This week Molly joins us in a gold chain and Miami-bright shirt from Tourist Day of homecoming week, we spiral into the John Pork meme and Gen Alpha's weird chaos humor, debate what school spirit really means for teachers, and then stand on our chairs for Mr. Keating. We rank…
Molly's back in sunglasses with a full-on teacher hangover, Gerry looks incredible (his words), and I've got a 50,000-student IU football tailgate story that involves a feverish six-year-old, a college guy leaning on our truck for an hour, and the Midwestern dads who live to direct parking lot traffic. We…
This week we're rereleasing my interview with Brooke Eby, who passed on October 1st after her powerful public fight with ALS. Brooke turned a terminal diagnosis into a platform for humor, visibility, and fundraising. In this conversation we talk about her journey from her first limp at 29 to diagnosis…
The three of us are diving into everything from the trending "cringe teacher" videos going around TikTok to my viral Edgar Allan Poe lip sync to the very real truth that cringe teachers are the ONLY teachers our students actually remember 20 years later. We also unpack the horror weekend…
Hey teacher besties! This week I'm checking in with Molly on the aftermath of ScamGate, because you can't just get scammed that badly and not give the people an update. We also covered some very real scam PSAs, including the family "safe word" trick. Then Molly showed me this TikTok…
Teacher besties, buckle up for this one, because Molly got scammed (and I mean SCAMMED) out of a shocking amount of cash in one of the most diabolical phone scams I've ever heard. We're talking a fake sheriff's department, a fake warrant for her arrest, and four and a half…
Hey teacher besties, it's just me and Gerry this week since Molly's out, and we're covering a lot of ground. I got a review on my book that called out my millennial "hey besties" energy, which, fair. I also just got back from Boston, where I learned Paul Revere never…
Hey teacher besties, it's just me and Molly this week since Gerry's off doing a show, so consider this a girls' night. I'm coming off a genuinely rough first day back, because my mentor and work bestie of decades has retired, and I had to walk into work knowing she…
Hey teacher besties, we're starting this one off with a real crisis, because I just found out I might have lice after spending a week in California with my whole extended family, and I am spiraling. Somehow we end up debating whether chest hair can get lice, and we also…
Hey teacher besties, we are deep in back-to-school season! My kids are starting a brand new school after their old one shut down (yes, that's apparently a thing that can happen), and thanks to our vacation timing, they're going to miss their actual first day. Gerry and Molly assure me…
Hey teacher besties, buckle up because this one starts rough. Gerry left me a voicemail after last episode that I simply had to share with all of you, and it involves Jersey Mike's, a very close call, and some deeply unhinged bathroom habits I did not know existed until today.…
Hey teacher besties! This week is a big one because Molly is officially, permanently part of the podcast now, so it's me, Gerry, and Molly for the long haul. I catch you all up on the first ever Teacher Talk Sycamore Summit I hosted (mimosas, a rage room dream for…
We are BACK, teacher besties, and I have SO much to catch you up on. It's the season three premiere of How to Survive the Classroom, and Gerry has arrived with a NEW nose ring, a PASSED edTPA, and a very concerning number of years since his last dentist appointment.…
ORDER MY NEW BOOK (AVAILABLE NOW)!!! — https://bit.ly/49CZ5A0 Teacher besties, we made it. This is the season finale of How to Survive the Classroom, and we're going out with a BIG one. Gerry has NEWS, he submitted his edTPA. Like, two hours before the Pacific Time deadline news. (He fully…
ORDER MY NEW BOOK (AVAILABLE NOW)!!! — https://bit.ly/49CZ5A0 It is officially summer, teacher besties, and I have made a HUGE mistake. I decided I wasn't going to pay for summer camp this year, which means I'm home with my own children, who can apparently sense when I'm overstimulated and somehow…
ORDER MY NEW BOOK (AVAILABLE NOW)!!! — https://bit.ly/49CZ5A0 Gerry and I are joined by Funny AF top six finalist and stand-up comedian Winston Hodges, who, before he was making Kevin Hart, Chelsea Handler, and Kumail Nanjiani laugh on Netflix, spent four years teaching at a school for kids on the…
ORDER MY NEW BOOK (AVAILABLE NOW)!!! — https://bit.ly/49CZ5A0 I bombed a comedy show in New Orleans this weekend, and Gerry and I are unpacking every chaotic detail on this week's How to Survive the Classroom, from the venue surprise-merging me with another show, to the broken mic, to me literally…
ORDER MY NEW BOOK (AVAILABLE NOW)!!! — https://bit.ly/49CZ5A0 Are these new teacher red flags or green flags? This week we play a back-to-school hallway game ranking the behaviors that tell you exactly what kind of colleague you're dealing with, from Bitmoji classrooms to teachers who don't drink caffeine to anyone…
ORDER MY NEW BOOK (AVAILABLE NOW)!!! — https://bit.ly/49CZ5A0 Have you ever booking a show in New York City only to realize there are so many comedy giants there that you can barely sell a dozen tickets ? Because that is exactly the humbling moment I’m bonding over with today's guest,…
ORDER MY NEW BOOK (AVAILABLE NOW)!!! — https://bit.ly/49CZ5A0 I’m wrapping up my semester and Gerry is surviving quarter four, but honestly, we’re both just exhausted from a weekend of comedy. Gerry has been out here opening for Joe Dombrowski and doing guest spots with Josh Johnson from The Daily Show,…
ORDER MY NEW BOOK (AVAILABLE NOW)!!! — https://bit.ly/49CZ5A0 We are back with part two of our Mother's Day special, and this time the spotlight is on Gerry’s mom, Melanie Potoka!. Not only is she the woman who raised Gerry, but she’s also a fellow educator who’s been in the game…
ORDER MY NEW BOOK (AVAILABLE NOW)!!! — https://bit.ly/49CZ5A0 I have a very special guest today, the woman, the myth, the legend: my mom, Candi Neal (aka Mama Neal). Mama Neal is here to spill all the tea on what I was really like before the PhD and let's just say,…
PRE-ORDER MY NEW BOOK (OUT MAY 5, 2026)!!! — https://bit.ly/43BquPd The box finally arrived. My book is officially here! I’ve worked on it for years, but now that I’m holding it, I’m having a total crisis.. I can’t even look at the pages without feeling nauseous. Gerry, of course, thinks…
PRE-ORDER MY NEW BOOK (OUT MAY 5, 2026)!!! — https://bit.ly/43BquPd Have you heard the news? Apparently, the First Lady thinks we might need a robot in the classroom. Today, Gerry and I are breaking down the "AI humanoid robot" pitch and why we’re a little skeptical that a faceless machine…