Favorite Tech Gifts at Christmas with Will & Josh from the HiTech Podcast. This is episode 730 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Will and Josh of the HiTech Podcast are on Teaching Learning Leading K-12. This is our 2nd Annual Christmas show. We are focused on our favorite tech gifts. We had a blast! Will and Josh are always fun to talk with! I am so glad that I was invited to participate. After we introduce our favorite tech gifts, we then rate them. make sure that you go to their YouTube channel so that you can see what we are talking about. But do that after you have listened here. A little about the HiTech Podcast... The HiTech Podcast started because two friends couldn't shut up about their jobs and their wives were tired of listening to it on date night. So, we decided to bring our conversation to you, sharing our expertise and tomfoolery for all to hear. We exist to help you, and ourselves, process the best ways to harness technology in the traditional or virtual classroom. Here's a little about Josh… A lover of technology, theology, and learning. I found my love for education early on as a college student. Higher education changed my life and that experience pushes me to always pursue better learning experiences. I am always looking for ways we can harness tech to enhance our teaching and learning. And some about Will… An educator by heart and practice. I caught the bug for teaching in the martial arts, but I extended that into higher education and non-profit education. Always looking to find the best tools and methods to solve our teaching and learning problems. We had a blast, and you will too! Thanks for listening! Please share! Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME! Connect & Learn More: https://www.hitechpod.us/ https://www.instagram.com/hitechpod/ https://www.youtube.com/@hitechpodcast https://twitter.com/hitechpodcast/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/hitechpodcast/ https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/hitechpod Length - 1:05:39

Erik M. Francis - Deconstructing Depth of Knowledge: A Method and Model for Deeper Teaching and Learning. This is episode 729 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Erik M. Francis is an international author, educator, and presenter with 30 years of experience in education as a classroom teacher, site administrator, education program specialist at a state education agency, and staff development trainer. He is consistently ranked as one of the World Top 30 Education Professionals by the international research organization Global Gurus. Erik provides professional development on establishing rigorous learning environments and delivering educational experiences that challenge students to demonstrate different levels of thinking and discuss the depth and extent of their learning. His areas of expertise include good questioning and inquiry, teaching and learning for Depth of knowledge, tiered instruction, authentic learning, differentiated instruction, personalized learning, standards-driven learning, and talent development. Erik received a master’s degree in education leadership from Northern Arizona University and a master’s degree in television/radio/film production and management from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in communication and rhetoric and English from the University at Albany. Our focus will be Erik’s book - Deconstructing Depth of Knowledge: A Method and Model for Deeper Teaching and Learning So much to learn and think about! Great talk! Excellent read! Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME! Connect & Learn More: https://maverikeducation.com/ https://www.solutiontree.com/presenters/erik-m-francis.html https://www.solutiontree.com/blog/how-to-deconstruct-then-reconstruct-depth-of-knowledge/ https://www.solutiontree.com/deconstructing-depth-of-knowledge.html https://www.solutiontree.com/inquiring-minds-want-to-learn.html https://x.com/Maverikedu12 Length - 58:30

Suzy Pepper Rollins - Boys in the Back: The Downward Spiral of Boys in School. This is episode 728 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Suzy Pepper Rollins is the author of 3 Books: Learning in the Fast Lane, Teaching in the Fast Lane & Teaching Vulnerable Learners. She has produced her first short documentary entitled "Boys in the Back" in which 4 educators provide insights on the downward spiral of boys in school. Suzy notes - We are in the midst of an urgent national boy crisis.  Failing grades, low college admissions, high percent of office referrals. 2/3 of IEP’s are boys, 70% of D’s & F grades are boys…there are no silver linings in the research.  More than ever, boys dislike school and see it as a waste of time.   Our focus is Suzy’s film - Boys in the Back. Great conversation! So much to think about. Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME! Connect & Learn More: https://suzypepperrollins.com/ https://x.com/myedexpert Boys in the Back video suzyprollins@gmail.com https://www.amazon.com/s?k=suzy+pepper+rollins&crid=3K50HPQUQA307&sprefix=suzy+pepper+%2Caps%2C136&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_1_12 Length - 31:56

Kathy Cobb: Teaching, Growing Readers, and Beekeeping. This is episode 727 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Kathy Cobb is a Growing Readers Design Team Specialist at North Georgia RESA, hailing from Ellijay, GA. With a rich background in education, Kathy dedicated 22 years to elementary teaching, including 17 years in 1st grade and 5 years in kindergarten. Her passion for education extended beyond the classroom as she served as a teacher leader, grade level lead, and Family Engagement coordinator. Transitioning to a role at RESA, Kathy leveraged her expertise in English/Language Arts before joining the Growing Readers team in 2018. Growing Readers, a statewide initiative since 2015, focuses on professional growth informed by cutting-edge research such as Scarborough’s Rope (2001) and The Active View of Reading (2021). Kathy’s role involves providing professional learning and onsite coaching to empower K-5 teachers in enhancing their reading instruction. Before discovering her true calling in education, Kathy explored various paths including selling advertising for a country music radio station, managing a retail baby store, and working as a flight attendant based in New York City. Now fully immersed in her career, Kathy finds joy in her pursuits outside of work, including learning to play the cello, crafting pottery, and maintaining honeybee colonies. So much to learn. Great conversation! Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME! Length - 24:36

Kathleen Bjork - My Mother is Losing Her Memory, and I am Losing My Mind: Parenting the Aging Parent. This is episode 726 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. My Mother is Losing Her Memory, and I Am Losing My Mind: Parenting the Aging Parent is the true story of a mother's journey through dementia that is told through the eyes of her caregiver daughter, Kathleen Bjork. Related with compassion and humor, it details the mother's fight to keep her independence and the family's decisions to keep her safe.  Loss of control of her finances as well as her car is met with anger, and a fall which results in a broken hip and rehabilitation confirms that she cannot live alone. A concession to let her return to live in her own home with a caregiver ends in disaster.  Our focus is Kathleen’s book My Mother is Losing Her Memory, and I Am Losing My Mind: Parenting the Aging Parent. Powerful talk. So much to learn. Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME! Connect & Learn More: https://kathybjork.com/ https://www.amazon.com/Mother-Losing-Her-Memory-Mind/dp/0999036904 Length - 39:01

Robert "Buddy" Costley - CEO & Co-Founder of SchoolDog Solutions, Inc: Making Schools Safe. This is episode 725 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. A veteran of the US Navy, Robert “Buddy” Costley is a retired Georgia school superintendent after serving for 11 years in that role from 2008-2019. In November of 2023, he was listed by Georgia Trend Magazine as one of Georgia’s 500 Most Influential Leaders. In December of 2023, Buddy retired from public service after completing over four years leading through the pandemic and beyond as the Executive Director of the Georgia Association of Educational Leaders (GAEL), the professional association for Georgia’s school and district public school administrators.  Today, he is the CEO and Co-Founder of SchoolDog Solutions, Inc., a software company built on the mission of making every K-12 school across the nation a safer and healthier place to learn and work. His inspiration and passion for school safety are his wife Kelly, a K-12 educator, and his three children and two grandchildren. Our focus will be SchoolDog Solutions, Inc. So much to think about! Awesome conversation! Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME! Connect & Learn More: https://schooldog.solutions buddy@schooldogsolutions.com https://x.com/schooldogusa https://www.facebook.com/SCHOOLDOGSOLUTIONS SCHOOLDOG Vigilance Readiness Assessment Length - 01:03:11

Barbara R. Blackburn - Scaffolding for Success: Helping Learners Meet Rigorous Expectations Across the Curriculum. This is episode 724 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Ranked in the Top 10 Global Gurus in Education, Barbara has dedicated her life to raising the level of rigor and motivation for professional educators and students alike. What differentiates Barbara’s over 30 books are her easily executable concrete examples based on decades of experience as a teacher, professor, and consultant. Barbara’s dedication to education was inspired in her early years by her parents, Bob and Rose. Her father’s doctorate and lifetime career as a professor taught her the importance of professional training. Her mother’s career as school secretary shaped Barbara’s appreciation of the effort all staff play in the education of every child. Barbara has taught early childhood, elementary, middle, and high school students and has served as an educational consultant for three publishing companies. She holds a master’s degree in school administration and was certified as both a teacher and a school principal in North Carolina. She received her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Teaching from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. In 2006, she received the award for Outstanding Junior Professor at Winthrop University. She left her position at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte to write and speak full-time. In addition to speaking at state, national, and international conferences, she also regularly presents virtual and on-site workshops for teachers and administrators in elementary, middle, and high schools. Her workshops are lively and engaging and filled with practical information. Here are a few of her most popular topics: Rigor is NOT a Four-Letter Word Rigorous Schools and Classrooms: Leading the Way Rigorous Assessments Rigor and Differentiation in the Classroom Rigor for Students with Special Needs Motivation + Engagement + Rigor = Student Success Research-Based Engaging Instruction Leads to Higher Achievement High Expectations and Increased Support Lead to Success Our focus today is her most recent book - Scaffolding for Success: Helping Learners Meet Rigorous Expectations Across the Curriculum. Awesome conversation! Her book is filled with information you can learn about today and use tomorrow. Don't forget to vote for Barbara as a Top 10 Global Guru! Here is the link: https://globalgurus.org/education/ Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME! Connect & Learn More: Don't forget to vote for Barbara to be a Top 10 Global Guru: Go to this link: https://globalgurus.org/education/ https://www.barbarablackburnonline.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/barbarablackburnonline/ https://www.facebook.com/Barbarablackburneducation/ https://www.instagram.com/barbararblackburn/ https://twitter.com/BarbBlackburn https://www.routledge.com/Scaffolding-for-Success-Helping-Learners-Meet-Rigorous-Expectations-Across-the-Curriculum/Blackburn/p/book/9781032710549 Length - 35:48

Janine Walker-Caffrey: EPS Learning - Providing Effective Reading Instruction. This is episode 723 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Janine Walker-Caffrey, the chief academic officer at EPS Learning, is a career educator who has been a teacher (special education, English as a second language, physics), school founder, principal and superintendent. She is also the author of two parenting books inspired by her own two children. Our focus today is reading instruction with EPS Learning. So much to learn. Great conversation! Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME! Connect & Learn More: https://www.epslearning.com janine.walker-caffrey@epslearning.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/janinecaffrey/ Length - 43:50

Therese Casadesus Rawson talks about her mother Gaby Casadesus and Gaby's book My Musical Notes: A Journey in Classical Piano Between the World Wars and Beyond. This is episode 722 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. About Gaby Casadesus She has taught French, Humanities, French Diction and French vocal repertoire to singers at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia for nearly 30 years.  She was President of the Alliance Française de Philadelphie for nearly 10 years and has been President of the Fontainebleau Associations for 25 years: the stateside support group which helps organize and finance the summer Music and Fine Arts program at the Château de Fontainebleau. The French Government awarded Therese the Palmes Académiques in recognition of her teaching activities, and, in 2001, she was named to the rank of Chevalier des Arts et Lettres on account of her efforts on behalf of Franco-American cultural affairs. Our focus is your mother Gaby Casadesus and her book - My Musical Notes: A Journey in Classical Piano between the World Wars and Beyond. About Therese Casadesus Rawson Daughter of the late French pianists Robert and Gaby Casadesus, Therese Casadesus Rawson received a Ph.D. in French language and literature from the University of Pennsylvania in 1977. She has taught French, Humanities, French Diction and French vocal repertoire to singers at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia for nearly 30 years. She was President of the Alliance Française de Philadelphie for nearly 10 years and has been President of the Fontainebleau Associations for 25 years: the stateside support group which helps organize and finance the summer Music and Fine Arts program at the Château de Fontainebleau. The French Government awarded Therese the Palmes Académiques in recognition of her teaching activities, and, in 2001, she was named to the rank of Chevalier des Arts et Lettres on account of her efforts on behalf of Franco-American cultural affairs. Our focus is Gaby Casadesus and her book - My Musical Notes: A Journey in Classical Piano between the World Wars and Beyond. So much to learn. Awesome discussion! Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME!   Learn More: My Musical Notes: A Journey in Classical Piano Between the World Wars and Beyond Mozart Two Piano concerto, K.365 with George Szell and the Columbia Symphony https://open.spotify.com/album/1VFuIk59wnK4dHGYAYXZ4F?si=Bs8OAjloQoqkBbcHIsD7ww https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-V1O6NAoO8 The one with my mother performing Ravel’s Jeux d’eau is found on YouTube when you enter search (Ravel’s Jeux d’eau) but there are many versions so one needs to scroll quite a bit. Length - 47:47

Lt. Col. Tom Williams USMC (Ret.) - Doorsteps of Hell: The Arizona & Tropical Jungles 1969 -1970; The Heart of a Marine Series, Book 1. This is episode 721 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. On 20 December 1944, Tom Williams was born Tom Collins in Savannah, GA. Abandonment by his biological father at the age of six months old, profoundly impacted Tom’s early life causing his mother to farm him out to relatives while she worked to make a living for them both.  At the age of six years old, Tom’s mother met and married U.S. Air Force Major Carl F. Williams Jr. This fortuitous marriage would bring about a radical change in Tom’s life. As a military dependent, he immediately found himself traveling the world, living in foreign lands, learning about Ancient Roman history and archaeology, assimilating a basic conversance in the French, Arabic, and Japanese Languages, as well as being immersed in their respective cultures. After Tom’s dad retired, his family moved to the Williams’ ancestral homestead established in 1832, in Dooly County Georgia. Yet again, living, working, and learning to manage the family farm would have another major influence on Tom’s future interests, especially regarding his love for the agrarian way of life.  From 1964-68 Tom attended North Georgia College (NGC) acquiring a BA degree in history and a minor in psychology and political science. He then attended the Marine Corps’ Officer Candidate School (OCS) at Quantico, Va., where he set the Marine Corps’ record of 52 seconds for the Obstacle Courses and was the Platoon Honor Man. He then completed The Basic School (TBS) for all newly commissioned Marine Corps 2nd lieutenants, also at Quantico, graduating in the top 10% of his class. Before leaving Quantico, Tom then attended and graduated from High Intensity Language Training (HILT) for Vietnamese.  As an infantry officer, Tom deployed as a 2nd lieutenant to Vietnam in 1969-70 where he commanded an infantry platoon in Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, followed by commanding a reconnaissance platoon as a 1st lieutenant in Alpha Company, 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division.  Subsequent to this combat tour, Tom commanded the Shore Party Platoon at the 1st Marine Brigade, followed by commanding the 81mm Mortar Platoon in 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment at Kaneohe Marine Corps Air Station, Hawaii. Twenty-five months later, on two days’ notice, Tom was redeployed back to Vietnam, as a captain, where he served as a school trained aerial observer.  During this second combat deployment, Tom was imbedded with a Vietnamese O-1 Bird Dog squadron flying 183 combat missions from Hue Phu Bai Airfield, during the 1972 Easter Offensive. During his twenty-nine-year career, Tom participated in six amphibious deployments: four Marine Expeditionary Units (MEUs) and two Marine Expeditionary Brigades (MEBs). In 1976 as a school trained Communications Officer, he participated in the Non-Combat Evacuation Operation (NEO) of Beirut, Lebanon. In 1980-83, under secret orders, he was assigned as the regimental operations officer for developing the one-of-a-kind Mechanized Combined-Arms Task Force (MCATF), at Twenty-nine Palms, CA. In 1983-86, he was the Infantry Weapons Officer at Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC) Washington, DC, responsible for replacing or improving all Marine Corps infantry weapons. From 1986-90, he was the Amphibious Operations Officer for Commander Sixth Fleet’s NATO staff, Commander Striking Forces South (CSFS) in Naples, Italy, responsible for coordinating all NATO amphibious training exercises throughout the Mediterranean Sea. That was followed by his participation in the First Gulf War, 1990-91, as a G3 operations officer with I MEF HQ.  His last major active-duty assignment was as the G3 for the first Marine Component HQ to the European Command (EUCOM), in Stuttgart, Germany, 1993-96.  After retiring in 1997, he spent eleven years as a contract mentor and trainer, six years in Saudi Arabia (1998-06) and five years in Afghanistan (2006-12).  Currently, he lives an agrarian life on a 75-acre cattle property, Camelot, located on the Lamington Rain Forest Plateau in southeastern Queensland, Australia. He raises beef cattle, sells free-range eggs, and is a beekeeper, a gardener, and is developing his home into a Bed & Breakfast, while also writing a series of books, Heart of a Marine, in which he shares his Marine Corps experiences and his life’s lessons learned. Our focus will be Col. Williams book series Heart of a Marine - Book 1 - Doorsteps of Hell: The Arizona & Tropical Jungles 1969-1970 Incredible book. Amazing conversation. So much to learn. Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it.  Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you! You are AWESOME! Connect & Learn More: www.heartofamarineseries.com https://www.facebook.com/heartofamarineseries https://www.instagram.com/heartofamarineseries/ info@heartofamarineseries.com Length - 01:10:27