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.
Reading

Reading Book Clubs – A What To Do and What Not To Do

Pernille Ripp
image from here

 

I have had the privilege of being a student at Teachers College this week and thus now have a brain bursting with ideas of what to do in reading this year to continue to grow our passion for reading.  One of the ideas I cannot wait to implement is book clubs, something I have implemented with limited success in previous years, mostly because I was going about it in a wrong manner.  While I wish these were my ideas, they are not, they are the ideas of many of the fabulous instructors at Teachers College so please check their stuff out for even more great ideas.  And as always, make it your own!

What I was doing wrong:

  •  Thinking it was all about me.  I used to run book clubs like a guided reading group.  I facilitated all conversation, I decided the rules, I decided what to do.
  • Have large clubs.  I thought it would be easiest if I grouped many kids together because then I would have to read and keep track of fewer books.
  • Have them meet on different days.  Again, since every club had to meet with me I had to do it on different days meaning I didn’t have much time to pull other small groups.
  • Deciding the book.  I thought I should determine the exact book because I knew best.
  • I set the goals.  And they were not really individual goals, they were for the group not for the kid.
  • I thought it was about the reading and their opinions, not their thoughts.  So kids just needed to speak about something, not actually engage in a discussion.

What I will do now:

  • Groups will be small.  4 kids at the most and they will get to write a list of 12-15 kids they would like to be in a group with.
  • Groups will meet at the same time.  The noise level will work for everyone because everyone will be engaged in their own discussion.
  • Book choices will be determined by the kids.  There will be many choices for them of which book to read together.
  • The kids set the rules.  They determine how they want their book club to function, what the consequences should be for kids that don’t do their part, and how they will share.
  • The kids set their group goals.  The kids will be setting their own goals for their reading, including how much to read and what direction they want the conversation to go in.
  • The kids set their individual goals.  Whether with me through a conference or by themselves depending on their ability, they will also make these public to the group so that they can support each other and hold each other accountable.
  • I will coach in.  I will not be in the middle but rather in the circle with the kids, helping if I need to, fishbowling for the class when needed, scaffolding if needed, and whispering in kids’ ears to get them to engage in the conversation.
  • Kids will problem-solve their club when needed.  They need to fix their clubs to create their learning community and that comes through working through problems, trusting each other, and growing together.
  • Give kids the tools they need to push their discussion further: help in the beginning, prompts for later, chart paper, post-its – whatever they need.
  • Confer often.  Pop in and out when needed and trust the kids.  This is about digging deeper into the text not just sharing ideas or opinions.
  • Support the kids to think deeper and discuss deeper.  Remind them that they should build off each other’s ideas and not just share their thought.
  • Book club meetings will be short.  These will be 5 or 10 minutes at the most so that students can have high quality , intense discussions, not drawn out conversations where they are not sure what they should discuss next.  This will also help create a sense of urgency and excitement.
  • Students will sit together in their clubs even when it is not a book club day.  That way they can still rely on each other for help as they read their book, even if they are not officially meeting.
  • You can put kids in book clubs without an actual book.  Early in the year you can group kids so that they start developing the trust and also develop their discussion habits.  I love this idea of a mini group that they know is theirs to use throughout the year, even if they are not actually reading the same book.

In the end, my biggest take away was that these book clubs are about the students developing deeper thoughts about their books through engaged discussion.  As Kathleen Tolan said, “We are not teaching kids to get them ready for the next grade, we are teaching them to get them ready for life.”  Book clubs are meant to be passionate discussions about great books that make us think.  I cannot wait to give this experience to my students.

 

I am a passionate 5th grade teacher in Middleton, Wisconsin, USA, proud techy geek, 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 “The Passionate Learner – Giving Our Classroom Back to Our Students Starting Today” will be released this fall from PLPress but until then I muse on education on my blog “Blogging Through the Fourth Dimension.”   Follow me on Twitter @PernilleRipp.

 

 

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Reading

To Have a Reading Classroom You Must Be A Reader Yourself

Pernille Ripp

image from icanread

 

It’s summer and all Thea wants to do is play in the pool or read books.  As a person who loves to play in the pool and read books, I happily oblige thus we read and read and read.  And then she saves special books for her daddy to read when he gets home.  She has a pile of books every night that she “reads” (she is not at the stage of reading the words yet) every night before bedtime   She asks me what a page says so she can retell the story to Ida and Oskar.  She met her first author yesterday and couldn’t be happier.  I cannot help but love that she loves books as much as I do.

 

In my classroom this was the year of the books.  I finally infused my classroom with my passion for reading and lo and behold; my students did the same.  I don’t know why I had never done that before.  So we became a reading classroom; a room that discussed books whenever we had a chance, a room that rushed book recommendations to each other, a room where boys shared what they were reading as much as the girls.  We invited in authors, poets, and other readers.  We wrote our own books and performed them for our 1st grade buddies.  We skyped about books, we debated whether the first book or the second book was best, and we watched our books being shipped to us hoping that the tracking email was incorrect and that they would get here sooner.  We tweeted about books, we breathed books.  Books were just as important as math facts and for those who know me, that means a lot.

 And it hasn’t ended; one student texts me about the books he is currently reading and continues to offer me recommendations.  Another sends me emails and has even started a reading blog of his own.  Some use KidBlog and others are ready to tell me what they are reading when I see them out and about.  They are still readers and we are still a reading class even if the walls have disappeared.

As I read a book a day this summer and my pile grows rather than shrinks, I am eager to start with my new incredible group of students.  I have spotted them reading in the hallways.  I have asked them what they have been reading.  I have even given a few book recommendations already.  I will create a book display of what I read over the summer so that my passion is visible that very first day.  I hope to get what I am this year as well.   I hope they love books as fiercely as I do.  I hope they are willing to share that love with me and the world.  I hope they are readers.

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Uncategorized

The Danger of the “Just Right” Books and Other Helpful Reading Interventions

Pernille Ripp

My mother never told me what to read.  Neither did my teachers.  Sure, I was an insatiable reader, a child that loved riding her bike to the public library only to return with the biggest bag of books my handlebars could handle.  Sure, I would sometimes stay up past midnight just to see what would happen next.  Sure, I used to be able to read in the car without getting carsick.  And yet, it wasn’t because I read just right books. It wasn’t because I logged how many minutes I read at home and at school so that I could see the pattern.  It wasn’t even because my teacher told me I would love this book and I had to read it next.  It was simply because I loved the freedom of reading.

 The freedom of reading….

How often do we discuss that in our classrooms?  How often do we just let our students read whatever they choose and then let them discuss however they want why they just loved reading whatever they chose?  How often do we let them sing the praises of a certain book even if it is not just right for a majority of the class?  How often do we let them try that book even if we think it may just be a tad too hard, too long, or too boring?

The freedom to read….

We seem obsessed with the particularity of reading.  Of breaking it down into nothing but strategies so that students understand what great readers do.  Of logging every minute and every page.  Of finding “just right” books through levels and forcing them upon children because we know best.  Yet the problem with breaking something down is after a while all of those pieces become just that; pieces, and we lose sight of why we did it at all.  When reading becomes a strategy to master, we forget about the love that should be a part of it as well.  When we take away students freedom to read, we take away a part of their passion, a step of the path to becoming kids who just love to read.  And when we continue to tell them what to read, we take away part of what it means to become a great reader: knowing thyself.

So when we discuss “Just right” books don’t forget that that may just mean just right for that kid.  Just right for their interest.  Just right for their passion.  Just right for their curiosity.  Just right for their need.  And that may have nothing to do with their reading level.  When we discuss strategies don’t forget the big picture and what the goal is.  When we discuss logs and minutes and genres, well, just don’t discuss reading logs, please.  In fact, do your students a favor and get rid of them.   If you want to see why, read this post by Kathleen Sokolowski titld “How Do You Know They Are Reading?” and then think about it.

 

Give students the freedom to read so that they may want to read.  How powerfully simple is that.

classroom setup, new teacher, new year, student voice

My Student Questionnaire for Beginning of Year

Pernille Ripp
My old student questionnaire

Since I will be traveling quite a bit in August, I am getting my papers in order for the beginning of the year and stumbled upon my standard student questionnaire in a folder.  Once I glanced at it I realized how it was in need of a serious revamping and thus asked my PLN for must ask questions for this document.  Thank you so much to everyone who inspired me!

Here is a link to the Google Doc – feel free to make a copy and make it your own.

Here are just the questions (for the actual survey go to the link) that I will be using that first week of school to get to know the kids better.


  1. What are the three most important things I should know about you?
  1. What are things you are really good at?
  1. What are you most proud of?
  1. What is the favorite thing you did this summer?
  1. What have you most loved learning (even if not in school)?  Why?
  1. What’s your favorite thing to do when you’re not in school?
  1. What is the best book or books you have ever read?
  1. What do you want to learn HOW to do?
  1. I think 5th grade will be….
  1. What do you love about school?
  1. What do you not like about school?
  1. I work best in a classroom that is….
  1. Some things I really want to to work on this year in 5th grade are….
  1. What are things you cannot wait to do this year?
  1. I learn best when the teacher is….
  1. What do you know about Mrs. Ripp?

classroom setup, new teacher, new year, Student-centered

Some Questions to Ask Yourself As You Set Up Your Classroom

Pernille Ripp

Those bare walls beckon, calling out to us to fill them with motivational posters, rules, and most definitely lots and lots of colorful charts.  Our counters are perfect for boxes of tools that may be useful: staplers, extra books, and perhaps even a cute pencil cup for all of those lost pencils.  Every nook and cranny serves a purpose, every nook and cranny should be used.  Behold; our brand new classroom awaits, and boy, does it have personality!  Yours that is, and not so much that of your students.  My first classroom I had panic attacks over the bareness of it all.  I didn’t have enough stuff to make it look welcoming, to make it look useful, to just make it look great.  So I created laminated rule posters, what if… posters, and even threw up a couple with frogs telling us to “Hang on” or “Work hard!”  My desk was covered in Danish proverbs that I knew my kids would be inspired by and above my door hung a rather obscure quote from Shakespeare telling my students to persevere in failure.  I loved that quote and spent hours getting it just so with my paper and my laminator.  I hung it proudly thinking that it made my room look like a place for learning and that it was sure to inspire my kids every day.  One day, my principal walked in and said the quote to a couple of my students, who instead of breaking out into knowing grins, stared at him blankly.  They had no idea what he was referring to or even what it meant.  After all, these 4th graders had not yet heard of that Shakespeare guy.  I was mortified, and just a little surprised; what else did they not notice in my meticulously set up classroom?


I share that story so that new teachers can laugh at my mistakes and hopefully use it as a way to guide themselves in their classroom setup and organization.  I made the mistake that many teachers make; I filled my room so that it looked cute.  I filled it so that it looked used.  I didn’t want to come off as the newbie in town that had nothing.  Except, that is who I was and I should have embraced it, let my room develop over the years, and always edit everything, but I didn’t.  Instead, I was afraid of looking new.  So to steer you away from my mistakes, I offer some questions as you contemplate the organization of your own room.

  • Do you really need that paper copy?  I hoard paper, most teachers do, yet I never use my paper files much.  Whatever I need I find in my computer files or I google it if I can’t find it.  So ask yourself whether you really need to make that many copies of that sheet of paper, or whether one is sufficient, or perhaps even just a bookmark on your computer to find it again will do.
  • Where does your stuff want to go?  I always tell teachers to ask themselves this because often we subconsciously set things where we feel they belong.  So if you are constantly setting down your books in a certain place, make that place their home.  Make it purposeful rather than accidental.  I started doing this several years ago and my intuition now rules where stuff goes and it means less time spent searching for things that I tried to corral somewhere else.
  • To desk or not to desk?  Several years ago I gave up my desk because of what it did; it created a barrier between me and the students and I was constantly drawn behind it, even though I shouldn’t have been.  So I got rid of, now I have a table for my computer and planner, it faces the wall in the corner and I can’t sit there without turning my back to the students.  It forces me to stay present and not get pulled away from them.  Perhaps that will work for you as well or perhaps you love your desk and that is okay as well.
  • Are you in the room?  Is there anything personal of you in the room or will the room not give of a hint of your personality.  Are there pictures or something that shows the kids just a little of what you are about.  Be aware though, don’t have too much, which leads me to the next question…
  • Is there room for the kids?  I don’t just mean spacewise, although the flow of your room is incredibly important, but did you leave things blank enough for the kids to take over the space and put their mark on it?  Is there room to show their work or whatever tool you need at the moment?  Are there places for them to work besides their tables?  Can they spread out, can they meet at other tables, can they lie on the floor?  Can they make the room their own, a safe place for exploration, or is it just your room and your rules?
  • How many unwritten rules do you have?  Are you strict about where the supplies go or whether kids have access to them?  Do they have to sign out to leave for the bathroom or can they just put a pass on their desk?  Are there other places for them to work or is their desk their only option?  Can they get a corner for themselves if they need it or will the rest of the class always be watching?  Are there things labeled your things and some labeled their things?  All of these ways to organize inadvertently create more rules for the students that may leave them feeling less welcome.  Find the balance between your need for control and their need to take ownership of their learning space.

While many lists abound of great organizational tips, I find that sometimes they don’t speak to the deeper meaning of how we organize our classroom.  The truth is that how you organize your classroom says so much about you and your teaching style.  I hope you take the time it deserves to get it just right, and then take an outsiders perspective to to see what it signals about you and your teaching.  We may think that our classroom is only the place we teach in, but often it is also the place that shows how we teach.  So make it meaningful, much like you teaching probably will be.

A snapshot from my classroom on a regular day


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Be the change, reflection

The Things I Will Never Have to Tell My Son

Pernille Ripp
I didn’t think I would ever write this post, simply because I never thought there were things I wouldn’t have to say to my son simply because he is white.  Yet in the aftermath of the Trayvon Martin case and verdict, I now stare full face at the white privilege I have always known was present in this country, yet never fully understood.  As I read articles with African American parents sharing the conversations they have had with their sons since the verdict, I understand better what it means to be a white parent, at least here in Wisconsin, and the things that I will never have to say.

I will never have to tell my son that he shouldn’t wear a hoodie in case someone thinks it makes him look suspicious.

I will never have to tell my son that he should always keep his hands in view at all times so that people can see his intentions loud and clear.

I will never have to tell him to pull up his pants if he wants a chance at a job.

I will never have to tell him to not go through unknown neighborhoods because people will assume he doesn’t belong there.

I will never have to tell my son to not confront someone if they are following him.

I will never have to tell my son to not try to act tough as he walks around in case someone thinks he is trying to provoke a fight.

I will never have to tell my son to be humble and respectful even if someone is threatening him.

I will never have to tell my son that simply his presence can be viewed as a threat to those around him, particularly if he looks anything like his dad.

My son will be assumed to belong most places he goes.  My son will be assumed to have an education, to be intelligent, to be articulate simply because of his skin color.

Most people will assume he is a kind, caring child before they see his actions simply because of his skin color.

Most people will give him a chance, assume he is just another kid, assume he is up to good things and not something bad.

All because of his skin color.