Top Tenn Teaching

In this episode, we talk with principal, speaker, and author Adam Dovico about fostering student leadership and equity in education. 

In this episode, my dad, Mike Crabtree, and I chat about the state of education, especially on the heels of the pandemic. 

Today’s episode comes to you from a distance. We are both recording in separate locations so that we can be protected from COVID-19 and we are talking all about distance learning. Like so many districts around the state of Tennessee and around the country, our local school district is closed until the end of the month, but we will be implementing distance learning. Today we are going to be talking about how to make the most of distance learning and how to make it work for you and your students. We hope you will find this episode useful as we all navigate uncharted waters in the weeks to come and that you leave today’s episode feeling a little less overwhelmed about what distance learning might look like. Mentioned in the Episode: Google for Education: Tips for Enabling Distance Learning through G Suite & Chrome Flipgrid Google Meet Screencastify Nearpod Kahoot Pear Deck Edpuzzle Outro: Books to Share/Read The Outsiders Schooled by Gordon Korman Harry Potter and Sorcerer’s Stone Children of Blood an

We’re baaaaack! We know you have probably missed us-don’t tell us if you haven’t- but sometimes life gets in the way. It is almost like returning to school after the summer, except it’s March. Oops. We have both had huge life changes since last season, but we are back and excited to bring you some fun content to get you through the rest of the school year. Welcome to season 3!!!! Follow Derrick Follow Kelsey

On today's episode, we are talking with Caroline Roberts Davis. Caroline is currently finishing up her second year of teaching 6th grade science at the same middle school that she attended as a student. Caroline shares with us the ups and downs of being a new teacher, what her experience has been like, and what some common misconceptions of new teachers are. We really enjoyed this conversation and appreciated the honesty that Caroline brought to the table.   Mentioned in this episode:  Gerry Brooks's Aunt Becky Video 

On today’s episode, we are answering listener questions! You guys have posted in our Facebook group, emailed us, and even left us voicemails on our school phones of some questions that you want answered by us. We are sitting down to talk about each of the questions that were sent to us by our listeners and we know that this is going to be a fun conversation. Top Tenn Tips: Google Earth with History Maps Teacher Appreciation Week!!! Send a handwritten note to a coworker and/or a previous teacher to let them know you appreciate them! Top Tenn Recommendations: Teaching Keating Episode 45: School of Rock I Hate It But I Love It podcast

Today, we are headed into educational territory that people don’t often talk about. That’s right, we are talking all about student teachers. It is important to remember that we all start somewhere, so we sat down with two student teachers who are just starting out on their teaching journey. Daniel Allen and Luke Saunders are currently serving as student teachers within our school building and we were lucky enough to pick their brains about what their student teaching experience has been like so far. Sometimes we forget what it is like to be the new kid on the block, but Luke and Daniel really opened up about the highs and the lows that they have experienced. If you have ever had a student teacher in your classroom, then hopefully this episode will shed some light on what it’s like to be a student teacher in 2019. Full Show Notes at toptennteaching.com

We are wrapping up the school year and the end is in sight, so the last thing on your mind is professional development. In our experience, someone can mention professional development and a lot of people roll their eyes. We believe that educators have been forced into professional developments that are not applicable to them, aren’t presented well, and sometimes are just plain boring. We sat down together to discuss what we think professional development ought to be and what we wish it was. Top Tenn Tips: Deeper Thinking with Timeline Project by Matt Miller Post-It Notes of Encouragement Top Tenn Recommendation: We want you to come up with your own list of what you think professional development should be and then find a PD that offers those things. There are countless PD opportunities out there both virtually and in person and we are sure that you will find something that will tickle your fancy! Mentioned in the Show: Professional Development Definition "OMG Becky. PD is Getting So Much Better!!" by Jenn

We are bringing you a conversation with the one and only Tom Loud. Tom is the principal for the Preferred Flex Academy. He is also a Twitter celebrity although he is way too humble to actually say that he is. Tom talked to us all about the Preferred Flex Academy, how his history with education as a student shaped him into the educator that he is today, and all about creating a professional learning network. Every conversation with Tom is a good one and we hope you enjoy this episode.  Tom Loud Twitter Preferred Flex Academy Top Tenn Tips Catch someone doing something right! Bitmoji stickers for classroom books Top Tenn Recommendations: The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon No One Told Me Podcast by Callie Holland Mentioned in the Episode Attitude 101: What Every Leader Needs to Know by John Maxwell Teach Like a Champion by Doug Lemov Wes Kieschnick Danny Steele Amy Fast  

Today, we are sitting down to discuss the qualities that make a good teacher. Most of us have interviewed for a job at some point and been asked, “What qualities do you have that make you a good teacher?" We all have different qualities to bring to the table and to our schools, but what qualities make a great teacher?  We came up with a list of ten qualities based on our own experiences plus added some things that you shared in our Facebook group and we are excited to bring this list to you today. Top Tenn Tips: Google Slides Page Setup Shake Up Learning Show (new podcast) by Kasey Bell Top Tenn Recommendations: Twitter Chat: #toptennteaching Tuesdays @ 8:00 PM (Twitter Chat Basics) Keeping the Wonder Workshop Feeback: toptennteaching.com/contact

In this episode, we are talking to a Blount County Schools legend, Mrs. Jennifer Moore. Jennifer currently serves as the Secondary Supervisor for Blount County Schools but has also been a classroom level English teacher as well as a building level administrator. Jennifer shares with us her educational experience, how she was able to climb the educational career ladder, what her greatest success has been as a teacher, and we even touch on her enthusiasm for running. Top Tenn Tips: Be Internet Awesome - New Family Resources Scholastic Book Clubs Recommendations: Explore Women's History Month with Applied Digital Skills Orphan's Tale by Pam Jenoff Mentioned in the Episode: Educated Memoir by Tara Westover Bullet Journal

In this episode, I will be sharing with you my top five fictional characters and lessons we can learn from them in teaching. These are not necessarily my favorite fictional characters, but characters I believe that have traits and values that we can learn from as educators. For the full show notes, go to toptennteaching.com

In this episode, we will be discussing the best advice that we have ever received. Young or old, new or experienced, we have all been on the receiving end of some advice. Some of the advice may be good, some might be less than good. But at one point or another, someone hits us with a nugget of wisdom that we just can’t shake.

We were truly blessed to get to speak with Rachel Owens and to hear her share her passion for teaching, music, and family. We sat down with Rachel to talk about her experience as a choir teacher, what it was like to come back from maternity leave, what it’s like to have her husband teaching on the same campus as her when they often combine their choirs, and what she wishes core subject area teachers knew about special or related arts teachers. Y’all are going to really enjoy hearing her story. For full show notes, go to toptennteaching.com.

In this episode, we are dishing out some love. In honor of Valentine’s Day being yesterday, we wanted to spread some love to other teachers on social media who inspire us daily. We are bringing you our top ten list of people to follow on social media. Creating a Professional Learning Network is so important in today’s world and connecting with educators via social media can be a complete game changer in the classroom. We get inspired when we hop onto Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook and see people that we love following. We put our heads together and thought really hard about the people that we love following the most and today we are sharing that list with you. On our list we have a variety of accounts that you should be following and we guarantee that you will walk away from this episode wanting to follow some new people. Also, if you have people to add to our list then send them our way. We are always on the hunt for new people to add to our follow list and to our PLN. Reach us at toptennteaching.com.

In this episode, we are talking to someone near and dear to both of our hearts... Mrs. Laura Maclin. Laura and Kelsey met while in graduate school and completed our Master’s Degree together while Derrick met Laura for a few courses in his own master degree program. We love Laura so much and it was a pleasure to be able to listen to her unique story of becoming a teacher and to be able to share it with you today. For our full show notes, visit toptennteaching.com. 

This is episode number 15 where we air our grievances and list our top ten teaching pet peeves. A pet peeve is something that is a frequent subject of complaint. We all have them and no matter what grade you teach or what school you’re at, you’ll be sure to find something on our list that hits home. For full show notes, visit our website... toptennteaching.com.

In this episode, we are talking with Dr. Courtney Whitehead. Courtney is the assistant principal at Carpenter’s Middle School in Blount County, Tennessee, a professor of education at a local university, and the queen of organization. We sat down in Courtney’s office for this conversation and to say that she has a captivating personality would be an understatement. She’s fun, energetic, and explains to us just what what true grit is. In our conversation today, you’ll even discover how riding a certain bus growing up shaped who she is today, how she got her gritty personality, and what she does to stay organized in her busy life. Follow Dr. Whitehead on Twitter Top Tenn Tips: Derrick: Page Setup hack in any Google Doc Kelsey: The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller Top Tenn Recommendations: Derrick: The Open Book Podcast Kelsey: Colorado Teacher

In today’s episode, we are talking all about the identity of teachers. What is it that really makes someone a teacher? Is it shopping at Target for their school supplies, is it praying for snow days, is it being the first to arrive at work or the last to leave?  Today we give you our top 10 list of You might be a teacher if…. Follow: Derrick Kelsey Top Tenn Teaching Email

In today’s show, we talk to Summer Russell about how her first year as an administrator is going, what big plans she has for her school, how she worked hard to build relationships with her staff while building a strong school culture, and how she feels about having her own son at the school that she’s a principal at. We gained some very valuable insight from this conversation and we are sure that you will find it just as fun as we did. Listener Mailbag: Katie Miller  Brian Webber Michelle Harris Top Tenn Teacher Tips: Gimkit Flipgrid Recommendations: 6 Ed Tech Tools to Try in 2019 by Jennifer Gonzalez at Cult of Pedagogy Book Tasting Would You Rather? Poll - click here to simply answer the questions. Flipgrid - click here to pick a question and leave us some audio/video feedback