This week we hear from two students at Willow Glenn HS in San Jose who share their experiences of their first senior prom. Along with learning some new dance steps, these students were part of a group that went out of their way to create a memorable evening at their local senior center.

TEEN TRUTH: INSPIRATION - Watch this segment from GVTV 8 on the fundraiser called "Derek's Dash." These young kids are MAKING A  DIFFERENCE for their cousin by organizing this amazing event. What are you doing?  For information on Teen Truth visit www.teentruth.net and for more information on CADA visit www.cada1.org.

This week I discuss a couple of lessons I teach my students that utilizes their cell phones. We spend time on both texting as well as how to have a conversation on the phone or when leaving a voice mail. For more info on CADA, click here.

Through all of the chaos and hectic planning, sometimes it is great to take a break, relax, and play.

In this episode I talk briefly about how I manage student cell phones in the classroom, my procedures and a few activities I like to employ as part of my lessons. I will have more posted on our blot at http://cadaleaders.wordpress.com. You can find out more about CADA at www.cada1.org.

I will start this by saying this podcast is not legal advice, just hours upon hours of research. Every school in the country is dealing with students cell phones, and each district is taking a different approach. In this episode, I try to break down some of the basics to help get you informed about what to expect if you decide to start allowing cell phones on your campus. If over 90% of your students have them, what's to stop you from teaching your students how to use cell phones to be productive citizens in your community? I will have more posted on our blog next week, cadaleaders.wordpress.com. For more informatoin on CADA, check out our site at www.cada1.org.

In this weeks podcast we go back to tech with a quick app review of Evernote and InClass. You can check out my previous podcast on Evernote here. I spend a majority of my time here talking about InClass, a newer app for iPhone. While teaching teens to be organized is a constant battle, it's getting easier with access to technology. InClass and Evernote are free apps for you or your students to access. 

TEEN TRUTH: ON THE ROAD - Erahm talks about the true value of having an Activities Director on campus and the biggest Parents presentation turnout in TEEN TRUTH LIVE history. He commends the parents for taking the time out of their day to make a difference in their community. Click on Teen Truth to learn more about their great programs, or to learn more about CADA visit www.cada1.org.

Our Technology Coordinator, along with the help of speaker Scott Backovich, throw down some online challenges for teachers and students to use the next time you are on the web. For more on CADA, visit http://www.cada1.org.

It is not always easy to see the greatness in others, but through hard work and determination we all deserve the opportunity to accomplish our goals.  Listen to how student government and a hopeful activity director changed one student's life, ultimately sending her down a path of success and honor.  For more info on Teen Truth, check out their website at www.teentruth.net.  For more info and resources from CADA, check us out on our site, www.cada1.org.

A very powerful tool to get your kids talking is to share with them thought provoking quotes.  Great for bell work or any time you need your kids to think just a little bit differently. Check out CADA's website for more information and resources.

The idea behind the Associated Student Body is to represent every student on campus.  It is up to the leaders to reach out and get other students involved in your student campus.  A great activity to get your kids thinking about how to get your invisible students involved in activities. Check out CADA's website for more information and resources.

The Taters are an interesting family: Hector Hesi-tater, Precilla Procrasti-tater, Arnie Agi-tater, Susie Spec-tater, Connie Commen-tater, Darren Dic-tater, Emma Immi-tater, Harry Partici-tater, Sarah Sweet-tater. A great activity to get your kids discussing personalities and how to work with different types of people on your school campus.

Mike White takes a few moments to share how his school uses 3 on 3 basketball with staff and students to create some friendly competition on campus. Check out CADA's website for more information and resources.

Lauretta shares how her school nominates, selects and recognizes outstanding students and athletes on her campus. Check out CADA's website for more information and resources.

Debi Weiss utilizes her leadership students to interact and plan events with studend with special needs at her school.  Hear how she organizes her students to plan and implement these events. Check out CADA's website for more information and resources.

Jose Duenas saw a need in his students to understand why the school would be hanging the flag at half mast after 9/11.  Here are some of the lessons that he uses to hel his students better understand the history and purpose of the flag.  Check out CADA's website for more information and resources.

This is a great culminating activity for your students to share with others their personal feelings and insights as to how they see themselves and how they feel others see them. Check out CADA's website for more information and resources.

Getting your kids to konw each other can be a challenge, so it's time for an acitivity that will get them working together towards a common cause: the scavenger hunt.  Check out this technological twist with Anne Artz.  Check out CADA's website for more information and resources.

Architect and Builder is an activity by activity director Suzy Krzaczek.  She uses this activity to demonstrate the importance of verbal and non-verbal communication to her students.  For more information and resources on education and getting your students involved, check out our website at CADA.

As leaders, we often take tasks into our owns hands choosing to juggle our many activities and responsiblities on our own.  However, if we seek out help from the right people to help lighten our load, we can be more successful.  This episode features Jeremy Hersch as he explains to his students how to find balance and see out the appropriate help they will need in order to be successful.  For more info on CADA head to www.cada1.org.

Erahm talks about the true value of having  an Activities Director on campus and the biggest Parents presentation turnout in TEEN TRUTH LIVE history. He commends the parents for taking the time out of their day to make a difference in their community.

Jeff Culver knew that his students were not doing a good job of thanking everyone who had helped out his leadership class.  So, he took it upon himself to teach them the correct way to say thank you and mean it.  Jeff shares a few simple steps that will help your students say a more meaningful thank you.  For more info on CADA, to go www.cada1.org. 

The Original Mike Smith takes a few minutes to share with us one of his favorite poems that adresses his take on motivation as well as our expectations of others.  For more on Mike, check out www.differencemakers.com. To learn about CADA and find more resources, check out www.cada1.org.

Many times our best lessons come from creating teachable moments during every day situations.  Paul Chylinski talks about his favorite teaching moments by utilizing your stories and other resources around to connect with students.  For more info and resources, check out www.cada1.org.

Speaker Rhett Laubach takes us through a activity called A little or A lot, a great way to survey your class, create self awareness, or dig a little deeper and get your kids thinking about why it is not fair to compare themselves to other students.  For more information and resources from Rhett, visit http://www.yournextspeaker.com/ and for more information and resources from CADA, check us out at www.cada1.org.

Activities Director Denise Van Doorn shares with us one of her great tools of organization, the foldable timeline.  One of the toughest skills to teach students is to plan ahead and set goals.  This strong visual timeline will help your kids to think about steps and tasks leading up tot he big event.  For more information on CADA, head to www.cada1.org. 

Scott Backovich took a few minutes to share one of his favorite activites, The Human Machine.  A great activity that will help your kids communicate, collaborate and bond on a mechanical level.  Your students take on the role of the machine and mimic each part as they try to create a working mechanical device.  For more information on Scott go to www.scottbackovich.com.  For more info on CADA, check out www.cada.1.org.

TEEN TRUTH: ON THE ROAD - Learn about the Gear Up Program, a federal grant offered by the US Department of Education to help "gear" kids up to achieve success in both life and at school.  This Gear Up Program works to serve youth in the Laredo, TX area, as they provide support and follow a cohort of students from 7th Grade all the way through to graduation. For more info, check out www.teentruth.net.  You can also find more on CADA at www.cada1.org.

With the CADA conference behind us and CASL student leadership camp ahead of us, I started to wonder why I do all of this crazy work.  Sometimes it is nice to be reminded of the great things that happen on campus and the amazing things our leadership students do for staff & students every day. For more information on CADA and CASL go to www.cada1.org. For more great videos check out our other podcasts, or our YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/cadaleaders.

In this episode I take some time to sit down with one of our key noters, Brian Brushwood.  Brian started off as a master magician, and the developed a plan to move beyond the real of magic. As the host of Scam School, voted top video podcast on iTunes, as well as online shows NFSW and appearing on the TWiT network (This Week in Tech), Brian has gained much nsight and knowledge into the realm of social media and marketing.  Here Brian talks a bit about his success with Scam School, and he shares his approach to social networking on such sites as Facebook and Twitter. If you want to learn more about Brian you can go to his http://shwood.squarespace.com/. For more information on CADA, visit us at www.cada1.org. 

For this episode I sit down with Mr. Paul Chylinski to talk about his plans for the 2011 CADA State Convention, License to Lead.  Several years in the planning with much work over the past few months to make this March event one to appreciate.  Get an insider look at what to expect, what to bring, and some of the thought that went in to planning this event.  For more info, go to www.cada1.org and click on state conference on the left hand side of the web page.

TTN Listen to a TEEN TRUTH Expert share her opinion on why she thinks the TRUTH is important, and how teenagers today are living in a world where positive TRUTH-telling is not enforced or encouraged. Rise up! Let us know what you think? For more info on Teen Truth visit teentruth.net and for more info on CADA visit www.cada1.org

A big aspect to be being a great leader is to know what type of leader you are.  Speaker, author, blogger and tech enthusiast Rhett Laubach takes some time to speak with me about identifying student personalities and how to manage those personalities within a classroom setting in order to lead effectively. For more on Rhett and our topic, check out http://www.yournextspeaker.com/. For more on CADA, check out www.cada1.org.

TEENTRUTH.Net: INSIGHT - A TEEN TRUTH Expert from Arizona explains how she takes students from her high school to a Unity Camp in the nearby mountains. At the camp students are able to express themselves freely and make connections that last a lifetime. We thought this would be nice to share with you in case you were looking for something new and different to do at your school to get students connected.