Category: being a teacher

being a teacher, believe, inspiration, self, students

Adding Up the Weight of Words

Pernille Schmidt 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 Schmidt 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?
assumptions, being a teacher, inspiration, no homework, students

We Are Not the Most Important Piece of Life

Pernille Schmidt Ripp
I used to think student vacations meant lots of projects for them to do,  but then again,  I used to think a lot of things. This year with the advent of limited homework and more in-school learning, I stopped that practice. First I felt guilty; after all, wasn’t I supposed to assign lots of work for students to be engaged in when they were not in school? if I didn’t assign work, would they remember what it means to be in school, to work hard, to learn?  And yet, I knew that it had to be done.  Students were asked to read, maybe blog if they felt like it, which some did, and otherwise just be with their family.
The result; happy students who came back eager to learn and share all of their experiences.


As one of my students struggles through the sudden loss of her beloved grandfather, I am strengthened in my resolve to not encroach.  To not impose too much on the outside life, to let my students breathe, reflect, and in this case, mourn, without the pressure of school hanging over them.  For me, it is time I embrace a radical notion;  an education may be important but it is NOT the most important thing.   Life is the most important, and the chance to live it fully, remember it, and grow as a person will always beat the things we do at school.  We are important pieces, but we are not the biggest piece of a person, and nor should we be.
being a teacher, education reform, grading moratorium, No grades, Student-centered

So How’s this Whole No Grading Thing Going for Ya?

Pernille Schmidt Ripp

This year I threw out letter grades almost completely. Only almost because I am still required to give my fourth grade students a letter grade on their trimester report card. I thought I was crazy, doing this, and I am sure I wasn’t the only one. I thought I was going to regret it for sure, face uphill battles from confused parents and upset students, yet instead, nothing…

I have battled with grades my whole life myself, from being a student that never applied themselves enough to a staunch, anxious overachiever with a ridiculous GPA. I never quite found the balance. I just couldn’t get my grades to fit me, they never showed my interests, my smarts, my deficits. They were just an arbitrary number on a piece of paper, something that said nothing about my future or my past. Not even a snapshot in time.

So when I became a teacher, I fiddled, I muddled, and I tweaked. Those poor averages and grades I came up with never seemed to tell my students their story either. An A meant little but an F meant something,right? We finished a product, stamped a grade on it and end of discussion. So this year I stopped grading and I was terrified.

When you tell people you don’t believe in grades, they mostly think you are crazy and have no place in teaching. After all, life is one long file and rank and grades make us all fit in so nicely. And yet, my parents on orientation day believed in me. They seemed to get it because I explained to them what I would do instead. I promised to engage their child in discussions, to constantly evaluate and more importantly reevaluate what knowledge their child had secured. I promised to set up learning opportunities where their child could show off their skills in different ways than written work. I promised them to monitor, alert, refine and reteach whenever needed. I promised them that they would know what their child knew and what they were still working on. I add to these promises whenever I can.

So has it been perfect? Oh I wish. But neither were my letter grades before. Averages never told the full story, and often it was hard to fully explain why a child was a B or a C. Now I can talk about where the child stands, what they have secured, where they are developing. Now when I discuss strengths of my students, I have checklists, specific samples and conversations to refer to. The students are aware of their progress and they know what they need to work on. Getting rid of grades has meant more work for me focused on the student. It has meant more time spent talking to my students, more focus on our goals, more time to really prepare and think about my lessons instead of all that solitary grading. For me, it has meant I can hold my head up higher when in conferences with my students. For me, it has meant a new way of teaching, of preparing my students for a life that will try its best to label them somehow. A way for me to help them tell their story right now and perhaps even point them to their future story.

So that whole no grade thing, maybe not such a bad idea after all.

PS: I couldn’t have done this without support from Joe Bower (@Joe_bower), Jeremy MacDonald (@MrMacnology) and some wisdom from the guru that is Alfie Kohn.

being a teacher, education reform, Student-centered

Let Them Speak – If You Missed It

Pernille Schmidt Ripp
Last Saturday, I was excited to be a part of the incredible New teacher Reform Symposium.  Not only did I get to participate in some incredible presentations, but I also got share my journey in my own classroom toward a more student-centered classroom.  Thank you to all that participated in my presentation, I learned so much from the comments and feedback, and I am forever amazed at how many people are willing to reach out, share, and learn from others.

If you missed my presentation, it can be viewed in this archive.

Here are my presentation slides, which probably need to be viewed along with my notes, otherwise they do not make a lot of sense.

being a teacher, fun, students

Warning, This Will Not Be On a Test!

Pernille Schmidt Ripp

Today we went sledding. 23 screaming kids, 3 excited teachers and one measly hill covered in snow that did not know what was coming. My students didn’t earn this experience, well, I am sure they have, but not in the traditional sense of earning. Instead, I looked out the window yesterday during class and realized that the snow was just perfect. The kind of snow that only comes a couple times a year in Wisconsin; pristine, fluffy, begging to be used for childish pursuits. So I declared that we would go sledding today, and indeed we did.

There was no educational value in this experience, nothing that will be assessed, reviewed or graded. I didn’t veil it as such either. I wanted to have fun, I wanted the kids to all play together, I wanted to be a kid for a while. So there we were, celebrating that literacy assessments were done with our sub and speech teacher. All kids sharing sleds, a student with autism not sledding but giving pushes to any child that needed one for extra speed. We were all there, loving the moment. Pictures? Nah, I was too busy having fun. And that is ok.