Two Doting Dads with Matty J & Ash - #112 Mr Luke The Teacher Answers All Your School Questions!

Episode Date: December 15, 2024

Preparing your kids for school is a bit like the great unknown – who knows what will happen!   Matt and Ash are gearing up to send Marlie and Oscar off to big school. While orientation has the kids prepared, the parents are not so sure. To help with this, the dads welcome Mr. Luke the Teacher, a loved online educator with over 3 million followers on TikTok and Instagram. Mr. Luke shares invaluable advice on preparing kids—and parents—for starting school, tackling topics like handling bullying, readiness strategies, and even the occasional need to take kids out of school.  2025 Raunchy Ranch Calendar IS OUT NOW!  https://budgysmuggler.com.au/products/two-doting-dads-raunchy-ranch  Buy our book, which is now available in-store! https://www.penguin.com.au/books/two-doting-dads-9781761346552  If you need a shoulder to cry on:  Two Doting Dads Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/639833491568735/  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheTwoDotingDads  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/twodotingdads/  TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@twodotingdads  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ash, we survived our kids school orientation before they jump into the real thing. Do you know what? Right now, it's all starting to feel very real. Look, I nearly cry every time I think about it. Not. I can't wait to not have to pay daycare fees anymore because Oscar, will we go into a public school? Yeah, I can't wait either.

I feel like Marley, she's very ready and as scary as it is, it's the right thing to do. I think as a parent I need some more prep on also going to big school. He's had all the prep, but I haven't had enough. Luckily we have Mr. Luke, the teacher to share his very insightful thoughts on how to get your family ready for the big transition to school. Matt, he has a whopping three million followers across TikTok and Instagram, which tells me a lot. Tells me there's a lot of parents out there that need to be schooled by Mr. Luke.

We ask him all of your burning questions about bullying, getting kids ready for the big transition, as well as, if you remember Ash, read the question a little while ago, taking kids out of school for holidays. He answers them all. Let's go. Welcome back to Two Doting Dads and One Doting Teacher. I am Matty J. I'm Ash. And I'm Mr. Luke. I've already stuffed it up.

I'm Mr. Luke. This is going great. This is going great. I will show myself out. That was perfect. This is a podcast all about parenting. It is the good, it is the bad.

And the relatable. And if you've come for advice, well, definitely. You're in the right place this time. Absolutely. 100%. We don't give advice, Mr Luke. We never do it. We're not experts. Okay. But I can see you've got advice already written down.

I have my notes. I am very well prepared today. For those listening, Luke's turned up with a notebook. The first guest to turn up with a notebook. And our first non-parent. So welcome and thank you for joining us. Thank you very much for having me. It's a pleasure to be here and hopefully I can I guess give some type of advice today. Maybe? Fingers crossed.

I do have a question that I don't think you've written down these notes for the answer in your book but I'm just going to fire it at you straight away. Go. Your hair, shampoo, conditioner, what are you using? What's your routine? Look, I wish I had a better one than what I currently have. I use like a two-in-one. I don't think I've washed my hair in years. People will be so annoyed by that, because I had so many messages going, his hair's amazing.

Like, how does he do it? Yeah, it's a two-in-one. Yeah, I should probably actually take more care of it. And how often are we washing? Like once a week? Probably twice a week. How long have you had long hair for? Years now. Yeah. Years. I'm pretty tempted to go as short as you. Really? Yeah I think that could be fun. I've like keep thinking like I want to grow my hair and I get to an awkward

stage. Take it off. Take it off right? Yeah. No. Could you imagine the kids though if you came in with a shaved head? Oh, and I just didn't tell them. I think that it would traumatise. Yeah, there would be a lot of questions and a lot of concern. They're like, who are you? It's me. I want to ask, why teaching? It is the bomb.com.

Being an educator is honestly amazing. You get to transform lives and yeah, you don't really know where your impact finishes, I guess. Particularly now that I teach like the little humans, first year of school, we call it reception in South Australia, prep, kindy, free school. Yeah, bunch of different names, but yeah, playing like playing in this like first year of big school space is really, really fun

because they're just like little sponges. I'm sure you guys have little ones. So you know that they just take everything on board, right? So yeah. Annoyingly so. But where was that seed planted for you? Like where did that appreciation for teaching come from? Was it when you were younger and you were in preschool or reception? Yeah, yeah. Whatever it's called. My grandparents on my dad's side were both educators and they traveled the world teaching here, there and everywhere,

which was really cool. So I like to think it's in the blood. I've got a five year old. No, I don't. Hold on, pause. Rewind. I've got a brother who's five years younger than me. So growing up, kind of showing him the ropes as we went along,

that was there as well. I got really greedy in grade 12, though, years younger than me. So growing up, kind of showing him the ropes as we went along, that was there as well. I got really greedy in grade 12 though, because going, I guess, going through high school and everything, you think, oh yeah, teaching. I did like a play school, not play school, like a play group type class that I got to be part of in grade 11. So I knew education was probably going to be there. Grade 12 got super duper greedy though, and went, cool. Do I want to go teaching or do I want to go like bachelor of business specializing in property

and like flip houses and like make millions? So opposite. Right. And I was like, yeah, let's do that. Graduated grade 12, went straight into uni, focused on business, property, lasted like two thirds of the year. Absolutely hated it., focused on business, property, lasted like two thirds of the year, absolutely hated it. There was no passion, no desire whatsoever, deferred for a year, transferred into education and the rest was history. I've never been happier.

So you could have been on billboards selling things. By this. With that shaved head. Yeah, right. You could've been a completely different person. Absolutely. That's crazy how things work out like that. What made you just decide to do, you know, that age group? Like, it's such, like you said, there's tiny minds like sponges.

Were you just drawn to that age group or did you have other options that you were concerned with? I had other options and when I first, I guess, graduated, graduated uni and was in a primary school setting, I was specialising in PE and also IT. So it was like a sporty nerd combo. It was really fun. But then after being a specialist in teaching,

I guess, from prep reception all the way through to grade seven at the time, that was really cool. You got to make connections through the entire school. You can kind of have that relationship with all the students there, which was really fun. But a part of me did feel like I was missing out that kind of classroom experience. Okay. So after a couple years of specialist teacher, I went into the

classroom setting teaching grade four. I was there for a couple of years, thought that was fun, but dropped down to grade three and then was there for a couple of years, had fun. and then a position opened in first year of big school and yeah, my principal at the time, it's like, hey, what do you think? Okay, I'll give it a crack. She's like, I'll hold your hand and show you the ropes and everything.

And from day one, it was like, oh cool, I'm gonna be here until I retire. Wow. Was that feeling of like, ah, I've found my people. Was that similar when you started at uni? 100%. Do you remember what it was like day one when you walked in and you're now doing your education?

Absolutely. That feeling of, oh, this is where I'm supposed to be. Your grandparents must have been like, we knew you'd come around. They got there in the end. Waiting for a bargain on their ass. Like when you're studying to be a teacher, They got there in the end. Waiting for a bargain on their ass. When you're studying to be a teacher, the way in which you teach, and for anyone who's not following you on socials, to me you've raised the bar so incredibly high.

We always kind of referred to you as like the Miss Honey of Matilda. You're so invested, your rooms are like decorated, you know, you're going above and beyond. Were you already like that when you were studying? Or was there someone who made you be like that? I was pretty committed from the get-go. I think once you find something you're so passionate about, it just kind of happens. Love being a teacher.

I couldn't see myself doing anything else. Even like, there's no way I could be selling houses right now, it just wouldn't work. It's a really cool feeling. Yeah, it's crazy way I could be selling houses right now. It just wouldn't work. It's a really cool feeling. Yeah. It's, it's crazy when I watch your content and going, I never had a teacher like you. And I thought maybe, maybe things would have been different if I did have a teacher like you, I felt like I definitely had teachers that I loved and I liked.

And you sort of feel formed bonds with, but like watching your content and the way that you sort of engage kids and everything around them just seems so much fun, but in a learning environment, it's like, man, like I wish I had a teacher like that. And we hope for our kids that we have a teacher like you as well. That's why we wanted to get you on today

so that we can pick your brain and see where we can help the parents of the world try and navigate what we're about to navigate. Yeah, huge change for not only your little ones, but also for you guys. It's a big thing coming up. And like I'm in a situation now where my son's about to go to the primary school I went to.

Oh, super cool. Which is a wild experience for me. I think I was telling Matt about sort of going to the first orientation. Nothing had changed. Obviously things get more modern. Yeah. They have to repaint and do other things like that.

Because otherwise it would be a concern. But I sort of had a moment where I was like, what's going on here? It actually made me feel a little bit more nervous about the whole situation and how real it is. It took me back to those moments where I felt like uneasy, anxious, scared. When I was going to school and it made me worry about Oscar. And I'm sure Matt probably has that same feeling. No. Good luck.

I become this guy and you become me. Look, I think that's one thing that we, everyone, especially parents and especially if it's your first kid going to school, you're bringing your emotions into the experience as well. And it's something that I'm glad you're aware of it, because some people aren't. So some people think that their child's going to have the exact same kind of experience that you had, but time has changed and everything is different,

and it's your kid's turn now. Yeah, I'm at ease already. Thank you. And we're done. Great. We will ask a couple of questions about projects you've been working on and your social media a little bit later.

But we have some questions ourselves. We also put the call out to our listeners and they've submitted some questions. So we've got a little list that we're gonna fire at you. Great. And I guess part of the reason why Ash, I'm not as nervous is because right now we have gone through two orientation days with Marley. Amazing.

And she is loving it. She is so, so ready, like a duck to water. Yeah. Oscar's loving it. Like he loves it too. But I think it's me just being more, I don't know, maybe. Because you didn't have a nice teacher maybe? Do you think?

Yes and no, but I think maybe my attachment to that school as well now that I didn't realise I had until I went back. Yeah. And I was like, oh, fuck, like deep down. Well, you're probably reliving some stuff, right? Yeah, there was great moments, but there was also really traumatising moments in my childhood at that school, which we weren't going to. Ash is reliving primary school one day at a time.

My first question is, Mr. Luke, how do you know when a child is ready for school? Look, everyone has this kind of different idea of when a child is ready to when they're not. If there's a little bit of, I guess, hesitancy for a little one, do we think, oh gosh, maybe they're not ready? or a little one, do we think, oh gosh, maybe they're not ready? Really, it's kind of that age bracket of that five, four, four or five, six. Now with mid-year intake,

I get a little bit confused about when they start now because it's a little bit younger, but we're fine. There's so many different kind of starting positions for kids. So it's really hard when I think other people start to try and compare kids as well and go, oh wow, your kid's way ready for school compared to mine because mine's still a little bit anxious in regards to a separation, like separation issues like that. So I think it's really important to be really mindful that we don't kind of judge what is the number one starting bar

because everyone's starting on their own level and yeah one thing I love to say is like learning is not a race it's it's really a journey that and everyone is on their own little journey so everyone's starting position is gonna be a little bit different there's no kind of tick list to say everyone's like starting on this baseline and now we're off because we're all kind of bringing. Yeah. We're all starting at our own different places. I guess. Especially when you've got like a kid with friends, they all sort of hang out

and you're like, well, they seem ready. Like the compare thing really struck there where it's like, you do compare them to around. So yeah, it's, it's, it's very easy to do. Right? Yeah. It's easy to compare. I can't remember where I got this from, but I remember,

I think I might have seen this online. They were like, there was certain, you know, can they count to 10? And like, can they go to the bathroom by themselves? Is there any checklist that you say to parents if they're saying, well, I don't know whether I should hold my child back one more year or send them this year. Do you use a checklist? Definitely.

Like, the bathroom's a big one. Definitely some independence around going to the bathroom for sure. Yeah. And then what about then from an academic perspective? Yeah. Like do you say, oh, they need to be able to count to 10 and they need to be able to say the alphabet. Some base understanding of letters and numbers is always going to be helpful. But if they already know they're ABCs and 123s, that's our job. Like as an educator, that's what we're there for. So yeah, we teach those foundational skills in their first year of big school. So yeah.

Like you're saying is a journey and everyone starts in a different way. Exactly right. Have you had many cases where a child has started and then you've had to say to the parent, I don't think they're quite ready. We would recommend waiting one more year and starting afresh. Does that ever happen? I believe it probably would happen. I've never personally experienced it.

So I can't talk too much about it. It sounds really uncommon that that would happen to start and then say, Oh, actually, come back again. You're not quite done cooking yet. Like, give it a go. That was my biggest fear. I was like, that's why I was so reluctant to send Marley as soon as she was old enough to go. Cause I was like, but what if she has to come back?

And cause we had a conversation last year, this time last year, and you said, I'm thinking about sending her and this that means she would have gone this year. And we did, I think you deliberated over it, over it a lot. And you pay, you would see it all the time. Parents do all the time. Parents do all the time. And even so that when they do send them, they probably still have that feeling in the back of the head, have I sent them too early?

Have I sent them too late? But there's some other questions along the line that we might be able to get into on that. But I knew with me, I wanted Oscar not to be the smallest fish in a big pond. I wanted him to be more of an average-sized fish, maybe in the brain. There's no problem with holding them back

that one extra year. If you have your own personal doubts about, oh, you know what, are they gonna survive six hours by themselves in a new environment? Are they ready to learn and be that kind of individual person with those responsibilities, you guys are the parents, right? It comes down to that gut instinct.

Okay, so advice on helping kids and parents transition smoothly into prep. This is a big one. I'm gonna refer to my notes as well. Yes, please. Hello, hello. All right. We are currently in the phase of where you do all the orientation and stuff like that.

Yes, yeah, you guys have had a couple orientations already. Look, for the transition, I think there's two sides of this because we need to look at it for transition for kids and then also transition for parents as well. They both play a really kind of big part. So what should we attack first, kids or parents? Good kids.

Good kids first. All right, kids first. I've got like kind of four things I wanna focus on. Let's normalize the big feelings about going into a new environment and kind of like the new experience that they're going to go into. So, you know what, if we're nervous, that's going to be OK. If we're excited and you said like, you're a little ones ready, that's going to be OK as well.

But all kids are going to have, I guess, different feelings to what's coming. So, yeah, we're just gonna appreciate that and validate it for them. Number two, talk about what to expect. I think it's really important that we kind of try and pull back the veil. That's kind of what we do during these transition times and everything is kind of give them a slice

of what to expect and hey, this is what our classroom might look like and everything. A bunch of schools also, and what my school has started to do is kind of open our classroom up before we actually go back to school. So maybe in week zero, some schools will open up the classroom so our little ones know where they're sitting, know where their tray is, know where they're going to hang their bag and everything and really get a feel for it. And that's something that I guess our parent cohort really appreciated because it, I guess, takes away another level of,

what on earth do I do with my bag on the first day of school? Like where am I gonna sit? What's the go? And kids love ownership too. They love ownership. We love routine. We love, and like routines are bomb.com for little people and big people alike. Right.

I will happily say read books about going to school as well. There's so many like amazing books about going to school, about starting school. Wombat goes to school is one that comes to mind and you can just kind of make small little connections about maybe what they're about to experience as well, but through text and I'm a big avid like yay read every single day this is fun, but there's a bunch of different different books out there about going to school for the first time as well. So yeah, add some of them to your home library. I think that's a really cool thing. And then my last one is practice and like build routines. So when I'm talking about like practicing going to big school,

what does like wearing our backpack feel like? What do our... I'm learning so much. Great, awesome. This is why I write notes because I'm like, I only have a short amount of time with you guys and I want it to be impactful. So let's go.

Yeah, if I'm learning, everyone out there is learning. Super cool. But yeah, practicing, like, can they put their uniform on by themselves? Also with uniforms, like, is the tag something that's going to actually, like, get in the way? I didn't even think about that. Sorry. If that's something that's going to be like an irritation to them, let's deal with that.

Does their hat fit? Can they recognize their own name for their hat? Because you as parents pay for this. You pay for the jumpers, you pay for the hats, you pay for the bags and everything. Name everything, please and thank you. That is a job for the parents. Please name everything.

Please name. You're gonna shit down. Can we photocopy that? Yeah, absolutely, absolutely. But yeah, and then also probably the biggest one is this is something that parents can do with kids as well. Food and what type of food do we like? What type of food is easy for them to eat?

What's allowed to be eaten at recess and lunch? But we also need to be really mindful about the language we are using when we're talking about food with kids Because I've experienced some going I can't go out to play yet because mom or dad Have have said I need to eat everything even though I'm full But I need to like they said I need to eat all my food You're doing great. You're totally fine. This has bothered me on the episode.

That's for sure. Oh. So yeah. Wow. Yeah. I might do then, that's great. So I could do like a little trial run on like a weekend where I make lunch.

I put it in Marley's lunch box and I kind of say like. Hey, can you open this? Yeah. Like, yeah, absolutely. Give it a go opening. Like what works? What doesn't work? We've done the uniform. Yeah super cool. So this morning she just wore his uniform every day to kindy. Oh yes that's adorable. Super cool. One kid

stud wearing it. Now we have all the kids wearing it. We are all ready for a big surprise. The food thing is crazy because we always talk to our kids like my kids want to go back outside and jump on the trampoline and I'm like, got to eat all your dinner first. It's probably bad cause I'll spew it up at some point. It's a big time obviously for these little ones because they're taking, they're taking that ownership now. They're, they're not with mom or dad or their family members to say, oh, like three more pieces or whatever.

As teachers, obviously we're there to kind of help guide and manage and we don't want anyone going hungry for the day. So we'll do what we can on our part. But yeah, there's, there's a little conversation I think that parents need to be aware of and kind of tips and tricks that make it pleasurable for everyone. Shall we say? Yeah. Okay.

We're about to blow Ash's mind again for the adults. Let's go. Let's do it. For the adults. Okay. So big ones to blow Ash's mind again for the adults. Let's go. Let's do it. For the adults. Okay. So big ones. I'm also very scared. No, you're going to be fine. Like deep breath. We've got this. There we go. Model calm excitement. The opposite of that.

Okay. But what I'm referring to there is calm excitement about starting school. So this is for those ones who may be a little bit kind of anxious to start. Modelling this calm excitement and sharing your experiences, your positive experiences to school, can really be beneficial in this kind of new stage of life. I've got a big one that I'll leave till last, but my next one is like, trust the teacher.

We will look after your little ones because that is our job. And we are so passionate about what we're doing, particularly us educators who are there for the first year of big school. Like, this is our jam. Like, we're here for it. And we know how big it is for the little ones, for you guys as parents. There's a lot of trust involved, but it actually goes two ways because it's really important that you are really starting a relationship with us as teachers.

It's this whole village mentality and everything, and it's all hands on deck to support your little ones. So yeah, we're both bringing things to the table. We're both gonna support parents, teachers. We're gonna support those little ones to the table. We're both going to support parents, teachers. We're going to support those little ones to the best of our ability. And we've both got big important roles to play. And the biggest one I would say for parents

about goodbyes, goodbyes and transitions. There's a big buildup around these. With all my experiences as an educator and everything, goodbyes are absolutely tricky. But I've got a couple of things that I want parents to kind of be mindful of. Be honest. Okay. Please don't cry in front of your child. Please.

April? Lucy? Please. I know there might be tears of excitement, but what we need to remember is that tears for little ones result or like have a really strong connection with fear and being sad. Therefore something's wrong. So if I'm a five year old child and seeing my loved ones cry and even though it's, oh, it might be happy tears, something might be wrong. They must be thinking, what the hell is happening?

And then why are you leaving me in this brand new environment and you're crying? Something's wrong, but you're about to say goodbye to me. Oh my God, I must be traumatizing. Like thinking so. Although they might be happy tears because it's a new chapter in life starting, which is very exciting. Please keep the tears hidden. Save it for the car.

Yeah, exactly right. Yeah. Save it for the car. Also cry alone. Like I usually do. Look after yourself. So make sure you have something in play. A lot of schools do like tea and tissues. So you drop off your little one, you're keeping it together, you're

doing perfectly fine, you're waving, and then you might go into the gym or the library or something and then have a little cry with a cup of tea and talk to all the other parents who are going through the same thing. So a bunch of schools offer that, which is a really cute thing. I think as parents, we forget too that this like you've brought to the table that this is about us as well. And our transition, I never really thought about it that much until now. Rip it off like a bandaid sometimes. It sounds terrifying. The thought of saying goodbye, especially if you're a little one that is a little bit

like upset and showing some big emotions. 95% of the time, if you reassure those feelings, absolutely, but you know what, you're gonna be fine. Let's like, goodbye, I'll see you at the end of the day. 95% of the time, that little one has stopped crying before they've even walked into the classroom. Yeah, cause he can't. The other 5%, it's taken 10 minutes.

Yeah. And they've had like a slow start to the morning because us as educators have realized, you know what, don't unpack your bag just yet. Let's choose like a little friend and go play in like the little calm corner for a moment. Many times at daycare where I've said goodbye and Lola may be crying and as I'm just about to leave the door

It's about to shut and I go okay, one more hug, one more hug, give one more hug, there you go. You're that guy. And then I peel myself away from her and she's crying. You should start again. Yeah, one more hug, one more. Short and sharp. My drop-offs are pretty quick. Yeah.

But there have been times where like Matt, like exactly I have Matt, where I've had to go back in for a second or even rescued him and we've gone home because there's been that. It wasn't the day. It wasn't the day. Every time I've done like a quite clean riff of that band aid, usually they've, it's been fine. Yeah. Because they've been not with you. God, he's gone. Why is dad still crying?

How do you deal with bullying at such a young age? Can we clarify what bullying is and disagreements and debacles with friends are? Bullying is that intentional ongoing behaviour that is like real power driven. Everything else is a disagreement with friends and everything. It's a blanket term that just gets thrown out. Exactly right. Exactly right. Exactly right. Yeah, there's like five year olds,

their best friends and their worst enemies and their best friends. Oh, it's a rotating door, right? Rotating door or exactly right. It's within a couple of minutes. You were best friends and now you don't want to play together. So now that's bullying. So yeah, we just need to be really mindful

about kind of how we're using that word. Obviously bullying is never okay. And we don't take it lightly at all. And little tiny humans are still understanding how to be a friend and how to successfully have friendships because they're just coming out of this whole notion of we play together but it's parallel play. So it's like both of us are playing in the same pit. We're both building our own thing. But some people might see that as, oh, they're friends. They're playing are playing in the sand pit. We're both building our own thing. But some people might say that as, oh, they're friends. They're playing

together. I actually have no idea what you're building. You have no idea what I'm building over here because we're playing in the same vicinity. We're not actually playing together. OK. Can I give you a scenario?

If you have two kids, let's say, in the sand pit and let's say one person is trying to play with the other person. The other person is just saying, I don't want you to play with me at all. But say it's consistent. How do you say, well, you have to be kind and you have to play with other people. Where's the line of, well, you know, we're entitled to our own boundaries. You have to respect that. It's a wonderful scenario and it's something that we talk to our class about

as well. It's super important that we're all kind. We all need to be kind to each other. However, we don't have to be best friends with everyone as well. So it's all about trying to find that balance of, you know what, are we playing or I don't actually want to play with you right now. And that's okay. I think we need to be okay with that being okay because we don't want to force, I guess, individuals.

Just like we as adults, we don't want to be forced to work with people if we don't want to or, I mean. Oh, tension. So yeah, it's about being really mindful. Us as educators can kind of work through that and kind of soften the blows and find, I guess, other alternate ways to support that one child who's trying to look for someone to play with. I think the big one that you said, no matter the circumstance, you'd be kind.

We need to teach them how to respectfully like be OK with that. OK, good question for me here is how do you deal with challenging behaviour from a student? Oh, what counts as challenging behaviour? You can tell us. That one was actually from a teacher. Yeah. So I guess if you are dealing with a child who's being disruptive or being unkind,

do you smack the kids? No. No, we don't. He was nodding when he said no, no. I think like, if you're, for example, in class might be like you've got a kid who's disruptive, he's not listening to you, he's not listening to anyone else. Yeah, do you discipline him? It's me as a child. So how do we deal with little Ash? Yes, Yes. Yes. I think it's... Drink beer. No. How? Look, it's really about having that relationship, I guess, us as educators, if this is something that is ongoing, obviously we're going to have communication and have discussions with

mums and dads and family members to see if you guys have anything put in place that works with for your little one. Really it's about, I guess, teachers ourselves trying to figure out what scenarios are, I guess, bring on that behavior. If there's something specific learning, learning-wise, if there's a learning barrier that it's, the behavior is because maybe we're trying to avoid

something that we don't wanna do. Like maybe we're not very good at maths. So during maths time, I'm actually just going to play up. So we're going to put some kind of supportive practices in place for that child, just to make sure that everyone can learn and that individual can continue to do their best with support in place. So yeah.

Does it help when the relationship with the parent is really good as well? 100%. Yeah. So you can have that open dialogue. Yeah. Because you guys might be experiencing exactly the same thing at home, but you might have your own little tools in your toolbox that you use really successfully.

And if that's something we can replicate in the class for little Ash to be the best version he can be, we want to know about it. Is there such a thing as end of term fatigue? Yes. Can you tell the bags under my eyes right now? No, don't be ridiculous. For you, all the kids. For everyone.

End of term fatigue, completely a thing, especially for the little ones. I teach over in South Australia. So our first term is 11 weeks. So you're going from like kindy or like preschool, whatever it is to big school. And it's an 11 week term, five days a week. It's a marathon. Welcome, right? That is a marathon.

So, and I say that for term one, but end of term, there's four terms, each of them end. So we experienced this a couple of times, end of year exhaustion, huge. But end of term exhaustion, absolutely a thing. For the parents as well, I'm sure you've either felt it or going to feel it. So it's really important that I guess by the end of term, we are starting to kind of dial back, I guess the outside of school commitments as well.

You might be dialing back, I guess, if there's any kind of like homework policies in place, we're starting to pull back just to kind of like ease the pressure off so we can rest. Rest is vitally important for students, for teachers, for adults. We all love a good sleep. Yeah. So by the end of term, there is a little bit of kind of like take your foot off the gas a little bit because we would be under the impression that we've been going hard for

X amount of weeks. Do kids in preschool, do they nap at all? Like if a child in your classroom is like, Mr. Luke, I'm really tired. We have had little ones fall asleep on the couch before, particularly early in... It doesn't happen anymore. It doesn't happen anymore. They sleep at the table. Yeah.

Oh bless. But yeah, big school starts and you're on a high for the first couple weeks. Reality kicks in and you're like, oh wow, I'm still here. Hard work. Why am I still here? What is this? Like, oh wow, I'm still here. Hard work. Why am I still here? What is this? Like, oh wow, I have, there's this expectation that I'm gonna push myself and be my own learner.

What's this? Opinions on open plan versus traditional classrooms. Now, first of all, can you define the both of them? Cause I don't know what that is. Cool. So open plan, we're talking about probably two classrooms or more being in kind of one big space sharing some type of learning area.

Gotcha. Yeah. Whereas closed classroom is your one teacher, four walls, one door classroom teacher. Like a prison. Yeah. Well, no. No. So what's your classroom?

So I'm in an open classroom. I think it works really, really well. First things first, we think it's a great transition to big school specifically because I guess for my school, we've only got two grade zero classes. So we're straight away altogether. Everyone in the cohort knows everyone. Come grade one, you're now mixing with individuals

that you don't even know kind of are in your year. And I remember doing that as a kid. I did that. Collaboration with students we think is really cool as well, but also the ability to kind of, I guess, group like-minded students. What it also allows is for us teachers to also put in place specific support or intervention

for those who maybe need a little bit more help growing. What would you say is your biggest struggle as a teacher? Oh, biggest struggle is probably the amount of self doubt you have or the doubt you put on yourself as an educator. I think I could be doing so many more things better than what I already am. No. And absolutely. And educators, and I'm sure if any educators are listening, they're all going to agree.

It's not something that stops when you leave school. It's really hard to turn off from teaching. So you're constantly thinking about your students. Trying to turn off, I would say, is probably one of the biggest struggles. If ever there was a sign of you being an amazing teacher, that is it, roughly. We had a question a little while back where it was,

is it okay to take your child out of school term to go on family holidays? As the teacher. As the teacher. What's your thoughts on that? How long of a holiday are we talking about? Because we can get pretty specific, right? Is it a couple days?

Let's be realistic. I've said three weeks. Let's be realistic. I've said three weeks. All right, cool. Awesome. Two weeks. Two weeks. Two weeks.

Cool. Two weeks. I think for junior primary, so like grade two down, the amount of incidental learning that can happen during a family trip is fantastic. So incidental learning is, you're not teaching ABCs and one, two, threes, but it's that stuff that is happening.

Exactly right, bang. And it is about that life experience and that's super valuable. I absolutely love family time. I had time off growing up to go on family holidays as well. So sometimes it's gonna happen. So I'm all for it. Yeah, you've got a little responsibility during that family time to ensure that that incidental learning is happening

Okay, obviously if you're on a page kick your feet up as well and go for a swim and have some fun Yeah We are itching now towards Christmas. We are so maybe some of the parents of the kids that you teach they might be listening What do teachers really want for Christmas as presents? Look, um... Money! Cold hard cash. Presents that I have previously received

that have been absolutely amazing. Plants. I'm a sucker, I mean, obviously. Two in one shampoo? Two in one shampoo? Yeah, that would be... Oh my stars! I'd be, yeah, that would be... Three in one shampoo. Oh my god.

I'd be... Yeah, that would be going great. Look, a little massage voucher, I know is appreciated by some of my staff. Yeah. Now we're talking. Yeah, now we're talking. We love the thought of coffee cups.

But we have so many coffee cups. There's so many. Another one! We don't expect anything. It's very diplomatic of you to say. Are you way winking at us? I can't ask because I feel like you're too nice. The worst gift, but we'll say the coffee cups.

I'm in the category of... Is there any worst gifts? Come on, we've got to know. The worst gift you've ever received. No, I haven't received any terrible gifts. What's the worst coffee cup you've ever used? None. I've turned them into little mug planters.

So like plants are in there. So they're definitely utilized. Yeah, they're definitely utilized upcycled, but there's a limit. If you're listening, don't get Mr. Luke a coffee cup. The dynamic between parent and child, we try and deal with meltdowns in all sorts of different ways.

You as a teacher, if a child has a meltdown in your bar, what's the best way you know how to deal with it? I think it's really interesting as well. And I just want to flag the difference between meltdowns that kids have with parents and kids have at school with teachers. I've had chats to parents and we see sometimes completely different children in kind of our space compared to what you see in yours. Obviously because the relationship is

different. My kids sometimes hate me. Yeah so how do we deal with said meltdown? Again this is where parent like parent teacher communication comes into play. So there's no secret word. There's no secret word. Yeah and I'm done. Yeah. No secret word. There's no secret word. Yeah. And I'm done. Yeah. Yeah. All done. Yeah. No, no secret word. And it's definitely, yeah, individual by individual. It's true. The relationship, because I walked in on Oscar and in class to pick him up when at

big school and he was sitting cross-legged straight up like, who are you? What have you done to him? Is that one mine? I was like, what? What have you done to him? Is that one mine? Mr. Luke, do you think there will be a time where, I mean, like now you've you're almost you're close to three million followers across across platforms? Yeah.

I mean, is there any thought in your mind at all that maybe I'll retire from teaching so I can make content full time? Then what will my content be about? Coffee cups. Coffee cups. School stuff. Look, I absolutely love this little social media life

that has, I guess, grown into something pretty cool over the last couple of years. I can't see myself ever leaving education and teaching. I might drop down, I only work point eight. So I've got one day off a week. I could potentially see myself dropping down again in a couple years if it's all going really well. But I don't think I'll ever leave. I'll always be tied somehow into teaching and education. It's too fun. Wow. That's a really good answer. But also, you're a published author.

I am. Please tell us your book and what your book is about. Yeah, my book is, guess what we are doing today. I had to think about that for a second. I was like, oh my god, hold on, what? Yeah, so being a published author is pretty cool. I actually have a copy for you both. Do we have a copy of our book for him?

You guys know as well after writing, but it's pretty cool. It's pretty awesome. You must have so many parents who are just fighting over the fact that they want to get their kids in your classroom. Are you having a deal with something like that? Luckily, no. I don't believe it. No, because I think any... I would literally kill to have my kids.

If you moved down to Bondi public, everyone would be like... No, I think any child is going to be in wonderful hands going into prep. Unless you are creating an absolute lie on social media, but talking to you, I can tell what an amazing person you are. I never had a teacher who is as incredible as you. Like you genuinely care so much and what you do for kids is amazing. That is a very kind thing to say. Thank you.

We were talking earlier and it's like maybe if I had a teacher like you in my earlier days, I would have cared more for school. It's good to know that there's still amazing educators out there. There absolutely is. I think it's a really exciting time as well, obviously with social media so readily available and it's pretty easy to make content now. So I consider myself very lucky to really enjoy creating content about something I'm so passionate about which is teaching and education so it's really

cool. Thank you so much for joining us today. Thank you for letting me. Thank you Mr Luke. You have been schooled. Alright Ash, are you ready? Born ready. Well I wasn't born ready that's why we had to get Mr Luke in so now I am ready to go. If you have enjoyed this episode, please we would love it. Mr Luke would actually really love it as well. If you would review, subscribe, give us a couple of stars. Let me know two, give us three or four. Anything except five. A plus as a teacher would call it. Very good. You'd be a great teacher. I would be. Didn't you tell me you wanted to become a

teacher? I think if this goes tits up I'll probably be a teacher. Good luck to wherever you end up. Also you can follow us on social media at Instagram at 2dodingdads, also TikTok 2dodingdads, also along with our Facebook group 2dodingdads join the fun, join the conversation. There it is 2DD. Also how could we forget? There's only a couple left. They are selling like hotcakes. Hotcakes from the tuck shop, if that makes any sense. I'm talking about the Calendars Rortchie Ranch 2025. There are a couple. They contain nuts.

There's a few left. They're at $29, but all proceeds, 100% of proceeds, gets donated to an amazing charity called Rise Up, who do such great work with victims of domestic violence. So if you don't want to miss out, jump into the show notes. There's a link there where you can buy your calendar for next year.

You also get $20 off your order with the code DOTING, which we'll also put in the show notes. It's a win-win situation, but until then, goodbye. We will go. Goodbye, fam. We will leave you. Goodbye. To Doting Dad's podcast acknowledges the traditional custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to their elders,

past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today. This episode was recorded on Gadigal land.