Teachers Passing Notes

Owen Bondono joins Donnie and Alisa to share a few classroom ideas that he uses in his high school English class. Owen Bondono (pronouns: he/they) teaches 9th grade English at Oak Park High School in Oak Park, Michigan. He is the 2021 Michigan Teacher of the Year. His teaching focuses on growing students’ empathy, critical thinking, and communication skills in a space where they are safe and empowered. Owen is focused on bringing anti-racist and queer-affirming practices into the classroom and believes that advocacy drives all good teaching practices. In his spare time, Owen is a writer, the Detroit Municipal Liaison for National Novel Writing Month, and a Dungeons and Dragons player.You can follow Owen on Twitter at https://twitter.com/owenmakesstuffLike Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators!For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Justin Johnson is entering his 10th year as director of bands at Niles West High School in Skokie, Illinois, where he oversees all aspects of the band program. Justin prides himself on creating a classroom culture focused on student growth while creating an atmosphere that cultivates accountability, responsibility, and good will. His voice is valuable as a fresh perspective in education, and he continues seeking to teach values and lessons that reach beyond the band room. On this episode, Justin shares some excellent reading, writing, and art activities that his musicians participate in. You can follow Justin on Twitter at @1ILNupeLike Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators!For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Juliana Urtubey is the 2021 National Teacher of the Year. On this episode, Juliana chats with Donnie and Alisa about how she used worms to teach her special education students to “celebrate their success and compost their failures.”As a first-generation, bilingual immigrant, she has worked throughout her teaching career to serve as a mirror for her school community, helping students to be proud of their identities and families, and to acknowledge their strengths and contributions to the community.As 2021 National Teacher of the Year, Juliana advocated for a “joyous and just” education for all students, one that is inclusive and celebratory of all students’ identities, families and communities. Since being announced as National Teacher of the Year in May 2021, Juliana has shared her “joyous and just” message with pre-service teachers, educators and policymakers across the country – including at the White House – and through U.S. and international media, including People Magazine, the TODAY Show, Univision, Telemundo, and Colombia’s El Pais, El Espectador, and RCN Noticias.You can follow Juliana on Twitter at @JulianaUrtubey3Like Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators!For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mrs. Jena Nelson teaches middle school at Classen SAS Middle School in Oklahoma City. In addition to being the 2020 Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, she has a background in theater and dance, and lives on a farm with the happiest chickens you’ll ever meet. 🐔You can follow Mrs. Nelson on Twitter at @Jena4OKLike Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators!For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jess from GZM Shows is learning how to make a podcast, and she’s taking you along for the ride! Join her as she learns from her friends in the industry aspects of planning, pre-production, production and post-production… from picking a good title and theme music to RSS feeds and everything in between! Tune in weekly with classrooms, kids and adults alike to learn how to make your own show in funny-yet-informative 5-10 minute episodes.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nicole is back to talk about the importance of recognizing, celebrating, and learning from the indigenous cultures within our schools. Nicole Butler-Hooton has been an educator for the past 16 years. In 2021 she was named the Oregon Teacher of the Year, becoming the first Indigenous teacher to ever earn this recognition! She’s a member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians - Chetco Band (Oregon) and the San Carlos Apache Tribe (Arizona). Fun fact: she might also just be the biggest fan of the Oregon Ducks on the planet. 🦆 If you’d like to connect with Nicole, give her a follow on Twitter @ButlerHooton.Like Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators!For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Rochelle Brown is the 2021 Connecticut Teacher of the Year and teaches Kindergarten in Windsor, Connecticut. Each Fall, she has the students in her classroom create posters of themselves that she keeps up all year long. These posters are filled with affirming messages from their classmates, and they help build a strong sense of community. She feels that the very act of allowing students to feel seen, heard, loved, and acknowledged is necessary to their success and progress. Presently, Rochelle serves as the chair of Poquonock School’s Equity Committee. She has offered professional development opportunities for her colleagues and created an Instagram page, kidlitlove8, to bring awareness to multicultural children’s books and the importance of representation for all children. She continues to serve as a union representative for the Windsor Education Association, always ensuring that her colleagues are knowledgeable of their rights and responsibilities as professional educators. If you’d like to connect with Rochelle, give her a follow on Instagram @kidlitlove8Like Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators! For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sara Baird has been teaching art since 2006, and she became a National Board Certified Teacher in 2014. She loves helping students explore their creativity and grow as artists. She stops by the podcast to talk with Alisa and Donnie about a teaching strategy, “See, Think, Wonder.” …and in case you haven’t ever seen the painting “Watson and the Shark”, you can find it here. If you’d like to connect with Sara, you can follow her on Instagram @saraabaird Fun fact: Sara knows more about The Big Lebowski than anybody I’ve ever met. Like Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators! For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kristi Reinke teaches middle school in Minot (my-not*) North Dakota, and in 2021, she was named the North Dakota Teacher of the Year! Listen as Kristi shares her strategy for connecting her students to other middle schoolers all around the world, all while teaching them geographic awareness and cultural competencies. If you’d like to connect with Kristi (or connect your class to hers!) follow her on Twitter @reinkekristi Like Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators! *Fun fact that Alisa and I learned: citizens of Minot like to say “Why not Minot”? For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nicole Butler-Hooton has been an educator for 16 years. In 2021 she was named the Oregon Teacher of the Year, becoming the first Indigenous teacher to ever earn this recognition! She’s a member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians - Chetco Band (Oregon) and the San Carlos Apache Tribe (Arizona). Nicole is a believer in the importance of connecting with students and families. Fun fact: she also loves to golf and would definitely beat Donnie if they ever played a round together. ⛳ If you’d like to connect with Nicole and have any follow up questions about her ideas, you can find her on Twitter at @ButlerHooton. Like Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators! For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tabatha Rosproy, the 2020 National Teacher of the Year, is a career early childhood educator and the 2020 National Teacher of the Year. She is the first preschool teacher to ever win this award! Tabatha stops by to chat with Donnie and Alisa about how she helped launch a preschool inside of Cumbernauld Village, a nursing home and retirement community in Winfield, Kansas. The four-year-old students interact every day with community residents, who serve as volunteer “Grandmas” and “Grandpas” to every child in the school. After listening to the episode, check out this video of her school. If you’d like to connect with Tabatha and have any follow up questions about her ideas, you can find her on Twitter at @tabatharosproy.In our next episode, we’ll talk with Tabatha about the importance of community involvement in education. For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Welcome to the first episode of Teachers Passing Notes: Gen-Z Media’s first podcast created for educators! Hosted by teachers Donnie Piercey and Alisa Cooper de Uribe, this is a show where we talk about all things education: from creative teaching strategies to deeper discussions about important topics. John Arthur stops by on this first episode to talk about how a simple checklist helps his students enter the “Chill Zone”. If you don’t know John, he’s the 2021 Utah Teacher of the Year and a 2021 National Teacher of the Year Finalist. He is in his 10th year of teaching at Meadowlark Elementary, a Title I school in Salt Lake City. He’s also a National Board Certified Teacher, a Utah Teacher Fellow with the Hope Street Group, and an adjunct professor in the Graduate School of Education at Westminster College. We like Mr. Arthur. If you’d like to connect with John and have any follow up questions about his ideas, you can find him on Twitter at @9thevermore In our next episode, we’ll talk with John about how he helps his students advocate for themselves and their community through music. If you like his “Workshop Checklist”, you can grab a copy of it here. Like Teachers Passing Notes? Please like, subscribe, and share it with other educators!For more great shows, visit GZMshows.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.