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Professional learning can change everything

Guest(s): Kayla Briseño, Stephen Briseño and Nicole Forinash
Date: 04/10/2024
Run time: 35:59
Season 2, Episode 6

In this episode, host Carol Pelletier Radford welcomes three teacher guests – Kayla Briseño, Stephen Briseño and Nicole Forinash. In addition to sharing their teacher stories and classroom strategies, they talk about their most successful experiences with professional learning. Kayla and Stephen share some themes from their book Text Structures From Picture Books. Nicole also shares her story, "Gain Trust Through Sharing" from Carol's book "When I Started Teaching, I Wish I Had Known..."

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Episode Audio

Kayla Briseño

Kayla Briseño has taught English all over the world and nearly every age, from elementary through adults. She has conducted professional development workshops with Gretchen Bernabei for over a decade, sharing and generating impactful writing instruction, while being a long time contributor to Trail of Breadcrumbs publications. Text Structures from Picture Books is her debut book. She and her husband, Stephen, are both self-declared book nerds, coffee aficionados, and national park fanatics. When she’s not teaching or helping teachers, you can find her creating art with her daughter, Zinnia, reading a good book, or enjoying a stroll along the San Antonio Riverwalk, where she lives with her family. Follow her on Twitter at @kayla_briseno.

Stephen Briseño

Stephen Briseño is a middle school English teacher, writing consultant, and award-winning picture book author. His debut picture book, The Notebook Keeper: A Story of Kindness from the Border, won a Pura Belpré Honor and a 2023 Notable Children’s Book designation from the American Library Association. He writes, reads, and drinks a ton of coffee with his wife, Kayla, and daughter, Zinnia, in San Antonio, Texas. Follow him on Twitter at @stephen_briseno or visit him on the web at www.stephenbriseno.com.

Nicole Forinash

Originally from Falmouth, Ma but now in Burgaw, NC, Nicole has been teaching for 10 years and been a special education teacher at a Title 1 school for 5 years. She is happily married and lives with her husband, daughter, dog, and goat.

Carol Pelletier Radford

Carol Pelletier Radford is the founder of Mentoring in Action, an organization dedicated to the success of novice teachers and their mentors. Before she established her own organization to support mentors and new teachers, she was a veteran elementary school teacher and a teacher preparation leader. Carol is the author of Corwin’s bestselling books Mentoring in Action: Guiding, Sharing, and Reflecting With Novice Teachers and The First Years Matter: Becoming an Effective Teacher.

Carol received her Education Doctorate from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, where she focused her studies on mentoring and teacher leadership. She is also a certified yoga teacher who practices meditation and shares mindfulness strategies with educators through her online courses and website. Her podcast Teaching With Light features the stories of teachers and inspirational leaders. Her next passion project is the creation of a Teacher Legacy Network, where retired teachers can share their wisdom with the next generation of teachers.

You can learn more about Carol, find free resources, videos, meditations, courses, and all of her books at mentoringinaction.com/.

Twitter: @MentorinAction
Facebook: @MentoringinAction4Teachers
Instagram: @cpradford