Ep 224: A Veteran and a First-Year Teacher on Managing the Classroom

New Teacher Talk brings two generations of teaching into one conversation. Todd Leban, a 23-year veteran middle school educator in Oak Park, Illinois, joins his niece Abbey Leban, a first-year special education teacher serving kindergarten through fifth grade in Naperville, for a candid exchange on classroom management. Hosted by Dr. Beth Wilkins and Dr. Anna Quinzio-Zafran, the episode pairs seasoned perspective with a real-time account of navigating year one, so you get both the long view and the view from right where you are standing. Todd's central lesson after more than two decades might surprise you: if it ain't broke, don't fix it can itself be the problem. The students in front of you are always different, so effective management asks for constant observation and a willingness to adjust. Abbey brings that idea to life from a first-year special education role, where she had to build her schedule around other teachers' timetables, hold multiple individualized approaches at once, and lean on routines as her steadiest tool. Together they land on the same truths from opposite ends of a career: consistency matters, flexibility matters, relationships carry you through the disruptions, and protecting your own wellbeing is not optional. What you will take away: Why what worked last year, or last semester, may not work now Building individualized approaches alongside group systems like a simple star chart How clear, predictable routines anchor students who need structure most Communicating schedule changes in advance to keep student trust intact Why relationships are the real foundation of classroom management Pacing yourself instead of trying to over-impress, and leaving work at school Todd closes with a line worth keeping nearby, attributed to Salvador Dalí: have no fear of perfection, you'll never reach it. If this episode gave you something to carry into your week, or there is a topic you want us to cover next, leave us a review. We read every one, and your feedback shapes future episodes. #NewTeacherTalk #ClassroomManagement #TeacherWellbeing #SpecialEducation #NewTeacherSupport #FirstYearTeacher #VeteranTeacher #TeacherMentorship #K12Education #TeachingAcrossGenerations