Rick jumps right in to right what once went wrong. After taking Nick’s advice and listening to Van Halen’s album “5150”, he officially rescinds his “thorn” from the last episode. Nick shares an unfortunate incident with his debit card, which has led him to further embrace the advantages of advanced technology.

Dr. Nick takes over the blog this week, reading and leading a discussion of “Dark Balances the Light: The Ballad of Cheetos Popcorn.” Rick and Nick discuss delicious and magic combinations, even metaphorically considering the possible benefits of outside the box thinking, co-teaching, and/or other combinations that are more than the sum of their parts.

In the “Building the Brochure” segment, Dr. Nick and Dr. Rick continue their investigation of Edutopia’s 10 most significant studies in the field of education from 2022. The article under consideration this week considers the benefits and detriments of classroom decorations. Rick talks at length about considerations relevant to school counseling offices, providing tips that counselors and therapists might want to consider regarding lighting, colors, smells, and the use of fidgets. Nick shares his experiences as a teacher and administrator supporting and encouraging his teachers to be intentional and subtle with their decorating efforts. Both guys discuss the powerful modeling that can occur when teachers include visuals of their degrees and alma maters around their classrooms and/or on bulletin boards.

The Every Rose has Its Thorn segment focuses on “going to the movies” this week. Rick talks about his recent visit to watch the new Avatar movie, but seems to have appreciated control of the popcorn butter pump more than the movie itself. Nick loves the oversized snacks, the buttery popcorn, and discount theaters. The guys agree that the “thorny” cost of movies means that they are selective with which movies they see in the theaters and which they choose to wait to stream at home.

The last segment finds the guys digging back into the mailbag to respond to more fan questions. Rick responds to parents who are considering having their son see a counselor. Nick has some great additional thoughts that any parent will want to consider who finds themselves in a similar situation. The segment ends with the guys discussing a question from Chris in Pennsylvania who asks them about their favorite discontinued candy.

Enjoy Episode 15 of Nick & Rick’s Excellent EdVenture!