• How to Bring the Medal of Honor Character Development Program to Your School for FREE

    , , , , ,
    , , ,

    🔥 How can we promote values like courage, commitment, and sacrifice in our learning communities?

    🔥 What is the Medal of Honor Character Development Program, and how can it impact your school?

    Join me for this conversation with California middle school teacher and trainer Marilynn Alford-Walsh as she shares her insights on these and other critical questions.

    About This Guest

    Marilynn has been in education for over 30 years, teaching all grade levels from preschool through middle school. Today, she teaches middle school science, college and career, technology, and education courses.  She’s also been a national curriculum trainer for the Medal of Honor Character Development Program for the past 13 years, and uses the program regularly with her middle school students. 

    You can find out more about the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s

    Tune in for my regular Teachers on Fire interviews, airing LIVE on YouTube every Saturday morning at 8:00am Pacific and 11:00am Eastern! Join the conversation and add your comments to the broadcast.

    In This Conversation

    • 0:28 – Who is Marilynn Alford-Walsh?
    • 1:28 – Marilynn’s story: Building connections with middle schoolers
    • 4:31 – Six Core Values: Courage, Commitment, Integrity, Sacrifice, Citizenship, Patriotism
    • 5:21 – What is courage?
    • 6:09 – What is integrity?
    • 6:51 – What is citizenship?
    • 7:31 – What is sacrifice?
    • 10:11 – How the Character Development Program has impacted Marilynn’s students
    • 12:43 – How the CDP supports writing and thinking skills
    • 14:35 – How Marilynn plans to use the CMOHS Path to Honor this year
    • 16:02 – How schools can connect with Medal of Honor recipients
    • 18:55 – A tour of FREE teacher resources at cmohs.org
    • 32:54 – A recommended teaching resource: EduProtocols
    • 34:33 – A new resource to check out: WeWillWrite.com
    • 35:34 – A book recommendation: The Shark and the Goldfish by Jon Gordon
    • 38:14 – How teachers can connect with the FREE Character Development Program

    Connect with Teachers on Fire and Host Tim Cavey

    Song Track Credit

    • Tropic Fuse by French Fuse
    • GO! by Neffex

    *All songs retrieved from the YouTube Audio Library at https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary/.

  • Hope for New Teachers with Resource Teacher Lucas Clarke

    ,
    ,

    🔥 How has the teaching profession changed over the last five years?

    🔥 What would you say to a rookie teacher struggling with imposter syndrome?

    🔥 As federal elections approach, what is the role of the Social Studies teacher?

    Join me for this conversation with New Brunswick resource teacher and podcaster Lucas Clarke as he shares his insights on these and other critical questions.

    About This Guest

    Lucas is an academic support teacher in Saint John, New Brunswick, and the host of the Mr. Clarke After Dark podcast.

    Connect with Lucas

    • on Linkedin,
    • on Instagram and TikTok @mrclarke.afterdark, 
    • on his podcast Mr. Clarke After Dark, and
    • on his YouTube channel @MrClarkeAfterDark.

    Tune in for my regular Teachers on Fire interviews, airing LIVE on YouTube every Saturday morning at 8:00am Pacific and 11:00am Eastern! Join the conversation and add your comments to the broadcast.

    In This Conversation

    • 0:30 – Who is Lucas Clarke?
    • 1:33 – Two stories of adversity
    • 11:55 – Why Lucas moved from Alberta to Saint John, New Brunswick
    • 16:59 – Lucas’s current position as Academic Support Teacher (Resource Teacher)
    • 20:06 – Resource teacher strategy: Pull students out or push in?
    • 24:39 – Advice for new teachers struggling with Imposter Syndrome
    • 28:54 – How has education changed over the last five years?
    • 32:40 – What is the role of the Social Studies teacher as federal elections loom?
    • 38:14 – The Mr. Clarke After Dark Podcast
    • 43:25 – A productivity hack: grade fewer assignments
    • 45:41 – An edtech app pick: Epic
    • 47:18 – A book recommendation: The Boy Who Was Raised As a Dog
    • 48:56 – An educator to follow online: George Couros
    • 50:17 – Where to connect with Lucas online

    Connect with Teachers on Fire and Host Tim Cavey

    Song Track Credit

    • Tropic Fuse by French Fuse
    • GO! by Neffex

    *All songs retrieved from the YouTube Audio Library at https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary/.

  • The Impact of Mentorship with Lauren Kaufman

    , , ,
    , , ,

    🔥 What does a coaching mindset look like in professional observations?

    🔥 How important is mentorship when it comes to the growth of school leaders?

    🔥 How can we better support the learning of our youngest readers and writers?

    Join me for this conversation with author and Director of Literacy Lauren Kaufman as she shares her insights on these and other critical questions.

    About This Guest

    Lauren is passionate about empowering teachers to lead and develop lifelong literacy practices in all learners. She serves as a Director of Literacy K-12 in Long Island and is the author of The Leader Inside: Stories of Mentorship to Inspire the Leader Within. You’ll find Lauren’s work on her blog, podcasts, The Teach Better Team, Future Ready Schools, and in various publications including Edutopia, Education Week, George Couros’s Because of a Teacher, and Lainie Rowell’s Evolving With Gratitude.

    Connect with Lauren

    • on Linkedin,
    • on X @LaurenMKaufman,
    • on Instagram @LaurenMKaufman, and
    • at her website, www.LaurenMKaufman.com.

    Tune in for my regular Teachers on Fire interviews, airing LIVE on YouTube every Saturday morning at 8:00am Pacific and 11:00am Eastern! Join the conversation and add your comments to the broadcast.

    In This Conversation

    • 0:23 – Who is Lauren Kaufman?
    • 1:47 – Overcoming the disappointment of unmet expectations
    • 5:56 – How can mentorship impact the growth of school leaders?
    • 12:58 – Can formal mentorship structures make a difference?
    • 18:00 – What does the ideal mentorship arrangement look like?
    • 23:11 – What does a coaching mindset look like during teacher observations?
    • 30:07 – What does 30-second feedback look like?
    • 33:40 – The power of job-embedded learning as a model for Pro D
    • 36:23 – A personal productivity hack: slow reading and note-taking
    • 38:22 – Lauren’s edtech tool picks: Canva and Notebook LM
    • 39:16 – A book recommendation: Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara
    • 40:13 – Inspiring educators to follow: Darrin Peppard, Sean Gaillard, Meghan Lawson, Adam Welcome
    • 41:14 – Where to connect with Lauren Kaufman

    Connect with Teachers on Fire and Host Tim Cavey

    Song Track Credit

    • Tropic Fuse by French Fuse
    • GO! by Neffex

    *All songs retrieved from the YouTube Audio Library at https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary/.

  • Student Makerspace Design Activities with Jesus Huerta

    , , , ,
    , , , ,

    🔥 What does your school’s dream makerspace look like?

    🔥 Will AR and VR tools ever impact K-12 education in a significant way?

    🔥 How are students using 3D printing, laser cutting, and sublimation to create?

    Join me for this conversation with education technology coach Jesus Huerta as he shares his insights on these and other critical questions.

    About This Guest

    Jesus is an education technology coach based in southern California who believes that access to technology should not be determined by demographics. He believes that improved technology in the classroom can lead to higher engagement and spark student interest in STEAM careers from a young age.

    Connect with Jesus

    • on Linkedin
    • on X @jesush1979
    • on TikTok @jesush1979 
    • on Instagram @Mrhuertasclass

    Tune in for my regular Teachers on Fire interviews, airing LIVE on YouTube every Saturday morning at 8:00am Pacific and 11:00am Eastern! Join the conversation and add your comments to the broadcast.

    In This Conversation

    0:29 – Who is Jesus Huerta?

    1:50 – Story time: rekindling his fire for teaching after the pandemic

    5:17 – The state of 3D printing opportunities in K-12 schools today

    11:36 – What are K-12 students creating with laser cutting and sublimation?

    16:12 – Project-based learning that solves real-world problems for others

    21:48 – What would be in your dream school makerspace?

    27:37 – Game design as a teaching tool in the classroom

    34:23 – Will AR and VR tools ever make a big impact in K-12 classrooms?

    45:32 – Jesus’s productivity hack: making lists

    46:02 – An edtech tool pick: Canva

    47:03 – An inspiring educator to follow online: Martin Ricardo Cisneros  @TheTechProfe  

    48:20 – How to connect with Jesus Huerta online

    Connect with Teachers on Fire and Host Tim Cavey

    Song Track Credit

    • Tropic Fuse by French Fuse
    • GO! by Neffex

    *All songs retrieved from the YouTube Audio Library at https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary/.

  • Grade Less with Arthur Chiaravalli

    , , , , ,
    , , , , , , ,

    🔥 What does it mean to grow beyond grades?

    🔥 What works about standards-based grading, and where does it fall short?

    🔥 How can we deemphasize grades and shift the focus to growth in our practice?

    Join me for this conversation with assessment leader Arthur Chiaravalli as he shares his insights on these and other critical questions.

    About This Guest

    In his teaching career, Arthur has taught mathematics, language arts, media arts, and technology. He has a passion for helping teachers move toward more humane, effective approaches to assessment, feedback, and reporting that help students develop positive beliefs in their abilities. He is also the founder of Grow Beyond Grades, a global group of educators convinced that teaching and learning is better when we grade less.

    Connect with Arthur

    Tune in for my regular Teachers on Fire interviews, airing LIVE on YouTube every Saturday morning at 8:00am Pacific and 11:00am Eastern! Join the conversation and add your comments to the broadcast.

    In This Conversation

    0:29 – Who is Arthur Chiaravalli?

    2:01 – Arthur’s story: hitting an assessment rock bottom in Atlanta

    5:49 – The wins and losses of SBG, or Standards-Based Grading

    10:56 – Defining gradeless and the practice of grading less

    13:40 – Arthur describes his first steps on the journey of grading less

    19:55 – Benefits from de-emphasizing grades and focusing on growth

    24:30 – Increasing student engagement and engagement

    29:56 – Arthur’s laments regarding traditional grading practices

    36:47 – Why Teachers Going Gradeless became Grow Beyond Grades

    39:15 – An update on Arthur’s upcoming book

    41:01 – What’s next for the Grow Beyond Grades team

    43:48 – Arthur’s passion for family, exploring Vermont

    44:34 – A productivity hack: Google apps and Calendar

    45:24 – A book recommendation: The Dialogic Imagination by Mikhail Bakhtin

    46:33 – Someone to follow online: Human Restoration Project

    47:54 – What Arthur’s streaming: Martin Short videos on YouTube

    49:04 – How to connect with Arthur online

    Connect with Teachers on Fire and Host Tim Cavey

    Song Track Credit

    • Tropic Fuse by French Fuse
    • GO! by Neffex

    *All songs retrieved from the YouTube Audio Library at https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary/.