With Honors

Echoes of the classroom, Voices of the future

With Honors is a podcast about the lessons that stay with us long after the final bell. Hosted by an Honors and AP English teacher, this show features candid conversations with my current and former students, student teachers, and sometimes co-workers about the ideas, stories, and experiences that have shaped our learning. From deep dives into literature and philosophy to reflections on projects, discussions, and moments that mattered, With Honors is a space for revisiting the conversations that define our classroom—and, maybe, our lives. jcrock.substack.com

  1. 12/22/2025

    S2E14: Crockett, Haston, and Maylee Recap Project Hail Mary

    The end of the year is a time for reflection. And this year, the novel Project Hail Mary has been a HUGE feature of our honors classroom. It spawned so many conversations and questions. While some kids were distracted by all the science and experimentation that went into the book (one even criticized that it felt like the science sometimes got in the way of the story), most people couldn’t stop talking about the book. Here for one final conversation are Maylee and my co-teacher Drew, with our final end-of-the-year thoughts about Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary. With Honors is a Free Zone Radio production. You can find this show alongside our other podcast, Second Stage, on major platforms like Spotify: Apple Podcasts YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCweufFHJbylu4tR598SDj5w Also, throw some love at our brotherly podcast with Coach Haston, A Deadman’s Books. He’s on Spotify at Apple Podcasts as well as Haston Curation, on Spotify at This episode also features “Groove Delight” by Musinova and “Last Hero” by Alex Productions, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jcrock.substack.com

    49 min

  2. 12/22/2025

    S2E13: Crockett and Haston for Project Hail Mary

    This fall, Project Hail Mary became more than a class novel. It became the backbone for all our learning, through research projects, class discussions, projects, and novel study. By reading Andy Weir’s story early, students used it to fuel a STEM-centered research project, and then after Thanksgiving they returned to it for deeper, more thoughtful discussion. In this episode, my co-teacher Drew and I model a podcast-style Socratic circle with the class again, using conversation itself as a real-world writing skill, where curiosity, clarity, and collaboration take center stage. With Honors is a Free Zone Radio production. You can find this show alongside our other podcast, Second Stage, on major platforms like Spotify: Apple Podcasts YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCweufFHJbylu4tR598SDj5w Also, throw some love at our brotherly podcast with Coach Haston, A Deadman’s Books. He’s on Spotify at Apple Podcasts as well as Haston Curation, on Spotify at This episode also features “Groove Delight” by Musinova and “Last Hero” by Alex Productions, available here under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jcrock.substack.com

    1h 11m

  3. 12/22/2025

    S2E12: Summer and Trever on Project Hail Mary

    In 2026, Andy Weir’s novel Project Hail Mary is coming to the big screen, but before that, it was our class novel for Fall 2025. I read the book last year and fell in love with Weir’s appreciation for science, his underlying notions that humans will be able to think our way out of any problems (if we really allow ourselves to). It resonated with me like his previous work, The Martian, and movies like Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar or Carl Sagan’s Contact. I knew that I wanted to use it in class this year, but I needed to use it before the movie came out (because so many students will just watch the movie instead of read the book). It was a huge success! Kids immediately started telling me how much they loved the book. In this episode, Summer and Trever spin loose on discussing their first reactions to the novel and our approach in class. With Honors is a Free Zone Radio production. You can find it and our other show Second Stage on platforms like Spotify: Apple Podcasts on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCweufFHJbylu4tR598SDj5w Also, throw some love at our brotherly podcast with Coach Haston, A Deadman’s Books. He’s on Spotify at Apple Podcasts as well as Haston Curation, on Spotify at This episode’s music features Epic Inspirational music by BloDeasons, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jcrock.substack.com

    1h 12m

  4. 12/22/2025

    S2E11: Saydee and Kate Drafting Drafting Christmas

    As we approach the end of the year, we come in with a sackful of episodes. This week, Saydee and Kate end the year by drafting their favorite Christmas movies. While Kate may be shy to warm up to the pod mics, she and Saydee get energized when they think back on what these Christmas movies really mean for us: nostalgia, warmth, family. With Honors is a Free Zone Radio production. You can find With Honors and our new show, Second Stage, on platforms like Spotify: as well as Apple Podcasts and on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCweufFHJbylu4tR598SDj5w Also, throw some love at our brother podcast with Coach Haston, A Deadman’s Books. He’s on Apple Podcasts and Spotify at This episode features “Groove Delight” by Musinova and “Christmas” by Denys Kyschuk, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jcrock.substack.com

    25 min

  5. 11/21/2025

    S2E10: Sarah Kate and Crockett Revisit Steel Magnolias

    I was born in Tennessee, but when my parents split I moved to Ohio. Forever after, I’ve found myself chasing that need to come back home. To belong to this land and to fit in with these people, my one true original community. And I’ve been blessed to be raised by so many wonderful women along the way: my mom, her sisters, my dad’s sisters and in-laws, grandmas, cousins. But there’s one iconic Tennessee woman whose voice will always sound like home: Dolly Parton. As a kid in the 80s, I watched the movie adaptation of Robert Harlan’s play, Steel Magnolias. It was a movie filled with people I knew, voices I craved, and a Southern community I missed so much it hurt. And even though I wasn’t a woman, I grew up among these women. I gained an ear for their joys, their sorrows, their gossip, their wisdom, for their delicacy and their grit. I’m surrounded by them still: in the jobs I’ve worked, in the classes I teach, in my friend groups, in my church. But America now is not the America I knew growing up. Steel Magnolias matters in an America that has grown to reject women. We vote them down not because of policies but because “her laugh is silly” or “she’s a liar, lock her up.” We watch a man who famously exploited women get elected to high office, who publicly shouts at a woman reporter, “Quiet! Piggy!” We demonize the word “feminism.” While America seems quicker than ever to belittle, silence, or distrust the very women who build our families and communities, Steel Magnolias stands like a nostalgic 1980s look back at an easier time. It reminds us how much we owe to the women who lift us, who mother us, who teach us, who keep us together. With Honors is a Free Zone Radio production. You can find With Honors and our new show, Second Stage, on platforms like Spotify: on Apple Podcasts and on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCweufFHJbylu4tR598SDj5w Also, throw some love at our brotherly podcast with Coach Haston, A Deadman’s Books. He’s on Spotify at and Apple Podcasts as well as Haston Curation, on Spotify at This episode features “Groove Delight” by Musinova and “Sipping on Jazz” by BlackTrendMusic, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jcrock.substack.com

    45 min

  6. 11/20/2025

    S2E9: Jackson and Crockett Haunted by Song Lyrics

    In this special (and belated!) Halloween installment, I get to sit with one of my brand-new, sharp-witted sophs in a deep-dive through the haunted heart of 1980s song lyrics. With the classroom bathed in eerie orange lights and spectral figures of legendary singers drifting behind us, Jackson leads me through his TPCASTT analysis of the lyrics to uncover how these singers reveal what haunts them: fear, longing, and obsession. Jackson’s lively banter, sharp insights, glowing enthusiasm, and sudden bursts of singing turn this spooky literary analysis into a thrilling ride through nostalgia, music, and meaning. It was perfect for Halloween and lovers of close reading alike. With Honors is a Free Zone Radio production. You can find this show alongside our other podcast, Second Stage, on major platforms like Spotify: Apple Podcasts: YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCweufFHJbylu4tR598SDj5w Also, throw some love at our brotherly podcast with Coach Haston, A Deadman’s Books. He’s on Spotify at and Apple Podcasts: as well as Haston Curation, on Spotify at This episode also features scary horror creepy music by HitsLab, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jcrock.substack.com

    1h 11m

  7. 10/31/2025

    S2E8: Madi and Addy with a Halloween Top 10

    Halloween is finally here! My favorite holiday of the season. The pinnacle of my time of year. I wait eleven long months to finally embrace October. It’s the month my wife and I got married, the month our first son was born, the month for leaves changing and cooler temps bringing a relief from oppressive summer, the month for foggy mists and woodsmoke hanging above the eaves. There is no scent quite as wonderful as the loam of leaves, or the pungent tingle of trick-or-treat candy inside a plastic jack-o-lantern, or the carved shell of a healthy pumpkin. Today, I’m sitting with two of my AP students to reflect on what high school seniors love about this time of year, too. If you could only have a Top 10, what would you include? With Honors is a Free Zone Radio production. You can find this show alongside our other podcast, Second Stage, on major platforms like Spotify: Apple Podcasts: YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCweufFHJbylu4tR598SDj5w Also, throw some love at our brotherly podcast with Coach Haston, A Deadman’s Books. He’s on Spotify at and Apple Podcasts: as well as Haston Curation, on Spotify at This episode also features scary horror creepy music by HitsLab, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jcrock.substack.com

    44 min

  8. 10/30/2025

    S2E7: Summer and Ainslee Review Pride and Prejudice

    This week, two of my favorite students sat down to dish about their favorite book: Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. (Barf.) I mean, not “barf.” I just never wanted to read the book. I know, I know, I’m being a stereotype right now probably, but it was never my scene to read Jane Austen. I’ve tried her work before, and I just didn’t like it. But I really like Summer and Ainslee’s work, their good hearts, and their dedication, so maybe I can give it a whirl. Even an irritable 40-something man might find a little Pride and Prejudice waiting. With Honors is a Free Zone Radio production. You can find this show alongside our other podcast, Second Stage, on major platforms like Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0881bUWWdgkBdGzHlPNToi?si=b510a0cd363a4320 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/with-honors/id1797115480 YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCweufFHJbylu4tR598SDj5w Also, throw some love at our brotherly podcast with Coach Haston, A Deadman’s Books. He’s on Spotify at https://open.spotify.com/show/4HtulwbO10pOjV5hbdWOty?si=a23d92c90128476e and Apple Podcasts at https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-deadmans-books/id1795582942 as well as Haston Curation, on Spotify at https://open.spotify.com/show/3O8GDUtqshbxFF7gU2FMwM?si=d15c2539fadd40fc This episode features an excerpt of "Dawn" from the Pride and Prejudice soundtrack, as well as “Groove Delight” by Musinova and inspiring piano music by BlackTrendMusic, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jcrock.substack.com

    46 min
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Ratings & Reviews

4.6
out of 5
9 Ratings

About

With Honors is a podcast about the lessons that stay with us long after the final bell. Hosted by an Honors and AP English teacher, this show features candid conversations with my current and former students, student teachers, and sometimes co-workers about the ideas, stories, and experiences that have shaped our learning. From deep dives into literature and philosophy to reflections on projects, discussions, and moments that mattered, With Honors is a space for revisiting the conversations that define our classroom—and, maybe, our lives. jcrock.substack.com

Information

  • Creator
    Echoes of the classroom, Voices of the future
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    37
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Jason Crockett
  • Show Website
    With Honors