PD for the SOUL

Dear 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 intent...

Dear 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 consid...

Dear 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 n...

Dear 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 invita...

Dear 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 teache...

Dear 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 ...

Dear 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’...

Many 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....

Dear 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 oppo...

In 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...

Dear 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 pra...

As 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 un...

Dear 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 ...

In 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, w...

Dear 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 ...

Join 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 actu...

Dear 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 a...

Join 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 c...

Dear Educators,

We all want our students to thrive, but what does it really take to bridge academic gaps and ensure equity in our classrooms? In this episode, we’re diving into the power of intentional teaching—because success in our classrooms isn’t just about delivering content; it’s about making sure students know how to be successful.

Too often, we assume students already understand what it takes to excel in our classrooms. But h...