With high-quality instructional materials doing much of the heavy lifting, do teachers still need to lesson plan? Yes, but that doesn't mean spending hours creating detailed plans no one ever looks at.

In this episode, Courtney and Shannon break down how teachers and school leaders can simplify lesson planning by focusing on the planning moves that actually impact instruction and create accountability without turning lesson plans into another compliance task.

Timestamps
00:00 The lesson planning debate
01:48 Do teachers still need lesson plans with HQIM?
03:14 Why teachers still need to plan before teaching
05:36 Should leaders require lesson plans?
06:53 How to simplify lesson planning
07:40 The Big Four lesson planning moves
09:02 Leaders: Model your lesson planning expectations
10:42 How to monitor lesson plans without checking every one
13:05 Building a manageable lesson planning system
15:06 Explain the "why" behind your expectations
16:31 What nearly 400 classroom observations taught us

#LessonPlanning #TeacherTips #SchoolLeadership #CurriculumImplementation #Edu2020

https://www.edutwentytwenty.com

What happens when we ditch the education talk and just start asking each other questions? Things get weird pretty quickly.

In this After Hours episode, Courtney and Shannon share their favorite books, concerts and TV shows, tell a few cult stories, introduce some very particular children and cats, and discuss their highly scientific methods for surviving stress.

Timestamps
00:00 Welcome back to After Hours
01:30 Our favorite books and series
04:33 Favorite concerts & our Swiftie confession
06:14 Concerts, cult life & cheating for the Lord
08:16 Our favorite TV shows
09:56 Kids, cats & extremely picky eaters
12:28 How we deal with stress

#TeacherHumor #TeacherLife #EducatorPodcast #Edu2020

https://www.edutwentytwenty.com

Students can look like they're listening, complete every assignment, and still not actually learn the content.

In this episode, Courtney and Shannon share three simple teaching strategies that help students retrieve, process, and practice what they're learning so teachers can check for real understanding, not just compliance.

Timestamps
00:00 Are students listening or actually learning?
01:26 What is retrieval practice?
04:54 Strategy #1: Retrieval before review
07:49 Strategy #2: Chunk and check
13:03 Strategy #3: Practice with a product
14:29 Stop checking for completion instead of comprehension
16:01 Why copying notes doesn't guarantee learning

#TeachingStrategies #StudentLearning #StudentEngagement #TeacherTips #Edu2020

https://www.edutwentytwenty.com

Every professional development session has the same cast of characters: the eager learner, the side talkers, the emergency phone-call person, the paper grader, and the one who always has something to add or question.

In this After Hours episode, Courtney and Shannon confess their own bad PD behavior, share stories from leading teacher training, and somehow end up discussing Vaseline, gloves, and school bathroom emergencies.

Timestamps
00:00 Welcome back to After Hours
01:01 Bad teacher behaviors in professional development
03:22 When the room gives you absolutely nothing
05:03 The people you meet in every PD
09:20 Grading papers during staff meetings
11:00 The person who always knows more
13:03 The Vaseline and gloves story

#ProfessionalDevelopment #TeacherLife #TeacherHumor #Education #Edu2020

https://www.edutwentytwenty.com

Classroom walkthroughs should help leaders make better decisions about coaching and teacher support. But when the purpose is unclear, the data goes unused, or teachers never receive feedback, walkthroughs can quickly damage trust.

In this episode, Courtney and Shannon break down the biggest walkthrough mistakes and explain how leaders can make classroom observations more transparent and useful for everyone.

Timestamps
00:00 Why classroom walkthroughs matter
02:25 Red flag: No clear purpose
04:05 What leaders should look for
05:53 Red flag: Walkthroughs become compliance
07:08 How walkthrough data should drive support
10:05 Red flag: Teachers receive no feedback
11:45 Why face-to-face feedback matters

#ClassroomWalkthroughs #SchoolLeadership #InstructionalCoaching #TeacherSupport #Edu2020

https://www.edutwentytwenty.com

What happens when the leaders in the room are the ones making professional development harder?

In this After Hours episode, Courtney and Shannon unpack the leadership behaviors that can derail even great PD, from sitting on the sidelines to mixed messages between leaders, and what the best leaders do differently.

Timestamps

00:00 Welcome back to After Hours
02:08 Bad leadership behaviors in professional development
04:22 Leaders sitting on the sidelines during PD
05:59 When a district leader won't stop talking
09:17 When leadership isn't on the same page
14:04 How mixed messages impact teachers
15:08 What great leaders do differently

#ProfessionalDevelopment #SchoolLeadership #InstructionalCoaching #Education #Edu2020

https://www.edutwentytwenty.com

The first weeks of school can set the tone for your entire year. In this episode, Courtney Dumas and Shannon Streett share three simple strategies to improve classroom management, streamline parent communication, and get into your content faster, without adding more to your plate.

Chapters:
00:00 Why doing less leads to more
01:39 Teach these classroom routines first
05:35 The parent FAQ every teacher needs
10:23 Map your content before school starts
13:20 Free Classroom Parent FAQ Template
14:51 One final reminder before the school year begins

🎁 Free Resource: Classroom Parent FAQ Template: [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ByFzU7SF6C2w3IJNitV0J8lEfWHTWMNx/view?usp=sharing]

#BackToSchool #TeacherTips #ClassroomManagement #Edu2020

https://www.edutwentytwenty.com

Welcome to the Edu20/20 After Hours Podcast… and yes, we’re ending the season with state testing. Because what better way to wrap things up than revisiting one of the most stressful and chaotic times of the school year?

In this episode, we’re sharing real stories from state testing--the kind that sound made up until you’ve actually lived through it.

We’re talking:
• The rules, the pressure, and the “did I sign in blood?” meetings
• What classrooms actually look like during testing week
• The moments where everything goes sideways (and you can’t do anything about it)
• And how teachers somehow survive it every single year

If you’ve ever made it through testing season, you already know. And if you haven’t… buckle up. Source moments pulled straight from real classroom experiences.

Chapters:
0:00 Why state testing deserves its own episode
2:22 The rules, the pressure, and the setup
4:20 What testing week actually feels like
6:38 When things go wrong (and you’re stuck)
9:32 The story we will never forget
12:01 How teachers survive testing days
14:00 The moments you can’t control
15:34 Ending the year (and season) with perspective

https://www.edutwentytwenty.com