Bethany Hill

Thank you!

Screen Time, Student Discourse, and the Power of Writing In today’s classrooms, screens are everywhere—from interactive boards to tablets and laptops. While technology has its place, research cautions against relying too heavily on screen time during the…

bethanyshill.com/2025/10/02/s...

Autism is not a disease. It is a neurotype.

Building Relationships When Behavior Is Big: A Brain-Aligned, Dignity-Centered Guide for Teachers When a student’s behavior turns aggressive—throwing, bolting, yelling, ripping things up—what they need most is an adult who can stay connected and regulated while holding firm, safe limits. That’s…

NEW POST!
Building Relationships When Behavior is Big: A Brain-Aligned, Dignity Centered Guide for Teachers
🔗 bethanyshill.com/2025/09/21/b...

#JoyfulLeaders

Walkthroughs: A Sharp Lens Into School Culture, Collective Efficacy & Principal Growth Strong school leadership is rooted in visibility and connection. Classroom walkthroughs are one of the most powerful tools principals have to understand the pulse of their school, because they offe…

Keeping classroom walkthroughs focused on culture and building needs for growth allows the principal to celebrate and validate!
Observations and walkthroughs are VERY different. Using them the same will jeopardize growth.
Read more here: bethanyshill.com/2025/09/10/w... #JoyfulLeaders

The Power of Formative Assessment in Elementary School Using frequent ungraded classroom assessments can help teachers guide students to focus more on learning and less on test scores.

Love this via @edutopia.org ⬇️
www.edutopia.org/article/form...

I am an Administrator, but I am NOT the Punisher 22 years in the education profession has provided me with opportunities to teach children in four different grades, grow as a teacher leader in the role of academic coach, and serve as both …

I wrote this in 2020, and my beliefs have only grown stronger and more grounded in science about how to view discipline in schools.

bethanyshill.com/2020/01/03/i...

#JoyfulLeaders

NEW post!
Helping young people understand what “fair” really means, is one of the most important concepts we can embed into classroom and school culture.
wp.me/p4PWXh-yl
#JoyfulLeaders

Teacher pointing at a screen, smiling with a student. Text reads: 'Feedback is the priority, not a grade.'

Feedback drives learning. Grades are just labels. Prioritize the learning. #LeadInclusion #FeedbackFirst #Assessment #EduSky #UDL #TeacherTwitter

Building Brain Power: Supporting Executive Function Development in Schools
Read more here ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️
bethanyshill.com/2025/08/16/b...

Flipping the Script: Building Relationships and Focusing on Student Strengths As educators prepare for a new school year, one critical question is worth pausing to reflect on: “Will you have a student this year who is perceived as ‘bad’ by their peers and other adults?” The …

Flipping the Script: Building Relationships and Focusing on Student Strengths
bethanyshill.com/2025/07/30/f...
#JoyfulLeaders

What’s the Latest News on Adverse Childhood Experiences? Twenty-seven years of research has raised our awareness about ACEs and their harmful consequences. Recent trends, however, affirm that there is some hope, but much yet to do.

What’s the Latest News on Adverse Childhood Experiences?
www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hidd...

Big Feelings, Big Behaviors: Educators and Young Children Working Through Extreme Behaviors Across the country, preschool and kindergarten teachers are seeing a sharp rise in extreme behaviors—refusal, running, yelling, hitting, tearing up materials, throwing furniture, and more. For many…

NEW➡️Big Feelings, Big Behaviors: Educators and Young Children Working Through Extreme Behaviors 
🔗 wp.me/p4PWXh-xQ
#JoyfulLeaders

Building Brain Power: Supporting Executive Function Development in Schools What Are Executive Functions? Executive function skills are essential cognitive processes that enable students to plan, focus attention, remember instructions, and juggle multiple tasks. These skil…

bethanyshill.com/2025/08/16/b...

Building Brain Power: Supporting Executive Function Development in Schools What Are Executive Functions? Executive function skills are essential cognitive processes that enable students to plan, focus attention, remember instructions, and juggle multiple tasks. These skil…

NEW post! Building Brain Power: Supporting Executive Function Development in Schools

bethanyshill.com/2025/08/16/b...

19 states still allow corporal punishment in public schools.

19 states think it’s okay to hit kids at school.

This. Is. Not. Okay.
Not. Even. Close.

Bell to Bell Learning: Intentional Preparation for Connection and Growth of ALL Students In effective and highly effective classrooms, learning doesn’t just happen — it’s planned with intention from the moment the bell rings to the moment it rings again. Bell to Bell Planning is more t…

New Post!
Bell to Bell Learning: Intentional Preparation for Connection and Growth of ALL Students

bethanyshill.com/2025/08/10/b... #JoyfulLeaders

Every young person deserves safety, opportunity, and a community that believes in them.
That means seeing every child’s potential — no matter their behavior in the moment.
It means choosing to be the adult and go first: to lead with patience, to offer guidance, and to show the way forward.

How Principals Can Help Teachers Stay Regulated and Connected In today’s schools, the emotional climate of a classroom is a powerful determinant of student success. Research has shown that students learn best in environments where they feel psychologically sa…

Taking care of students requires leadership to take care of teachers. Regulated adults can reach the heart of students and open their brains to safety and belonging so they can learn. Supporting the regulation of adults is VITAL.
bethanyshill.com/2025/08/05/h... #joyfulleaders

Flipping the Script: Building Relationships and Focusing on Student Strengths As educators prepare for a new school year, one critical question is worth pausing to reflect on: “Will you have a student this year who is perceived as ‘bad’ by their peers and other adults?” The …

Every student deserves a fresh start!

bethanyshill.com/2025/07/30/f...

How Principals Can Help Teachers Stay Regulated and Connected In today’s schools, the emotional climate of a classroom is a powerful determinant of student success. Research has shown that students learn best in environments where they feel psychologically sa…

New Post!

How Principals Can Help Teachers Stay Regulated and Connected

bethanyshill.com/2025/08/05/h...
#JoyfulLeaders

How Principals Can Help Teachers Stay Regulated and Connected In today’s schools, the emotional climate of a classroom is a powerful determinant of student success. Research has shown that students learn best in environments where they feel psychologically sa…

NEW!

How Principals Can Help Teachers Stay Regulated and Connected
bethanyshill.com/2025/08/05/h...

Coddling Is a Myth—Trauma-Invested Schools Build Real Strength In the ongoing discourse around education reform, one persistent myth continues to surface: that restorative practices, brain-aligned classrooms, and trauma-invested approaches in schools are simpl…

NEW POST!
Coddling is a Myth-Trauma-Invested Schools Build Real Strength
wp.me/p4PWXh-ww
#JoyfulLeaders

Flipping the Script: Building Relationships and Focusing on Student Strengths As educators prepare for a new school year, one critical question is worth pausing to reflect on: “Will you have a student this year who is perceived as ‘bad’ by their peers and other adults?” The …

bethanyshill.com/2025/07/30/f... Flipping the Script: Building Relationships and Focusing on Student Strengths | Learning and Leading: A Joyful Leader's Journey

Before You Reward: What Brain Science and Whole-Child Development Tell Us About Tier One Behavior Systems Carrots and Sticks…rewards and punishments As educators, we all want classrooms and schools where students feel safe, motivated, and ready to learn. It’s no surprise, then, that many Tier One…

Rewards and punishments are doing more harm than good in schools.
wp.me/p4PWXh-vV #JoyfulLeaders

Mounting case against notion that boys are born better at math — Harvard Gazette Elizabeth Spelke studies French testing data, finds no gender gap until instruction begins

news.harvard.edu/gazette/stor... Mounting case against notion that boys are born better at math — Harvard Gazette

Before You Reward: What Brain Science and Whole-Child Development Tell Us About Tier One Behavior Systems Carrots and Sticks…rewards and punishments As educators, we all want classrooms and schools where students feel safe, motivated, and ready to learn. It’s no surprise, then, that many Tier One…

bethanyshill.com/2025/07/27/b...  Before You Reward: What Brain Science and Whole-Child Development Tell Us About Tier One Behavior Systems | Learning and Leading: A Joyful Leader's Journey

Join us tonight, Sunday, July 27th @ 9pm EST/8pm CST for our weekly #BuildHOPEedu chat on #EduSky.

This week we talk about Choosing HOPE! Choosing to Stay!
Because education is a calling.

#CodeBreaker #sunchat #teachpos #education #LeadLAP #learning #community #tlap #joyful_learning #together