E204: Is It Important to Raise Kids Around Family? Pros, Cons, and Adjustments
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
Release Date: 09/16/2025
E205: The Most and Least Important School Subjects: Our Bold Rankings
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
On Teaching Keating, Molly and Weston tackle a controversial topic by ranking the most and least important school subjects, debating priorities for functional adulthood amid potential backlash. They reveal top picks like ELA for communication, social studies for civic discourse, and math/personal finance for economic literacy, while critiquing lesser focuses like foreign languages or advanced sciences. Weston argues for reclaiming social studies testing to fix political dysfunction, as Molly champions science for natural world understanding and MAP (music, arts, PE) for creativity and health....
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E204: Is It Important to Raise Kids Around Family? Pros, Cons, and Adjustments
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
On Teaching Keating, Molly and Weston explore the value of raising children near extended family, reflecting on their own transitions from isolated upbringings to Colorado's close-knit dynamics. They weigh pros like community support, grandparent help, and cousin bonds against cons such as constant pop-ins and balancing multiple families. Weston recounts culture shock from family fridge raids and open-concept home debates, while Molly highlights holiday gatherings and in-law navigation. Covering emotional adjustments, space needs, and generational baggage, they affirm family's role in...
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E203: How to Talk to Teachers: A Guide for Parents, Students, and Strangers
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
On Teaching Keating, Molly and Weston offer practical advice on communicating with educators, drawing from their experiences as teachers and parents amid back-to-school chaos. They break down boundaries for parents—like weekend email limits and 24-hour response windows—while addressing student interactions and stranger small talk on planes. Weston shares airplane peacock questions and celebrity encounters, as Molly emphasizes clear school guidelines to avoid confusion. Covering email etiquette, weekend no-gos, and aligning teacher expectations, they stress respect for educators' personal...
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E202: Rediscovering Social Etiquette: What's Lost and What We Want Back
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
On Teaching Keating, Molly and Weston dive into the evolution of social etiquette, sharing hilarious personal anecdotes on bodily functions, burping, and family dynamics as they celebrate Molly's birthday month. They explore norms lost to casual society—like airplane attire, gym awareness, and yoga mat boundaries—and debate reclaiming formalities for better public interactions. Weston reflects on sweaty hugs and allergy mishaps, while Molly pushes for reclaiming politeness in shared spaces. Covering generational shifts, ignorance vs. intentional rudeness, and the pendulum swing toward...
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E201: Back-to-School Survival Guide
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
Molly and Weston prep for the school year on Teaching Keating, offering educator shortcuts to smooth starts and cut tension. Weston outlines ideas like emergency-plan bins, review slots, and student-soundtracked transitions, as Molly recalls streamlined designs and kid-picked tunes. They capture the buzz of fresh groups, home no-work areas, and grading restraint for progress. Via tricks such as backup attire and optimal-hour pinpointing, they spotlight wellness and ops. Audiences are prompted to set limits, opt for simplicity, and pick aids that boost education minus overload. In this episode:...
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E200: Parenting Plot Twists
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
On Teaching Keating, Molly and Weston spill hidden shifts parenthood brings to relationships, prompted by a fan query on pre-kid surprises. They reveal how kids transform couples into collaborators—or rivals—sparring over trivia like rest routines in exhaustion. Weston opens on intimacy's lost impulsiveness, as Molly stresses safeguarding the partnership. Covering duo-to-family evolution, pre-parent liberty mourning, and duty swaps, they stress syncing and adaptability. Viewers are inspired to see shifts as neutral and foster dialogue to curb bitterness. In this episode: - Molly and Weston...
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E199: The Art of Awkward
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
Molly and Weston bring humor to awkward encounters on Teaching Keating, reflecting on stories to explain why some stall while others forge ahead. Weston admits pitfalls like name mix-ups and avoidance, as Molly recounts a tense concert reunion and her disarming tactics. They break down awkwardness as mismatched intentions to embarrassment, with emotional insights. With tales like Weston's cashier faux pas and Molly's meetup, they offer coping ways like space-shifting or error-owning. The duo motivates viewing awkwardness as laughs and evolution, not escape. In this episode: - Weston and Molly...
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E198: Why You Mad, Bro?
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
Join Molly and Weston on Teaching Keating as they explore anger's role in marriage and family, fresh from their summer squabbles amid birthdays, kid transitions, and stressors. Weston discusses midlife reflections at 44 and kids' changes, while Molly examines post-COVID surges and why feelings aren't sins but actions matter. Drawing from Gallup data on anger linked to finances, media, and tech, they share strategies like environmental shifts, walks, and texting during disagreements. Listeners are urged to embrace vulnerabilities, nurture connections, and see anger as masking deeper issues like...
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E197: Pinterest Pitfalls: Molly and Weston on Annoying Parents and Teachers
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
In this lively episode of Teaching Keating, Molly and Weston tackle the world of Pinterest-perfect parents and teachers, diving into the pressures of social media-driven perfectionism. Molly shares her love for Pinterest as a practical tool for recipes and gardening tips, while confessing her struggles with crafts like Valentine's Day boxes. Weston, a self-proclaimed Pinterest skeptic, reveals his secret use of it for gift ideas, like a purse for Molly. Through a fun "he said, she said" segment, they explore their reactions to Pinterest-inspired ideas and the competitive "look at me" culture...
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E196: Molly and Weston's Guide to Professional Development Pitfalls
Teaching Keating with Weston and Molly Kieschnick
In this insightful episode of Teaching Keating, Molly and Weston share their seasoned perspectives on identifying ineffective professional development (PD) sessions, drawing from their extensive experience as educators and PD participants. They humorously outline three telltale signs of a "garbage PD," from awkward icebreakers and dismissive "parking lot" question tactics to overly simplistic buzzwords like "engagement" and "innovation." Through a lively "he said, she said" segment, they reveal their personal pet peeves, like Weston's disdain for slide readers and Molly's love for...
info_outlineOn Teaching Keating, Molly and Weston explore the value of raising children near extended family, reflecting on their own transitions from isolated upbringings to Colorado's close-knit dynamics. They weigh pros like community support, grandparent help, and cousin bonds against cons such as constant pop-ins and balancing multiple families. Weston recounts culture shock from family fridge raids and open-concept home debates, while Molly highlights holiday gatherings and in-law navigation. Covering emotional adjustments, space needs, and generational baggage, they affirm family's role in community-building while acknowledging not everyone has the option. Listeners are inspired to embrace proximity's benefits, set boundaries, and adapt to evolving family roles.
In this episode:
- Molly and Weston debate family proximity myths, from Weston's "unemployed" label to managing 35-person Thanksgivings.
- Insights on pros like date-night help and closet fixes, plus cons like constant presence and open-concept overwhelm.
- Personal stories of transitions, from small-house pop-ins to fearing overload when parents move nearby.
- Discussions on community raising, imperfect families, and inviting everyone to everything for balanced dynamics.
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Learn more at: westonkieschnick.com
About Weston and Molly:
Weston is a former high school teacher and administrator who now works as a Senior Fellow with the International Center for Leadership in Education. His work as a keynote speaker and instructional coach has allowed him to learn alongside teachers and administrators from all 50 states and more than 30 countries around the world.
Molly is a former elementary and middle school teacher who now works with teens and young adults in parochial education programs around Colorado. She and Weston are the parents of children who provide additional fodder for Teaching Keating.