Wholehearted Teaching with Adrian Del Monte

At the end of a very difficult year I went into this conversation with TCDSB Director of Education Brendan Browne looking for something: I was looking for the heart in what he would say. I knew there would be limits to how much I could ask my boss (on air!), but that's not what I wanted to hear. As you listen, I encourage you to ask yourself this question: are you heartened by the work of education this year? You’ll hear Director Browne talk about his desire to build trust in the community, to work towards equity and, as the largest Catholic school board in the world, to show that we follow Christ by our love.  And then you can decide if these beliefs are grounded in some kind of distant principles or if at the heart of the board, is a deep value for people.This is our last episode until the fall. I want to thank you again for tuning in. It has been my deep and genuine pleasure. -----------------------------------------------------NEW EPISODES EVERY OTHER WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here:  https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

In this week's conversation, my wife Amy and I sit down to discuss what was an extraordinary year. We hope that our story might  help other parents and teachers process theirs.We reflect on the joys of the year-- our neighbourhood coming back to life, sharing laughter around the dinner table and becoming a reading family-- as well as the challenges-- wrestling with our own privilege, trying to support our sons in French Immersion, and watching so many of our friends leave the city. Amy helps me remember that we  must "sit" in both the joy and the grief. That is how we have the most complete human experience. I was so glad that we could process our year together in this way.Amy is not on any social media but feel free to let us know what insights the episode offered you by reaching out on twitter @podcastforheart-------------------------------------NEW EPISODES EVERY OTHER WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here:  https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

If you're a teacher who is a parent or a spouse, this is a wonderful conversation for you!Today's guests are Dan and Rachel Vigliatore, a wholehearted husband and wife who both teach in the Toronto Catholic District School Board. Dan is an elementary PHE teacher and Rachel is a secondary Guidance Department Head. They are also the parents to two lovely girls.Together, we talk about the many many parallels between teaching and parenting and even marriage. This conversation shows just how much our parenting and our spouses shapes our teaching and how much our teaching shapes our families.At the end of the conversation, I pose an exercise that would I would suggest for all of you: to create a family mission statement. It's a powerful exercise that can become a real map for both your family and, I would say, your own classroom teaching.You can connect with Dan and Rachel on Twitter!https://twitter.com/PhysEdDynastyhttps://twitter.com/wellcoachrachel ------------------------------------------NEW EPISODES EVERY OTHER WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here:  https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

In this week’s conversation I’m talking to one of the most wholehearted educators I’ve ever met: Skye Bowen. Skye is an activist, a community builder, a champion, and is working actively to dismantle systems that oppress racialized students. This conversation will give you confidence to engage in those conversations that can shift thinking and change systems. One by one, Skye addresses some common reactions and objections we hear when we really push for anti-racism classrooms:1. "You can't hire someone just because they're racialized" (17:30)2. "Like everything in education, there is always something new; we'll be on to the next thing soon" (20:45)3. "You don't need all BIPOC authors...you need representation" (24:00)4. "Should I say 'BIPOC' or 'racialized'?" (27:00)5. "You can't assume that all racialized students have struggled" (29:15)6. "Ok, ok...we get it...enough with the racism talk...." (31:30)We also discuss how Skye's faith informs her work. In particular, we talk about WWJD-- "what would Jesus do?"-- to challenge systems that oppress. Connect with Skye on Twitter at https://twitter.com/HealthyMsB1  or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/skyebowen37/------NEW EPISODES EVERY OTHER WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here:  https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

How often do we let our students (and our own children) just tell their story? That is the question I'm discussing today with Jael Richardson,  author and Executive Director for The Festival of Literary Diversity. So often as teachers and parents we have certain expectations of what "learning" ought to look like. I hope that today's conversation will help you see the power of letting go and letting our students free to find themselves in the stories they consume.In particular, we talk about the Educator's Guide to Gutter Child and how teacher's can use it to help students navigate the adolescent years.  Listen to the whole episode or jump to the parts that resonate with you most!4:45:     The original Old Testament Jael and her tent-peg for change8:50:     Using reading to help students find themselves12:30:  Finding opportunities for students to write about what matters15:30:  Convincing our students their stories are worth telling20:25:  What Gutter Child is all about21:55:  Stories as a form of resistance24:40:  Jael's hope for Gutter Child in our classrooms31:40:  Raising readers for a lifetime39:15:  The end goal of reading42:05:  What makes the Educator's Guide to Gutter Child so special46:00:  Make reading a priority for everyone (and getting involved in The FOLD)52:00:  Risk, vulnerability and changeSome Links1. Jael's website2. The Gutter Child Educator's Guide3.  The Festival of Literary Diversity website -----------------NEW EPISODES EVERY WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here:  https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

When I first reached out to Kimberly Dixon, Superintendent in the Toronto Catholic DSB, I was hoping we would talk about intersectionality for much of the conversation. I assumed that because Kimberly is only the second black, female superintendent in the TCDSB, her story would be full of examples of how she had to rise above obstacles in what has been called the "dinosaur" of education systems.  But this conversation turned into more than I expected.  Kimberly's story is one that celebrates diversity and richness in the TCDSB. She talks the wonderful people and communities she has worked with. She talks about the progress and innovation and pivoting she has seen in this board. She talks about the incredible anti-racist educators she sees. And, despite me asking more than once, she is very clear that no one doubted her abilities as she climbed to a position of leadership.Listen right to the end. Kimberly’s final message will be an encouragement if you work in Toronto Catholic, if your children attend her or if you know a teacher who does. Connect with Kimberly on twitter at https://twitter.com/1wholeads--------NEW EPISODES EVERY WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here:  https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

Today's episode is the story of one teacher's journey to allyship.We speak with Anthony Perrotta, a Vice Principal and a documentary filmmaker.  Like many first or second generation European immigrants, Anthony grew up  up in a white, suburban neighborhood where, as he says, “white was normalized” Anthony was never really pushed to become self aware.But when he travelled to one of the most ethnically diverse neighbourhoods in Toronto he began to unlearn, learn  and then re-learn what he thought about education. He had to rumble with his own assumptions and, as you’ll see, began to rumble with his colleges as well.Anthony didn't stop with mere awareness, though. He became an active co-conspirator using his film making skills to give voice to his students. As you listen, ask yourself how you might do likewise. Connect with Anthony on Twitter at @aperrottatweets or through his website, https://aperrotta.com/--------NEW EPISODES EVERY WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here:  https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

Today's episode is all about how hard it is to build anti-racist classroom. It's not just hard for our racialized students, but it's also hard for white teachers (myself included) doing the hard work of examining whatever biases we hold.But we have to do it. In this episode, Asante Haughton tells us his own story of becoming a father, a mental health advocate, a 2XTed Talk speaker and an inspirational human being.  Yet, as a poor, black man he had to endure more than many of us ever will.   He was not always able to be authentic to who he was, dealt with tokenism in his school community, and constantly had to work against the system. That was hard and yet through his resilience and courage, he excelled..You'll also hear about the hard work that white teachers must do to regularly and systematically challenge our own biases and assumptions. Asante argues that we can do this through the power of self-talk. By going through the HARD work of challenging those biases--each and every time they occur--we will begin to see differently, see the potential of each and every one of our students, regardless of what they look like or where they come from.This is hard work. If it was easy everyone would do it. The hard is what makes it good. (cue the Tom Hanks references) Asante's essay-- "Dear White People; Why Is Your Mental Health So White?"--is a wonderful piece of writing that you may want to read text.You can also learn more about Asante by watching either of his two Ted Talks: "The Power of Second Chances" and "An Common Story of Hope and Redemption".Please be sure to share this episode. It's one that could help you see your own students the way they were meant to be seen. ---------------------------------------------NEW EPISODES EVERY WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here:  https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

"This is a love story" are the first words of Penny Kittle's  book, Book Love.  They are words that may change how you see the students you teach. No one has been more influential on my classroom than Penny and I was so honoured that she was willing to sit down with me.  In our conversation, we speak about the wonder of the classroom, the necessity of developing lifelong readers, the opportunities of challenging traditional ways of thinking, the role of Shakespeare and making joy your teaching stance. So, so many wonderful take-aways. We also speak about a tweet that Penny wrote the day of the terrorist insurrection at the US Capitol: "Now....NOW will you make your classroom library more inclusive? Will you challenge colleagues to do the same—and to come together to make wide reading a priority? We cannot fight ignorance with fake reading." A powerful discussion here. Throughout the conversation, I felt something in my heart shifting. I've been wrestling with a lot lately, and this conversation moved me to self-discovery and some of my own courageous decisions in my own teaching. I hope it will similarly inspire you.If you don't know Penny already, check her out!!On her websiteOn her YouTube ChannelOn Twitter---------------------------------------------NEW EPISODES EVERY WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here:  https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

In this episode, my students from this quadmester will share their own, occasional poems with you. This has been a wonderful group of teenagers and I have loved learning and growing with them. I want to especially thank them for their bravery and courage. Sharing something as personal as poetry takes incredible risk. Thank you for our time together. It's meant so much to me. Start Time | Title0:00     | A Note from Mr. Del Monte1:32     | “2Morrow’s Reality”2:57     | “A Call for Action”4:45     | “A Dying Star”5:56     | “A Pandemic Stricken World”7:56     | “A World Far From Home”9:14     | “Approaching the Intersection”11:10  | “Are We There Yet?” 13:10  | “Brainstorm”14:50  | “Goodbye 2020”16:50  | “Him”18:13  | “Hope During the Pandemic” 20:06  | “Hope for a New America”21:39  | “In God’s Acre”23:15  | “In the Time of Plague”24:33  | “Locked Down”26:18  | “Long Gone”28:03  | “Open Your Eyes”30:05  | “Pandemic”31:39  | “Quarantine Makes Us Think”33:10  | “Silver Linings of a Pandemic”35:00  | “The Moment Before Us”37:00  | “The Road Taken”39:27  | “Things Take Time”41:15  | “Us Might Be You”42:57  | “Where Will You Go?”44:13  | “You Can See a Long in a Few Collapsing Minutes”46:06  | Winter 2021

This week's conversation is meant to help teachers-- particularly white teachers-- move from feelings of shame that immobilize us to connecting with healthy guilt that can guide us forward.  Guilt moves us to anti-racism work and that work is full of love. Our guest, Registered Psychotherapist Kristen Hodges, helps us understand the difference between shame-- the feeling that makes us feel like there is something wrong with us-- from guilt-- a healthy feeling that actually moves us towards action.At the end of the episode, I bid farewell to my good friend, Atticus Finch. It's a sad farewell, but one that Kristen helped me through.Connect with Kristen at https://www.kristenhodges.com/index.php------------------------------------------------------------------------------------NEW EPISODES EVERY WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here: https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

This question-- WHY ARE YOU IN EDUCATION??-- frames our conversation today.  If you stop to think about that, what would you say?My guest, Salima Kassam is a principal with the Toronto District School Board and has given her life to the work of anti-racism and anti-oppression. She is as wholehearted as they come. In this episode, Salima reminds  us that anti-racism is not a lens (that can be taken on and off) but is actually a stance. A stance becomes who you are whether we are inside the classroom or not. But most importantly, Salima reminds us that true anti-racism works requires genuine action and not just talking about the problems. She gives us many suggestions for how you can become anti-racist in your classroom, starting immediately. In the episode, Salima also speaks of much of the reading she has done to support her work. Below are some of the names. Check them out to continue your own journey!1. Natasha Henry, President of the Ontario Black History Society2. bell hooks, author of Teaching to Transgress3. Ibram X Kendi, author of How to Be an Anti-Racist4. Audre Lorde, writer, poet, feminist, and Civil Rights activist5. Kike Ojo-Thompson, Principal Consultant at the Kojo InstituteYou can connect with Salima on her twitter account and find her January 6th "WHY ARE YOU IN EDUCATION?? tweet here.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------NEW EPISODES EVERY WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here: https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

The second episode in our Anti-Racism series made me nervous.Lavinia is the most lovely person, but her role as Humanity Equity Advisor at the Toronto Catholic District School Board is to look at problems in the education system...and advise things that need to change.  I knew what she would say was going to challenge me to now go out and be brave enough to take and demand action.Lavinia's experiences working for equity first as a lawyer--we discuss several cases that jarred me, big time-- and now in the education system, make her the perfect person to have this conversation with. She's smart, experienced, and articulate.We do talk about one thing that teachers can do immediately: start your own Anti-Racism education. Below is a list of books that we discussed. Buy one and read it this week! That's your next step. Why I'm No Longer Talking With White People About Race by Reni Eddo-LodgeWhite Fragility by Robin De AngeloUncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man with Emmanuel AchoThe New Jim Crow by Michelle AlexanderHow to Be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------NEW EPISODES EVERY WEEK! Be sure to follow or subscribe so you get them first thing Tuesday mornings!Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wholehearted-teaching-with-adrian-del-monte/id1538305754 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1v39FRoSHRYfOThic1MZQL?si=-b0U_cJLQ9aAmBb8zWIsXwGoogle: https://podcasts.google.com/search/wholehearted%20teachingFind ALL our episodes here: https://wholeheartedteaching.buzzsprout.com/

In this conversation, we speak with TCDSB Superintendent of Equity, Diversity, Indigenous Education and Community Relations, Derek Chen. Superintendent Chen speaks about the importance of being brave enough to have courageous conversations about anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism, white fragility, and systemic problems that oppress non-white students in the education system. It's a powerful conversation, and one that I'm sad took so long to have. In having it, I realized that I will never been a fully wholehearted teacher until I confront my own biases directly.  I hope this is the start of a journey for me. You can connect with Superintendent Chen on twitter at www.twitter.com/TCDSB_DChenThis conversation is the first in a series about Anti-Racism. Next week will look at larger systemic problems from a legal and system wide perspective. 

Welcome to 2021, a year that has so much potential for teaching! We launch Season 2 through a wonderful conversation with Chey Cheney and Pav Wander, two Toronto teachers and hosts of The Staffroom Podcast who are just crushing it. Both Chey and Pav have taken huge risks,  put themselves out there to inspire their students and, as we discuss, are daring  greatly in the arena of classroom teaching.  I left this conversation inspired to take my own risks this year. We also get into what happens when our great, big ideas hit challenges or attract pushback. Chey and Pav explain how they separate those voices which are just "performing" from those which are fully invested in their success. I hope you leave this conversation full of courage to dare greatly in 2021!You  can connect with Chey and Pav on Twitter:Chey: www.twitter.com/mrccheneyPav: www.twitter.com/PavWanderStaffroom Podcast: www.twitter.com/StaffPodcast 

In our Christmas Special, we talk about seeing differently, through the eyes of kindness. In this episode, mom, daughter and Vice Principal Katie Akelaitis speaks about how her father taught her to treat others as "kin," as if they were her own family, a lesson she practices not only as a vice-principal, but also as a mother to her three beautiful "little people".Katie will help you find your Christmas spirit and remind you that giving to others-- whether at school or at home-- is the reason we do what we do.Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

This episode shows that strong teaching has all the same attributes as strong families: an emphasis on following your passions, finding ways to serve others, collaborating together and, most importantly, a cohesion between what happens in the classroom and what happens in the household. In this episode, I talk with a whole family of teachers: John Notten, a retired teacher of 30 years and his two sons, Nic and Lukas, who are both just starting off in their teaching careers.  The boys talk about what they saw in their father, and their father tells  why he is so proud of his sons.At the end of the episode the Notten men discuss how they would bring together all their subject disciplines-- Art, English, History, Math and Physics-- to teach the perfect lesson  together. It's a hoot!Enjoy!

This episode is framed around a question: How has being female prevented you from bringing your whole self to the classroom?  It's an important conversation, and one that I am grateful to share a part. In this episode, we speak to Loretta Notten, the first woman to serve as Director of Education for the Waterloo Catholic District School Board. Director Notten helps us unpack what it was like to be a woman in leadership in the early 90s, the challenges we continue to experience today, and speaks candidly about the importance of women and men working as allies to make progress. The episode will leave you reflecting on you own words, actions and perhaps even unconscious biases and micro aggressions. It will help you to consider the importance of seeing differently and embracing diversity in our staff rooms and, more importantly, in our classrooms. We also give a big shout out to Hermione Granger, the true heroine of the Harry Potter books.  While Harry is the title character, it is Heronine's wit and know-how that saves the day, time and time again.Enjoy the conversation!

Going off the beaten path, challenging formal education practices, and untethering teachers to bring their own passions to the classroom are all the topics that we discuss with our guest, teaching legend and critically acclaimed writer, Anthony De Sa.This conversation is more raw than some of the others: you'll hear the frustrations that often accompany teaching, especially in 2020.  But what Anthony reminded me of was that a teacher's passions--coupled with a willingness to break from tradition--is something that will leave a lasting impact on students and result in the very best learning. Be sure to listen right to the end. Anthony's final thoughts to a young Anthony De Sa arriving at his first classroom will be fuel for your teaching fire.Enjoy the conversation!

Vulnerability, making mistakes and accepting ourselves exactly as we are are all topics that we discuss today with our guest and award-winning teacher, Barb Russell. 10 years as an emergency room Nurse followed by 25 years in the classroom has given Barb a unique and often hilarious take on what it means to work with young people .  Through true stories that will tug at your heart, Barb's stories and experience embracing her mistakes is exactly what every teacher needs to hear. Barb will remind you that WHO YOU ARE TODAY IS EXACTLY WHO YOU NEED TO BE...AND THAT'S OK.