Secondary Science Simplified™

Are you an email addict feeling like you need to constantly be checking your inbox and responding immediately to anything that comes in? Guilty!! I like to think of myself as a recovering email addict. For years, I let email take way too much of my time and energy that I should have been focusing on other things. I want to help you break away from the constant email checking so you can have a much healthier outlook on your work email as you head into summer! In this episode, I’m debunking 5 lies you might be believing about your work email and 5 practical ways you can combat them so you can spend your time focusing on more important things. Plus, I’m sharing some of my favorite tools to help with limiting the time you spend in your inbox!If you have a teacher friend who needs some help setting email boundaries, share this episode with them! Better yet, send them the FREE Podcast PD so they can join in on all the goodness that’s coming this summer!Resources:Sign up for the FREE Summer Podcast PDInbox When Ready for Gmail™How to Record Calls on Google VoiceDownload your FREE Classroom Reset Challenge.Send me a DM on Instagram: @its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com  Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.For all resources mentioned, head to the show notes: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode77 

If you’re anything like me, you want to just make it through the last couple weeks of school and say GOODBYE AND GOOD RIDDANCE to another school year! But, before you close up your classroom for the summer, I encourage you to take a few minutes to reflect on the school year and ask yourself, “How did I do?” In this episode, I’m sharing six questions to ask yourself to help you reflect on the year. Once you reflect on these questions, WRITE them out and put them in your pencil drawer or paper clip them to your planner so when you return in August, it is the first thing that you see!Remember to grab the calendar for the next few months of our FREE Podcast PD and share it with a science teacher friend and encourage them to join you in a summer filled with practical, relevant, and SIMPLIFIED PD.Resources Mentioned:Sign up for the FREE Summer Podcast PDDownload your FREE Classroom Reset Challenge.Send me a DM on Instagram: @its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.For all resources mentioned, head to the show notes: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode76 

Get out your big black trash bags and label makers, because it’s time for an end of year classroom cleanout! If cleaning out your classroom causes immediate overwhelm (or dread if you’re also tackling the supply closet 🤢) don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. Simple systems are my love language, and over the years I’ve managed to get cleaning out a classroom down to a science. In this episode, I’ll will walk you through exactly how to handle your end of year classroom cleanout in a stress-free way.  I know you’re ready for summer, but I promise if you take the time to do this well, your future self will thank you!Do you know a secondary science teacher friend who you want to join you in the FREE Podcast PD? Get your teacher friends together, hold each other accountable, and take action on these bite-sized PD episodes all summer!Resources Mentioned: Sign up for the FREE Summer Podcast PDJoin the Secondary Science Simplified virtual professional development course waitlistSend me a DM on Instagram: @its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: Rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com Grab your FREE Classroom Reset Challenge!Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.For all resources mentioned, head to the show notes: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode75

We are kicking off our Summer Podcast PD with a topic I get asked about most - LABS! There is so much to cover when it comes to labs and how to simplify them.  But let’s be honest, you likely aren’t in the headspace at this point of the school year to strategize about how to simplify your lab days. So today, I am sharing the one thing you can do NOW to help simplify every future lab day. In today’s episode, I am walking you through, step by step, how to audit your current labs so you have all the information you need to improve your labs and ensure you are doing the right labs! Be sure to grab the FREE lab audit sheet to help you audit your labs.  Do you know a secondary science teacher friend who you want to join you in the FREE Podcast PD? Get your teacher friends together, hold each other accountable, and take action on these bite sized PD episodes all summer!Resources Mentioned:Grab the FREE Lab Audit HereSign up for the Summer Podcast PD SeriesJoin the Secondary Science Simplified virtual professional development course waitlistSend me a DM on Instagram:@its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com Grab your Classroom Reset ChallengeFollow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.For all resources mentioned, head to the show notes: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode74 

Happy teacher appreciation week, my friend! I truly hope that you are being celebrated and shown how much you are appreciated this week! Unfortunately, I know that Teacher Appreciation Week doesn’t always go the way that we hope it would. Sometimes, how we are shown “appreciation” is simply unbelievable and today, we are hearing some stories from listeners about their ridiculous teacher appreciation gifts.I want you to know that you ARE appreciated for all your efforts! So to show my appreciation, I am offering 10% off the It’s Not Rocket Science resource shop for the month of May using code MAYPOD10. This code is stackable so you can use it in addition to any other codes! PLUS, I am doing FREE PD all summer on the podcast! Each week, I’ll be sharing practical, actionable, and specific PD on the Secondary Science Simplified podcast so you can take the information to prepare for next year. I am so excited to share this with you starting next week!Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode73 Resources Mentioned: Grab your calendar and notes sheet for the FREE Summer PD on the podcastShop the It’s Not Rocket Science Shop with code MAYPOD10 Join the Secondary Science Simplified virtual professional development course waitlistSend me a DM on Instagram: @its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: Rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com Grab your FREE Classroom Reset Challenge!Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.

The end of the year is fast approaching which means that benchmark and EOC exams will be here soon. If you’re anything like me, you HATE reviewing! If you dread review days as much as I do, I have some ideas and tips to help make them a little less painful for you. Today, I am sharing 4 tips for review strategies for your upcoming EOC and benchmark exams. End of the year exams can be incredibly stressful for students and for teachers as student performance can impact your job. I want to help reduce the stress of preparing your students for these exams by sharing tips to simplify this year’s test prep and review. In this episode, I am sharing 2 tips for if you are working on a team and 2 tips for all secondary science teachers. We are diving into how to divide and conquer review topics, the benefits of rotating teachers/students, why you should prepare with as many practice problems as possible, and how to effectively use review stations.Let me know if you’ll be using any of the tips I shared today. I love it and feel so encouraged when you send me a DM on Instagram and share the podcast with others!Resources Mentioned:Giant Sticky Notes to use in review stationsBiology Vocabulary Review GameAnatomy and Physiology Vocabulary Review GamePhysical Science Vocabulary Review GameJoin the Secondary Science Simplified virtual professional development course waitlistSend me a DM on Instagram:@its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com Grab your Classroom Reset ChallengeFollow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode72 

Working with difficult admin or difficult coworkers can make or break a teaching position. Last episode, my high school chemistry teacher Zach Matson joined us to talk all about dealing with difficult parents. He is joining us again today to share all about his experience and insight into dealing with difficult admin and coworkers. Talking with Zach is always so incredible, entertaining, and helpful! In his 20+ years of teaching, he has experienced some difficult situations that he is sharing to help other teachers who may be working with challenging admin or coworkers. In this episode, we are discussing, working with difficult coworkers and in PLCs, advice for how to know when it’s time to move on because of difficult admin, tips for what to look for in admin when interviewing, and his advice for new teachers. We covered so much information in this episode and I know you are going to love this conversation as much as I did!Resources Mentioned:Check out Zach’s YouTube Channel, Matson ChemistryJoin the Secondary Science Simplified virtual professional development course waitlistSend me a DM on Instagram:@its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com Grab your Classroom Reset ChallengeFollow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode71

Dealing with difficult parents can be one of the worst things about teaching secondary science. So many of us would love advice on how to handle challenging situations, what to say when issues arise, or how to stop taking things personally from teachers who have been there and figured it out. That is one of the reasons I brought my high school chemistry teacher, Zach Matson, back on the podcast!Zach is a 20 year teaching veteran who is full of amazing insight and advice for high school science teachers and today, he is talking all about dealing with difficult parents. He has had his share of difficult parents over the course of his career and he is sharing some great advice and tips for handling these situations. In this episode, we are talking about how to handle emails from difficult parents, setting boundaries, how to deal with a potentially failing student, and what he has done in cheating situations.Zach will be back again next week talking about admin and coworkers. Be sure to follow or subscribe to the Secondary Science Simplified podcast wherever you listen so you don’t miss it!Resources Mentioned:Check out Zach’s YouTube Channel, Matson ChemistrySend me a voice recording for the “Teacher Appreciation Week Gone Wrong” episodeJoin the Secondary Science Simplified virtual professional development course waitlistSend me a DM on Instagram:@its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com Grab your Classroom Reset ChallengeFollow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode70 

Admin support can completely make or break your job as a secondary science teacher. As high school science teachers, we have so much on our plates already - planning, prepping labs, grading, teaching how many preps, pressure from parents, etc. Without support from admin, this job can be even more challenging. So how can you get support from admin? ASK! That’s right, you need to actually ask for what you need and ask in an effective way.I spent my first few years struggling because I was afraid to ask my admin for what I needed to effectively teach my classes. I learned the hard way that I needed help and I needed to ask my admin for that help. I also learned a few things along the way about asking for support from admin and I’m sharing those lessons with you so you can confidently ask your admin for support. In this episode, we are covering why you need to ask for help, my best tips for how to ask your admin, and ways admin can support you that do not cost money. As always, if something is holding you back from asking your admin for help, reach out to me and I’d LOVE to empower you to ask for the support and resources you need!There is still time to submit your stories for the Teacher Appreciation Week gone wrong episode!. Please DM or send me a voice recording about a time when you received a “gift” or “treat” for Teacher Appreciation Week that we just wouldn’t believe. I’ll be giving away five $10 TpT gift cards to people who share with us. I can’t wait to hear all your stories!Resources Mentioned:Send me a voice recording for the “Teacher Appreciation Week Gone Wrong” episodeOverview of It’s Not Rocket Science Biology Curriculum for AdminOverview of It’s Not Rocket Science Anatomy Curriculum for AdminOverview It’s Not Rocket Science Physical Science Curriculum for AdminJoin the Secondary Science Simplified virtual professional development course waitlistSend me a DM on Instagram:@its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com Grab your Classroom Reset ChallengeFollow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode69

It’s contract season! Have you received your teacher contract for next year yet? If not, it will likely be coming soon and regardless of if you are staying or not, you may be feeling a lot of emotions. If you are on the fence about staying in your current position or leaving, I strongly suggest you think through it in a neutral way without letting fear or exhaustion make the decision for you. One way to do this is to look closely through your teacher contract and determine if it best serves you in this season.Being a teacher these past few years has been incredibly challenging which has led many teachers to question whether they should return to teaching next year, stay in their current position, or try switching schools. When I left teaching in early 2020, I too had to make tough decisions and one thing that helped to make my decision to leave was looking through my contract. If you are unsure what to do next year, I want to help you by talking you through four things to consider when evaluating your teacher contract. Today, we are taking a close look at requirements vs. expectations, school and district culture, financial implications, and considering where you are in your current season of life.We have been covering some hard topics lately and I would love to be able to give us all a much-needed laugh, but I need YOUR help! For Teacher Appreciation Week, I would love to do an episode on Teacher Appreciation Week gone wrong. Please DM or send me a voice recording about a time when you received a “gift” or “treat” for Teacher Appreciation Week that we just wouldn’t believe. I’ll be giving away five $10 TpT gift cards to people who share with us. I can’t wait to hear all your stories!Resources Mentioned:Send me a voice recording for the “Teacher Appreciation Week Gone Wrong episodeJoin the Secondary Science Simplified virtual professional development course waitlistSend me a DM on Instagram:@its.not.rocket.scienceSend me an email: rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com Grab your Classroom Reset ChallengeFollow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts.Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode68