We're a little more than half-way through NWEA's podcast series, Leading from the Classroom, which features short interviews with the 2018 Teachers of the Year.
The entire series is fantastic--every 5-minute episode is different, and each teacher shares their most powerful teaching memories. You can listen and subscribe to Leading from the Classroom here, and in the meantime, here are a few direct links to some of our favorite episodes so far.
- 2018 North Dakota Teacher of the Year Leah Juelke tells us how a class project about immigration became a powerful school-wide movement to help students support one another in what she calls, “the power of empathetic teaching."
- 2018 Louisiana Teacher of the Year Kimberly Eckert shares how two very different students helped define her approach to teaching—and a new practice she calls “Genius Hour.”
- 2018 New Jersey Teacher of the Year Amy Andersen tells us how one deaf child in a daycare inspired her to advocate for language equality and change how school systems treat deaf early learners.
- 2018 Florida Teacher of the Year Tammy Jerkins discusses the challenge of finding and keeping good teachers—and why she believes the solution lies in creating a support system for new teachers.
- 2018 Nebraska Teacher of the Year Michelle Helt tells us the story of how going to one of the country’s most prestigious primary schools transformed her own feelings of inadequacy.
New episodes will be released throughout January--so be sure to subscribe to be certain you can hear them all!