Catholic Teachers' Lounge Podcast

Jill and Colleen welcome Dr. Kaitlin Reichart into the Catholic Teachers’ Lounge to share the best things they have seen and heard in classrooms so far this year. Stop in the lounge to hear shout outs, accolades, and cheers for the hardworking and creative teachers and leaders in our schools. You’ll have lots of time over break to binge back episodes of the Catholic Teachers’ Lounge AND Connected Classrooms, the Greeley Center for Catholic Education’s podcast starring Kaitlin Reichart!

This episode takes Jill and Colleen down a rabbit hole of multi-age instructional shifts, putting theory into practice, and wondering if PD is enough. Tune in as talk in lounge shifts to the way instructional leaders must create the space and opportunities for teachers to put practices that serve all students into action and help them let go of habits, systems, and structures that no longer serve today’s classrooms.

This episode takes the lounge conversation back to homework, only this time Jill and Colleen are talking about high school kids. Studies show there is a sweet spot for impact when it comes to time spent on homework and success on standardized exams. Stop by the lounge to hear about stressors, tasks, and impact when it comes to homework in high school.

“In this episode of the Catholic Teachers Lounge, Jill and Colleen explore various themes related to Catholic education, particularly focusing on the Advent season, prayer practices, and the role of AI in spiritual expressions. They discuss the importance of spontaneous prayer in schools, share personal anecdotes about prayer with children, and reflect on the authenticity of prayer in the context of modern technology. The conversation concludes with a historical insight into the oldest Catholic school building still in use in the United States. “

In this episode, Jill and Colleen ponder a homework study. What is the value of homework? What is the most effective use of student time in and out of school? Stop in the lounge for a topic that everyone has an opinion about.

It’s Advent–A time of high energy, activities, service projects, special prayer events, art, music, and lots of patience. Join Jill and Colleen for a conversation about fresh ideas and traditions to bring Advent to life for students.

It’s Thanksgiving week! Join Jill and Colleen in a lounge conversation about classroom activiities that reflect the values and meaning of Thanksgiving, let kids be creative, and honor history. Jill and Colleen wish all Catholic school teachers and leaders all the best–they are so grateful for what you do every day!

Teaching has historically been an isolating profession for many. We would go into our classrooms, not to see another adult until we ventured to the office or teachers’ lounge. When teachers experience the benefits of frequent visitors, co-teachers, and other adults in their classroom, they can experience a shift to openness that lifts them and their students to new heights. Join Colleen and Jill in the lounge for a conversation about teacher support practices.

In this episode, Jill and Colleen explore the universal design aspects of marching band and music education and how these can apply to the classroom. Discover UDL through a musical lens.

In this episode, Jill and Colleen put on their doctor hats and talk about a study proving the importance of handwriting to benfit learning to read. What begins as a simple conversation about spelling words goes down a rabbit hole of literacy. Stop in the lounge for this cutting edge–yet not surprising!– conversation about reading and writing.

It’s Veteran’s Day, and Jill and Colleen take time to talk about the ways people can witness and support military veterans. Whether through fundraising support, gratitude, or song, anyone can have the opportunity to give thanks to those who serve!

In this episode Jill, Colleen, and some faithful listeners share their daily prayer routines. Discussion in the lounge centers on ways to integrate prayer into every day, and how to create a culture of prayer among the faculty in your school.

Colleen shares an experience in a 4th grade classroom where students were highly engaged in a well-paced, well-orchestrated science lesson.

This episode highlights the importance of music education. Jill and Colleen share the variety of ways music is integrated into Catholic schools and showcases the Ward method that teaches students Gregorian chant.

In this episode Jill and Colleen explore the ways full inclusion and education in the classical tradition can work together. Using an example of a Catholic school in Kentucky, the conversation reveals that it is possible, this model does exist as an example to others, and it is beautiful.

In this episode, Jill and Colleen explore how to resolve student conflict. There are many peer mediation programs out there, and many link back to sacraments and values. Consider the ways your school’s charism or integration of Catholic values informs your peer mediation program potential.

In this episode, Colleen and Jill revisit the concept of AI with predictions, questions, and some trepedation. Based on lessons learned from the past, how should schools proceed into the future with confident faithfulness to mission and commitment to student formation? We may not have all the answers, but it’s a conversation.

Today’s students need to learn new mediums of communication beyond just public speaking in order to thrive in the world of career and academics. In this episode, Jill shares two examples of student podcasts from elementary and high school classrooms to inspire ideas on using podcasting to communicate with parents, as assessments, and to grow students’ skills.

If the differences between accommodations, modifications, and interventions sometimes confuse you, you are not alone! In this episode, Colleen provides an analogy that Jill breaks down and applies to the classroom to clarify these terms and their applications in schools.

In this follow up conversation from the previous episode, Colleen and Jill talk more about the impact of technology on kids, families, and schools as described in the book The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. For a copy of Jill’s community book study, emails us at [email protected].

In this episode Jill shares the way a diocesan-wide policy about phones triggered a series of community gatherings around a book study of 2024 epic publication The Anxious Generation. If you want a copy of Jill’s 4-part book study notes and facilitation guide, email us at [email protected]!

Jill and Colleen have both fond and rough memories of parents teacher conferences–both as the parent and the teacher. Join this conversation for ideas on preping for the most effective parent teacher conferences possible.

In this episode Colleen and Jill talk about the very real struggle with making changes and learning new things. Using personal examples, the discussion is a metaphor for the classroom. If we seek certain results for our students and aren’t getting them, it might be time for a change.

In this episode, Colleen and Jill explore the complexities of math instruction, discussing various teaching methods and their implications for student learning. They explore the concept of discovery and fostering critical thinking in math education. The conversation highlights the need to adapt strategies to engage students effectively and prepare them for real-world applications of math. The episode emphasizes collaboration among educators and the value of diverse teaching approaches to enhance student understanding and enjoyment of mathematics.

We’ve heard of the Science of Reading, but what is the Science of Math? In this episode Jill and Colleen break down conflicting views of math instruction.

Jill and Colleen’s lounge conversation about learning to read and Science of Reading goes off the rails to discover they disagree about vocabulary.

How long should it take students to adjust to the new school year? It’s different for every kid, for a variety of reasons. Join Jill and Colleen’s lounge conversation about student influence and adjustment.

Taking classroom procedures a step further, Colleen and Jill tackle the idea of schoolwide procedures that may impact school function and culture.

Managing a classroom begins with effective procedures. Jill pitches 17 procedures that might impact the flow and function of any classroom.

The school year begins for most teachers with a barrage of professional learning events, often to kick off new initiatives. How should teachers take all of the PD and make it come to life when the kids arrive? Jill and Colleen explore ideas that can move teachers from theory to implementation.

Jill and Colleen are back in the lounge after a summer of rest and reading! Join the discussion of the gammut of professional reading, kids’ books, fiction, and non-fiction.

Colleen and Jill are back! Find out when new episodes drop.

Books change lives — for our students, parents and ourselves. It helps us see beyond ourselves and our immediate challenges while opening our hearts and minds to new ideas.

Fear of doing it wrong gets in the way of effective inclusion efforts for nuerodivergent students. How to embrace the beauty of belonging for all kids.

Use the summer to prepare kids to comfortably start the year together. Offering some short, easy connection opportunities, like popcicles in the park, is good for teachers, parents, and students.

Trying to make big changes all at once can result in undireable outcomes. Making changes, personally or professionally, can be a slow and steady process. Whether talking about personal fitness, redesigning your classroom, or getting kids to participate in silent sustained reading for 25 minutes, moderation and slow build will get you there.

The vegus nerve connects the brain to all bodily organs and is therefor affected by almost every internal and external stiumulus. In this episode, Colleen and Jill discuss the importance of knowing some basics of neuroscience to help kids with self regulation and stimuli that affect classroom performance and behavior.

Seeing and hearing an unborn baby impacts prolife beliefs and advocacy. Jill shares a story about an elementary school having live ultrasounds for the student body to experience life in the womb.

Interviews can be used as a flexible teaching, learning, and assessment tool in many classes and at any grade level. Colleen and Jill highlight ways to integrate interviews to create perspective, teach critical thinking, and more.

The methods of qualitative research apply to grading papers, too. When grading a stack of papers, how do you categorize them by what you notice? Using codes to create different learning paths based on how students responded to particular quiz questions will help to improve your instruction for the next year. Connections to standardized test data is also discussed.

Learning to write is a long process with milestones at each grade level. In this episode Colleen and Jill discuss the fundamentals of learning to write in the lower grades using graphic organizers and having realistic expectations for idea development and grammatical and structural skills.

Which is better, Advanced Placement or Dual Credit? Colleen and Jill debate the merit of offering these types of courses in high schools.

It’s important for teachers to remember that student behaviors are not personal. In this episode, Colleen and Jill reveal 5 reasons why students misbehave and detach in school.

In this episode, Colleen and Jill discuss ways to get kids to read over the summer, specifically through trickery.

A recent study has shown a drastic drop in risk taking behaviors among teens. This episode unpacks why this is NOT a good thing for kids, and how risk taking in the classroom is still important.

After experiencing “Italian for Survivors” in a high school in Perugia, Italy, Jill realizes that our students back here in the US do not have much exposure to other languages. Even students who have studied Spanish in elementary and high school have not had enough language hours to have mastered conversational Spanish when abroad. We discuss passion for language and the desire for language to expand our moments of ministry in the global Church.

In many schools data walls are used to show student progress and achievement. In this episode Colleen and Jill explore the idea of using data walls to show alignment of curriculum standards to help teachers plan instruction. Also discussed is the importance of connecting topics taught in different subject areas for depth of learning and remembering information.

Have you ever been surprised by a saint? In this episode Colleen and Jill discuss St. Anthony of Padua and Blessed Carlo Acutis. Those who pray for their intercessions drop them notes in Churches. Teachers can do the same, dropping letters in the mail to these places of worship.

Motivation, resources, and inspiration come to life with whatever you place on the walls of the classroom. The same goes for teachers’ lounge and the school in general. Bring your mission to life on the walls of the school.

Regular rules go out the window in the month of May for behavior rules and classroom management policies, but that doesn’t mean we can’t plan accordingly. How to make the most of the final weeks together to finish the year strong.