Angela Watson's Truth for Teachers

EP355 A short history of the 8-hour workday (and how to protect yours)

A third of your day (apart from work and sleep) is supposed to be yours. So where does it go? In 1817, labor movement activist Robert Owen coined this rallying cry: "Eigh

EP354 You don't have to teach like an influencer.

If you scroll social media right now, you'll probably land on a teacher revamping their reading corner like it's a home renovation reveal, then a TikTok Shop haul of clas

EP353 Think out loud: teaching the hidden skills of planning and prioritizing

You make dozens of invisible decisions every class period. Should I squeeze in one more activity or leave time for questions? Do I spend more time on this concept or mo

EP352 Why distress tolerance is the missing piece in classroom management

Do your students seem less and less able to sit with anything uncomfortable, whether that's boredom, confusion, frustration, or the feeling of not immediately knowing the

EP351 What does learning science actually say about AI in the classroom? (with Erin Mote)

Everyone has an opinion about AI in classrooms right now, but very few of those opinions are grounded in what we actually know about how kids learn. In this episode, I si

EP350 The power of regret: using hindsight as a tool for growth

Teaching gives you a lot of opportunities to look back and wish you'd done it differently, and most of us carry those regrets way longer than we need to. In this episod

EP349 Re-awakening kids' curiosity & connection to real food through sensory learning (with Bee Wilson)

Food writer Bee Wilson has been in classrooms across the UK, and what she's discovered is startling: many children have completely lost their sensory connection to real f

EP348 Stuck in survival mode? Here's how to calm your nervous system.

Most of us are walking around in a low-grade state of fight-or-flight all the time, and we don't even realize it. It looks like the tight jaw in the morning, the exhausti

EP347 An artful approach to exploring identity and fostering belonging (w/ Rebecca Bellingham & Veronica Scott)

When the world feels this heavy, this broken, it can feel almost frivolous to make space for art. And in the classroom with so much content to cover, can we really slow d

EP346 Feeling tied to your phone? These 3 habits can help you take control.

I picked up my phone to check the weather the other day, and twenty minutes later I was still standing in my kitchen, having bounced from app to app through a chain of pe

EP345 The brain isn't separate from the body–here's what that means for learning (with Caroline Williams)

We've been taught to think of the brain as the control center, the part of us that really matters for learning. But the body isn't just along for the ride, carrying our b

EP344 So what are we doing here? Expanding into retreats, video essays, mindfulness, and more

After 20+ years of creating exclusively for educators, I'm expanding into some new creative spaces. In this podcast episode, I share the "why" behind my new YouTube cha

EP343 The truth about AI's environmental impact: Finding your ethical stance as an educator

Is AI using a bottle of water every time you make a query? Are you a bad person if you use it in your classroom? Should schools ban it entirely—or go all-in? If you've

EP342 The hidden curriculum: getting real about the values we teach

Each time we decide which history gets a full unit and which gets a mini-lesson… Each time we choose whose stories to showcase in classroom libraries while others gathe

EP341 Everything all at once: what it's like to be a teacher with ADHD (with Andrew Gardner)

When he got his ADHD diagnosis at age 30, the first thought Andrew Gardner (https://www.agardner.com/about) had was, "Okay, now what? I'm still an idiot." That negative

EP340 Stay human: Teaching students to protect their brain power in an AI world

"If AI can write my essay in 30 seconds, why should I spend 30 minutes doing it myself?" I believe students asking this question deserve a thoughtful response ... or even

EP339 It took me years to realize I'm not lazy. I'm neurodivergent.

Growing up, every report card comment and parent conference involved my teachers expressing some version of the following: "Angela is smart, but not working to her pote

EP338 Looking ahead to 2026: A new direction beyond Truth for Teachers

It's the final episode of the 2025 season, and I want to leave you with something meaningful. I'm sharing some personal thoughts as I prepare to step away for my December

EP337 Restorative practices aren't a strategy–they're a way of being (with Marisol Quevedo Rerucha)

"The adults in the building need healing just as much as the kids do. Self-compassion isn't soft. It's the most radical act of self-preservation an educator can practice.

EP336 4 routines to help students notice and adjust their thinking

Metacognition — "thinking about your thinking" — is one of the most powerful skills we can teach students, and it doesn't require adding anything new to your already pack