Episode 94 – Janelle McLaughlin

Meet Janelle McLaughlin

JANELLE McLAUGHLIN is a keynote speaker, education consultant and strategist, and educational leadership coach. She is a former classroom teacher, district administrator, and high ability coordinator. She loves to learn, laugh, connect, and make completos. 😉

Janelle’s work is split between her home office and sites across the country, where she offers coaching and development services around project-based learning, authentic technology integration, student choice and voice, effective school leadership, and other relevant topics.

From Professional Paralysis to Autonomy and Passion

Janelle’s low moment story is not one she particularly enjoys telling, but it became the most important experience in her educational journey and has taken her to the place she is today. A few years ago, Janelle served as a curriculum director under a leader whose values did not align well with her own. It was a difficult situation from all angles: she felt professionally taxed and emotionally drained, lacking proper support and unable to flourish in her work.

After three years in this state, she decided to leave the position, even though a credible next step wasn’t immediately apparent. She’d never made this kind of move before, and although she wasn’t sure what to do and where to go from there, she knew she needed to take some time to reflect, recharge, and redefine her mission.

When it became clear to her that her deepest calling and resonance came from contexts where she could build relationships and support other education professionals, she turned her attention to consulting, and this has really become a sweet spot.

“I’ve never had an experience where I’ve grown so much as in these last four years,” Janelle says. What got her to this point was a period of critical adversity. It’s not something anyone would wish for, but she definitely feels stronger and more impassioned for having gone through it.

What Professional Development Can and Should Look Like

Professional development is obviously a passion and lies at the heart of Janelle’s current work. She is passionate about growth and learning, and hopes most educators feel that way too. If we’re asking students to be excited, and engage, and own their own learning, then we need to model that as well. So professional development begins there.

In Janelle’s view, the number one professional learning opportunity that we can be offering our educators – and especially education leaders – is job-embedded coaching. Most district leaders, administrators, and instructional coaches don’t receive the sort of coaching that produces demonstrable growth over time.

“Our teaching is only as good as our continued learning,” Janelle argues. Schools can do better for their educators than hire a speaker for one day with no follow-up. Although these efforts are better than nothing, the most sustainable and significant growth occurs from personalized learning and continuous support.

What Sets Janelle on 🔥 in Education Today

What really sets Janelle on fire is meeting and connecting with other educators who are truly passionate about education. A lot of her work focuses on authentic learning experiences that integrate new digital technologies and opportunities. Technology is allowing classrooms around the world to connect and learn from each other in exciting new ways, and Janelle enjoys helping schools and educators understand the opportunities that exist today.

A Professional Goal for 2019

Janelle is a believer in goal-setting: it’s a practice that she enjoys teaching, and she follows it consistently in her own life. Big goals must include mini-goals which make the big goals achievable. One of her current big goals is to write and publish a book by the end of 2019, and although it scares her to even say it out loud, she’s determined to continue to chip away at it until it’s finished.

Personal Passions Away from Education

Although she has a great deal of control over her schedule in theory, Janelle acknowledges that it’s easy to work non-stop. To relieve her mind, she enjoys exercise of all kinds, jumping into fiction, and connecting with her two teenagers.

Her Favorite Productivity Hack

One of Janelle’s strengths is organization, and she finds great satisfaction from maximizing her schedule. On that theme of maximization, she’s come to really enjoy educational podcasts. They’re a fantastic way to spend long commutes, allowing her to learn and grow while in the car. She also likes to listen when she’s on her bike or exercising – a great way to align congruent activities.

Voices & Resources That Inspire Her Thinking and Practice

On Twitter, Janelle recommends following the positive and inspirational @JeffreyKubiak, author of One Drop of Kindness. Jeff knocked it out of the park in episode 54 of the Teachers on Fire podcast, so make sure to check out that episode if you haven’t heard it.

An edtech tool that is doing cool things for Janelle is Wakelet. Wakelet is an innovative curation platform that went so far as to give Janelle a personal orientation on their service. Follow Wakelet on Twitter @Wakelet.

Janelle’s book recommendation is The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive: A Leadership Fable by Patrick Lencioni. Get to know the author on Twitter @PatrickLencioni.

Aside from the Teachers on Fire podcast, Janelle is tuned into In Awe by Sarah Johnson, which amplifies the voices of female leaders in education. Get to know Sarah on Twitter @SarahSaJohnson, and listen to my conversation with Sarah way back at episode 34 of Teachers on Fire.

Though she doesn’t have a lot of time for TV or Netflix, Janelle enjoys connecting with her two teenagers around Arrow and The 100.

We sign off on this episode, and Janelle shares the best ways to connect with her online. See below for details!

Connect with Janelle:

On Twitter @Ms_Mac4
On Facebook @Ms_Mac4
On Instagram @Janelle_McL
On LinkedIn at Janelle McLaughlin
At her site at Innovative Education Solutions

Song Track Credits

Intro: Stand Up (by Mike Cosmo — license purchased at https://taketones.com/)
Outtro: Bluntedsesh4 (by Tha Silent Partner, courtesy of FreeMusicArchive.org)

Listen on YouTube and subscribe to the Teachers on Fire channel.

Episode 47 – Kimberly Snodgrass

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KIMBERLY SNODGRASS is a 7th grade ELA teacher. She advocates for creative thinking, BookSnaps, Sketchnotes, Edu GIFS, and other creative ways for students to represent their learning.

In our conversation, Kim recalls the challenge of beginning a high school teaching assignment with a lot of preparation required and next to no experience in education. She credits this period with allowing her to learn the art of teaching without preconceived ideas or the pressure of “textbook mentality.” Kim talks about the importance of staying hungry as an educator, cultivating creativity and critical thinking in the classroom, and engaging regularly with other education thinkers. She also passes on some solid recommendations for books to read, educators to follow on Twitter, edtech tools to try in the classroom, and much more.

Follow Kim online here:

TW: @Kim_Schepers
Class blog: https://kimschepers.weebly.com/

Find the highlights from our conversation at the timestamps below:

0:50 – Kim describes her current and past experiences as an educator. She currently teaches 7th grade ELA in a middle school in Nebraska, but she’s taught high school in the past as well.
1:33 – She describes one of the most challenging points in her education career: starting a high school teaching assignment in a smaller school (which meant that she was prepping for a number of courses on a daily basis) with zero experience in the classroom.
4:35 – Kim talks about the things that really excite her about education today: more focus on the soft skills in education: creativity, collaboration, and teamwork. 21st century education is finally acknowledging that simply focusing on the three Rs does not serve students well.
7:29 – Outside of her classroom, Kim is busy pursuing another Master’s degree. She’s particularly fascinated by constructivist pedagogy and personalized learning models. But she’s also energized and inspired by the more practical education books from Dave Burgess Consulting, like Teach Like a Pirate.
11:07 – A personal habit that Kim points to as a key to her personal success is the fact that she always remains hungry to learn more and engage with other lifelong learners. The thrill of learning never gets old.
13:08 – On Twitter, Kim recommends following @BurgessDave and @HeckAwesome. She credits Dave Burgess with inspiring her to get more connected and contribute on Twitter in the first place.
15:44 – Kim is all about helping students access creative technology tools that allow them to represent their learning in fun and unique ways. One such tool that she’s had a hand in perfecting and promoting is Edu GIFs. Find out how to make your own Edu GIFs at https://daveburgess.com/get-your-gif-on/.
19:40 – We hear about three slamming book recommendations: 1) The Pepper Effect by Sean Gaillard (@SMGaillard), 2) The EduNinja Mindset: 11 Habits for Building a Stronger Mind and Body by Jennifer Burdis (@Jennifer_Burdis), and 3) Be REAL: Educate from the Heart by Tara Martin (@TaraMartinEDU).
21:00 – Looking for another great education podcast to add to your commute this year? Kim recommends Well Played by Michael Matera (@MrMatera).
25:06 – For a great YouTube channel to subscribe to, Kim’s going back to the same dude: Michael Matera, master of gamification and author of Explore Like a Pirate. Check out his channel. Another up-and-coming channel that provided her with some lesson inspiration lately is Stefanie Crawford’s channel. To find out more about Stefanie Crawford, follow her on Twitter as well at @MrsCFord_Tweets.
26:32 – Kim is far too busy (and frankly too hungry to learn) to watch much Netflix, but the last show she binged on there was Fuller House, a modern sequel to the original Full House.
27:40 – We sign off on the conversation, and Kim gives us the best ways to follow her online. On Twitter, you can find her @KimSnodgrass, and you can check out her class blog at https://kimsnodgrass.weebly.com/.

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Follow the podcast on Twitter @TeachersOnFire and on Instagram @TeachersOnFire.

Song Track Credits

Intro: Relax (by Simon More)
Outtro: Starley – Call on Me Remix (by DJ Zhorik)

Listen to this episode on YouTube and subscribe for more episodes!

Episode 46 – Katelynn Giordano

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KATELYNN GIORDANO is a sixth grade language arts teacher in Sugar Grove, IL. You can find more of her insights on learning, reading, and writing at CurriculumCoffee.com – “a written shot of espresso for educators.”

In our conversation, Katelynn recalls the time early in her career when a veteran colleague told her not to speak during faculty meetings. Part of her recovery from that discouraging blow involved moving to a new middle school position, where she was fortunate to come under the wing of a mentor who was supportive in every way. It was the positive energy and encouragement gleaned in this environment that helped shape her into the talented and motivated educator she is today. Katelynn also explains why she’s passionate about education and describes the activities that fuel her personal fire outside of the classroom. She tells us about the daily routines that make her productive, and offers some awesome recommendations on Twitter, books, edtech tools, and more.

Follow Katelynn online here: