your rh...2025-06-2213 minPD for the SOULBuilding Capacity from the Inside Out: A Conversation with Raquel HopkinsDear Educator,Discomfort isn’t a sign to detour—it’s often the doorway to growth.Whether it’s an unfamiliar math concept, a challenging conversation, or a new instructional shift, we are constantly navigating spaces that stretch us. And in those moments, our first instinct may be to push it away, label it as “hard,” or find someone or something to blame. But what if we didn’t?What if we sat with it instead?This episode is an invitation to explore what it means to feel, without reacting. To p...2025-06-1541 minPD for the SOULPermission to Pause: The Rest Teachers DeserveDear Educator,This one’s for you.You’ve poured yourself out this year—lesson after lesson, meeting after meeting, heart first, always. And now? You’re spent. But before you jump into the planning, prepping, and PD… pause. You deserve rest. Not earned. Not justified. Just deserved—because you're human.In this episode, we explore the mindset shift required to embrace rest not as a reward, but as a right. We talk about why teachers—especially those who care deeply—must build in space to reset, reflect, and reconnect to what really matt...2025-06-0817 minPD for the SOULWork-Life Harmony Isn’t a Myth—It’s a MindsetDear Educator,You’ve given your all this year—lesson plans, data meetings, behavior logs, after-school duties, and more. And somewhere in the mix, you’ve tried to hold space for your own needs, your family, your friends, and your dreams outside the classroom.If you’ve ever whispered to yourself, “Something has to give…”—you’re not alone.In this episode of PD for the Soul, we’re naming what so many educators feel but rarely say out loud: Work-life harmony isn’t a myth. It’s a mindset.It’s not about...2025-06-0148 minPD for the SOULUnlocking Potential: The Power of High Expectations in MathDear Educator,What if the most powerful tool in your classroom isn’t a strategy, a curriculum, or a tech platform—but your belief?In this episode of PD for the Soul, I sit down with James Oneal for a timely and transformative conversation on unlocking student potential through the power of high expectations. James brings clarity, wisdom, and firsthand experience that will leave you both challenged and deeply inspired.Too often, we’re told to meet students “where they are”—but what if we also saw where they could be? What if we c...2025-05-2558 minPD for the SOULMath Isn’t Magic—It’s Patterns Made VisibleMany educators believe talent is the ticket to math success, but the true driver is high-quality instruction. In this powerful solo episode—the final one of Season 1—we dive into Visible Learning and explore how surface, deep, and transfer learning come together to create meaningful, lasting math understanding. I reflect on missteps I’ve made and share the transformational shift toward precision teaching and clear success criteria. This is the episode that sets you up to teach with clarity and impact.📝 Download the Season 1 Reflection Journal to go deeper.Send us a textThan...2025-05-1821 minPD for the SOULMistakes: A Luxury for Some, A Burden for OthersDear Educator,What kind of space are you creating in your classroom?In this episode of PD for the Soul, we’re challenging ourselves—and you—to take a deeper look at the unequal weight of failure in our schools. While some students are praised for “failing forward” or “learning from their mistakes,” others—particularly those from marginalized communities—face a very different reality. The same missteps that are framed as growth opportunities for some can lead to consequences, lowered expectations, or even punishment for others.The hard truth is this: failing doesn’t...2025-05-1156 minPD for the SOULFighting the Forgetting Curve: Building Generalizations That LastIn this episode, we dig into one of the biggest hurdles students face in math learning: the forgetting curve. With so many distractions today, knowledge retention is harder than ever, making it crucial for us as educators to create opportunities for students to explore mathematics deeply, not just widely. I share how building generalizations — not just memorizing facts or shortcuts — strengthens mathematical understanding and helps students connect ideas across time. We’ll talk about how to design classroom experiences that slow forgetting, deepen reasoning, and set the stage for students to thrive. Plus, I’ll share practical ways you can star...2025-05-0416 minPD for the SOULReading Between the Numbers: How Literacy Powers Math SuccessDear Educator,Math and literacy—two core subjects, often taught in silos, but deeply intertwined in practice.In this episode of PD for the Soul, titled “Reading Between the Numbers: How Literacy Powers Math Success,” we’re breaking down the invisible wall between words and numbers. Joined by the brilliant Latoya King, English and Language Arts Curriculum Specialist, we explore how reading comprehension, vocabulary, and literacy practices shape a student's ability to reason mathematically, solve problems, and communicate their thinking with clarity.We often say math is its own language...2025-04-2743 minPD for the SOULShortcuts or Setups? Teaching Math for the Long GameAs the school year winds down, this episode invites educators to pause and reflect: Are the rules we’re teaching setting students up for long-term success—or long-term confusion?From “keep, change, flip” to “move the decimal,” we explore the rules that expire—the shortcuts that might get students through today’s lesson but leave them stuck tomorrow. More importantly, we talk about what it looks like to shift toward teaching deep understanding over speed, and how to start that shift—even with just one small move before the year ends.This episode is fo...2025-04-2018 minPD for the SOULClosing Strong: Data-Driven Teaching for Maximum ImpactDear Educator,As we enter the final stretch of the school year, this episode of PD for the Soul invites you to shift from information to transformation.You’ve gathered benchmark data, you've seen your students grow—and now it’s time to make every instructional moment count. In this episode, we explore how to finish strong by using data to drive targeted instruction, balance pacing with purposeful reteaching, and build student confidence as they approach end-of-year assessments.We also introduce a powerful, practical routine to support your math block: the Thre...2025-04-1330 minPD for the SOULMaking Math Stick: The Power of Consistent RepresentationsIn this episode, we’re diving into one of the most overlooked yet powerful elements of effective math instruction: consistent representations. Too often, in the rush to prepare students for tests, we skip over the very tools that help them understand, retain, and apply what they’ve learned. The result? Students who forget concepts days—or even hours—after they’re taught.Drawing on insights from The Math Pact and Visible Learning, we explore why consistency in language, visuals, and manipulatives isn’t just helpful—it’s essential. From unpacking common misconceptions to rethinking how we use concrete...2025-04-0616 minPD for the SOULFrom Surviving to Thriving: How Maslow’s Hierarchy Shapes Teacher Well-BeingDear Educator,Teaching is more than a profession—it’s a calling, a passion, and, at times, an all-consuming responsibility. We pour so much of ourselves into our students, our classrooms, and our craft that we often forget to check in on ourselves. But here’s the thing: we can’t pour from an empty cup.In this episode, From Surviving to Thriving: How Maslow’s Hierarchy Shapes Teacher Well-Being, we’re taking a moment to reflect—not just on what we do, but on how we feel. Our thoughts shape our emotions, and our emotions influ...2025-03-3047 minPD for the SOULDo No Harm: Why Precision in Notation Is a Non-NegotiableJoin the Math Collective!Hey Educators, welcome back to the podcast! In this episode, we’re continuing our journey through The Math Pact: Achieving Instructional Coherence and Visible Learning for Mathematics. Last time, we discussed the impact of language on student understanding. Today, we’re shifting our focus to notation—a seemingly small detail that can make or break comprehension in math classrooms.Are the symbols we use actually reducing cognitive load for students, or are they unintentionally adding confusion? We’ll explore critical topics like:✅ The true meaning of the equal sign and w...2025-03-2318 minPD for the SOULTeacher Moves: How Planning with Clarity and Purpose Leads to Impact and GrowthDear Educator,We’ve all felt the pressure—the pacing guides, the curriculum maps, the looming deadlines. It’s easy to get caught up in the rush, covering as much content as possible in the shortest amount of time. But here’s the truth: depth matters more than speed.In this episode, Teacher Moves: How Planning with Clarity and Purpose Leads to Impact and Growth, we’re taking a step back to reflect on our role as educators—not just as instructors, but as scientists. Every day, we observe our classrooms, analyze student needs, and make intenti...2025-03-1644 minPD for the SOULWords Matter: How Consistency in Language Builds Math UnderstandingJoin the Math Collective!The words we use in math classrooms shape how students think about and understand mathematical concepts. In this episode, we explore how inconsistent language—like saying “reducing” fractions instead of “simplifying” or using “plug in” instead of “substituting”—can create unnecessary confusion. We’ll break down common missteps, discuss the power of precise terminology, and share strategies for reinforcing clear, consistent language that deepens comprehension. Tune in to learn how small shifts in the way we talk about math can lead to big gains in student understanding!Send us a textThanks for tuning...2025-03-0913 min