Welcome back to Fuel Up! We’re kicking off Season 2 with a conversation about where we’re headed, the stops we’ll make along the way, and what we hope listeners will bring with them for the journey. This season, we’re continuing our conversations around EL Education K–5 literacy, classroom practice, student ownership, and the good work happening in classrooms across our county.
Katie and I have been planning already a list of just rock stars to bring to the table to continue this celebration. That hopefully, when you are listening, you can celebrate too.
Absolutely, that is key. If you're a new listener, you might not know this, but we really like to have fun on our podcast. So that is definitely another destination.
Yeah, let's join. Join for the fun. Welcome back to Fuel Up, a place for conversations with and for those using EL education as a resource to support K5 literacy learning. We are so excited to have you with us for this week's episode. Today we zoom in on the new season ahead. We hope today's talk serves as a pit stop, a chance to swing by for some fresh energy, insights, encouragement, and celebration as we work together to do what's best for our learners. This is a chance to fuel up. So wherever this finds you today, we hope you are able to pull over, take a breath, and crank it up. And in that spirit, here we go. Welcome to season two of Fuel Up, Katie. What do you say when you haven't seen someone for a while?
I think our sight. Long time no see.
We've seen each other a little bit over the summer, but it is good to be back together at the table for our listeners to echo what Katie said. Long time no see. Katie, how was the summer?
It was good. We had a really good summer. We spent hours and hours outside. It was good.
Yeah, living in Michigan, summers are great to be outside. And your family is a pool family, right? You guys hang out with the pool.
We do. We are a pool family. We hang out. I think I'm there maybe twice a day some days. Yes. You know we have five-year-old twins, so yeah, they get some energy out, and mom gets to breathe for a minute. So some
good pool time this summer.
Yes. What about you? How was your summer?
This summer was good too. Yeah, it was pretty relaxing, and I think the keyword for the summer was buzz, like the bees that I think we talked about last summer. I was getting into beekeeping, and so that was a highlight this summer. You know, it was a lot of fun. I learned a lot and got to reap some of the honey. So I
was just going to ask you that: Are we going to see some honey in a little bit at our recording table? Yep,
it's coming to the table.
Perfect. Yeah, stay
tuned. Well, we hope you also had a good breakaway from school and a good summer. And listen, we are excited to walk alongside you for another year. We've heard from many of you that the conversations that happened at this table have been an encouragement, and we hope this year continues to fuel you up. Katie and I really want to craft each episode with intention. We've listened to people in the work and have mapped out a collection of what we hope will be meaningful and helpful topics that will support you this year. To get this new season launched, we want to share a vision of where we're heading, kind of like a quick road trip. Katie, do you like road trips?
Sure.
No,
I am not a huge road trip fan, but my family enjoys them. So
okay, so if you're on a road trip with your family, like maybe you think to the past road trip or a dream road trip, where would you go?
So I think if I'm going to say yes to a road trip, we are really wanting to go from Arizona to California. Oh, so do a little time in Arizona and then drive to California and head up Palm Springs and San Diego and kind of maybe go to what's over there, Disneyland. I think it's Disneyland. Yeah. So if we're gonna do it, I think that would be the one I would I would get behind you. That
sounds fun. Yeah, I have not done that
one. No. Well, Arizona to Kelly. Okay. But we're gonna fly to Arizona. Oh, fly
into Arizona
and then drive. That that's
nice. Probably my limit. Some of the plane and the the the road trip. That sounds fun.
What about you? Are you into road trips? Yeah, one
of my dream road trips-it's on the bucket list-is to hit the national parks in Utah.
Nice, that'd be beautiful.
Oh man, Bryce Canyon, and a number of those out there. I've seen pictures and and had friends and relatives who have done that, and it just. Looks so beautiful and majestic, and I'm like, that would be a fun road trip to do. So that is definitely on the bucket list to hit those national parks out west.
How long of a road trip is that?
Oh, I would do a couple weeks. Two weeks.
Okay, so you're gonna be prepared, ready to go. Yeah, all your things. Let's do it. All right, be fun. Let me know how it goes.
Well, we are talking about road trips and away today. We thought to get this season launched, we would take a minute to take you on a trip of where we're going this year. And with any trip, when you are planning, the first thing you think about is the destination. You ask that question: Where are we going? Whether it's to California or to the national parks in Utah, our podcast has a destination too. And so, Katie, maybe you and I just talk for a minute about as we think about this podcast, the Fuel Up Podcast. What are some of those things and our hopes of where we're going?
Yes. So, for me, I really would hope that your destination, as you're listening, would be one of connections to be able to make connections to what some of our guests are sharing, as well as celebrate. We really want to be able to celebrate the good work happening in and around our county, so those are really my two, I think, destinations that I'm hopeful for this year.
We talked about that last year. This idea of celebrating and us being intentional about bringing guests to the table to hear their work and to also cheer them on and say, "Listen, what you're doing is so good, that is rocking it, and we want to continue that this year to celebrate. And so we, Katie and I, have been planning already a list of just rock stars to bring to the table to continue this celebration. That hopefully, when you are listening, you can celebrate too.
Absolutely, that is key for you guys to celebrate. And Kevin's right; you guys will not be disappointed. They are rock stars. Yeah, it's going
to be fun. I would add to that. Yes, celebrating is one of the destinations, and also I'm going to pick another C word: confidence, just to build our confidence. We'll have listeners who are using, you know, Yale Education for the first time. Maybe looking at the man, you're like, ah, this is like a different language to me. Or maybe you've been in it for five to 10 years, and it's getting, you know, comfortable. And it's like, you know, we can still build our confidence and build our fluency. And you know, hearing the ideas of others who are in the work hopefully is affirming, but also you're like you know what I'm going to try this, and now I feel even more confident about this piece that has felt messy for years. And so, you know, if we can celebrate what we're doing, but also build confidence, I think that's one of our destinations of where we're going.
And if you're a new listener, you might not know this, but we really like to have fun.
Yeah,
on our podcast, so that is definitely another destination.
Yeah, let's join join for the fun. One last destination that Katie and I have set in our sights is best practice, like you see part of our part of the normal rollout of this podcast is a section that is let's get grounded, and you know if you're in any literacy context, which you are, if you teach in a school or you're listening to a podcast or reading a book, you know there's lots of things out today about best practice, and so part of our destination too is to confirm the good practices that are embedded in EL already, and to bring some of those to the surface. So, you know, we hope as you take this journey with us that you are making connections to your work, that you are growing your confidence, that you are having fun in that you know we also are connecting it to what is best practices according to research for you and for your learners. I think that sounds like a good destination where we're going.
I think so too. I think those are some really good destinations, and I'm excited.
Yeah. So, well, we talked about destinations in California and Utah for the Fuel Up podcast, and it's always good to know where you're heading. And when you're planning a trip, you also want to plan out those stops along the way.
Yes, and if you're like me, you need frequent stops. Frequent stops, some good fun ones, right? Like Disneyland, you were
talking about in California. Yes,
and snack stops and coffee stops. All of those.
I wonder if we, you know, if we've planned this season, we've planned some of these fun stops and some of the topics that are coming. We have 15 episodes. This is one of 15 that will be published this year, and so maybe we invite people into some of our road stops.
Yeah, give you a little where we're going, little preview. Yeah, the preview. Stops ahead. It's things
to look forward to.
Yes, any good road trip needs that.
Yes.
So a few things that I'm specifically looking forward to, and I hope you guys as listeners are too, is vocabulary in action, and I'm really excited for that stuff. We've I've been diving into vocabulary this summer, really reading about it and the importance of it, so I'm excited for that
one. Last year we talked about those vocabulary word walls, and it will be fun to go even deeper into that. Yes, how do you set it up? How do we really intentionally put those into action?
Right, and make sure kids and us as adults are using those words that we're introducing on a regular basis.
So that's one of our stops we're going to make this year. Diving a little bit deeper into vocabulary.
Yeah, and I think another one is going to be a little bit later in the year. But writing for an audience-that one really gets me excited, especially when we're thinking of our young writers, in that sometimes they don't. It's hard writing's hard, so giving them a purpose in helping with that excitement, I think it's going to be it's going to be a fun episode, and hopefully resonate with a lot of our listeners. A
lot of those writing projects are embedded in the performance task or the end of unit threes, and to highlight a piece of that, and that is identifying an audience, and some of the things we talked about last year too, making authentic right to the audience of the people who are in your context or your classroom's context. It will be fun to highlight some people who have been successful at that and invite others to think about being intentional about audiences.
Absolutely. So that's another stop along the way. What are some of those stops, Kevin, that you're excited about?
So one of them that I am excited about, and this is actually like going to be a group of episodes that go under this, and it's high leverage practices. Maybe in the district you're in, you've heard of those before, maybe you haven't1. of them would be the co-construction of anchor charts, and so we're going to dive into a number of those, and they're going to kind of go in order. And so I'm excited to talk about some of those.
Yeah, those high leverage practices are really essential, and they support so well the Yale curriculum, so those that will be a fun little multiple stops. We'll have multiple stops around those HLPs.
Yeah, it'll be fun. Another one I'm looking forward to is pacing, which always comes up in our conversations, like as we walk alongside teachers or grade levels or schools, and this, ah, I can't get through a lesson for in a day. Or can you talk to me about pacing? How should I have this thing paced out? You know, we're just going to hit that head on and have a conversation about it.
Absolutely, that comes up frequently across our county, and we have some some resources, and I think some teachers that are really doing this well, and some strategies to think around how to pace this EL curriculum out.
Yeah. So pacing will be one of our pit stops this year in season two. Any others that you're excited about?
Yeah. So scaffolds and supports. I'm excited about that. That really resonates with me because it's similar to an episode we did last year with student talk protocols. Yep. And how do we leverage that as a support and scaffold for our students?
That's another one that comes up in conversations with teachers often, whether we hear this is too hard, how do I provide supports for kids to be successful with the grade level content? And so we're going to talk about some of those scaffolds and supports that you might consider to support every learner in your classroom. So that's going to be a good one. They're all listen. We're highlighting some and saying we're excited, but to be honest, I'm excited about all of them. Like they're all of them are going to be good conversations this year.
I agree. When we sat down to create our list, I think these 15 popped right to the surface, and we were very excited about all of them and excited to bring them to you with some of our guests,
yeah. And next week we're going to come out swinging. It's going to be a fun one. Sure. It's about we talked about classroom environment last year, and this year we're going to continue that and just talking about making your classroom come alive to support the topic that your kids will be living in for a couple months. So, man, it is going to be a great year with lots of good topics, lots of good guests and conversations, and we hope lots of encouragement and learning. So, we talked about our destination, we talked about some of the stops we're going to make along the way, and maybe the last part of our conversation today with any trip, there's a conversation of how do you pack your bag, what are some of those things you want to bring with you, and so Katie and I want to take a few minutes to invite you to consider bringing a few things with you as you journey with us on this season two of Fuel Up. Katie, how would you encourage them to pack their bag?
Well, so I think I mentioned not super big into road trips. So when I go on a road trip, I really have to keep an open mind. Okay. So I'm going to encourage our listeners as you're going on this road trip or this journey with us this year that you keep an open mind. Some of you have been in this curriculum for 10 years, and that's you do your things, and it's hard to have new ideas. So I'm going to encourage you to pack your bag with that open mind. I
love that. I would rephrase that and say curiosity. I think those two things go together. Like, come curious to hear what others think, and you know sometimes we're quick to say, I don't think that's going to work in my context with my kids. You don't know my class, and to be curious to hold that to the side and just listen and wonder, like maybe it could, would be a benefit to bring that with you.
And I think going off of being curious is to take it one step further, and the things that you hear, maybe take a risk and try it in your classroom. Even though you're not quite sure how it's going to work, that risk taking could pay off in big ways.
It's a little bit of that adventurous spirit. Like any time you take a trip, yes, when you're going out to Cali, if you go out to you know the the the national parks in Utah, you get some of these cool paths that are open to take, and you're like, I don't know, and then you're just like, you know what, I got to go for it, and you take this trip and you see some of the most beautiful views. Yes, maybe you hear some things this year. You're like, I don't know. Taking a risk feels a little messy, but you know what? Sometimes though, those that adventurous spirit and that risk taking pays off to some of the most beautiful things that you see.
Absolutely great advice.
What else do you think? So yes, pack with you this open mind and curiosity, a willingness to take a risk and be adventurous. Put some action behind that. What else might they want to bring with them?
Yeah. So I think when I go on road trips, a traveling companion is key.
Yes.
Especially if you need help reading a map, like one of us might need. So definitely bring a traveling companion with you when you're listening to our episodes, so you can collaborate and have those conversations and push each other to be open-minded or take a risk.
Yes, you know we all have classroom neighbors right across the hall or down the hall. If you're the only one that is listening to this in your building, consider bringing somebody with you. Oh my goodness! Check this out. I just listened to this conversation. Can you listen to it too, so we can process it together? Like, yes, you can travel on your own, and it's going to be so much richer if you have somebody to travel with and have these conversations with. So that is a great idea. Something to pack with. Bring somebody with you.
So, what about you? What else would you suggest packing in their bags for our fuel up road trip?
I think to follow up on that and add on to that, maybe like just a a generosity, a generous spirit. What I mean by that is, you might get some good pieces of learning. Don't hold it to yourself. Like even if you have a colleague who's not interested or doesn't have the space to join the the podcast, you might get some great ideas. Like be generous and just share the idea with somebody else. Or if you put something into to action and it's working well. Like invite somebody into your class to say you got to check this out. Like you might be a benefit from this small tweak or this small step too. And so you know, consider being generous.
Absolutely, I think that's great advice. If you're trying something and you're taking a risk, share with others. Yes, they might want to take the same risk. Yeah,
And maybe one last thing to consider, and that is, you know, you gotta have some food and drink.
Yes, we and fuel up really like our food and drinks. And any guest
we have, we talk about, you know, what snack or drink would fuel you up to get you moving. Makes me think, like when I was a kid, I have a brother. The two of us would travel with my mom and dad to different places, and my mom, on our trip, this was signature. She would always make gorp. Do you know what gorp
is? I don't know what gorp is. I need gorp is like
I would say it's the the original trail mix. Okay, it stands. I believe it stands for good old raisins and peanuts.
Okay. So, like the way my
mom would make gorp, it would be like raisins, peanuts, and M&Ms. And you know, on the trip, at some point, we were like, "Mom, can you get out the gorp? Get off the gorp! And then we would have this like container between my brother and I of this original trail mix, and so listen. I don't know what that looks like for you, but you know, consider bringing some food and drink along with you as you listen. What's what's a favorite snack? What would you bring?
Well, now I want to bring gore. Right, that might be my new my new secret. You can make sure you can personalize it. Yeah, like what would you
toss in there? Raisins, peanuts, M&Ms,
pretzels. Oh, pretzels! I think some pretzels would be good in there.
Yeah,
yeah. Yeah, I'm gonna add gorp to my future road trip list, and that's a new vocabulary word. Right. So look at that up on our
vocab wall. Right. All right. Well, it is going to be a great season. We are so excited that you joined us today for the launch of season number two, and we hope that you stay with us for the rest of the season and bring someone along with you. And as we close up this episode, we hope you are leaving encouraged, inspired, and re-energized for the weeks ahead. We're going to close things off today with high fives and hitchhikers. Here's the cool thing: we have the power to re-energize and refuel those around us. So find a colleague. It could be the person next door. It could be the person across the hall. Maybe it's in another grade. Find that colleague and give them a high five. Tell them you got this. Remind them you're a rock star, and pick them up as a hitchhiker. Invite them to join the conversation and take a seat with us at the table. All the best to you, and see you next time on Fuel Up.