5toThrive: Recent Episodes
Dr. Rhoda and Prof. Marty
Our primary objective is to synthesize the research on the brain and learning and provide applicable strategies answering the question, "What does this mean in my classroom or home?"
Join Authors Amber Albee Swenson and Dr. Rhoda as they discuss their new book “Designed on Purpose For A Purpose: Moving from One Season to the Next”.
You were created in the image of God. He is a creative, which means you are too! Join us for a conversation with Art Professor Kristin Gjerdset and be inspired to see the world through the eyes of an artist!
Do you know a new father? Life just changed dramatically and it will never be the same. We are very aware of the need to support post-partum mothers, but today we discuss what we can do to support new dads!
It is natural to have stressors in life, but those stressors don’t have to always be a bad thing. Join our conversation to learn a strategy that can help you process the daily stress in life.
Who we spend time with influences the conversations we have and the things we think about. It can even impact our thoughts and behaviors. Join us to learn more.
Why do young children ask so many questions? What is going on in their mind? Do you need to answer all of their questions? Join us for our discussion and also learn some strategies for when you are exhausted and can’t answer one more “Why?”
Summer is an extremely healthy time for our brains and minds. Join our conversation to learn why summer can help you and those you love thrive!
The thought that a paycheck is the measuring stick for how we are doing as an adult is a fallacy. Join our conversation as we discuss how adult peer pressure can easily influence our choices for how we want to live our life.
72% of the world’s population report that good ideas often come to them while they are bathing. Why is this? More importantly, how can we be intentional about making space in our life for more creative thinking and problem solving?
Stories resonate with us. They permeate the layers of our hearts and souls. They influence us. Who is telling the stories you listen to? Who is telling the stories your children listen to? Join us for a discussion on why this is important.
Do you feel like you have become much more opinionated and that it is often your obligation to correct other people’s opinions? It seems to be a trend and it’s so easy to fall into. Join us for two strategies to help become less polarized, and to model three important characteristics that help our children thrive!
Does your interaction with one person bleed over into your interactions with others as you travel through your day? Take a few moments to join us and learn how to re-set or recalibrate your intentions as you move through your day!
Korben is a former student who works with students in special education, and he is also an adjunct college professor, an assistant coach for a college baseball team, and a brand new father! Join our conversation to learn how we can help students thrive.
What are some of the common mental traps that can get us caught up in a downward spiral of thinking? How can we be aware of these traps and avoid them if we choose to? Join us for our conversation!
What can we do when someone in our life isn’t showing up in a way we would like them to? Please join us for our conversation on what we can do and how we can do it.
Contentment and gratitude are key components of thriving and yet how often do we apply these concepts to our body image? Please join us for our conversation!
As much as you look for your children in a crowd, your children look for you and want to really be seen by you. Join us for a ten minute discussion to renew our commitment to really seeing and hearing our children, and understanding why this is so important.
Join us for this 5 minute conversation and learn how shifting one three letter word can make a significant difference in our outlook and our life!
We all have experiences, but do we learn from them? Join us for our discussion on growing wiser through experiences.
Are you finding yourself irritated and stressed more often? Join us for a conversation to help increase the peace and patience in your daily life.
Do you have a teen that is wide awake at night and then has a hard time getting up in the morning? Join us to better understand what is happening and what can be done about it.
Good sleep can improve our mental, emotional and physical state, and it’s free. What are the habits that can help you maximize this crucial tool for thriving?
Some of us make New Year resolutions and some of us do not, but we all have areas in our life we would like to improve. This podcast will teach you a tip to help you make lasting change in the areas that are important to you!
It’s that time of year when teachers are focused on assessing learning for a grade. Do you dread it as much as I used to? If so, it might be time for a perspective shift on what we are measuring and how.
Join us for tips to turn the beautiful tradition of giving thanks on Thanksgiving Day… into a daily ritual!
It’s easy to listen to those we agree with, but how do we become better at listening to those we don’t agree with? Please join us for a conversation and learn a strategy to help you and your children learn to listen better…just in time for Thanksgiving dinner!
Are you aware that the ringers, dingers, and banners on your phone serve a purpose other than to notify you of something? Are you aware that the reason our country is becoming more divided can be partially attributed to the way social media platforms are monetized? If you are using social media you owe it to yourself to understand how it is designed to work. Join us for a conversation discussing the Netflix Documentary “The Social Dilemma”.
How many times have you told yourself you were going to create a new habit, only to run out of resolve and commitment after a few days? New behavioral research helps us understand how to make lasting behavioral change, in three simple steps…really! Join us to learn how to develop that new habit you’ve been longing to create!
80% of people incarcerated do not have a high school diploma. Join us for our conversation to learn what each of us can do to turn this around.
We are social-emotional learners; authentic connection is key to learning. How can we stay connected when and if we can’t be in the same room together? Please join us for a conversation and several strategies to support connection while teaching remotely.
Why are friendships so important to teens? How do I talk to my teenager about dating? Join us for a conversation with tips to equip you and your teen to thrive during this challenging and important phase of life.
With all the unknowns and inconsistencies, how do I best prepare my child to start the school year in 2020? Thanks for joining our conversation, please share if you find it helpful!
The teenage years are the process of a young person going from being completely dependent on family for security and survival to becoming an independent adult. There is a lot going on! Join us to better understand the stages of identity development your child is going through and what you can do to help them become a secure, well-adjusted adult.
How many times have you wondered or asked a teen, “What were you thinking?” When they give you that blank stare in reply, they are probably being honest, they weren’t thinking. Join our conversation to better understand what is going on in the teen brain and how we can help them learn to become responsible decision makers!
Ever wonder why your teen is so emotional? Why don’t they want to spend more time with the family? They certainly aren’t thinking through their actions, and the only thing they seem to want to do is spend time with their friends or sleep! What is going on? Join us for this mini-series on better understanding the teen brain. We will begin by discussing the emotional roller coaster of the teen years.
Wow! Thanks for being with us on this journey to equip our youth to thrive! When we started this venture we were told 50-60 episodes is usually the lifespan for a podcast…thanks for sticking with us! Today we have an expert on literacy with us. How much should your kids be reading in the summer? What if they don’t like to read? What can we do as parents and teachers to instill a love of reading? Join us as Dr. Kirsten Schulz shares excellent insights and advice.
Join us for a conversation regarding youth sports as both a blessing and a challenge to navigate.
The dreaded melt down in public… my child is losing it and everyone around us appears annoyed, what do we do? Join us for a conversation about one strategy that you may find helpful.
Rolling the eyes, glaring, pouting, stomping the foot, slamming the door…what’s really going on?
Tune in for five minutes to learn one simple phrase you can say when your child complains that they are bored, and why this is important. Children who are always entertained often grow up to be adults who are always bored.
Understanding the value of money and having healthy spending habits is an important life lesson. Here is one simple strategy to help children understand that getting something they want is not as simple as swiping a piece of plastic.
We’re offering a new summer series on parenting. Each podcast will be about 5 minutes long and suggest ONE actionable item to try that week. This week, join us to learn one simple phrase that will stop kids from arguing with you.
There is a time and place for complaining. In the correct context, complaining may be helpful and healthy. If complaining becomes a way of life, if it becomes chronic, it may be doing damage to your brain. Join us to learn how to tell if you have become a chronic complainer, and what you can do about it.
Do you spend quite a bit of your time determining and then enforcing the rules for your home or your classroom? It can be exhausting! Join us to learn how to make rules that work like gravity!
This week we interview Professor Marty as he discusses five values that will change your life!
When we are living in a time of uncertainty and frustration, how do we find a state of contentment? Join us for our conversation as we discuss what is going on in our brain and how we can find a state of contentment amidst the chaos.
Need to have a challenging conversation with someone? Experts agree if you follow this four step process, you are more likely to be able to give feedback that is well received.
We’ve all had those moments when our intentions were good, but it wasn’t what the other person needed. How do we know when we should offer advice and when we should simply listen? Join us for our conversation on what is going on in the brain, and how that will help us understand how to respond.
How are you doing? How is remote learning going for your family? Join us for our conversation and gain five tips to support your efforts while your children are learning remotely.
How are you doing with our new norm of isolation? This can be a challenging time, but here are some tips and strategies we can utilize to help manage our minds and our time!
Are you a parent with the kids home from school now? Are you a teacher looking for good resources to share with your students while they are home? Or maybe you are both! Please join us for a conversation filled with tons of resources to support you with your efforts!
Kids need to move! They are not meant to sit still for hours on end. But are children fidgeting more today than in the past? Is it really more difficult for them to pay attention? Please join our conversation!
Most of us have a camera with us at all times and are taking more pictures than previous generations. Join us for our conversation on how this impacts our wellness.
Join us for a conversation with Dr. Murphy as he shares ways to be aware of and support children who may have special needs.
We all know it is beneficial to be able to delay gratification, to put off immediate pleasure for long term desires, but we are not always good at it. This week we will discuss things you can do to become better at delaying gratification and realizing your goals!
Trying to meet the needs of each individual learner can be time consuming and challenging. Join us for a conversation on how we can use one tool to meet the needs of every learner in our classroom, while using the same topic.
We are not able to be stressed and also be in an optimal state for thinking at the same time. Join our conversation to learn what you can do so you are able to use the thinking part of your brain to help you resolve conflict.
Conflict is unavoidable. Knowing your conflict style can help you resolve issues in a more effective way. Listen to learn more about your default conflict style and how awareness can give you more tools for resolving conflict positively!
Our minds struggle to learn brand new concepts, unless we can tie it to something that is already familiar. Listen to learn more about how we can use metaphors to help us understand new information.
In order to become more resilient, we need opportunities to practice resilience. Click to learn more about helping children grow more resilient.
We go through the day picking objects up and then setting them down. But do we do this mentally? Do we set down things from our past or do we try to carry everything from our past along with everything from today? Join us as we talk about the importance of teaching our young people how to put the past down.
Movement of our body and novelty for our mind are like Miracle Grow to our brain, they help it flourish! Join us for a conversation about a few simple, inexpensive, and practical ways you can sprinkle some Miracle Grow on your brain and the brains of the young people in your life.
You know that feeling when you get really difficult news, and you are just not sure what is the right thing to say? Join us for a conversation as we explore how we can respond when those we love are hurting.
What can we do as parents and educators to help our youth develop into servant leaders? Join us for a conversation with Jeremy Bock, the Executive Director of the Center for Christian Leadership at Wisconsin Lutheran College.
Should children under the age of 5 watch content on phones, ipads, computers, and screens? If so, what is happening in the brain? How much is too much time? Join us for our conversation!
We often hear that we should have high standards and expectations for young people, but how do you do that? Please join our conversation as we discuss specific things you can do to increase expectations.
Do you want to have more energy at the end of the day? Would you like help determining what to say yes to and what to say no to? Would you like to better understand the gifts of those around you? Join us this week as we explore our Character Strengths and how that awareness can end up giving us more energy and gratitude!
Organization is a learned skill. Here is how you can teach the young people in your life how to be organized…and it might be helpful for you, too!
“Yikes! I don’t know if I can take anymore!” Have you ever felt overwhelmed by pressure? It’s a horrible feeling, and yet if we can learn how to harness that pressure it can actually give us more focus, energy, and motivation. Join us to learn how to develop a positive mindset about pressure.
We know that cultures are comprised of active relationships. But what can we do to create a space for excellence? Please join our conversation to learn what you can do to create a culture of excellence in your home, classroom, and within your relationships!
Feedback is important, but how do we give feedback that truly makes a difference? Please join us for a conversation about what we can say to encourage others to give their best effort.
Culture stems from the word cultivate. The culture in our classrooms and in our homes is not fixed. It is something we create or cultivate by what we say and do. Join us for our conversation on creating a culture of belonging.
Almost half of the prison population is dyslexic! Three-quarters of students not reading at grade level by the end of third grade will never catch up. These are problems with solutions. Please join us as we discuss the link between poor literacy and future incarceration….and what we can do about it.
What are specific things you can do to build stronger relationships? Please join us this week as we talk with Prof. Jim Holman about the strategies that have endeared him to so many students!
Join us this week as we discuss the recommendation based off of hundreds of studies, and then make an informed decision about what is right for your students and your children.
Repetition is one of the fundamental skills needed for memorization. Listen to our discussion to understand what is happening in the brain when we memorize and why repetition is so crucial.
A key component to being able to memorize a piece of information is to have an understanding of it. Do you want to increase your ability to understand or comprehend information? Listen to our discussion today to gain some valuable tips to increase understanding and comprehension skills.
What does it take to be able to memorize? Memorization consists of three skills. Memorization consists of focusing, understanding, and repetition. Over the next three weeks we will take a closer look at each of these skills. Join us this week as we discuss how we can become better at focusing.
We breathe all day every day, but do we ever stop to consider how to best do it? Breathing is one of the very best ways to regulate our stress response. Let’s understand how to use it and also teach our children this valuable life skill!
What was the thing you loved to do as a kid? What did you love to play? I’m challenging you to do that again this summer and in this episode we will discuss why it is so important! Our challenge: Take a pic or video of you doing something you loved to do as a kid and post it using #ChildhoodChallenge
Do you remember playing outside for hours on end when you were a kid? This week we discuss why unstructured play is so important for kids in their social, physical, and mental development. Let’s play!
What is one thing you can do right now that is proven to help your child thrive when he or she is in their twenties?
When I wish you Shalom I am wishing you peace, but so much more! Shalom also incorporates the concepts of harmony, wholeness, completeness, prosperity, welfare, and tranquility. Isn’t that beautiful! Join us this week as we discuss how we can create a culture of shalom in our homes, classrooms, and relationships.
Personal Learning Networks - we all have them, think of Facebook or Pinterest, but how can we use the concept to engage young people in developing important critical thinking skills? Join us as Josh Johnson explains Personal Learning Networks and how we can use them to help young people thrive!
Summer is here! Kids have more free time! Join us for a discussion on the topic of peer pressure and what we can do to prepare our kids…and ourselves!
What is humility? Why is it important? How do we grow it in ourselves and in our youth? Please join us for our discussion to raise awareness.
One of the items on our list of things that require zero talent was passion. Why is passion important and how do we develop it?
How are we intentionally teaching our young people the traits they need to become conscientious? Join us for our discussion!
Every emotion you have ever felt, every action you have ever taken, began with a thought. If we want to change how we feel or what we do, we must adjust how we think. In this episode you’ll gain a better understanding of how your most precious physical resource works!
If we can help young people learn how to accept rejection and how to handle not always getting what they want, it helps them develop into adults who can thrive. Listen to learn more about the Gift of No.
Do you have perfectionist tendencies? Listen to find out if you are a perfectionist and if so, what you can do to regain a healthier outlook.
We get to choose how we spend our days. In this discussion we’ll look at why we do what we do and how we can assess and ignite our purpose.
Hope is a crucial characteristic of those who are thriving; and it entails much more than wishing. Listen to learn the three step process to build hope!
What are the five key components of being a high performing teacher? Join us as our special guest, Dr. Ray Dusseau walks us through what it takes to be a high performing teacher and how we can make a significant difference in the lives of youth.
You get to choose who you want to love and when. In this episode we will talk about how we can love the people in our life, even when they don’t feel very lovable.
Do you agree - Stress is a matter of perception? What is stressful for one person, is not stressful for another. What is stressful for you and what can you do to be equipped to handle it? And, how can we teach this important skill set to our youth?
When are rewards helpful? Research shows that rewards are effective when we are trying to get someone to do something they don’t want to do…but there is a time when they can actually hurt motivation. Listen to learn more!