One Tired Teacher With Trina Deboree
Welcome to One Tired Teacher with Trina Deboree, a podcast and video show for educators and elementary teachers who want practical ideas, meaningful learning, and a more sustainable way to teach.
Each episode explores the realities of teaching today—from classroom systems and STEM to reading, science integration, digital citizenship, and protecting student curiosity in a world that often demands more than teachers can reasonably give. You'll find honest conversations, practical strategies, and thoughtful reflection on what helps learning thrive without adding unnecessary pressure to your plate.
Whether we're talking about lesson design, classroom culture, teacher burnout, engagement, or navigating the challenges of modern education, the goal is the same: helping teachers focus on what matters most.
This is a space for educators who love teaching but want to do it in a way that is realistic, sustainable, and aligned with their values. You'll leave with ideas you can use, encouragement you can trust, and permission to build a classroom that works for both you and your students.
Episodes
289 episodes
Summer Boundaries For Teachers Who Need Joy 300
Summer break can look long on the calendar and still feel like you’re carrying school on your back. We’re talking honestly about why so many teachers start June exhausted and then spend the rest of the break “prepping” instead of recovering and...
Put Teaching Down For A Minute, Teachers 299
Summer break can start and somehow you still feel like you’re on duty. If your body is home but your brain is still in the classroom, I made this one for you. I keep it simple on purpose, no new system, no productivity plan, just a pause to bre...
Seven Things I Wish I Knew Before Teaching 298
What would you tell the version of yourself who is trying so hard to do everything perfectly? I’m revisiting a Teacher Truth conversation I recorded years ago and adding what I’d tell myself now, with a clearer view of boundaries, identity, and...
When Boundaries Aren’t Enough: Teacher Burnout Explained 297
Burnout is brutal enough, but the most disorienting version is the kind that lands even when we set boundaries, do the inner work, and try to teach in a grounded way. We talk about why that happens, why burnout is not an accusation, and how mis...
When Teaching Feels Unsafe: Coping with Unfair Treatment from School Administrators Episode 296
What do you do when the part of teaching that scares you isn’t the kids, it’s the adults with power? I’m replaying a conversation that stayed with me for a reason: it names the kind of educator pain we’re often pressured to keep quiet ab...
Theme Weeks That Actually Work in the Classroom Episode 295
May is when solid routines start to wobble, not because you suddenly forgot how to teach, but because the school calendar turns into a nonstop interruption machine. If your class feels unpredictable right now, I’m here with a calming reminder: ...
Reading in the Classroom Can Still Feel Good Right At the End of the School Year Episode 294
May can make even your strongest readers feel done, and that end of school year slide is exactly when reading starts to feel like a chore. I’m sharing a simple reset that keeps classroom reading calm, light, and genuinely enjoyable, so we can f...
The Last Weeks of School Don’t Have to Be Chaos in the Classroom Episode 293
The last week of school can make the best teachers feel like everything is coming apart at once: grades due, rooms to pack, routines blown up by assemblies, and kids who are equal parts excited and dysregulated. I’m sharing a practical way to c...
Themed STEM in the Classroom: The End-of-Year Behavior Trick for Teachers Episode 292
The sprint to summer for teachers doesn’t have to feel like a grind. We share a practical, energizing way to turn late-April restlessness into focused learning with themed STEM that honors where students are right now in the classroom. If you’r...
Theme Weeks for Teachers: The Secret to Surviving Spring in the Classroom Episode 291
The last weeks of school for teachers don’t have to be loud, chaotic, or exhausting. We show how a simple theme week in the classroom can turn spring fever into focused fun, giving students a sense of ceremony while teachers keep learning on tr...
The Sub Plan Safety Net for Teachers in the Classroom Episode 290
Spring brings sunshine and chaos in equal measure into the classroom for teachers—testing windows, field trips, allergies, family appointments, and that restless energy buzzing through the classroom. We dig into a practical, compassionate strat...
Teachers In the Classroom Don’t Have to Be Martyrs At School- Episode 289
Exhaustion doesn’t equal excellence in the classroom. We open up about the quiet message so many educators absorb—that the “best” teachers are the ones who stay late, skip sick days, and shoulder every shortage—and we trade that myth for a heal...
Teach Kindness In A Divided World
When the culture outside feels loud and divisive, we choose a different tempo inside our classrooms: slower, kinder, more human. We talk candidly about why connection is not extra, but essential, and how teacher judgment beats any script when a...
AI Can’t Replace Teacher Heart
What happens when the loudest voice in education says “use AI” and the quietest voice—the one in your gut—whispers “trust your judgment”? We dig into that crossroads with honesty, naming both the power of new tools and the irreplaceable role of...
Why Human-Centered STEM Builds Better Classrooms
What if STEM wasn’t about bins of stuff, but about the humans in the room? We dig into a human-centered approach that treats STEM as a daily practice of connection—where students learn to collaborate, think critically, and care for one another ...
Small Humans, Big Work for Teachers
When the world shouts at teachers to do more, faster, and perfectly, we choose a different anchor: the small humans in front of us. A seven-year-old’s quiet kindness reframed an entire classroom and reminded us why presence matters more than pe...
Trust Yourself, Teacher
The outrage machine is loud, but your classroom doesn’t have to be. We’re pulling the focus back to what you can control: the students in front of you, the relationships you build, and the professional judgment that makes learning human. If you...
Teachers, Hold On to What You Know: Trusting Yourself During Testing and Evaluations
Testing season and evaluations can make even confident teachers question themselves. In this episode, we talk about how to stay grounded, trust your professional judgment, and teach from your values when pressure and opinions get loud....
Simple STEM Activities That Still Build Deep Thinking
Overcomplicated STEM lessons don’t lead to deeper learning—they lead to burnout. In this episode, we unpack why simple, well-designed STEM challenges create stronger thinking, better engagement, and more meaningful classroom moments.
Teaching the Engineering Design Process When Failure Is the Lesson
Looking for a simple way to teach growth mindset, productive struggle, and the engineering design process—especially during testing season? This episode shares a real classroom STEM challenge that shows how failure becomes feedback when stu...
You Are Enough: Surviving February Burnout and Evaluation Pressure
February burnout hits hard for teachers—testing pressure, evaluations, and the constant push to do more can make even experienced educators question their worth. In this episode, we talk honestly about staying grounded, protecting ...
Surviving Teacher Evaluations: How to Stay Grounded During Classroom Observations
Teacher observations can trigger stress, self-doubt, and overperforming—especially during evaluation season. In this episode, we talk honestly about how to stay grounded, protect your confidence, and remember what actually matters when you’...
Super Bowl Reading Lessons: Engaging Informational Text Without Busywork
Looking for Super Bowl reading activities that actually build skills—not just hype? This episode shares practical, low-prep ways to use football culture to strengthen informational text comprehension, media literacy, and engagement for elem...
Integrating Reading And Science With Severe Weather
The school year restarts, the weather turns wild, and our schedules fill faster than a radar screen during a storm. We’re leaning into a smarter way to teach: integrating reading and science through a focused study on severe weather so every mi...
Back To School Without The Chaos: Simple Routines For A Smoother January
The first days back after break don’t need to feel like a sprint through fog. We map out a gentle re-entry that keeps your class connected, your planning sane, and your energy intact. Instead of diving headfirst into new content, we focus on th...