The Innovative Schools Podcast features conversations with authors, consultants, thought leaders and practicing educators working to improve K-12 schools around the world. These conversations include discussions on student mental and behavioral health, classroom behavior, school climate & culture, innovative teaching methods, student safety and more. Each episode provides an opportunity for administrators, teachers, counselors, social workers and others to learn about new insights and strategies for reaching and teaching students.
S4E5 - Let Students Do the Problem Solving w/ Connie Hamilton
Educator and speaker Connie Hamilton shares insights into how educators can support students through productive struggle without doing the thinking and work for them. The episode also provides practical suggestions to build student ownership and problem-solving, and skills to increase a student's overall confidence.
🔑 Key Takeaways
• Productive struggle provides students opportunities to persevere, learn from mistakes, and build confidence.
• Helping students finish an assignment isn’t always the same as helping them learn.
• The smallest useful amount of support leaves room for students to think, discover, and solve problems themselves.
💬 Memorable Quotes
• “We’re the ones who solve the problem and they just do the solution.”
• “Don’t rob them of the joy of discovery while they’re working through whatever challenge.”
• “If we’re always giving less help than we could, that means we’re leaving the door open for students to help themselves.”
🧠 Strategies You’ll Learn
• Ask “What have you tried?” before stepping in with a solution.
• Redirect questions back to students or a partner to restart their thinking.
• Let wrong answers breathe so students have time to recognize and work through mistakes.
➕ Additional Practices
• Ask students before they get stuck to identify three things they can try if a challenge arises.
• Use “stop and jot” or partner processing before whole-class discussion so more students develop a response.
• Give the least amount of scaffolding needed, adding support only when necessary.
📚 Resources and Links
• Connie Hamilton: https://www.conniehamilton.org/
• Innovative Schools Summit: https://innovativeschoolssummit.com/
• Dr. John Almario episode on challenge and struggle: Rethinking Productive Struggle w/ Dr. John Almarode
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47Dh3mbROb8)
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• Share it with a fellow educator!
• Rate & Review to help more teachers find this show.
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(https://open.spotify.com/show/2Lbw553jnDXuG08IZ43Kb5?si=7f6a111fa26c4909)
Video Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
03:33 Meet Connie Hamilton
05:49 Challenge vs. Struggle
11:04 Rethinking What It Means to Help
15:16 Learning Through Mistakes
23:08 Give the Smallest Amount of Help
27:18 Practical Classroom Strategies
32:20 Stop and Jot
34:55 Let Wrong Answers Breathe
41:44 Coaching for the Thinking Process
22 Sept 2026
S4E4 - Laughter in the Lesson w/ Devin Siebold
Former teacher and comedian Devin Siebold explores how laughter can relieve stress, build community, and help students feel safe. Educators will learn practical ways to bring authentic humor into the classroom without needing to be a comedian.
🔑 Key Takeaways
• Laughter can communicate safety and help students lower their guard.
• Humor gives educators and students a needed break from stress and uncertainty.
• Small moments of laughter can strengthen classroom community and connection.
💬 Memorable Quotes
• “These teachers just got to laugh.”
• “Laughter is humans’ way of communicating safety to one another.”
• “Why can’t we just have some of that, even just a little bit of it, in the classroom?”
🧠 Strategies You’ll Learn
• How to use humor to create a greater sense of safety in the classroom.
• Ways to use laughter as a reset during stressful moments.
• Suggestions for finding authentic humor in shared educational experiences without “punching down.”
➕ Additional Practices
• Intentionally create small opportunities to laugh with students.
• Find healthy sources of humor outside school to disconnect and recharge.
• When sharing classroom humor, focus on relatable experiences rather than specific students, parents, or colleagues.
📚 Resources and Links
• Devin Siebold’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/devinsiebold/?hl=en
• A Teacher in the Wild by Devin Siebold: https://www.amazon.com/Teacher-Wild-Devin-Siebold/dp/0578260182
• Devin’s comedy tour for teachers: Bored Teachers Tour (https://l.instagram.com/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.boredteachers.com%2Fcomedy-tour%3Futm_source%3Dig%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_content%3Dlink_in_bio%26fbclid%3DPAcGRvZgJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA85MzY2MTk3NDMzOTI0NTkAAaeK5XqHJwmDS9xb9voIZuX5ULqMMHDezRbEv2Oxs944oCRa8FXLP649_euO9Q_aem_bJqa9TP4T0t3e41PC0-wlw&e=AUAaRkSEq9U-s1mqMgzlADdHEZQGe1wJvXMhL_sAXK4myRdjfw1jGps3mcYV1ZMQHoS4m0e5f1JLt00ix0YNW_rIpYbtaL33172FpIKZhqUS9S9nUazz9Qu1Hlx3rvUjeWo9ZMj0z8z3)
❤️ Love This Episode?
• Share it with a fellow educator!
• Rate & Review to help more teachers find this show.
• Follow and listen: Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/innovativeschoolspodcast/) | YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/@innovativeschoolspodcast) | Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/innovative-schools-podcast/id1502414943) | Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2Lbw553jnDXuG08IZ43Kb5?si=7f6a111fa26c4909)
Video Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
02:32 Devin’s Teaching Journey
07:56 From Teacher to Comedian
11:26 Why Teachers Need Laughter
14:24 Stress in Today’s Schools
17:49 Bringing Laughter Into the Classroom
23:59 Laughter, Safety & Connection
27:03 Finding Humor Without Punching Down
28:49 A Teacher in the Wild
34:00 Encouragement for Educators
8 Sept 2026
S4:E3 - How Serving your Community Serves your School w/ Dr. Tiffany Anderson
Dr. Tiffany Anderson shares how relationships, service, high expectations, and community connections can transform schools. She challenges educators to get beyond the walls of the school, understand the people they serve, and build systems that create lasting change.
🔑 Key Takeaways
Strong schools are built on trust and relationships.
Challenges can be reframed as opportunities for change.
Schools can become powerful centers of their communities.
Lasting improvement requires systems, not temporary programs.
Educators can accomplish more through connection and collaboration.
💬 Memorable Quotes
🗣️“You can’t serve needs you don’t know.”
🗣️“Programs come and go... but systems will remain.”
🗣️“Listen to learn. Stop listening to respond.”
🗣️“We are not in this alone.”
🗣️“We are literally ambassadors of hope.”
🧠Strategies You’ll Learn
How to identify what students and families truly need.
Ways to build stronger connections with the community.
How to break down silos across schools and teams.
How to maintain high expectations while providing meaningful support.
How networking can bring new ideas and solutions back to your school.
➕Additional Practices
Conduct community listening tours.
Build partnerships that address barriers outside the classroom.
Invest intentionally in relationship-building among staff.
Seek out educators and schools you can learn from.
Practice “listening to learn” instead of listening to respond.
📚 Resources and Links
🔗 Links to https://youthlight.com/browse.php?p=tiffany+anderson (https://youthlight.com/browse.php?p=tiffany+anderson)
🔗 See more Tiffany on AccuEd.com (http://accued.com): https://accued.com/programs/the_three_levers?category_id=104440 (https://accued.com/programs/the_three_levers?category_id=104440)
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💬 Join the Conversation on social media or in your next staff meeting!
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💡Listen on Spotify! (https://open.spotify.com/show/2Lbw553jnDXuG08IZ43Kb5)
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Who has been a guest on Innovative Schools Podcast
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Dr Brian Dinkins
Steve Bollar
Dr LaQuanta Nelson
Korey Collins
Ernesto Mejia
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
1,063
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.9 / 5
10 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
8 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 53 / 100
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