Teachers (or “learning engineers” as they also go by) are literally raising our future generations and doing everything they can to turn their students into the best versions of themselves, and they deserve our utmost respect. Today’s guests are Carly Grandner (G), Alexa Johnson (Ms. J), and Gary Suchor (Mr. Suchor); music teacher, math teacher, and English teacher respectively. All three of them are palpably passionate about their work and their students. Sometimes, unfortunately, this passion can end up being a downfall because it is too often assumed that teachers will work for less because they love what they do. For this reason, amongst others, many teachers are changing career paths, with potentially catastrophic future outcomes. Tune in for this episode where we discuss everything from establishing boundaries, to politics being brought into the school environment, to the struggles of post-lockdown reality, and more!

Key Points From This Episode:

• G, Ms. J, and Mr. Suchor share their favorite memories from the summer.
• Each of today’s guests shares a brief overview of their upbringing and educational journeys.
• What the school environment provides to children.
• How to establish boundaries with children.
• The role of guidance counselors in a school environment.
• What G, Ms. J, and Mr. Suchor were like when they were at school.
• Hear the story of the projector on fire.
• Examples of books that children are into at the moment.
• How the current political environment in the United States is spilling into schools.
• Requirements for becoming a teacher.
• A major challenge facing school music faculties.
• The threat of privatization of schools.
• Average compensation that new teachers in the public school system receive.
• Why taking a day off as a teacher is a lot of work.
• Dealing with burnout as a teacher.
• Post-lockdown challenges in schools.
• The lack of support available to teachers.
• Why G, Ms. J, and Mr. Suchor don’t like ice-breakers.
• Some of the least hated ice-breakers.
• A creative approach to remembering students’ names.
• G, Ms. J, and Mr. Suchor each share what led them to become teachers.
• Traits in teachers that children think are cool.
• If you’re considering teaching as a profession, go for it!
• The importance of the teaching profession. 

Tweetables:

“School is so much more than just learning.” — Gary Suchor [0:13:09]

“When kids reach out, they want stability and reassurance, and someone to listen to them. You can still support them in a way that’s clearly very different [from a friendship].” — Carly Grandner [0:15:30]

“My number one fear is that public education is going to die out because we won’t have enough qualified people to put in there.” — Gary Suchor [0:35:43]

“Math didn’t necessarily come easy to me but I do believe that having an understanding of numbers gives you power.” — Alexa Johnson [01:03:19]