Pedagogy Guru

I still remember a young man in my 10th-grade ELA class who refused to read during our daily ten minutes of free reading. Every day, he’d sit there doing nothing while his classmates opened their books. I didn’t push. I’d quietly place a book on his desk every so often—ones his friends were reading, ones that might speak to him—and then walk away.

Weeks passed before he finally picked one up. Then one day, he came into class in a panic because he’d lost the book—and, in a burst of teenage logic, accused me of losing it for him. Underneath the frustration was something new: he cared. The story mattered to him.

That moment changed how I thought about teaching. Up until then, I’d been focused on strategies and standards, on finding the “right” ways to motivate reluctant readers. But what that student really needed wasn’t a new technique—it was space. Space to feel safe, to feel curious, to choose for himself. The turning point came not from what I taught him, but from what I let go of: control.

It was a reminder that growth can’t be forced. Whether we’re talking about students or teachers, learning begins with belonging—with the sense that your interests, your questions, and your voice actually matter. When students feel seen and trusted, they start to take ownership of their learning in ways we can’t script or grade.

That insight stayed with me as I moved from the classroom into teacher development. Over the years, I’ve worked with hundreds of educators who are deeply committed to their students, yet often overwhelmed by advice that feels disconnected from real classrooms. I founded Pedagogy Guru to offer something different: professional learning that starts where teachers are, honors their experience, and helps them see their practice with fresh eyes.

As Pedagogy Guru grows, I want it to be more than just my voice. The most powerful professional learning happens when teachers share what’s working in their own classrooms—their insights, experiments, and reflections. My hope is that this becomes a platform for teacher-created courses, where educators learn from one another and build a shared library of practical, reflective tools. In the same way our students learn best from authentic voices, so do we.

Every course we create is designed to spark reflection, not just deliver content. Because when we pause to look closely at our teaching—the choices we make, the relationships we build—we open the same space for growth that we want for our students.

Every great classroom starts with curiosity—ours as much as our students’.

With kindness,

Tim Fredrick

Founder, Pedagogy Guru