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"The 1st person to step foot on the red planet has already been born and may be a child in your home, neighborhood, or in your classroom!" So says Rachael Mann, Director of Professional Development for Western Maricopa Education Center (@WestMEC) in Maricopa, AZ. In her new book, The Martians in You Classroom: STEM in Every Learning Space, Rachael supports a holistic approach to teaching and learning and provides teachers with the tools to do it. Listen as we discuss finding great allies in industry, providing kids with real-world experience, and pushing the boundaries of the status quo.

Mark Wagner, CEO of EdTechTeam, has a message from the future for the educators of today, More Now. Mark and his team of educational technologist have spent years crossing global boarders working with educators to improve education. After visiting enough schools he started to realize that the future is here now but it isn't very evenly distributed. In his new book, More Now, Mark shares he and his teams' insights from some of the most innovative and forward-thinking schools in the world. Bottling the secret sauce of "what works" from the schools of the future and presenting them to readers as a 6 part "honeycomb" checklist for change. 

Mark Wagner, the CEO of EdTechTeam, shares the easiest way to feel right at home in the craziness of ISTE, find EdTechTeam! From the long list of rockstars presenting at the teacher theatre to the Google Playground and the ultimate Demo showdown, ISTE 2018 will be packed with learning and fun.  Mark will also be out on the floor passing out copies of his new book, "More Now: a Message from the Future for the Educators of Today"  All the details are available at: edtechteam.com/iste-2018/

Ben Cogswell, affectionately known as "Coach Ben" (@cogswell_ben ), is excited about technology and the possibility of what it can be when it's in the hands of kids. Exposing our students to technology is simply opening to them a door that might lead to profoundly new worlds. He also thinks that neglecting technology is like sending kids to recess without supervision, something bad is bound to take place. In this edition of Spark Radio, let Coach Ben ignite your passion to inspire young minds by exposing them to possibility through the use of technology.

Amy Burvall (@amyburvall ) believes that with the thoughtful placement of creativity into the assessment of students, we as teachers can transform learning and amplify student voice. As the co-author of Intention: Critical Creativity in the classroom and avid writer for her blog, Connect the Dots, she is driving the conversation around the use of creativity in the classroom. Listen as Amy talks about re-mix, the art of transforming something, and how she believes teachers can leverage the natural creative abilities of every student to deepen learning and amplify student voice. 

Bethany Petty's mission is to shed light on just how simple technology integration can be if you're just getting started. For example, if tomorrow you plan to give a lecture she recommends uploading your PowerPoint or Google Slide deck to NearPod (she also has tips for people who already use NearPod). Or maybe tomorrow you want to review for a test! Bethany says to check out Quizlet Live and turn a boring test review day into a gamified learning experience. No matter how savvy you are with technology or if you're just getting started using it in the classroom, Bethany Petty has made it easy to match your pedagogy with technology and get kids excited! Listen as Bethany gives three tips for technology integration from her new book, Illuminate: Technology Enhanced Learning.

Rosa Liarte is a change maker for women's rights in Andalucía, Spain, it's southernmost region and home to the famous city of Málaga, near where she teaches. The students in her Sexual Equality course discovered that in their city only about 20% of the street signs where named after women. Rosa's love for history education and her passion for social justice have sparked in her students a fire to unbalance the dominating narrative one street name at a time.  Listen as Rosa tells her story of making noise for women's rights and her use of innovative design approaches to confront some of Spains biggest hurdles in education. You can connect with Rosa on Twitter, @rosaliarte or learn more about this project and the many others she is working on in her classroom at leccionesdehistoria.com. We also recommend reading her personal blog at rosaliarte.com.

A video is a powerful tool that can deepen learning and spark an intrinsic sense of yearning to make and do more. However, the logistics and obstacles associated with shifting a classroom of students from written work to video work have always been daunting. In this episode, Dr. Nathan Lang, Chief Education Officer for WeVideo, explains the importance of video in our curriculum as a future-ready skill. He also addresses the normal apprehension that teachers might have about getting started using video as both a formative and summative assessment tool or using it to supplant lecture.

Schools aren't restaurants or cafes and yet in the vastly influential world of Google Maps reviews, our schools are often portrayed loudest by voices that don't represent their true nature. Dale Plotzki hopes to change that with #EdPins; a startup project fueled by the Google Innovator Academy. The idea: submit your school's success stories using #EdPins and get an email back with a copy/paste ready Google Maps review. #Edpins lets you take back your story online one moment of success at a time.

Charlie Miller started Flipgrid as a way to engage his Ph.D. students while he was traveling the world doing research. The very existence of Flipgrid is based on the idea that technology was needed so we could do something that we couldn't do without it. To this day, through interaction with teachers and students, Flipgrid continues to grow and improve to do what teachers need it to do. In this episode, we talk with Joey Taralson about how Flipgrid focuses its efforts on empathy towards teachers to ensure their technology always meets the needs of its users.

What type of engagement do you want to have with your students? What do you want them to remember when they look back on your class? Bethany Petty (@Bethany_Petty) thinks teachers should focus on creating an environment that will leave kids with a memory of your class for years to come. 

Meagan Kelly wants to change how teachers connect and share ideas by first changing how teachers self-assess. After a series of self-awareness exercises, participants of BoostEdu gain insight into their own methodology then have the option to share their work. It's like taking your teaching practice to the gym. She aims to reach more educators through connecting one teacher at a time in a system of online communities. Hear more and see more www.boostedu.org or find Meagan on Twitter at @meagan_e_kelly. 

Early in his career, Chris Betcher entered his students into an international technology competition. This was around 1999 before technology itself had made something like that relatively easy. Despite these challenges what he and his students learned had little to do with the technology they used. Listen as Chris describes the four lessons that have shaped his entire career and the connections he's made along the way.

Jacquelyn Whiting (@MsJWhiting) and Ben are on a mission to make student-driven technology support for teachers a normal part of the way their school operates. As part of a year-long course, Ms. Whiting is challenging students to create solutions for issues important to them. Listen as they talk about meeting teachers and students where they are in order to bring new technologies to the K-12 classroom.

Dr. Robert Dillon has served as an educational leader throughout the Saint Louis area over the last twenty years as a teacher, principal, and director of innovation. Dr. Dillon has a passion to change the educational landscape by building excellent engaging schools for all students. Dr. Dillon has had the opportunity to speak throughout the country at local, state, and national conferences as well as share his thoughts and ideas in a variety of publications. He is the author of four books on best practices in learning.

From their youngest years, our children are innately curious. They explore the world around them through play, imagination, and discovery. They build meaning, they create understanding and they unabashedly share this growth with their family and friends. It’s in this process that they find joy in life and relevance in the world around them. Rebecca is a Kindergarten Teacher in the Greater Victoria School District, on beautiful Vancouver Island, BC, Canada. She currently teaches French Immersion at George Jay Elementary School. She is passionate about incorporating inquiry practices with her learners. Rebecca also strives to teach using BC's First Peoples Principles of Learning, technology and Reggio Emilia style practices. Rebecca is the co-author of Inquiry Mindset with Trevor MacKenzie published in 2018.

Matt Miller explains Ditch Summitt, why he is a carrier switcher, and how Twitter is the reason he is still a teacher. Matt Miller has spent more than a decade in the classroom, creating unique learning experiences for his students through technology and creative teaching. He has been named one of the top 10 influencers in educational technology and e-learning worldwide. Recently, he has switched his focus from encouraging students to encouraging teachers.

Matt Miller has spent more than a decade in the classroom, creating unique learning experiences for his students through technology and creative teaching. He has been named one of the top 10 influencers in educational technology and e-learning worldwide. Recently, he has switched his focus from encouraging students to encouraging teachers.

Kevin Brookhouser is the author of The 20time Project: How Educators can Launch Google's Formula for Future-Ready Innovation and Code In Every Class: How All Educators Can Teach Programming. He is optimistic about the future because he believes many of the world's most pressing problems can be solved by current students who have access to great teachers and breakthrough technology. Follow him on Twitter @brookhouser

Patrick Green is currently the High School Education Technology Coordinator and Site Director for Global Online Academy at Singapore American School, where he assists teachers in integrating technology into the curriculum in meaningful ways so that students use current tools to create, collaborate, think critically, conduct research, and solve problems.