Month: January 2013

Be the change

EdCamp is Coming, EdCamp is Coming!

Pernille Ripp

I have to shout it over the rooftops; EdCamp is coming to Madison, Wisconsin.  And why is this such a big deal?  Because when I attended my first EdCamp it opened up my eyes to what professional development should look like, it made me realize that others listen when we blog, and that there are more people out there like me.

So I jumped at the chance to be part of the planning team for the official #EdCampMadWi happening February 23rd at Sun Prairie High School.  Registration opened 5 days ago and already we are at 50% capacity, so what are you waiting for?  Join me and 250 other passionate educators in a free day of discussion, learning, and some really great food.

And if you want to help sponsor us, please email me!

Register here

Facebook page

What is EdCamp?

An old post that might help you prepare for EdCamp

reflection, students

My Epic Reading Challenge Met With Silence

Pernille Ripp
I thought I had them hooked.  I thought they would be over the moon, buzzing with excitement, having one of those moments that we so often dream about in teaching.  Those moments that will forever remind a student why 5th grade was their absolute favorite year in school, ever.  It wasn’t bad, don’t get me wrong, but maybe not so much as a buzz, rather than a quiet murmur.  A couple of kids smiling, a couple of kids, nodding, not bad, but definitely not as epic as I had envisioned it.

I had just revealed our January book challenge.

A simple premise really; the class would set a goal of how many books we will read in January thus creating a sense of urgency and excitement.  We will have until January 31st to reach it and if we do there would be a huge read-in celebration to toast our achievements with surprise treats and games.  I thought is was a no-lose proposal.  And like I said, they didn’t hate it, but the cheers of excitement I thought would be reverberating through my room with perhaps the addition of a chant of “Reading, reading, reading…” just didn’t happen.

Instead some kids wrote a normal goal; 4 books.  Others stretched themselves with adding picture books; 10 books, while some did not hide their distate for reading; 1 book and even that would probably be a graphic novel.  “You mean you want us to read more Mrs. Ripp?”  I sighed and thought about what to say next.

“It is not just that.  I don’t just want you to read more, I want you to be excited, to share your books and to grab them from each other.  I want you to want to come to school to tell me what you have been reading, tell me what to read next, and to see our goal grow.”  “Oh…”

They get it.  They want to please me.  And some of them are a little bit excited.  Most though, they are still learning the magic of a book and a story that swallows you up.  Some still struggle with what to read next.  Some still struggle with focusing in on a book.  But a couple of them get it, a couple of them ask me what to read next.  A couple of them told me how they had read during snack time, turned off their computer, read to their little brother.  Those kids are with me; the rest?  I am still working on those and that’s ok, I am up for the challenge.

Related articles

reflection

When We Cut Science and Social Studies

Pernille Ripp
Currently my district is proposing a new elementary schedule and while it has some great ideas in it, one things saddens me to no end; social studies and science would only get 30 minutes for one of them every day.  So when I had the chance to tell the school board president how I felt about the proposal, this is what I wrote to her:

The sample schedule being proposed, while its intentions are noble, I believe it is detrimental to our students’ development as knowledgeable global citizens.  As the world around us grows more test obsessed, our students have indeed become just numbers on a data wall.  We no longer discuss their passions, we discuss their deficits and how we will test them some more to bring them up to speed.  Yet the world does not create jobs for people who are only strong in reading and math, or even for students that are very good at taking tests.  It creates lives for people who are curious and knowledgeable in many things, that want to be a part of something larger than themselves. Yes, reading and writing are foundations upon which we rest all of our other curriculum, but science is curiosity and social studies is awareness in its truest sense; knowing ones place and where one fits into the world.  When we diminish our time in these subjects we are taking away the chance for students to discover themselves and their passion. We lose further sight of what school is intended to be; a place to cultivate ones interests, become well-rounded, and for learning to become a passion.  We cannot selectively focus on things that will be tested at the expense of things that will not.  I fear we will lose students interest and dedication if we go along with this schedule.  There will not be much room to explore, discuss, or even question things that fall outside of our scripted math, reading, and writing programs.  School continues then to be a necessary evil that all students must survive.  And that will show up in our tests.

I have done my part, now I can only hope that they listen.