Episode #14 Season 3 Parenting and Teaching in the Digital Age

Veteran educator Brittany Snavely opens up about the delicate balancing act of raising four daughters while pursuing a fulfilling 21-year teaching career in this thought-provoking conversation about modern parenting and educator wellness.

Drawing from her experience spanning sixth grade classrooms to her current role as an elementary school librarian, Brittany shares candid observations about how technology has fundamentally changed childhood. "Kids now have this constant sense of 'I need to know right now,'" she notes, describing how today's students struggle with patience and problem-solving when answers aren't immediately available. Her solution? Creating unplugged opportunities with puzzles and card games that spark joy and genuine interaction among her students.

The conversation takes a personal turn as Brittany reveals her family's thoughtful approach to teen cell phone usage. Rather than applying blanket rules, she and her husband consider each daughter's unique relationship with technology—allowing their naturally disciplined 16-year-old more freedom while establishing firmer boundaries for their 14-year-old who shows mood changes with excessive screen time. This individualized strategy reflects the intentional parenting philosophy that guides their family life.

Perhaps most valuable for listeners is Brittany's practical wisdom about maintaining wellness amid constant demands. Currently on day eight of a modified 75-Day Challenge that includes daily exercise, increased water intake, and mindful choices, she embodies the podcast's motto: "You need to be well to teach well." Her commitment to choosing herself first—even when faced with endless to-do lists—offers inspiration for educators struggling to prioritize their own health.

The episode concludes with powerful insights about authentic connection as the foundation of both effective teaching and joyful living. Whether it's meaningful conversations during car rides between activities or mindful moments in nature during lunch breaks, Brittany demonstrates how even the busiest educators can find moments of genuine connection and rejuvenation in their hectic days.

Join us for this refreshingly honest conversation about navigating the complex intersection of parenting, teaching, and personal wellness in today's fast-paced world. Your health is a priority—find joy in the journey!

Thanks for listening!

Transcript

Speaker 1 0:18

This is Wellness for Educators, episode 14. You need to be well to teach well. That is the motto, seeking a healthy balance. You matter, and so does your health. There is life beyond the classroom. This is Wellness, wednesday, september 17th 2025. Wellness for Educators Lori Maxfield, your host.

Speaker 1 0:40

Educators not only have to educate our youth. They have to form bonds and work cooperatively with the parents of the children we teach. When I taught ESL, I had grateful parents. They were just so happy to have their children learning English. When I taught sixth grade, however, not all of the parents were so grateful.

Speaker 1 1:00

Today is not always positive working with parents. This can be a challenging piece of our job. If you're an educator and are not a parent, this podcast is still for you. I think it's important for educators to understand the challenges that parents may be facing today.

Speaker 1 1:17

The best advice I received as a new parent was to appreciate your children at the stage they are in and don't wish for another stage. For example, I wish they could walk. I wish they were in school. I found this advice to be so true. Each stage of my children's lives had great pieces, but also challenges. When they were infants, I certainly lacked sleep and I was hoping they would sleep longer, but there is nothing quite like having a baby snuggle with you. As children age they become independent and as a parent, that was always my desire. But along with independence comes decisions that may not be the best. It is tough to see your children make mistakes too.

Introducing Brittany Snavely

Speaker 1 2:03

I am so proud of my adult daughters that they are independent and hardworking. Parenting, in my opinion, is the most difficult job of all. However, if gifted with children, I honestly believe it is the best job of all. It has been wonderful to observe my daughter as a mother. This makes me so happy. Actually, her daughter is so much like she was when she was small and that has been so fun to observe. Today I have the privilege of interviewing Brittany Snavely. I have known Brittany as a colleague and a friend. We taught together when she was a new teacher fresh out of college. At the time I was pretty amazed that she was friends with someone probably close to double her age, but she has been an integral piece of my educational journey. We traveled together to Australia with a group of 40 fourth and fifth graders. She was even instrumental in planning a Zoom retirement party for me when I retired during the pandemic. Brittany is a hardworking, passionate educator to whom I have great respect. I am sure you are going to find our conversation interesting and valuable. Welcome.

Speaker 2 3:16

Brittany. It's a pleasure to be here, lori, and I think of you each time when I recall that first day of teaching before my day one out of college, lori, you were the first person who met me at the door and welcomed me to that middle school. So thank you Wow.

Speaker 1 3:32

We have formed a little friendship and it's just so. I really was in awe that you liked this older woman, Anyway. So can you just share a bit about yourself, your present role, what grades you have taught, what your present job is, what type of school you're in, how many children you have, and just any additional information you could let the listeners know?

Speaker 2 3:57

Sure. So I am entering my 21st year of teaching, which is really hard to believe. It's gone incredibly fast. And I began teaching sixth grade alongside you, lori, and I was there for three years. I had earned my degree in elementary education from Penn State and then, while I was teaching my first few years, I also earned my master's in library science. So I knew eventually I would like to be in the library, but first I wanted to gain some experience with both younger and older students. So I did a three-year stint at one of our middle schools and then a seven-year stretch at one of our elementary schools, in first grade.

Speaker 2 4:35

And I'm now entering my 11th year as a librarian at one of our local elementary schools, and I do believe I have the best job. I love books, I love meeting all of the kids and their families, being the hub of the school, so librarianship certainly, I think, was my calling. I have four children of my own a junior in high school, a freshman in high school and then twins who entered middle school this year all daughters and we love everything about the space that we're in. There are so many fun things that we are up to on a daily basis with activities and school and band and sports, so we're in a pretty fun spot right now.

Speaker 1 5:14

That's great, and I love visiting you in your library. So have you ever received advice about parenting that you have found helpful? I shared my advice sure.

Speaker 2 5:27

Um, this was a great question as I was contemplating all the various pieces of information that people have passed along, especially with four.

Speaker 2 5:34

There have been lots of people to offer their two cents along the way.

Speaker 2 5:38

But I think the, the motto or the mantra that has stuck with me the longest and has helped me through my best and worst days, was something that my husband once said. I forget exactly what had happened, but I was agonizing over some type of disappointment or sadness that one of our girls was experiencing, and he turned to me and said Britt, it's all growth. And so I realized that in every you know, either hardship or success, they are learning something and stretching some muscle, and I have to tell myself this statement whenever I'm feeling maybe the weight of it resting on my shoulders, and I find myself saying it over and over again some days, especially when we're going through maybe something that's more challenging. I'm like I know they're learning through this, I know they're gaining certain skills through this, and I have to remind them of that as well. Not only are we growing as parents, helping them through it, but they too are getting better as humans on this earth, having to navigate again the things that feel easy and the things that feel hard.

Speaker 1 6:42

I think it's so hard. I remember somebody saying you're only as happy as your saddest child, and I think that's so true. I think moms especially, just the weight of the hardships is really, really difficult. So I think that was very good advice. It is as an educator and as a librarian. You are educating and having lessons, so you have every grade, you have every child in the school that come to your library for lessons and so you are basically educating kindergarten to fifth grade on a weekly basis to fifth grade on a weekly basis, so you are able to observe all the children.

Technology's Impact on Children Today

Speaker 2 7:25

So, as an educator, have you observed changes over the past few years? Yes, I would say. From my first year of teaching to my now 21st year of teaching, there have been changes and a lot of it, for me, is connected to technology. Certainly through you know the pandemic, we saw kids at a younger age opening up laptops and navigating screens and becoming accustomed to this idea of like instant gratification. I find that kids now have this constant sense of I need to know right now, I need the answer right now. They are so accustomed to opening up their Chrome page and searching a question and finding an immediate answer. When we were kids, we would go sifting through the encyclopedia and have to synthesize information to try to come up with an answer to a question.

Speaker 1 8:17

And to do those cards, even the cards note cards. And even like finding a book, you had to do that Write the card catalog.

Speaker 2 8:25

Yeah, they're just so used to everything being within seconds at their fingertips that I find that there's a greater sense of impatience. If there is something that they're struggling to find the answer to, instead of this feeling of well, let me dig a little deeper, there tends to be this feeling of like I give up, I quit, I can't find it. It's not immediately there. It's teaching them to stretch that muscle of are you willing to dig a little deeper, maybe face a setback or two and keep going, even our attention as adults in the spaces with them. You know they have a need and I think they expect immediately an adult to be by their side offering a response.

Speaker 2 9:03

And so I've tried, and I take, you know, from lessons taught to me this idea of pausing, taking a moment, breathing through it, like figuring out what's the next step, instead of just immediately jumping to I need this or I can't just allow, like those few seconds of space to pause and think. That is something that I hope we can help our kids gain back. I think of my own learning, my own education as a kid there seemed to be a lot more time and space and moments of boredom. I think kids are not used to feeling bored because, again, if they are bored, they have, every one of them, a device at their fingertips that's provided for them. They can open it up and find a game or a video. There's not so much the feeling of needing to go find something to do From creating.

Speaker 1 9:51

I feel like kids aren't creating games. Yeah, we wouldn't. We wouldn't our imagination, we would coming up with things and making up our own games. It's really kind of sad in a way. I don't know how we're going to help that.

Speaker 2 10:06

Hopefully we just need to be mindful of this.

Speaker 2 10:11

I sometimes experiment with things in the library and if I set a puzzle out, it's amazing to me I just watch the kids how quickly some will just gravitate and go start putting the pieces together. Or if I set out a deck of playing cards, immediately the kids will walk over to the table and say well, my grandmother taught me Rummy. Would you want to play Rummy? And then they start talking, laughing and having fun Like it's little innocent moments like that that I hope to give them opportunities to do, because I don't know how many kids are opening up the puzzle at home. Who are taking the deck of cards out on, you know a Saturday afternoon when bored and playing a game, rather than seeking the video game or the screen?

Cell Phone Boundaries for Teenagers

Speaker 1 10:53

Oh, I think that's great, yeah, great yeah. So your oldest daughter, reagan, is 16 and learning to drive. That's definitely a stretch for a parent. I know that you have not followed the norm when it comes to cell phone usage and social media with your oldest. Can you explain a bit about how you have approached cell phone usage with your daughters and your beliefs regarding this?

Speaker 2 11:21

So cell phones I'm beginning to see as a more, not only ever-present, but more out-of-necessity item for kids to have. Our oldest is 16. Our second daughter is 14. And both of them entering high school, I find are needing them more for checking their schedules, keeping up with updates from coaches, and sometimes it's against our greater judgment to say, okay, they have access to these devices, but I'm realizing it's part of like the day-to-day need.

Speaker 2 11:52

But we've looked at each of our girls and tried to understand like their relationship with technology and cell phones. Like our oldest, she doesn't really have an interest beyond using it for the tool that it is in terms of her studies or her commitments to things, and so we don't mind if she has access to it because she easily puts it down. She's not on social media, maybe, except for one again to stay connected to the clubs she's in. Our second daughter we can tell when she has too much time using technology it affects her mood and so we know with the removal of that her mood will be better, and so she has access during the day and then after school we take the phone and keep it with us, just because she doesn't have really a need for it once she's in our care, she's with us again, and so that might be kind of against the grain of what others have chosen to do.

Speaker 2 12:41

We've tried to look at them individually. We've tried to protect them against social media and, like those who like the times they've had to use it, we've talked to them about the potential you know benefits and downsides to using it, and so I think through the constant conversation, we've really tried to foster a positive, open relationship with all of our girls. They can talk to us if they are feeling uncomfortable or if they've seen something they shouldn't have, and also helping them find other ways to find joy rather than scrolling or addiction for it, because we've tried to fill our lives hopefully in other, richer, more meaningful ways, whether it's putting phones down and going for a hike or again picking up the deck of playing cards, like I used to do with my grandmother, and doing that instead. I think they feel better having fun doing those authentic, real things than just sitting on a cell phone.

Speaker 2 13:32

And I love playing games with your daughters.

Speaker 1 13:34

Games are really fun. They are your daughter's games are really fun. They are. You and your husband, Chris seem to be a very effective parenting team. Your parents and myself are baby boomers, so you were raised by baby boomer parents. You were born in 1982, which is relatively close to the beginning of the millennials. Which is relatively close to the beginning of the millennials. In your experience, do you believe there are differences between baby boomers and millennials in regards to parenting?

Speaker 2 14:12

So Chris and I have talked about this on numerous occasions. When we consider the job we're doing as parents and think about our own childhoods and I think the thing that stands out is the greatest difference, it felt like when we were kids, we had a fair amount of freedom. We were out truly until, like, the lights went on, we didn't have cell phones or air tags. Our parents really didn't know where we were. I think they just trusted that we were okay. We always found a way home from the basketball game and that was okay.

Speaker 2 14:37

I'm from a small town and so everybody knew everybody. There wasn't too much concern. Were they involved? They were. They helped with Girl Scouts, they helped coach baseball. They helped if we were stuck with a math problem. But I feel like they were kind of hands off at the same time, like they were happy to kind of. Let us go through the experience of being a kid yeah, the ups, the downs. I think, chris, and I feel like we're way more hands-on, maybe for better, for worse. We want them to have a sense of independence and this ability to tackle a situation on their own, how to self-advocate. It just feels like we're more present in the day-to-day, the backyard playing catch, helping them figure out their schedules where they need to be and moving them from place to place. I don't know if people will rebel against that and go back to this kind of old-school way of total stepping back. I definitely feel like that's the biggest difference, though I would say more hands-on for us, maybe a little less hands-on for our parents.

Speaker 1 15:42

Well, what I've observed is that millennials the fathers are much more involved, and I commend your generation because I think that that's really, really important. When I'm actually at my daughter's neighborhood, when I go for a walk, the people I see pushing the strollers are the men, so it's very interesting. In my day, or when I was a parent, you would rarely have seen the fathers doing that, so it's very different. I think there is a switch and I think that's really positive for your generation.

Speaker 2 16:19

Yeah, and I feel lucky with my husband being the father of four girls. He really believes in the idea of being a strong father, having strong daughters, and so I know he wants to model that and be present in there every day. So I'm very lucky in that way for him to be so committed and loving and part of their day-to-day life.

Managing Overscheduled Family Life

Speaker 1 16:38

Which is great. I've always known you to be a problem solver. When the twins were in diapers, I recall you opted to get the cloth diapers to save on cost as well as the benefit to the environment. I really I applaud you. I just could not have done that and I was so impressed as a problem solver. What do you think the biggest problem parents are facing today?

Speaker 2 17:08

I would say from our perspective and a lot of the families that we know this idea of being maybe overscheduled constantly scheduled, there's always an activity to be at, an appointment to attend.

Speaker 2 17:22

It feels like we are all running very tight Google calendars like it's a business and you've got to be on your game logistically in order to make it all happen, which is great. Everybody's involved in healthy activities and a part of great communities. But I think we probably all sometimes yearn for a slower pace and I will say I know COVID was a difficult time, but that was the silver lining For us. Everything was way more quiet, the days felt much slower, we had way more opportunity to sit down and watch the movie together. We weren't rushing off to the next activity and I know it's the phase we're at in this life, with our kids being teenagers and being a part of some great activities. It's going to fill up a calendar very quickly, but I think a lot of people feel like but wait a minute. Where are the moments when we can just slow everything down and appreciate being a family together? It sometimes feels like ships passing in the night from one thing to the next.

Speaker 1 18:24

But I think you prioritize your family time you go on a sailboat. You did the cross-country trip this summer. I think that you do prioritize family time. I see that.

Speaker 2 18:37

We make efforts, absolutely. I mean there are times whenever we realize maybe not everybody can come, but if we can get five out of six of us on the sailboat, we'll do it. If we need to take some one-on-one time with the person who missed it, maybe grabbing breakfast to check in, have a chance to talk, we make every attempt we can, but the days go fast and they are very full. So I appreciate you saying that. No, no, it's true.

Speaker 1 19:02

And I think that when you're in the car, I know I recall when Bethany used to do dance, I would pick her up at cross country and then we would have to go to dance and I would meet her and that would be a nice little check-in time and we would talk in the car and the first time she got her driver's license she called because she kind of missed that we didn't have that little check-in time. And so I think that you can take advantage of the time you are in the car and talking and kind of thinking about your day, and I think that time is kind of valuable.

Speaker 2 19:36

And I think it allows you to see those moments as valuable, like when you realize how compressed your time is, when you do have those 15 minutes that perhaps might have been, you know, taken for granted for you know before. Now you realize this is maybe my 15 minutes to have some kind of meaningful conversation, so we take the opportunity to use it as such. Or the 20 minutes that we share over coffee in the morning, we don't waste it Like that's a chance for us.

Speaker 1 20:00

Your kids don't drink coffee.

The 75-Day Wellness Challenge

Speaker 2 20:01

No, my husband and I For us to check in as we're starting our day. It's an opportunity for us to just slow down, take a minute and check in. So for sure, those moments are built in throughout the day. You just have to be mindful that might be the only time you have and to make the best of it. Make the most of it.

Speaker 1 20:18

No, that's great. So our podcast is Wellness for Educators. And you work full-time. You have four daughters. They have emotional needs, physical needs. You have a husband. You appear to be taking really good care of your own health. Any practical tips you have to share about taking care of your own health, and maybe you should talk about your challenge?

Speaker 2 20:46

that you're doing. Doing so, I enjoy reading from a daily newsletter called the Daily Stoic, and I find the man, ryan Holiday, who has written this newsletter, makes many comments, says a lot of statements that help ground me for the day, and one of the most important elements of stoicism, I would say from what I've read, is the idea of controlling the controllables and letting the rest go, and so I really do try to think about that each day. There are certain things that are going to come at us, and if they are outside of our control, I have gotten better, just saying let it go. And I also realized that I am the master of my own destiny, and you know, when it comes to personal health, sometimes it's easy to choose other things first. There will always be a basket of laundry to fold, there will always be the next meal to prep, for the next to-do list to create, and I found myself constantly choosing that first instead of saying well, what have you done to prioritize your own health and wellness? And so I've recently off.

Speaker 2 21:54

I'm on day eight of something called the 75-Day Challenge, and there are purists who do it to kind of an extreme state where every day you have to meet certain criteria you have to drink a gallon of water. You have to read at least 10 minutes from a nonfiction like self-improvement title. You have to exercise at least 10 minutes from a nonfiction self-improvement title. You have to exercise twice a day for 45 minutes, each one time outside. You're supposed to take a progress pic every day. You're to stick to a particular diet and have no alcohol. I've made my own modified version where I am saying for my diet, I'm just not going to have sweets after 4 pm.

Speaker 2 22:33

That's still a stretch, like I usually crave a little bit of sugar after school, so saying no to that is something that I'm willfully having to do the 45 minutes twice a day. I'm waking up in the morning and exercising on our treadmill, which is a calm, quiet start to my day. That makes me feel really good, and I always drink my first 32 ounces so I'm hydrated, I'm moving, which feels great. I'm getting outside over lunch, which I never used to do. I would typically just sit on my computer and respond to emails or create the next Google slideshow, but I am realizing those things will always be there waiting for me, and I have to make the conscious decision to choose myself first, and so if you miss any part of the structure of the day, like if you miss any of one of those five elements, you go back to day one. So now that I'm eight days in, I don't want to start over, so I'm highly motivated to keep going.

Speaker 2 23:24

The trickiest part for me so far has been drinking a gallon of water. It's more water than you realize. That's a lot it is, and I do liquid IV and sometimes I'll make iced tea. This is where I do it my own way. I'm not a total purist about it, but it's given me something to kind of anchor my mind to in terms of my personal health. If I wasn't making this promise to myself, it would be easy to say you know what, I'll just do it tomorrow. But because I've vowed that I am going to try to stick to this, I want to show both the consistency and discipline of being able to accomplish it. So ask me in a few days how I'm doing. I'm pretty proud to have made it eight days so far, setting goals and focusing on your health.

The Power of Authentic Connection

Speaker 1 24:04

That is really, really important. Yeah, so thinking about your role and working with parents and the wellness for educators. Is there anything else that you think would be helpful for the listeners as a tip or suggestion?

Speaker 2 24:33

I think something that has been rattling around in my head of late is this idea of connection, like the idea of authenticity, of being genuine, whether it be with your students, with the student's parents, with your own family, your children, your spouse, finding ways to truly connect with them, not just surface level, but like a genuine compliment or a genuine observation that you've made. I find that quickly makes a deeper connection between you and other people, and we all know that, for our own wellness, connection is one of the best things we can do for ourselves. I love reading about the blue zones across the world, and those people who live the longest are often the ones with the greatest social ties, and so finding ways to connect with other people and aren't you walking?

Speaker 1 25:16

When you walk, you're walking with people. Aren't you walking with other people?

Speaker 2 25:20

And it brings me a sense of joy.

Speaker 1 25:22

I feel happy doing that.

Speaker 2 25:23

Yeah, I think that's great. Yeah, so connection, trying to find ways to be with other people in ways that are real and human and authentic and positive ways to be with other people in ways that are real and human and authentic and positive, Because I think sometimes you can get like in a teacher lounge or whatever.

Speaker 1 25:37

You can get people really negative and critical. You want to be around people that are going to bring out the best, so I hope that's what you're finding too.

Speaker 2 25:47

Or I just go to nature. That's the nice thing about lunch, taking some breaths and being outside is so important.

Speaker 1 25:52

There's just something about fresh air, even when it gets cold, or it's really nice to be outside. Any other comments?

Speaker 2 26:02

I think I'll stick with the idea of connection. That's the one, like I said, I'm really trying to focus on this year with my students and their families. I think that's great yeah.

Building Positive Parent Relationships

Speaker 1 26:11

So thanks, Brittany, for this wonderful conversation. I am hopeful listeners find this time to be beneficial and informative. I greatly appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedule and your four daughters to meet with us on this podcast. I think your insights are extremely valuable and I'm sure the listeners will find this helpful as they strive to form positive relationships with their parents or their students, as well as colleagues. So thank you again for coming today.

Speaker 2 26:41

Thank you for having me, lori, it was my pleasure.

Speaker 1 26:43

As you get to know your students better and you begin to communicate with parents. Please aim to foster positive parent-teacher relationships. Communicating consistently and clearly is very helpful. Sometimes it might be scary, but a phone call may be more effective. You can have a conversation. Sadly, emails and texts have the potential for misinterpretation. Try to involve the parents in decision-making. Try to build a positive foundation. You want the parents on your team working collaboratively for the good of the student. Remember I am here cheering for you. Thanks to Ron Coleman for providing the music and thanks to you for being a positive influence to the future generation. You are a true hero. You need to be well to teach well. Find joy in the journey. This is Lori Maxfield and I thank you for listening to Wellness for Educators. If you have a friend that might benefit from this podcast, please pass along a link. I look forward to connecting again in just a few weeks. Until that time, remember to practice self-care and don't forget your health is a priority.