EP278 How I got here: Reflections on 20 years of sharing teaching ideas online

I’m getting deeply personal and vulnerable in this 3 part summer podcast series, and sharing things with you that I’ve NEVER talked about publicly before!

This was sooo hard for me to do … but it’s the 20 year anniversary of my teaching website (I built the first iteration back in July 2003) and I didn’t want to let the occasion pass without reflecting on all that’s happened over the past two decades.

Some of you have actually been on this journey with me for the entire 20 years I’ve been sharing ideas online, which is just mind-blowing! I think you’ll really enjoy this look back on the previous two decades together. Others of you have come along more recently, and I hope this series gives you the backstory and context to connect with me on a deeper level.

Here’s the release schedule for these episodes:

• May 28: How I got here: Reflections on 20 years of sharing teaching ideas online
• June 25: Where I’m at now: Reflections on who I’ve become as a person and educator
• July 23: Where I’m going: Reflections on what excites me about my work and the future of schooling

Content warning for this first episode: I will briefly allude to sexual assault, and also talk about my personal experiences with race and religion. This episode will be very different from what you’re used to on Truth for Teachers, so make sure you’re in the right headspace before pressing play.

Listen in as I answer the following questions:

• How did your childhood experiences shape the person you've become today?
• Why did you always want to be a teacher even though you weren't a good student yourself?
• You've mentioned before that your teenage years were rough — what happened?
• What was your college experience like, and how did you get your first job as a teacher?
• What happened when you started feeling burned out and decided to change grade levels?
• How did you get started sharing ideas online?
• Why did you relocate and transition to instructional coaching and working for BrainPOP?
• How do you process your legacy among the very first wave of educators in the early 2000s to share their resources online?

I hope listening to this episode gives you more insight into my “origin story” and what has shaped my worldview and fueled my passions. 

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