Category: being a teacher

alfie kohn, being a teacher, punishment, rewards

After Publishing my Discipline Management System

Pernille Ripp
About 3 weeks ago, I chronicled how I had gone from a checks, sticks, and names discipline system to one based in logic, respect, and communication instead.  Little did I know that it would hit such a nerve with so many people.  So now with 33 comments,  81 re-tweets (even one by the very smart Alfie Kohn!), and more than 10,000 views, I think it is time to answer some of the questions that were posed.

  • Don’t you think it is just because of your great group of students that this works?  This has been a popular one, especially as I discuss it with colleagues who happen to know firsthand what an amazing group of 4th graders we do have.  My answer, well maybe, and yet, I do know that there are students in my room that would not have flourished as much if they had been subjected to last year’s rules. These would have been my frequent fliers, often spending recess with me or the principal.  Through communication, I have only had to keep a couple of students in on two occasions as we discussed behavior expectations and how to fix reoccurring problems.   I know that I have 23 incredible students, but I did last year as well and the year prior.  So really, since these are the students that I do have, it appears to be a mute point.
  • How did you come up with this system?  I didn’t.  In fact, many commentators pointed out that it sounded a lot like The Responsive Classroom, Love and Logic, or various other programs.  I did not read any of these programs, instead I went with my own commonsense and sense of right and wrong.  I wanted a respectful classroom, which also meant I had to give a lot of respect.  I also knew that this would not be a one time thing of discussion, but something to revisit throughout the year whenever we had time.
  • Why should I care, listen, use what you are using?  That’s the wonderful part about the world of blogging, you don’t have to!  All I am doing is chronicling my own decision to get rid of a punitive system to one guided by communication.  This approach works for me, but by all means, I want people to use whatever works for them.  I just want to let people know, particularly first year teachers that there are other methods than punishment to create a strong classroom.  I wish I had known more about that in college.
  • Will you use it next year? Absolutely!  As with many changes on my journey this year, I could not imagine going back to my old ways.  I do not know what my classroom will consist of next year, but I do know that I am going to have some very eager new 4th graders ready to learn so my job is to provide them with the very best experience possible.  That includes a room where they feel safe, respected, and listened to, not just by me, but by their peers as well.  There may be changes, but fundamentally my philosophy will only expand and gain momentum rather than completely change.

So keep them coming.  It is only through dialogue that we continue to push our boundaries and learn together.  

being a teacher, elementary, kidblog, Student-centered, writing

If You Give a Classroom Videos

Pernille Ripp

If you give a classroom videos to watch, they may just ask for more.  And then when you play another one, they may start to discuss if it is true what the video purports.

As they discuss the message they ask to write that day’s Op.Ed. on the topic and groan when you only give them 15 minutes to write.

When they start to write, you will notice there is furious scribbling and lots of staring.  Then you ask why they are staring and they tell you that they are thinking.  As they think, they come up with even better reasons for why there should be fun in education.

When the time is up, the most reluctant of writers eagerly raise their hand.  As they share, you notice, that other students are nodding in approval.  As they nod in approval, you see the speakers smile.

As the speakers smile, you notice the mood getting lifted and more students raise their hand to share.  As they continue to share, you realize just how much thought went into their writing and you get very, very proud.

When you realize how proud you are, you know this has to be shared with others, so you ask the students to please publish it in their kidblog.

The students cheer as they love to blog and as the cheers settle, one student raises their hand eager to ask a question.

If you let that student ask their question, they will ask if they may watch another video.  And if you let them watch another video, chances are they will want to watch another one after that.

Awards, being a teacher, punishment, rewards, students

All You Have to Do is Show Up – A Tale of Perfect Attendance

Pernille Ripp
Today the debate turned to perfect attendance rewards, something that seems innocent enough on the surface, but can elicit debate in even the most timid teachers. I was lucky to engage in a great dialogue with a trusted colleague but also turned to educators around the world to get their input. The judgment was swift and to the point, most were vehemently opposing them, lambasting them for what they thought they really were; bandaid awards to those students who may not otherwise receive an award.

So why is rewarding students for perfect attendance not a great concept? The ideas were many:

  • It is one more way for schools to separate the winners from the losers in a public forum.
  • It rewards students just for shwoing up, not effort, work ethic or learning. What life skill does that teach since there are no jobs that reward you merely for showing up.
  • Perfect attendance award does nothing but encourage students to come to school even when they are sick enough to stay home or contagious.
  • It makes losers out of the kids where life situations prevent them from coming to school; funerals, court, counselor appointments etc.
  • We are rewarding kids based on their parents behavior; whether they can get them to school or not. Why disappoint the kids further that already are battling with parents that may not be able to supply reliable transportation.
  • If this is the only thing we can rewards students for then we are not spending enough time recognizing or uncovering their talents.
  • And finally, my own opinion; if we have to reward students to come to school then what value are we placing on schools? School is meant to be a place of stimulation, of excitement, of amazing discoveries. Not a place where you show up just so you get a reward. Not a place that has to have a reward tied to it as theperetual carrot. While I agree that we should celebrate those students that do show up day in and day out, I just don’t think that an award eceremony is the right venue for it.

Add your voice to the debate! Is a perfect attendance award ceremony simply a cute certificate that does no harm, is it no big deal, or is it another way to compartmentalize students?

being a teacher, questions, Student-centered

Today I Didn’t Answer their Questions

Pernille Ripp

Hey Mrs. Ripp, where is Panama? Hey Mrs. Ripp, what does sum mean again? Hey Mrs. Ripp, I don’t get it. Substitute your name for mine and and I am sure this is what many of our classrooms sound like on anay normal day. Except today I didn’t provide the answers, today I didn’t answer with what they wanted to hear. Instead I asked, “How will you find the answer? How will you figure that out?”

Not answering a child is not something I was taught in college, in fact, quite the opposite. I was taught the curriculum, taught to memorize it so I could give it back to the students whenever it was needed. Not anymore, not all the time. Now my students are being taught where to find the answer, where to turn to to figure it all out. Nothing revolutionary, nothing I invented, instead something I learned from watching other great teachers do it.

So today, what happened to those students that didn’t know the answer? Panama was found through studying our classroom map, sum was looked up in a math reference book, and an explanation was found through a classmate. Will this approach always work? Who knows. Today it did.

Have you tried not answering? Is it something we have to teach or can we throw students into it without help?

being a teacher, believe, inspiration, self, students

Adding Up the Weight of Words

Pernille Ripp

I used to think I was a good dancer. Not the “So You Think You Can Dance” kind but not horribly ungifted either. I could shake it without care, busting a move with the best of them, and carefree live my life. I used to think I could dance until I met my husband. Brandon is a natural, he moves, he shakes, he glides. Why he knows how to twirl around a dance floor I do not know, but next to him, I acquired two huge left feet.

At first, we laughed about how I was clumsy. Being tall, skinny, and with two large feet didn’t help me either. And yet, as we laughed and joked about it, I really did get worse at dancing. For every negative comment I started to believe a little more that perhaps, just perhaps, there was something to it. Perhaps I really was bad at dancing, perhaps those jokes and comments were truth and not just fun to be had. Now, I barely ever dance, mostly just around my house with my daughter, but I am no longer the first one on the floor and I definitely always looking around seeing if anyone notices just how uncoordinated I am.

I think of my students, of the little comments we make throughout our day. Of snappy lines other students make, often in jest, but oft repeated. I wonder how many of those lines, those comments, dig themselves in and burrow down deep until they latch themselves into their psyche rendering them useless at something. How often do they start out laughing along until they realize that it is just not that funny?

We must always carry a sense of humor about ourselves, but when does that humor become destructive rather than funny?

So those little words, those small actions, add up to more than we can ever know. And not just the negative ones, but the positive ones as well. How about laughing about how talented someone is rather than how inadequate? Perhaps if I had joked about how incredible of a dancer I was, I would believe it now. I know that words have power, but often I forget about the small words and how much power they gain when I add them up. It is time for me to give weight to the positive ones.

being a teacher, teachers

Ok, I Admit It

Pernille Ripp
It is time I admit a few things.  Not any secrets, nothing that will hurt others, but truths that I am ready to share about myself.  After all, my birthday is nearing, time for reflection is now, and honestly, why not put it all out there?  So in no particular order, here it is 
  • I am not tough.  Far from it in fact.  Although my steps seem self-assured and I can argue all of my opinions, inside I am still that awkward 15 year old hoping for acceptance.  So when people speak of “people” and what these “people” are saying about me, that pit in my stomach grows.  And yet, I know that life is a series of ebbs and flows, and someone out there likes me and what I do.  
  • I am a massive (proud) geek.  Oh, such a cliche, but it is true, my husband reminds me all the time that I would be a Trekkie if I had more time.  Instead I consume all things zombie, Neil Gaiman, techy tools and nerd style.  I would rock geeky glasses if I needed them.  I get excited when students quote obscure books or Sherlock Holmes.  I will talk videogames with you.  And it’s ok, I embrace it in my own nerdy way.
  • I am not an extrovert.  I am boisterous, I laugh loudly, and I sing in my classroom.  That does not mean I am comfortable around people.  In fact, I think the internet has provided me with a much needed shield so that I could explore facets of my personality and let myself shine amongst others.  See me at a conference and don’t be surprised if I am very, very quiet.
  • I do not have all of the answers.  I am sharing my journey, not selling a path.  
  • I change my mind.  This year certain things are working for me incredibly well but that does not mean they will work next year as well.  I am forever open to change, to reflection, to reinvention.  After all, life is not a passive act and neither is teaching.
  • I don’t think I am a great teacher.  I have been around great teachers, my mother being one, and I am not even close to that.  And thankfully so; my journey has just begun and I need to aspire to something.  I think I have good ideas, passion, and dedication, but greatness – maybe in 25 years.
I wonder what others wish the world knew about them?