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A woman with short blonde hair, wearing a purple turtleneck and earrings, smiles at the camera with a blurred background—perfect for an educational podcast cover.

“When you have a joyous classroom, you have a learning classroom.”

Tracey Severns, Ed.D.

Meet our host, Ana Torres.

In each episode, ¼â½ÐÊÓÆµapp Senior Biliteracy and Multilingual Product Specialist Ana Torres gathers teaching tips, lively stories, and hard-won lessons from veteran teachers around the world. Over her 30 years in education, Ana has developed a passion for biliteracy and supporting ¼â½ÐÊÓÆµapp from all walks of life. And on Beyond My Years, she’s excited to connect with legendary educators from all subject areas about their lives in education—and what they wish they’d known as younger teachers.

Meet our host, Ana Torres.
Meet our Classroom Insider, Eric Cross.

Meet our Classroom Insider, Eric Cross.

Eric Cross is a middle school science teacher who hopes to someday be as knowledgeable as the lifelong educator guests on Beyond My Years! In each episode, Eric connects with host Ana Torres to discuss the insights her guests have gleaned from their long and rewarding careers in the classroom. Then, he'll dig into the practical ways he brings their wisdom into his own busy classroom—and how you can, too.

Beyond My Years season 2

Beyond My Years season 2

Beyond My Years returns for an exciting second season, focusing on the most common classroom challenges. Host Ana Torres will connect with numerous educators—from longtime teachers to science of learning researchers—to get you answers in less time than it takes to plan a lesson. Our Classroom Insider, middle school science teacher Eric Cross, offers practical takeaways so you can put what you’ve learned to work as soon as the episode ends. You’ll learn how to find your teaching style, gain understanding on how to help ¼â½ÐÊÓÆµapp develop critical thinking, hear about the most current research on engaging ¼â½ÐÊÓÆµapp, garner tips on serving multilingual learners better, and more!

Host Ana Torres and welcomes former NJDOE Chief Academic Officer Tracey Severns, Ed.D., to discuss not just how to bring more joy to the classroom, but how joy and laughter can draw in even the most vulnerable ¼â½ÐÊÓÆµapp. Tracey outlines the current research on what humor can do in the classroom and shares her own observational research in a case-study school on the power of increasing smiles. She shares tips and tricks for both classroom teachers and administrators for how to encourage a culture of joy. Finally, Ana and Classroom Insider Eric Cross reflect on Tracey’s insights, with Eric sharing his top three takeaways and what specifically he incorporated in his classroom after a trip to Disney.

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Episode 1: The science behind a joyful classroom, starring Tracey Severns, Ed.D.

Ana Torres and Eric Cross give you the first look at Season 2 of Beyond My Years, launching September 17, 2025. This trailer highlights what’s coming this season, including shorter episodes and takeaways from our Classroom Insider. Season 2 focuses on common classroom challenges, looking to the experts and to the research to get you answers. We’ll discuss topics from how to find your teaching style and actually engage ¼â½ÐÊÓÆµapp in math to helping ¼â½ÐÊÓÆµapp develop critical thinking, and more!

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Beyond My Years is back: Season 2 trailer