Weekly Inspo Vids - Week Twenty One
Hey everyone,
I’m going on my second consecutive weekend of my wife traveling and me flying solo with my three boys after hectic work weeks. And you know what, my current motto is, “Embrace the mess and have fun.” We’ll see if I make it to Monday with that attitude. Send pizza, please!
This week, we’re covering our third of ten research studies from 2025. We’ve had great responses so far, and I personally always enjoy this opportunity to get a bit nerdy. Today’s installment is all about cell phones and how they’re actually, well, sort of evil. I think at this point, few educators dispute that schoolwide phone bans have been beneficial, but it’s interesting to see what the data say. Check it out!
This week’s video is a cool idea, one that I regularly ponder. It asks and answers the question: What would happen if no one ate alone at lunch? And it comes with an assignment. I’m genuinely curious to hear how your schools have tackled students who feel disconnected at lunch or in other social situations. I’d especially love to know if the idea was student-generated, as in the video.
I ask because my class runs the student store every day, so I have a front row seat to the social dynamics of the cafeteria each day. And while phones have disappeared, there are still many lonely individuals. I have kids with big hearts and would love to plant some ideas.
Seriously … reply to the email or comment. Let’s brainstorm!
Much love,
Mike
Special Poll
I come across so many great videos, articles, online ideas, etc., as I put together the newsletter. Not all of them are an exact fit for the Saturday email, but may still be very helpful to busy administrators who don’t have time to search for inspiration. Would a mid-week email sharing these fun little tidbits be something you would be interested in?
Weekly Video
Use in staff newsletters, encouraging emails, etc.
Possible Caption: How do we build a community where kids care for one another?
Vote below, and we’ll track your favorite videos in our archive.
Looking for a past video. Check our archive.
Weekly Quote
“You don’t get to choose how you’re going to die or when. You can only decide how you’re going to live. Now.”
Joan Baez
Weekly Emailable PD
Use in staff newsletters, emailable PD messages, etc.
Suggested Email Body:
This week is an invitation to reclaim attention—intentionally.
In classrooms shaped by constant notifications and digital pull, it’s easy to assume students can simply “tune it out.” But the research tells a different story: when phones are removed from learning spaces, students don’t just behave differently—they learn differently.
This week’s resource explores what happens when phones leave the classroom, drawing on large-scale studies that show improvements in focus, academic performance, and classroom relationships—especially for students who need structure the most. The takeaway is both simple and practical: fewer distractions create better conditions for learning to take hold. Because when attention is protected, teaching has room to do what it does best.
