Author: Pernille Ripp

I am a passionate teacher in Oregon, Wisconsin, USA, who has taught 4th, 5th, and 7th grade. Proud techy geek, and mass consumer of incredible books. Creator of the Global Read Aloud Project, Co-founder of EdCamp MadWI, and believer in all children. I have no awards or accolades except for the lightbulbs that go off in my students’ heads every day. First book “Passionate Learners – Giving Our Classrooms Back to Our Students” can be purchased now. Second book“Empowered Schools, Empowered Students – Creating Connected and Invested Learners” is out now from Corwin Press. Follow me on Twitter @PernilleRipp.

aha moment, Be the change, being a teacher, new year

Purpose and Re-Purpose

December 25, 2015 Pernille Ripp

In all of our clutter and madness. In all of our piles of things. In all of our new toys, books, and unnecessary items, I seem to have found my peace. Mind you, it was not like that this morning when we left the house upside down, Christmas morning and a visit from Santa seems to do that to you. But now, after organizing, sorting, cleaning, and taking the time to appreciate all that we have, I am at peace. I am happy. Because the truth is; we really have so much. And not just in terms of gifts or newness, but in the things that still work. In the furniture we love. In the things that make this house a home.

So while this morning, I thought we needed more furniture, more bins, more things to control all of the new, I now know that it is not new that we need, it is better use of the old. It is the time to see the beauty in what we already have and find better uses for it that suits the family we are now.

And so I look to my classroom as well. How often we are enticed by all of the new and shiny. How often I assume that I need to do even more when my teachings seems off kilter, our metaphorical house a mess? That because the students surely will come back from break dragging their feet a bit, I better ready with all of the glitz. All of the glam. And in that need for reinvention is an assumption, I must throw out my ideas and replace them with something they have never tried before. Because what we are doing must be inherently broken. That what we are doing is beyond salvage simply because the components have been used before.

Today reminded me that this assumption is not true. That rather when something has been done the same way for so long, we tend to lose the purpose of it. That because it is now old, we no longer see its full potential. The wonder of it all that drew us to it in the first place.

So as I think ahead to the new year, as I contemplate ever so slowly of what my students need right now, I think of what I can re-purpose. Of what I can re-use but in a way that will make us love it again. In a way that will make us understand something deeper. Of what I can do to make it feel like a new classroom when they return, and yet also feel like theirs. Because it always has to feel like theirs or my purpose would be lost.

If you are looking for a great book club to join to re-energize you in January, consider the Passionate Learners book club on Facebook. We kick off January 10th.

being a teacher, being me

Someone’s Beginning

December 19, 2015December 19, 2015 Pernille Ripp

You wouldn’t know by looking at me that my body is broken. That for years we tried to have a child, only to fail. That it was not until the doctors intervened that my body finally worked for a little bit, enough to have Theadora. Enough to give us the biggest gift one can get. We thought I was fixed, but I wasn’t. We lost one in between Theadora and the twins; a dream disappeared followed by so many unanswerable questions. For years we hoped, and for every pregnancy I had, sadness, fear, and the unknown seemed to come along.

You wouldn’t know that my youngest daughter, Augustine, really should not be alive. That her conception should not have been possible. That my body did everything it could to get rid of her. That she was born almost 10 weeks early, 2 years ago today. That she was born so fast that the nurse caught her and rushed her away from us. You wouldn’t know that for 6 weeks our breaths were held as she fought to grow in the NICU. That the beeps and the alarms followed us home and I would wake in the middle of the night, wondering if she was breathing. That when we left the NICU with her, she weighed 5 pounds and I thought the doctors had made a mistake; surely something this fragile could not be ok.

But she is. She is strong. She is bright. She is stubborn. She is ok.

When she goes to school, no one will know how fragile her beginning was. When she goes to learn, no one will know that we were told that she may have learning disabilities because my body forced her into this world too early. Nobody will know how many brain scans she had to have to make sure that there had been no damage.

Every child that comes to us has a beginning. A story we do not know. A story that may still shape them to this day. A story that is hidden and yet still plays a part in their life.

Don’t forget the story. You never know how much someone’s beginning plays a part in their now. We do not just teach children for one year, but we teach them for all of their years. Even the years, we did not know them.

Happy birthday, Augustine. May you continue to astonish us with your strength, your spirit. May you continue to be perfectly average, because we never wanted anything more.

If you are looking for a great book club to join to re-energize you in January, consider the Passionate Learners book club on Facebook. We kick off January 10th.

being a teacher

There/Their/They’re – A Small Trick

December 18, 2015December 19, 2015 Pernille Ripp

I have been conferencing one-on-one exclusively with my students for the past 2 weeks and one of the things I come across again and again is their inability to distinguish between there/their/they’re; a problem I know many educators run into. Today, a student and I realized this simple trick, the other students loved it, so I thought I would share it.

If you are looking for a great book club to join to re-energize you in January, consider the Passionate Learners book club on Facebook. We kick off January 10th.

aha moment, being a teacher, being me, Literacy, questions, Reading, student choice

The Questions to Ask When The Kids Aren’t Reading

December 17, 2015December 17, 2017 Pernille Ripp

I met my first book abandoner my very first year of teaching. Yet, he was not your average run of the mill book abandoner. No, he was the “look you straight in the eye and ask you what you are going to do about it” kind of abandoner. So I did what I knew best; forced him to read the book and not allow him to abandon it. And he did what he knew best; fake read for a good amount of time, skimmed a few pages, and failed the book report as well as the presentation. Repeat with every book. I don’t think he ever read anything beside Diary of A Wimpy Kid that year, and that was even under the radar.

Everyone has these types of readers. The ones that abandon because they hate to read. The ones that abandon because they cannot find a great book. The ones that abandon because they get bored. Some years we have a lot, others not so many. So how can we heal break the abandonment cycle? How can we help these kids help themselves? Well, there are a few questions we can ask.

Do they have choice? Because if they don’t, then that is the very first place we start. And not limited choice based on levels or lexiles, but real honest-to-goodness choice where they get to pick their reading materials.

Do they have time? If little time is given to reading then we are expecting them to do something they may not like outside of school. The chances of that happening are pretty slim.

Do they have access? We know that students need great books in their hands. We know students need great libraries, but they also need books in our classrooms. And not old, worn out books, but new, enticing, high-interest books that they can check out easily.

Do they have people? Is it cool to not be a reader in their friend group? Who do they have to talk books to? Do they have reading role models that extend beyond the teacher? Get them connected in a meaningful way with others that read.

Do they have reason to read? And by that, I don’t mean because of a prize or a reward. Do they see any kind of gain from reading? Is anything positive connected to the art of reading? Will it actually make their lives better or is it just one more thing to do?

Do they have different ways to read? Reading is not just done with our eyes but also with our ears, so if a child is constantly abandoning books get them hooked on an incredible audio book. This has changed the reading path of several of my students in a profound way.

Are they hiding their true ability? I have taught several students that could ace their reading assessment, mostly because it had been given to them so many times, and yet had a large gap in their skills. So is their book abandonment masking a larger problem such as not actually understanding what they are reading or not having the stamina to stay with the story?

Are we making them do things that kill their love of reading? When students abandon books a lot, it is a sure sign that we need to reflect on our own practices. And not just skim over that reflection and pretend that everything must be ok. Are reading logs killing their love of reading? Are programs liked Accelerated Reader or LLI? Are we constantly asking them to do things with their reading?

Have we asked them? This is the biggest because too often we try to figure out why a child is abandoning books and we never ask them why. Not beyond the “What didn’t you like about it?” So instead we must give the students a chance to discuss or reflect and really start to study their own habits. What patterns do they see? What types of books might they like to read? What can they do to change their habits? Students need to feel empowered in their self-reflection because otherwise, their pattern won’t change. They also need to set goals and then be able to honestly assess their own progress.

Do they see themselves in the books? Such an important question asked by Dr. Jenn Davis Bowman. Because we need diverse books for all of our kids and if students cannot connect with what we have in our library then they will not read.

If you like what you read here, consider reading my newest book, Passionate Readers – The Art of Reaching and Engaging Every Child, out August 2017. This book focuses on the five keys we can implement into any reading community to strengthen student reading experiences, even within the 45 minute English block. If you are looking for solutions and ideas for how to re-engage all of your students consider reading my very first book Passionate Learners – How to Engage and Empower Your Students. Also, if you are wondering where I will be in the coming year or would like to have me speak, please see this page.

being a teacher, books, Literacy, Reading

The Books I Am Giving As Gifts

December 16, 2015 Pernille Ripp

While I made several book gift lists this year, I thought I would share the books that I am giving personally to my family. the books that took my breath away, the books that I know will make a difference to them and provide them with an incredible reading opportunity.

Laura Amy Schlitz’s The Hired Girl will be handed to the woman who loves historical accounts and likes to learn more about the past.

For the brother-in-law that loves to think deeply about the world, Neal Shusterman’s incredible Challenger Deep will hit all of the right notes. Bonus is that he saw me reading it and asked a lot of questions.

For the mother that taught me to stand up for all that I believe in and not to give up even when the world seems against you, another Neal Shusterman book; Unwind, the incredible first book of his series.

For the brother that loves a great page turner, especially one that involves the covering up of warfare, crazy diseases and just got engaged so a little bit of love is ok, Illuminae was an easy choice.

For the brother who introduced me to the wonders of Neil Gaiman and loves his comic book art as much as I do, Holly Black’s dark and amazing Coldest Girl in Coldtown made all the sense in the world.

For the brother that told me to read Harry Potter when he was only 8, I know get to tell him to read Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo knowing that he will fall into the fantasy world as much as I did. And then he can wait on the sequel along with me).

For the sister-in-law studying human psychology as she prepares to be a hospice nurse, Joelle Charbonneau’s masterful page turner Need was an easy decision.

I could have given All American Boys by Brendan Kiely and Jason Reynolds to every single person on my list but thought I would diversify. Instead my brother’s girlfriend will be the lucky receipient of the must read book of the year.

To my future sister-in-law who has brought nothing but love to our family, I wanted to give her a great book that would leave her guessing until the shocking conclusion. E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars was the perfect fit.

To the brother of my brother-in-law who loves a great mystery and also happens to be British, Jackaby by William Ritter is the perfect choice. This book happens to be great for any Sherlock Holmes or Dr. who fans out there, no matter their age.

To my sister who works as a domestic abuse advocate, the heart-wrenching story of Joseph in Gary D. Schmidt’s Orbiting Jupiter is sure to make her read all night. This is another book I could give to everyone on my list.

To my dad, who is still an old hippie at heart, who lived through the Vietnam Era, Steve Sheinkin’s latest page-turner Most Dangerous is a guaranteed fit.

To my other future sister-in-law whose degree is in social work, who cares so much about others, All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven will probably make her cry but then make her think.

And finally to my step-brother who served 2 tours, who does not mind escaping into a great book as he finishes his nursing degree, the incredible Every Day by David Levithan.

All of these books are books I have loved and I hope my family feels that. I hope they know that selecting just the right book is not a chore, but instead a privilege. Which books will you be giving as gifts?

PS: Here are my lists of books as gifts

Some Picture Books to Give As Gifts

Some Great Middle Grade Books to Give As Gifts

Some Great YA Books to Give As Gifts

If you are looking for a great book club to join to re-energize you in January, consider the Passionate Learners book club on Facebook. We kick off January 10th.

aha moment, Be the change, being a teacher, connect, Student, Student dreams

How Do We Know Who We Don’t Even Know?

December 15, 2015 Pernille Ripp

I think I teach 128 students this year but I haven’t done the math. There is a lot of them. I know all of their names, have since the first week. I know their writing styles, their book preferences, I know who will avoid me and who will seek me out. I teach 128 students but am not connected to 128 students. I have those that I am closer to. That I joke around with, that come to me asking for help, that leave me notes, that I have nicknames for. I have the ones I truly consider my kids, the ones I consider mine.

Call it the curse of teaching a lot of students, but no matter how much you try, not every kid will become connected to you. That is why I am thankful for my incredible team; I know how much they care about the kids we teach, I know they have “their” kids too that they feel close to.

And yet, in all of those connections, we know that there are kids that do not “belong” to anyone. That do not have a special relationship with a teacher. And by now those kids that we haven’t quite built a relationship with are starting to fall through the cracks.

So what do we do? How do we know who we don’t even know? How do we as a team, whether school-wide, grade-level or in some other configuration figure out who those kids are that nobody is seemingly connecting with? Well, there is a simple way to find out, and no, I did not come up with this idea but wanted to pass it on.

Put all of their names on a big piece of paper and hand every teacher a marker. Put a dot next to those kids who you feel you have a closer relationship to. Then stand back and look. Who has no dots? Who has just one? Discuss those kids. Pay special attention, make a list, and the next time you teach them, ask a question not related to school. Not related to the work. Not related to what you share already. Do it the next day, and the next day. Pick a few kids at a time if there are too many. Invest your time, and not in a forced way, but in a human way. don’t force a relationship, but dedicate time to giving one a chance.

As my brilliant colleague, Reidun Bures (follow her at @ReidunLee) pointed out today, “We don’t see our own patterns of who we speak to. We get comfortable and then wonder why some kids don’t respond to us as well.” And she is right; we all try to connect with all of our kids and don’t see the ones we haven’t quite connected with. Not seeking them out becomes a part of our pattern. But it doesn’t have to be that way. All kids should have at least one teacher that has their back, one teacher to fall back on. And the first step is to grab a marker and make a dot. And then do something with the result.

If you are looking for a great book club to join to re-energize you in January, consider the Passionate Learners book club on Facebook. We kick off January 10th.