I am packing right now, on my way to the Mt. Lebanon school district in Pennsylvania, where I get to have the immense honor of working with their elementary staff for a whole day. My focus for the day is, of course, all about creating passionate learners – everything I have written about in my book, and I cannot wait to see the thinking, discussion, and ideas that will happen. I always get so inspired working with other teachers as well, what a great way to spend a Monday.
In the spirit of learning from others, I thought it would be great to give away a physical copy of my book Passionate Learners – How to Engage and Empower Your Students. I will even sign the winning copy! All you have to do to enter is leave a comment and tell me why you would like to read the book. (Your email does not need to be included as long as you put it in the comment box). I will pull a winner this Friday night, October 9th and will then send you the book.
So what is my book about? Here is the excerpt from the back.
Would you want to be a student in your own classroom? In Passionate Learners: How to Engage and Empower Your Students, author Pernille Ripp challenges both novice and seasoned teachers to create a positive, interactive learning environment where students drive their own academic achievement. You’ll discover how to make fundamental changes to your classroom so learning becomes an exciting challenge rather than a frustrating ordeal. Based on the author’s personal experience of transforming her approach to teaching, this book outlines how to:
• Build a working relationship with your students based on mutual trust, respect, and appreciation.
• Be attentive to your students’ needs and share ownership of the classroom with them.
• Break out of the vicious cycle of punishment and reward to control student behaviour.
• Use innovative and creative lesson plans to get your students to become more engaged and intellectually-invested learners, while still meeting your state standards.
• Limit homework and abandon traditional grading so that your students can make the most of their learning experiences without unnecessary stress.
And what are people saying about the book?
I hope you love the book!
Pernille Ripp 
I just learned about the Global read aloud and signed up tonight. I am so excited I’ve been trying to find ways to connect to classrooms outside of my four walls and this project is the answer. #passionate
I have become such a fan via your tweets and blogs. Really looking forward to delving into your bigger writing endeavours. As a teacher who encouraged “passion projects” well before they had better terminology for it, I now work as a principal encouraging my larger learning community to do the same. Thank you for your inspiring words – I’m really looking forward to getting a copy sent to my sisters so I can get one onto this side of the border!
I would love a copy of your book, as I, myself, am a passionate learner. I hope to spread my passion to my students each year.
I have been reading your blog for a while now. It helped me get through my first semester as a teacher. It is nice to know that I am not alone in thinking some of the things that I do. I am participating in the national writing project this year and have shared several of your articles with my group. I think your book will be one as well! I would love to have a copy to share with them!
Increasing student engagement is my personal goal this year, and I don’t believe I have ever been as excited about a project as I am with the Global Read Aloud. I’m trying so many new ways of communicating. Thank you! agarcia@sau50.org
I have just joined the Global Read Aloud which I think is an amazing initiative and I would love to hear more of your genius!
I would love to read your book, because I too believe that engaging our students to love to learn is the key to creating life-long learners. I have felt for years that I was standing alone expressing this belief until I started reading you blog!
Having taught for over thirty years, the opportunities suggested in the book are basically energizers for me as I am a life long learner of new strategies.I am dedicated to instilling my students to be the same, life long learners, by modeling a passion for learning new things. I participated in the Global Read Aloud several years ago sharing ‘Charlotte’s Web’ with three classes around the world and look forward to reconnecting again this year. Thanks for facilitating the connections.
As the Library Media Specialist in my district, I would LOVE to read your book! Everything I do each and everyday is centered around creating life-long readers. In order to build this culture, we know we have to first build passionate readers. Thank you for the opportunity to win a signed copy!
I would Love to read your book. I work with at-risk high school students and I try to instill a love of reading.
I am so excited to read your book! You willingness to share what has become GRA is an inspiration for us all. Thank you
I feel like you are speaking directly to me when I read your blog. Your book lists are WONDERFUL; I want all of your recommendations for my classroom library. I am anxiously anticipating reading your book (I’ll will buy it if I don’t win this autographed copy!). I’m sure you have many lessons to teach ME!
I enjoy reading your posts and share your enthusiasm for literacy. I look forward to reading your book.
I enjoy following you on Twitter and what you had to say at ISTE this summer was great! I found the GRA last year towards the end of the school year and couldn’t wait to participate this year. I almost forgot when I was contacted by someone in my Twitter PLN about connecting and having our classes get together online! Thank you for what you do! mrsharmsworth @ gmail.com
I have recently become an instructional coach and would love to share your book with my teachers. It would be especially helpful for those who are teaching with less passion and enthusiasm than they should be.
Congratulations Cindy! The random number generator picked your comment as the winner!
I recently became an instructional coach and would love to share your book with my teachers. It would be especially helpful for those who aren’t as passionate and enthusiastic as they once were.
I love the passion you have for the GRA so I know I will love this book!
I have been feeling overwhelmed by all of the “requirements” of education and would love some ways to freshen up my classroom, and bring passion back to my teaching.
I am a fan of your work. I would live to use your book to support teachers in the struggle to live away from punishment and into a shared responsibility for learning. I would also like to get some of my elementary teachers signed up for the GRA. Thank you for all that you do.
I’m new to my school district and learning an immense amount from students and my professional community! Working in an area of high economic disadvantage, my focus has to be on my students. To have a strong, positive relationship, and to then engage them in best practices of learning. This book would be a resource to support my new role and the needs of my vast learners, who, by the way, are loving Fish in a Tree! Help me to make an impact!
I am a lifelong learner who wants to light a fire in my students. I see that in you, in everything you write and share in blogs, on Twitter, and in GRA. I still believe passionately about books that I can hold in my hand. I like to dogear corners, highlight favourite passages, and bookmark parts to return to later. I know that your book will be inspiring, and I would love to have a physical copy of an inspired, reflective fellow educator. Pick me. 🙂
Oops. Should read: I still believe passionately IN books (not on) that I can hold in my hands.
Standardized testing is a vampire trying to suck the joy out of my Atwell-eque beliefs of learning literacy. Lawmakers in my state perpetuate a zombie like approach to reading and writing. Your book would be another strand of garlic, another wooden stake, if you will, to ward of these soul stealers.
The incredible students I teach deserve a teacher who has been in involved with and using the steps you lay out on your book. I am always looking for fresh ideas for my classroom. Your book looks fantastic! I would be humbled to receive a book from you with your autograph. Thank you!
My goal in my classroom is to foster passion for learning, as I (finally) have my own classroom (instead of working in someone else’s when they are on a leave) I am taking care to find ways to engage my students in learning and to develop a lifelong passion for inquiry. I believe your book would really help me on this journey. And what teacher wouldn’t want an autographed book? #passionforlearning #GRA2015
Pernille, I’d be super happy to win a signed copy of your book because, well, you are pretty awesome and I hope to gain some of the awesome purely by osmosis. In reality, your work is incredibly inspiring and helps me to continually focus on instruction with the lives of the learners in mind rather than standards, scores, or results. The result is the students and how they feel about learning and themselves. The teacher’s role is the largest part of that result. So thank you for the constant push! Although I hope to win, I will still gladly be purchasing if I don’t!
I would love to win a copy of your book! I really want to be an educator who uses innovative and creative lesson plans to get my students to become more engaged and intellectually-invested learners, while still meeting MO state standards. Thanks for the opportunity!
I would love to win a copy of the book because im interested in reading about empowering learners. I think there are a lot of ways I could be better about empowering teachers so they can turn around and empower more students. I think this book would be great firestarter for those conversations and actions!
I would love to read your book simply because being passionate about learning and how to engage students to be passionate about learning is essential today in our world of ever changing technology and demands.
Over the past few years, I have tried to limit the amount of homework that my students do. In addition, I would like to move to standards based learning next year. After reading what your book is about, I feel that it would help me move to the next step of implementation.
“I am only one, But still I am one. I cannot do everything, But still I can do something; And because I cannot do everything I will not refuse to do the something that I can do. ”
— Edward Everett
This is a quote I share with my 5th graders to start the year. I think being compassionate means to allow one to be real and messy and honest without feeling less than themselves. Your book seems like a conduit that!
This summer I dove head first into social media as a teacher PLN. Your blog/tweets have been an inspiration to see teaching differently. Your speech at NerdCampMI about being a reading warrior spoke to me! I am an advocate for the profession and think we need more people taking stands for teachers and students. I would love a copy of this book, not only so I can read it & learn, but so I can share it with colleagues and help build a positive, encouraging, challenging school environment!
I absolutely LOVE and ADMIRE your honesty when it comes to educating students and reflecting on our own learning and teaching methods. It’s 2015 and educators need to feel like what we do matters and that we are not alone in our struggles as education progresses. We also need to realize that Education is about the students and that they deserve to be comfortable, engaged, empowered, and excited about learning in the classroom. We expect students to progress and improve and we need to model by example by continuing to learn about best practices in education so that we progress as educators as well. Being a passionate educator leads to having a classroom filled with passionate learners. That makes going to work a joy for everyone. Thank you Pernille for demonstrating that.
As a new teacher, I’ve been trying to get away from the reward/punishment system, and to create, instead, a classroom of engaged, passionate, caring learners. I would love to read your book.
I DO LOVE YOUR BOOK! I pre-ordered it in August and finally received it earlier this week. It is one of the best books I’ve read about teaching and it has given me new life so thank you! I was struggling to decide what to focus on for my evaluation goal this year and you helped me! I want to provide an environment where my students love learning and love the classroom again. I am so excited to begin making the focus of my teaching about the needs of my learners. I don’t want to be the Sage on the Stage!
I want to GIVE a copy of your book to my principal. I think it would’ve so wonderful for her to read it!!