[00:00:00] Welcome to the Teacher Interview podcast.

I'm your host, Wes Creel. I work as Director of Innovation and Instructional support in Fullerton School District, and we are now in season four of the podcast where we get to know teachers better. Our themes this season, our passion, drive and determination. Join me.

Today on the Teacher Interview podcast, we spend time with Kim Bass. She teaches fourth grade at Robert c Fisler School in Fullerton.

Uh, he, uh, Hey Kim. Uh, welcome. Hi, welcome to the podcast. How are you today? Very well, thank you. Good. Uh, what'd you have for breakfast today? Bagel. Okay. Bagel of cream cheese. Okay. And, uh, a tea. And a [00:01:00] tea. What kind of tea? Chai tea. One. Tea. My favorite? Mm-hmm. Okay. Heena in our office, she does the website. She hand makes her own chai tea every morning.

Uh, I've had some, it's kind of next level stuff. Yeah. What, where do you get your chai tea? Uh, I probably couldn't handle her level. I'm I'm, I'm a Starbucks girl. Sorry. Okay. So, all right. She cracks me up. She's like, um, if I go to Starbucks, I get their coffee. Yeah. She doesn't get their chai tea. Yeah. Um, okay, so you're on the podcast.

What we want to know is get to know you. We want to know. Uh, your story, um, teaching. So tell us your current assignment and then just kind of walk us back through your teaching career, almost like a reverse chronology of like, have you been at different school sites, different grade levels, that kind of thing to help us understand.

Okay. Well, right now I am teaching fourth grade at Fisler. Okay. And this is really hard because it's 33 years in total. So, um, my numbers might not be accurate. It's okay. It's okay. [00:02:00] You can say anything. Okay. We're not gonna check. So teaching fourth grade, I think six years prior to that at Fisler was third.

Okay. And then I literally went down from, I mean, up the chronology. Yeah. Uh, I taught second grade. Yeah. And I started Fisler as a first grade teacher. Wow. Okay. And that's, The past 18, 19 years at Fisler. Oh my gosh. Wow. And prior to that was 15 years at Valencia Park. Now Fisler is one of our newer schools.

Yes. And how close to it opening? Were you there? Oh, I was there. You were there at the opening. Was there? Mm-hmm. Interesting. What was that like? Go back 2004. Go back to that first year. What was, what do you remember? Uh, one of the most challenging years. Okay. Tell me more. As far as, um, coming from a wonderful school of Valencia Park.

Yeah. Where I taught 15 years. Okay. And I taught first grade for majority of that time. Okay. And my tricks of the trade with that community. My Spanish, my limited Spanish, that [00:03:00] had kids laughing at me. Yeah. Had no response. Crickets. Yeah. Uh, at Fisler, right. Um, the time I spent. So a lot of the things that I would had set up curriculum-wise, We're not reaching the audience.

Yeah. And so had to do a lot of switching up and changing things around and, um, becoming aware and attuned Yeah. To the, to the students that I had that year. Yeah. In order to mo like modify my entire teaching. So let me, I'm gonna introduce a quote. We, we asked for three people we could reach out to.

Mm-hmm. Um, and. At least one said something right along those lines. Ted Johnson said, um, you're an extremely passionate teacher, always looking out for students best intentions, but the next line really strikes me as that like search to connect with the the Fisler students. He said, you're constantly changing your craft to best suit your students in their [00:04:00] classroom.

And I've never heard, we always say we're working on our craft. But it's interesting you use the word changing your craft, which sounds like a very deep type of renovation. So what do you remember in that first year at Fisler thinking, oh, I see something working. Like, do you remember things that, that you found that, um, That started to work for you that you maybe hadn't tried before?

Hmm. Well, Or could be being, being open-minded and flexible. I always felt myself as open-minded and flexible before. Okay. But this was on a whole nother level. Okay. In the sense that, um, some of the students were coming in with a vast experience mm-hmm. Had traveled more than I have had. Oh, wow. Have been to They're coming from other countries.

Yeah. Yeah. Multiple other countries and families travel more. Yeah. So, I had to make sure I was just more open and understanding where they [00:05:00] came from. Multiple languages were being introduced to my classroom that I was not familiar with. Yeah. And, um, just being aware that, um, they were knowledgeable about more things than I was.

Yeah. So as a six year old Yeah. What does that look like? So a teacher's listening to this podcast, um, the first thing I think of is like a teacher. Tool is like the types of questions you would ask. Oh, yes. So what, walk me through what it looked like in your classroom when you're like, oh, I have to be open.

Yeah. Yeah. I needed more open-ended questions. Okay. Not leading, uh, or not just, You know, having a sentence frame right. Um, I needed to make sure I left things open. Yeah. And had more vast opportunities for the students to be able to pull in their knowledge in different ways. Yeah. So walk me through some of those.

Uh, or let's create a, a hypothetical example. [00:06:00] Okay. You know, you're going to teach something and then, uh, I'll give you a, a leading sentence. How many of you have heard of blank? And then the students can go yes or no. And then as a teacher I'm like, okay, I'm gonna read that response and go, but what's a more open-ended way?

If you're introducing a subject, um, if say it's a math concept, it'd be more of what, how do you, what ways would you think of to answer this or solve this? Ooh. And that would. Definitely promote a wider range of choices. Yeah. There was no automatically thinking there's a correct answer or an incorrect answer Right here I have, oh, there's multiple ways of responding to this.

Right. And with literature, um, instead of just looking for those direct. You know, correct responses or in, you know, wanting to just see do they understand or not understand would be what other stories might you connect this to? Ooh. Or what, um, [00:07:00] other. You know, characters have you met that might have similar characteristics to this?

Oh yeah. Character in a book and I wasn't as prepared for that kind of, um, exploration, but it was, yeah. Wonderful. Yeah. And it may, of course, you think back and think, why wasn't I asking these questions? The last prior 15 years of my career. Right, right. Which I've, I've, you know, I've said that many times later.

Yeah. Like, this could have been the start of a career, so. Right, right. Um, the teachers that I know now that are, that are being able to frame those questions, Um, earlier in their career, just yeah. Envy that, but you kind of follow the path and where it leads you Yeah. And be open to what needs to change Yeah.

And what needs to be modified and for you. So it sounds like that moving the school was, um, I'm trying to think of the right word, but a lot of times in life we, we get set. Mm-hmm. And unless something [00:08:00] fairly out of the ordinary kind of shakes us up right then it's hard to really kind of penetrate our.

Beliefs or biases or just routines, you know? Absolutely. Even, uh, so that's interesting. So it sounds like you're grateful for that shift. It, it was, like I said, it was one of the most difficult things to transition to do. Yeah. But the growth that I made just that year alone Oh wow. And then continued afterwards.

Yeah. I felt I was fairly confident as a teacher after 15 years of teaching. Right, right. Especially first grade. Yeah. And I had six year olds. Like, make me rethink that real quick, real fast. It takes a lot of humility to Oh yes. To move through that. Very much so. Yeah. Um, okay, good. I I love that. That's, that's great.

Um, since being at Fisler, have there in been other similar events where you're like, oh, I'm outside of my comfort zone. I have to embrace that openness again, talk. You're nodding. So talk. Tell me. Oh, yes. Tell me one [00:09:00] of the things. With Fisler being, um, starting as a one-to-one laptop school. Now, first grade was not a part of the initial one-to-one.

Okay. Yeah. We had laptop carts. Yeah. And we were the full and sole responsibility of teaching any technology. Yeah. And yes, that was, uh, I can only say it's kind of rolled over multiple times. Success. Success, continuously. Yeah. Over the years. Yeah. It's not just been. Once or twice, but I'm pretty much in awe of what is in front of me.

Yeah. As a, as a one to, and then moving from, um, a first grade teacher. Yeah. Using a laptop cart. Right. And initially sharing it one laptop cart among. Eight classrooms. Oh my goodness. Yeah. And you know, having our scheduled day and our scheduled time period Yeah. To waiting for someone to be absent in order to sign up again.

So you could have it more multiple times. Yeah. To calling [00:10:00] the teacher. Who's teaching older students to say, could you send some fourth graders over to help me with the 21st graders that I have? Because they're all asking for help and I can't get to them all. And yeah. So finding tech buddies. Mm-hmm. And learning how.

To work with, you know, using grade level experts to come back and help you with your younger students. Yeah, that, let me stop you there. Mm-hmm. So that was actually a quote from, uh, Kim Benra, the principal there, and she says, during reading and writing, compares her, her students with first grade buddies to help them throughout the year.

So the scenario you just read was, or you just shared, was. You were in first grade. Mm-hmm. Asking for older students. Right. To come help. And now you're in the fourth grade and the principal's been there two or three years. Yes. She's saying you're pairing your fourth graders with first graders. Yes. Which is similar idea, but different incarnation.

Yes. The other way. Yeah. How did that happen? [00:11:00] We've been doing it several years. Okay. It, it's been something that we've set up from, I think the first year we started, okay. Sometimes it was first grade to second grade, I think the first time we partnered up, and then as the years progressed, we were seeing the benefit of being.

Well, the, having an older group. Mm-hmm. So when I taught third grade, we were buddies with kinder. Right. Okay. And we did a lot of tech projects, but any kind of project that we'd go in and be the model or the mentors Right. To our younger, um, classmates or potentially siblings. Yeah. Um, however, we didn't always match up the siblings, but they would, they, we'd, they'd be, there'd be, they'd be there.

Yeah. Yeah. Um, as a fourth grade teacher, we've kind of met, meet up with first grade buddies. Yeah. And, um, originally it started out as reading buddies. Okay. Which was awesome and wonderful and yeah. And the first grade buddy would pick a book, the fourth grade buddy, and would help read or listen to the first grade buddy [00:12:00] read.

It's expanded into, okay. Math technology. Yeah. Writing. Yeah. Pretty much any, we just call it buddies. Yeah. We don't have any significant, um, like it's not just reading no limits. It's not just, it's no limits. Yeah. Exactly. Exactly. So let's go back. So, uh, somebody hasn't heard about about it before you take your fourth graders.

Into the first grade class, correct. First grader. One of the things you said picks a book. Yes. And just reads to the older grade student? Correct. Okay. So how could, what's another way, uh, a reading buddy might work? Uh, well, One of the benefits of having this situation and the first grade teacher and I partner when we partner students up, so if we have any language learners mm-hmm.

We try to make sure that if any of her first graders are second language learners are limited in English mm-hmm. We try to partner them up with a strong bilingual student that will help. [00:13:00] Yeah. Either translate, be able to Right. Work with them in English, but also be able to help them understand and vocabulary.

Right. And translate things like that. Yeah. Which has been extremely powerful. Yeah. So you're helping the first grader. Mm-hmm. Access the language, but then the fourth graders being validated for being bilingual. Calling upon that, the amount of validation. I recognize the power of it as as being the younger, when I was teaching the younger grade.

Yeah. When I see it on this end. So many of my students benefit from being the mentor. Mm. When you find some of your students are only children, Uhhuh, and they don't have any younger or older siblings to be the big, the the bigger, older, yeah. Student. They so are so proud of themselves and so excited to be able to be that mentor and that older sibling.

Yeah. You know, [00:14:00] responsible. It it, it's their highlight of their day the week. Yeah. They can't wait to be able to spend that time with their buddy. Oh, that's so great. And. The one of the side benefits is when we go out to lunch, our first graders are out at recess and they just swarm my class to oh, you know, say hi and hello and hugs and all that kind of stuff.

So, so it helps the school culture too impacts? Oh yes. Yeah. Oh my gosh. Yeah. That's so, so great. It's powerful. Yeah. Has there been something you've seen, um, Uh, aside from those other benefits, just something surprising you didn't know was gonna come out from, uh, buing students up. Um, either from younger to older, older to younger.

So we have kind of mentorships, school climate, um, uh, reading, reading the language, accessing, I mean, there's at least three. I think one of the big aha moments really started to come out with technology. Okay. [00:15:00] And not it, originally it was getting help with just typing. Right. Okay. Took a long time. For a lot of the kids, especially the younger ones, typing things out.

Right? Yeah. But then it grew and then of course as a teacher then it was like, what kind of activities can my older students bring in? What kind of things can we teach them that maybe help not just logging in, which is, you know, one of the challenges for Right, right. Now there there are a lot of other things that have.

Come, acro come around. That might help the first grade teachers and their students, but as the fourth graders technology, the shortcuts that they've learned along the way. Mm. The, yeah. Like the hacks. That's interesting. Yeah. The hacks that they've learned that they're helping knowledge and, and I've seen that as a benefit of having been teaching there for so long.

When I see, do you have an older sister or brother that's at Fisler and they're like, yeah, they taught me how to do this. I'm like, ah. So when we are able to pass that knowledge Yeah. Onto [00:16:00] the younger generation. They have just faster access or they understand things simpler. Um, uh, it's amazing that, that what the older students are able to, um, just broaden the Yeah.

The technology horizon of, of the younger, yeah. Yeah. Let's, uh, flip it from talking about the tech buddies too. There's a quote I wanted to share with you. Mm-hmm. Um, uh, this is from your, uh, your husband, Kevin. Um, so he starts with, Kim is very passionate about reading in computers. She wants to share experiences and fun with these subjects in the classroom.

But here's the quote that I wanted to share in particular. You love reading to your students. Mm-hmm. She's really good at creating different voices for the characters. So, um, does that resonate? Oh yes. Oh yes, yes. So, but this is different cuz in the other discussion we was talking about how you're facilitating and [00:17:00] you're matching up.

But this is like, Teacher as performer. So tell me, tell me, uh, a book you like or why you do this. Oh. And what do you see the students, uh, reactions to being? Well, the books, um, uh, are wide and varied. Okay. Um, and I, you, I can take you back to when I taught. Um, I think it was in third grade. Second grade I would read aloud Raw Dolls, um, James and the Giant Peach.

Okay. And not everyone enjoys the book. Okay. I particularly love it because the vast amount of characters. Okay. And being able to do the Russian spider with Russian accent. Right. And the kids are like, wow. And, and the Centipede with a Brooklyn accent. Right. Yeah. And every they, you know, they just. And then, you know, James's voice and um, uh, aunt Sponge and Oh my goodness.

And the evil, um, hi and whiny voice for Aunt Spiker and yeah. And then Aunt [00:18:00] Sponge is the, my gosh, I can't stand it anymore. You know, just, yeah. Yeah. And so lit, literally be able to carry that out through the entire novel and read aloud. Oh, wow. Yeah. And Right, you know. It, it doesn't always transfer as well over to, uh, maybe realistic fiction, but fantasy definitely leads Oh, right.

Lends itself to that a lot. Yeah. And when there's just multiple characters. I did it with Charlotte's Web. Yeah. Yeah. And just carried over. And now it's trickled into just everyday classroom. Yeah. Teaching. And so for me, I don't remember teachers, I remember teachers reading, but the voices I don't remember.

And I'm wondering, cuz when you did it, I was like, oh, that's so cool. Uh, what do you think the value is? Because it's, it pulls us in. Yes. Because it, but talk more about re-engagement. Is Yeah. Number one, one of the things I talk about with students when we're reading Yeah. Is when you're connecting [00:19:00] with characters.

And most of the time we, we make mind movies mm-hmm. Of what's happening. Yeah. And we have our own soundtrack Yeah. Of what the characters sound like. So it's very difficult if a child has already read the book, they already have that, their own soundtrack that's happening. Mm-hmm. So it takes them a little while, while to, if, if the sounds.

And the voices that I'm making are not the sounds that they hear. Right. Right. Sometimes they're a little irritated at first. Yeah. And then they, then they, we all are, are engaged together in it. Yeah. Um, when I'm using, um, like an adult man voice and a deeper voice or something like that. Yeah. And, or a softer, you know, that sort of thing.

They just, they're, they're just like, that's what's happening in my head. Yeah. That, that's what I'm hearing in my head. And I'm like, that's, I will reread parts if I accidentally. Did it with a different voice and they'd be like, some of them, some of 'em are like, Ooh, that's the wrong one, Mrs. Bass, and I'll have to go back and do it with the correct voice.

Yeah, because yeah, so there's that [00:20:00] engagement. Yes, they're watching you make sure you do the right voice. And then there's something about imagination, because that mind movie, I've never heard it called that, but of course you know, that's one of the reasons why when we see a movie, And we've read the book Ba the Booms, based on if it doesn't line up closely enough, we're kind of agitated.

Like, I don't like the movie version. Um, but talk about the, what's the benefit of imagination? Like we know we're trying to get kids to read. We know we're trying to get them to love reading. Um, engagement means they pay attention. They don't fool around. But what, what does imagination do for us? As humans, like it allows you to be a part of the story.

You are that character or you are with that character. You might not have a name, but you're in the story. You're in there with them. You're right there with them. I often have to tell my students, I'm [00:21:00] sorry to pull you out away from your book, or pull you out of your book because you are so invested in it right now.

Right. And that's what happens during my read aloud. We're all invested in it at the same time. And when the phone rings. Oh. You know, when someone comes through the door unexpectedly, we're all like, wow, stop doing, doing no. What are you doing? It, it, it really. Basically allows you as the reader to be living through the book and experiencing the book in a different way.

Yeah. And the voices just help students connect quicker. Um, make it feel real. Yeah. And your imagination, you just allows you to be swept up with it. Yeah, it's, it is me. Yeah. And then you said there was something about, you're all in this moment, the read aloud moment together, so it's like a, it has this, Promotes Unity?

Oh yeah, we, the shared experience. Yeah, the shared experience. Talk about that. I will always tell them the books that we read, those [00:22:00] characters follow us the whole year through, and then we'll follow you through the rest of your life. Mm-hmm. And so a lot of times, um, we will often go back and. Revisit characters in their experiences from life and say, oh, this reminds us, this connects.

So when we are making text to text self to text connections mm-hmm. World to text connections, those are things that are happening with readers all the time. Mm-hmm. But this is a way of. Living and breathing it in real time. Yeah. And those characters, whether it's Charlotte, whether it's Wilbur, whoever.

Yeah. James the Centipede, whoever that we're reading right now, we're reading Pax. So it's Peter and Pax and, and our students, like they resonate with them. Those characters resonate. Yeah. And they are able to literally be able to say, That happened to me just like, you know, Peter, just like Allie from Fish in the Tree?

[00:23:00] Yeah. Or just like Jessica from because of Mr. Trump. And, and or That's so sad that it happened and I'm frustrated that it happened. And, um, I'm able to use those characters to pull in, like when we're having difficult situations and they're having conflicts, like the literature just allows us and that connection with.

The class as a whole, it just, it just follow us, follows us all year. Uh, how, can you give me an example of that, uh, like pulling in literature into a classroom conflict or a student conflict? Like, say a little bit more about that. What does that look like? So how do you do that from, from the story of, because Mr.

There is, um, um, a character named Peter. And there's another character named Alexia and both of 'em tend to get in trouble or cause trouble. Mm. For whatever reasons. Mm-hmm. And they have their own reasons why, you know, you've, you don't know right away, but you find [00:24:00] out, and Alexia is a fifth grade girl who likes to cause.

What, what the book refers to, um, as Girl Wars. Hmm. And she literally will pit one girl against the other Ooh. Tell lies about other students. Yeah. And, and like sit back and watch the drama unfold and what can I do to continue to cause these issues happening? And unfortunately scenarios like that can often happen and occur at school.

Yeah. And you start to see those things happening and you can bring up. Is this a situation like, are, is Alexia, has that transpired amongst you girls? Mm-hmm. And they kind of look at you like, oh yeah, maybe. Mm-hmm. And I'm like, how did, how did that resolve in the book? How can we make sure that this doesn't continue happening?

Mm-hmm. And the same with the, the character Peter, who likes to fool around, likes to mess around and he ends up [00:25:00] causing, Accidents to happen. Mm-hmm. And things that he thinks are hysterical end up being not so funny at the end. And, and one of the things I'll often say is, You know, in the book, the question was should the teacher have stopped Peter?

Mm-hmm. And made sure that he was checking his behavior sooner, should he have been more firm. So if I'm stopping you, it's because of safety reasons. So I'm often able to bring those situations up. Yeah. Very often in class or the students will, yeah. And they start talking to each other in that regard as well.

Yeah. So it's interesting cuz when we were first talking about. The imagination. I was thinking about empathy, like, oh, correct. I've never imagined what it would be like to be this type of teacher or character, so I'm empathizing. But then when things happen in the classroom, and you can almost pull this up, it's almost a way to, um, depersonalize it.

Oh, yes. Because they're not feeling as defensive about themselves. So it's like you're looking [00:26:00] across at Alexia or Peter. Right. Remember. And then they start to analyze what happened over there. And then they're able to kind of pull that knowledge, pull it back mm-hmm. Back onto themselves. Mm-hmm. So it's, it seems like it's a way to disarm students to bring up.

Right. And, you know, if they remember the book, it largely was probably a fond experience, you know, it was engaging experience. So it's a way, it's almost like friendly territory. Yes. Yeah. To talk about some of the problems. Yeah. That's interesting. Yeah. I'm starting to think about the books we should have teachers and administrators read, and then we can talk about, oh, does this remind you of anything going on now?

Yes. Yes. How can it, how can it help you? Yeah, and, and it, it's, it benefits like the self-reflection piece. Not only does the. Build the empathy and the multiple of characters that you have. Yeah. The array of characters from these stories, um, with challenges that they have, whether it's a learning challenge, whether it's family life.

Mm-hmm. Um, whatever those things may be. So you see this [00:27:00] behavior and you now recognize well, I understand why they might behave that way, should they, that doesn't give them permission to behave that way, but I understand where that's coming from, right? And how can we help them? How can we, and then we tried to bring that kind of relationship.

Back into our classroom with our community. Yeah. And be able to, you know, build those kinds of problem solving strategies within our own community. That's great. Uh, I have a, a couple quotes here. I want to make sure we get to 'em. Um, so this also from, uh, your husband Kevin. He says he mentions the word training.

Mm. Does that ring a bell? I can read the quote. Oh, multiple training. Multiple training. So he talks about your master's program? Yes. Uh, and he talks about Coatson Coatson. Um, so either one of those just tell, he said a definite jump in your professionalism. What, what does that mean? Uh, well, [00:28:00] there's lots of different things I, I've started, I believe.

Presenting to groups of teachers back in, probably in 1994. Oh boy. Um, it's out there now after piloting a math program. Okay. And then, and then sharing kind of my results back. Yeah. And realizing how much I was gaining from presenting. Mm-hmm. Uh, it was, it was like selfish, like, yes, I'm presenting, but it's how much.

The research that goes into putting a presentation together. Yeah. What story that you're trying to hopefully get across? What information you're hoping that teachers get from it? Yeah. Or students. And, um, going, of course, going through my master's degree at Pepperdine. Um, Uh, was for administration. Mm-hmm.

And that was not necessarily my choice. I would've thought I might've done technology or something. [00:29:00] Yeah. It was the program that was available. Mm-hmm. Other teachers in our, my school that were already participating cohort was being driven like pro, provided by the district. It was a phenomenal opportunity.

Yeah. But what a lens it was. As an educator, you're not just. In the classroom and looking at your kids and your students, but looking at the school as a whole. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Looking at the district as a whole, understanding how decisions have to be made across the schools, across Right. The levels across the communities, and having a different lens.

Mm-hmm. And when you have at different lens, yeah. You are understanding where some of the decisions are being made and why. Right. Right. And that's difficult for, you know, when you're in the midst. Yeah. I've had there 33 years. You've seen things come and go many times. Oh, I'm sure. I'm sure. And teachers come and go and, yeah.

And, um, the staying power. [00:30:00] Being able to recognize that it's not just about you, what's happening to your kids, and that Yes, that's important. It's vital. Yeah. But being a part be, so I became a leader from my classroom instead of the leader. Instead of a principal. Mm-hmm. I decided that was not the spot I wanted to be.

Yeah. That I can still maintain my edge as an educator, but I can lead as well from my classroom. Yeah. And be able to, Help the culture of my school. Right. And the capacity of my school. Yeah. By staying in the classroom. Yeah. And by presenting in the district, becoming, um, you know, an eld. I, I was, there were many different things that I had, I, roles that I've had, but I realized that, um, just sharing my knowledge about first grade curriculum or just that alone was one place.

My knowledge of technology, my love of technology. Yeah. But [00:31:00] just leading from Yeah, from that position. Yeah. And how, how beneficial and powerful and helping others recognize just the organization and how the pedagogy of, of decision making is not just. You know, they're not doing it to us. Yeah. And there's reasons why.

Yeah. And if you're not looking and realizing above what's happening around you Right. That you're just feeling, you know, put upon and Yeah. And that's a hardship Yeah. On you when you have a wider scope. And I really think that both of those programs really helped me. Grow, yeah. In multiple ways and be able to have a wider scope of connection and a wider scope of influence as well.

That's fabulous. We are getting close to time. Okay. To time. And there's about four quotes No, no. That I want to share. So I'm just gonna sprinkle these in there. Okay. Uh, [00:32:00] and you can, you can, uh, choose which ones you want to talk Okay. About. Okay. So, uh, one is Minecraft. Okay. Uh, one is electric bike. Uh, you can talk about that.

Okay. One is donating your personal time. Oh, yes. And then I think I had one more in there. Uh, let's see. I am going to go with, uh, mom. Oh. To four wonderful adults who attended Fullerton schools. Oh, wow. So Mom Wow. Minecraft electric bike. And donating your personal time. Oh, well, we're gonna talk about 'em all.

Okay. But about 60 seconds each. Okay. Oh, that's hard. You wanna start with, I can combine Minecraft and donating my own time. Okay. Th Minecraft. Actually, I like how you gamified it right now. You're like, I'm gonna combine these two for extra points. Uh, my youngest son actually played Minecraft, like, uh, way back when.

Okay. Now [00:33:00] you're combining, combining mom, my, my mom. Mm-hmm. But, um, I, I did some reading and found some amazing research on how Minecraft and like, engages Yeah. Just talking with students and how important. The engagement level was and, uh, video games. And there's a whole wealth of knowledge out there about that.

Yeah. Yeah. And one of the articles, actually, it was a book that was written by two Australian teachers, and it had to do with students with autism. Mm-hmm. And how it was able to allow them to communicate Wow. With their peers Wow. And their teachers on a level that they've not ever communicated with. Wow.

And the year I started Minecraft, I had a student in my class that was diagnosed with autism. Mm-hmm. And my, I'm gonna have you, uh, explain what started Minecraft means. Oh. Because people may not know. Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah. That's okay. Yeah. So, um, My principal at the time ly, who I'm like, [00:34:00] I want to start an afterschool program with Minecraft.

Okay. Okay. I'd like to start a club. Minecraft. Minecraft Club clap, and just get it on their computers. There's a whole, there was a whole Minecraft educational community out there, so Minecraft edu mm-hmm. Was my first step into Minecraft. Yeah. And not having any knowledge. My youngest son was my mentor.

Okay. And first, uh, held my hand, walking me through what Minecraft was Yeah. What it looked like, how it was, and, and then I went and found training. Yeah. And started the club and I realized, The connection. I'm now the Minecraft lady, Minecraft teacher at Fisler and I love it. So the club is, kids choose to stay after school.

So actually I work in, um, with our school foundation. Okay. So I willingly, I'm part of the foundation. I'm one of the board members. And my afterschool time. My afterschool classes, I donate my time. [00:35:00] But students, parents will donate money. Yeah. And the money will go towards our foundation. Yeah. To help support our science and technology programs at our school.

And I have, I have lists of students that come and want to participate my That's awesome. My It's, yeah. It's a a, a that could be a podcast all by itself. So invite me back for another one. Might, might have you back. Have, so you, you touched on, uh, motherhood Minecraft, donating your time. Electric bike. A bike.

My husband bought his first. Okay. I didn't start mine until about five months later. Okay. And. I became obsessed. I love my, my, my little lady. My, my little e-bike. Okay. Um, it's not the bi biggest, most powerful. It's probably already out of date as far as e-bikes go, but I don't even have one. So you're it.

Tell me about it. When, when you're out of shape and you, you want to start bicycling again. Mm-hmm. It's a way, at least my level [00:36:00] bike is, yeah. Was a way to get me on it. Exercising and outdoors again. Yeah. Yeah. And I literally, Dolled this bike up with saddlebags. Okay. So I could ride my bike to school and for really six months before Covid hit, um, five days a week, I was riding my bike to and from school.

Now, I don't live that far away, so don't, don't think I'm, but that's awesome. But, um, the amount of gas I saved, but the, the joy. It. It's great. Yeah. I can't wait for it to warm up a little bit more. Yeah. And I can get it going again. It's just, just a absolute joy. Yeah. To be out there and writing. Yeah.

That's awesome. Yeah. And so what if you had to analyze it a little bit? Mm-hmm. What is, what is the joy. From like, what are you experiencing? Is it like hearkening back to, oh, when I was a kid I used to have this? Is it freedom of movement? Is it freedom of movement? For sure. Okay. Um, just being out of doors, like the things you appreciate [00:37:00] because you better not be on your technology while you're riding your bike, period.

Right. Hopefully people recognize that. Right. Don't be on your phone. Um, And, and just being able to see things. Mm-hmm. And being able to just be out and the wind in your face. Yeah. Um, and, and literally the smile on my face as I'm riding to and from. Yeah. Just feeling that sense of accomplishment and just getting out there.

It's, it's, yeah. I love it. There's, there's a, uh, steady, it's a podcast from a Stanford neurologist and one of the things he said stuck with me cuz I do cycle and I have at times cycled to work and. It's just if I start my day that way, it's an amazing day. Yeah. And then absolutely. He said something about being, when we're, there's studies that show when we're moving under our own power.

Mm-hmm. And there's something about the rate of speed. But it's weird because biking doesn't have the jarring like thing that happens when you run, run. It's very smooth. Right. But he just, I'll send you the [00:38:00] podcast and see what you think. But yeah, I had this, it just stuck with me cuz it's, it's like this autonomy and freedom and it does something to your brain.

It, it's very, Magical. I would say Yes, magical. Yeah. What's a very good word for it? Yeah. And it does, it starts your day out. Just you're already on cloud nine. Yeah. Yeah. Well, which is a great way to start it. It is a great, great way to start. Well, Kim, that's really all we have time for today, but this has been so good.

I think I will, uh uh, I'll hit you up for a Minecraft episode. So much more to talk about. Oh, so much more. I, I can't wait. Thank you. All right.

This has been the Teacher Interview podcast. Thank you for joining us.