Secondary Science Simplified™

Better serving your students while less is required of you? Sounds amazing, right? If you’re ready to make that happen, today’s episode is for you! We are continuing our new summer series on revamping our pedagogy to make it more student centered and this is an episode you don’t want to miss! We have all heard that students learn best by doing, not by hearing. I know it can seem overwhelming to make the shift from lecture-style, teacher-centered teaching to student centered teaching, but it can have such a huge impact on both students and teachers. In today’s episode, we are looking at how to prevent opposition and student apathy, the importance of equipping our students to be independent learners and critical thinkers, and how taking us out of the center stage leaves more room for us to better serve our students. We will be covering how to shift our pedagogy in the next 2 episodes. Until then, check out my FREE classroom reset challenge that walks you through five tasks you can complete to help you be more prepared for the school year. Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode30 Download your FREE Classroom Reset Challenge.

Ready to get off the stage and be in the audience with your students during your classes? That’s what we’re diving into in this new series focusing on student centered pedagogy. We’re talking about everything you need to know about shifting your pedagogy to be more student centered. Today, we are looking at what student centered pedagogy is and what it isn’t. We revisit transforming our teaching from one dimensional to three dimensional and becoming more of a facilitator than a lecturer in our lessons. We break down common misconceptions and address some fears you may be having about letting students take more control of their learning.  I give you some examples of how I implement student centered pedagogy while still having structure and a plan - because we all know how much I love planning ahead! If you’re wondering how to move your students from passive to active learning so the content can be more meaningful to them, this episode is for you! Don’t forget to grab your free Classroom Reset Challenge and check out my TpT store for resources to help you simplify your life as a secondary science teacher! Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode29 Download your FREE Classroom Reset Challenge.

Summer is here which means you can finally rest after the long and demanding school year! We know the routine - hurry, stress, and go, go, go all school year so when summer comes, we just want to relax, recharge, and unplug. And we should! But if you’re anything like me, you need something to work on to keep you in some sort of routine. In this episode, I discuss how to make the most of your restful summer by setting small, manageable goals so that you can be more prepared going back to school. I give you 3 easy to work on goals that will help cut down on the stress that fall often brings. You’ll hear about using your increased mental clarity and creativity to make adjustments for next year, completing a task that you just don’t have time for during the school year, and checking a must-do task off your list that is low pressure and doesn’t require much energy from you. If you’re interested in PD in the summer, I have my own professional development course that I have created specifically for secondary science teachers. Enrollment has ended for this year’s summer session but I would love for you to join the waitlist so you know when I offer it again. You can sign up for the waitlist here.I would love to see you there! In the meantime, check out my other resources to help simplify your school year. Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode28 Download your FREE Classroom Reset Challenge.

“Do it! What are you waiting for…it’s a game changer! It’s made my life so much easier.” This is the message today’s guest, Rachel Carter wants to share with everyone who is considering enrolling for the Secondary Science Simplified Course, which is now open for enrollment! This month, I’ve shared secrets and habits I learned the hard way in my teaching career that I wish I had known when I first started teaching. These experiences formed the foundational lessons in the Secondary Science Simplified Course. After learning from my mistakes, I truly love all things related to simplifying our jobs and lives, and I am passionate about sharing how to do that with other teachers. In today’s episode, I’m interviewing Rachel Carter, one of the teachers who took the course with me last summer after her 2nd year of teaching. You’ll hear how taking the course impacted her as a newer educator in the field. If you’re wondering how the course has impacted a more experienced educator, be sure to listen to episode 24 where I interviewed Nikki Pryor, who has been teaching for 14 years.  If you’ve been on the fence about enrolling for the Secondary Science Simplified Course, these 2 interviews provide a lot of insight into the benefits of the course and the supportive community we have created. The course only opens once a year in the summer, and the last day to sign up is June 23, 2022, so be sure to check it out! Join the Secondary Science Simplified Course Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode27

What are your worst work habits? This month, I’m getting open and honest about all the bad work habits I established during my first few years in the classroom. The good news is, habits can be changed! In my case, experience, making lots of mistakes, and leaning on the wisdom of my co-workers taught me how to correct these habits over the years.  In today’s episode, I’ll share what I believe is the absolute worst habit I formed as a new teacher…regularly working way more than 40 hours a week and having poor work-life boundaries. Thankfully, I learned how to leave work at work, and it made me a much better teacher and led to a happier, less anxious personal life. I’m sharing with you what I would tell myself if I could go back in time: “You work so that you can live, you don’t live so that you can work.”  Reserve your spot to the FREE workshop, 3 Secrets to Stress-Free Lab Days Join the Secondary Science Simplified Course Waitlist  Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode26

During my first few years as a teacher, I developed some bad habits simply because I had so much to learn that could not be taught in a teacher certification program. There’s only so much you can learn about theories or even from shadowing other teachers. Eventually, you just have to jump in and learn things the hard way, doing the best you can to manage all of the things.  On top of figuring it out as you go, you have an audience of teenagers judging you along the way. I created survival mechanisms just to get by during those first years, and they became bad habits that I had to break. Thankfully, I learned some things through experience and the wisdom of other teachers. In each episode this month, I’ll share a teacher habit that I’ve learned along the way that I wish I had started my first year. In today’s episode, we talk specifically about the importance of proactivity and how being proactive as a teacher can save you so much time and energy in the long run, especially when it comes to interactions with our students and their parents and guardians. We’ll talk briefly about lab day prep. Then we’ll spend the majority of the episode talking about proactivity with parents.  There’s still time to sign up for my FREE live virtual professional development workshop called 3 Secrets to Stress-Free Lab Days happening this summer. Be sure to reserve your seat! Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode25

Like many teachers who have been in the classroom these last few years, today’s guest is a passionate educator who found herself exhausted at the end of a long and trying school year. When Nikki Pryor heard me share about the Secondary Science Simplified Course I was offering last summer, she knew it was exactly what she needed. She was ready to take a proactive approach and find a way to simplify her life and stop “chasing her tail.”  Now, Nikki is here a year later to discuss how taking the course last summer impacted her. She shares how this course is different from any other professional development she has taken in her 14 years of teaching. She’ll talk about her favorite parts of the course, and some of the things she implemented during the school year that completely changed the dynamics of her classroom. Nikki is currently in her 14th year, teaching science in the public school system of Oklahoma. In addition to being an educator, she's a small business owner, mother of two, and a proud military wife. The Secondary Science Simplified Course opens its doors for enrollment in mid-June, and we’d love to have you join! The enrollment window is only open for 2 weeks, so be sure to join the waitlist so you don’t miss it. I created the course to help teachers practically simplify their jobs so that they could have work-life balance. This is a virtual professional development course where you work at your own pace. While you’re waiting for the doors to open, you can join me for a completely FREE course I’m offering called 3 Secrets to Stress-Free Lab Days. This 1-hour virtual training is all about how to prepare and manage lab days specifically so that you can enjoy them as much as your students do. This free training gives you a chance to experience my teaching style and to see what virtual professional development with me as your teacher is like. Join the waitlist for Secondary Science Simplified Professional Development Course: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/waitlist/ Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode24

We are wrapping up this month’s "Ending the Year Strong" series with my favorite strategy…how you can set up rocks and boundaries for yourself this summer. In each of the first three episodes of this series, I have given you a simple challenge that can have a big impact and set you up for success next school year. Whether you’re a teacher who has a hard time unplugging from work for the summer, or you’re a teacher who leaves all your schoolwork behind and goes into the new school year feeling behind, today’s challenge will benefit you. Join the waitlist for Secondary Science Simplified Professional Development Course: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/waitlist/ Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode23

Believe it or not, the end of the school year is the perfect time to reset your classroom! After a busy school year, chances are your classroom is a mess. While it’s tempting to wait till the start of the new school year to take inventory and reorganize, your future self will thank you if you do it now. I know…I know…you’re ready to leave it all behind and start your summer break, but hear me out.In today’s episode, we are continuing our series on how to end your year strong. In episode 20 and episode 21 I challenged you to reflect on your classroom management and lesson plans this past school year in order to end the year strong and set yourself up for success for next school year. Today we’ll take a mental break and focus on the physical space you teach in with the Classroom Reset Challenge. I’ll give you the step-by-step process you need to walk through every corner of your teaching space and storage areas so that when you return to your classroom next fall, you’ll be relieved rather than overwhelmed.Join the waitlist for Secondary Science Simplified Professional Development Course: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/waitlist/Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode22

What can you do now with a little bit of effort that will serve “future you” 5 times over? Summer is almost here, and this month’s episodes are dedicated to sharing specific and simple strategies you can do now so you can end your year strong and go into next year rested and ready to go. Like most teachers this time of year, you may be feeling totally exhausted, but if you can channel the little bit of energy you have left into completing the challenge I’m giving you today, it will have a huge impact on saving you time and energy next year.In today’s episode, we’re talking about how and why auditing your lesson plans for next school year is so important, even if you don’t know what you’ll be teaching.Join the waitlist for Secondary Science Simplified Professional Development Course: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/waitlist/Check out the show notes for all resources mentioned in this episode: https://itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com/episode21