In this interview, Michelle talks with Hallie a school psychologist, CPS trainer, and implementation leader at Think:Kids about Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) and the mindset shift required to move beyond rewards, punishments, and compliance-based discipline.

Hallie shares how a failing behavior plan with a first-grade student forced her to confront the limits of traditional behaviorism and ultimately led her to CPS. Together, they explore why behavior is best understood as skill-based rather than willful, and how this reframe changes everything from how teachers regulate themselves to how students learn to problem-solve independently.

This conversation covers:

• What Collaborative Problem Solving actually is (and what it’s not)

• The five skill areas that drive behavior

• Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C—and when each matters

• Why regulation must come before problem-solving

• How CPS builds trust, communication, and long-term independence

Michelle weaves in her own experiences as a teacher and parent, illustrating how CPS provides language and structure for approaches that many educators intuitively feel but struggle to articulate or defend in systems driven by compliance.

This episode is for educators, parents, and leaders who are ready to stop asking “Why won’t they?” and start asking “What skills are missing—and how can we build them?”

Connect with Michelle on Instagram: ⁠@dearmrsroundy⁠

Think:Kids Link: https://thinkkids.org/Learn-Collaborative-Problem-Solving/Additional-Courses/

ASK A QUESTION: Do you have a question you’d like Michelle to address on The Elephant and The Teacher? Complete this form for an opportunity to receive insight on your specific situation.

In this episode, Michelle explores what happens when teachers and leaders give their power away by staying stuck in blame, resentment, and complaint – even when the system IS broken.

This conversation invites listeners to look honestly at where they may be outsourcing responsibility for their energy, culture, and leadership. Michelle weaves in the old fairy tale The Red Shoes, as interpreted by Clarissa Pinkola Estés, as a metaphor for the shortcuts we take to feel relief and how those shortcuts often lead us down the path to burnout.

This episode is not about ignoring systemic issues. It’s about reclaiming agency, integrity, and authorship inside imperfect systems. If you’ve ever felt exhausted, stuck, or quietly resentful in your work, this is an invitation to step off the complaining train and return to conscious choice.

Connect with Michelle on Instagram: @dearmrsroundy

Books referenced in this episode:

• The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership

• Women Who Run With the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés

Do you have a question for Michelle to discuss on The Elephant and The Teacher? Fill out this form for a chance to gain insight on your specific situation.

In this episode, Michelle tells the story of Emily’s backpack—a small moment that opens up a much larger question about learning. When a student loses access to their usual comforts, what actually happens? Through a morning meltdown, natural consequences, and honest reflection, this episode explores how our well-intentioned supports can sometimes prevent growth. A conversation about failure, scaffolding, and the courage it takes to let students struggle just enough to learn.

If this conversation stirred something for you, consider sharing it with a colleague or friend who lives in this work alongside you. Michelle would love to hear what questions, resistance, or insight it sparked.

Connect with Michelle on Instagram: @dearmrsroundy

What do we really hear when a student asks, “Is this graded?” Or, “How many points is this worth?”

In this episode of The Elephant and the Teacher, Michelle explores the deeper meaning behind these familiar classroom questions and why our responses matter more than we think. She shares how you can build resourcefulness and give students more ownership of their learning without abandoning accountability.

You’ll leave this episode with:

• A new lens for interpreting common student questions

• Practical language that supports agency and resourcefulness

• Reflection prompts to examine where we may unintentionally reduce student ownership

• Permission to let go of control in service of deeper learning

If this conversation stirred something for you, consider sharing it with a colleague or friend who lives in this work alongside you. Michelle would love to hear what questions, resistance, or insight it sparked for you.

Connect with Michelle on Instagram: @dearmrsroundy

In this heartfelt and inspiring episode, Dakota - Michelle’s brand strategist, interview host, and friend - sits down with Michelle Roundy, the 2026 Wyoming Teacher of the Year, for an honest and uplifting conversation.

Michelle shares her unexpected journey to becoming a teacher at age 40, and reflects on how her long daily commute through the Snake River Canyon became sacred creative space. She opens up about the vulnerability she brings to the classroom, the reality behind the Teacher of the Year spotlight, and how she balances a full and beautiful life as a mother, instructional coach, podcast host, and animal lover.

Together, they explore:

• Why Michelle almost didn’t become a teacher

• How vulnerability and authenticity shape her teaching and leadership

• The unique challenges and gifts of being recognized as Teacher of the Year

• And the story behind how this podcast got its name

This episode is a warm, real, and deeply human conversation about the sacredness of everyday moments and the courage to follow what lights you up.

LINKS:

Follow Michelle on Instagram: @dearmrsroundy

Follow Dakota on Instagram: @thedakotahunt

A Book Michelle is Loving: North Woods: A Novel by Daniel Mason

A Podcast Michelle is Loving: The Jefferson Fisher Podcast

The Elephant and the Teacher is a podcast for anyone who believes that teaching - and leading - begins with the human work.

You’ll hear reflections from real classrooms, experiments in teacher lead professional learning and leadership thinking rooted in thoughtful self-work instead of compliance. You’ll also hear old stories - myths, fairy tales, history - not as nostalgia, but as mirrors for the work of growing humans.

Whether you are in the classroom, guiding systems, raising children, or simply trying to understand what it actually takes to learn and change - this podcast invites you into an honest, unguarded, human conversation about the work that shapes us.

Follow Michelle on Instagram @dearmrsroundy.