For the past two weeks my students have visibly struggled in class. They have questioned. They have reflected. They have stopped and spoken to each other as they have made their way through a topic that I wasn’t sure we were ready to do. A topic I felt uncomfortable even discussing, but I knew we should. For the past two weeks my students have to come class ready to learn, eager to get started, and worked until the very last moment, asking if we were continuing the next day. They have been fully invested, fully aware, but also just a little bit timid.

One month ago I saw an article get released by NPR, it spoke of how the suicide rate among middle schoolers is at the highest peak ever. It stopped me in my tracks, after all, this is my age group, these are my kids. And while I am lucky to have never taught a child who has committed suicide, I know I have taught kids who have tried, kids who have contemplated, kids who still carry the weight of suicidal thoughts and are not sure what to think of themselves. The article sat in my inbox staring me in my face, daring me to do something. And yet…would my students be able to handle a topic like this?

On Monday the 5th, I cleared my voice and told my students that for the next few weeks we were going to pursue knowledge, that we were going to discuss, explore, and question. That we were going to go as personal as we wanted to. That the topic was dark but necessary. Were they ready? Yes, they told me. And so we began; focusing a unit on the question, “How do we prevent suicide in middle schoolers?” And I am so glad we did.

For the past two weeks we have been surrounded by hard conversations. Surrounded by outrage, by questions, and even by sadness. They have asked things out loud that they might not have had the courage to ask out loud before. They have shared their truths and also shared (some) of their fears. They have cried with me when we heard a glimpse of a parent’s 911 call pleading for help for their own child. They have been outraged at the intense bullying some children have suffered from. They have discussed responsibility and guilt. They have struggled with the central question and reflected upon their own actions and how they affect other people, even when they don’t mean to.

I have sat in awe as they have taken this topic and explored it in a way I could not have planned for. As one child told me, “Mrs. Ripp, I know this sounds strange but I find this to be fascinating and yet also so sad.”

I wasn’t sure my students were ready.

I wasn’t sure their parents would understand.

I wasn’t sure what the outcome would be. If it would matter. If it would be worth our time.

I wasn’t even sure that I could handle this topic in a meaningful way.

But we did, and it was, and the kids now know what the warning signs are. Now know to ask each other if they are worried. Now know that suicide tends to not be impulsive, that there are hints dropped. Now know that even “normal” looking kids can have suicidal thoughts. Now know what the real effects of bullying can be. Now know to have conversations with someone they trust if they feel like this is a solution for them.

Too often we shy away from the hard topics because we are not sure it is the right time. That we are the right person to teach it. That our kids can handle it. That our community will support us. Yet time after time, these kids amaze me. Time after time, they prove that they are more ready than we could imagine. That they don’t want to invest their time in “boring” topics but want to deal with the real side of the world. They want to know what really happens, how people are really affected, and they want to know what they can do to make it better. Our job is to support them. To help them understand. To help them navigate this world that they live in so they can have better lives. Our job is to educate and not be afraid, to plant seeds that may in some way help them as they grow.

For the past two weeks I have had more hard conversations behind closed doors with more kids than I ever could have imagined. I have cried with my students. I have thanked more kids for their bravery. Told them that no matter how they feel they matter to me, to us. For the past two weeks I have marveled as the facade of some my kids have crumbled and they have risen from their pasts like a phoenix from the fire. All because an article haunted me. All because I thought it might just matter to them, to me, to us. And it did. And so we did. And we grew from it; closer, stronger, better. Isn’t that what teaching is about?

I am currently working on a new literacy book. The book, which I am still writing, is tentatively Passionate Readers and will be published in the summer of 2017 by Routledge. I also have a new book coming out December, 2017 called Reimagining Literacy Through Global Collaboration, a how-to guide for those who would like infuse global collaboration into their curriculum. So until then if you like what you read here, consider reading my 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.

Be the change, being a teacher, being me

A Story of A Child that Can

December 16, 2016December 16, 2016 Pernille Ripp

For the past three years, on December 19th, I have written about the miracle that is our youngest daughter, Augustine. About her much too soon arrival. About the fear. The uncertainty. The guilt…

I have written about my hope for others to see how a child’s start in life may still haunt them many years later when they show up in our classrooms. I have written about how the very least we can do is love them when they come. How we can prepare all we want and yet never be fully ready.

Augustine’s much too soon arrival has shaped our lives in many ways, and yet…last night when I came home from school I did not see a baby that arrived too early. I did not see a 4 pound miracle. I did not see a child wrapped up in long nights and frightening futures. In machines and medical personel. I saw an almost three year old showing me her pig, Pua. I saw an almost three year old that wanted to watch that monster show. I saw an almost three year old that kept her siblings awake by making cat noises.

She will always be the baby that came too soon, but she no longer is just that child. She is no longer just a preemie, she is my willful, loud daughter, making her own place in the world. She is the child that crawled at 5 months, who walked at 9 months. She is the child that is perfectly average. A child that defies the odds. Who didn’t wait for someone to tell her that she should do what her siblings were doing but simply ran after them and did. And with every naughty thing she tries not to get caught doing, she is rewriting how we see her.

How often do our students show up with haunted pasts? With files that follow? With reputations and beginnings that yes, have shaped who they once were, but now no longer defines them? How often do our students come to us with assumptions laced around them so tight we can hardly see past them even though that child is no longer the child that presents itself. How often do we acknowledge the past, even if the past is just yesterday, but then purposefully readjust our focus to see the child that stands before us now?

Augustine was the child that came too soon, but she is now the child of can’s. The child of will’s. The child of average. No one who meets her now will ever guess her tumultuous beginning, and I am glad. How many of our students are trying to escape a past that no longer is them, that no longer is all they are?

I became the mother of a premature baby 3 years ago, but I am now the mother of an almost three year old. A little girl that didn’t care what the doctors said. A little girl that from the moment she could, she did. She asks to be seen for who she is now, not what she was before. The least I can do is adjust my vision.

14917078_1139467279436217_3664807435616940180_o

being a teacher, books, Reading

My Favorite Chapter Books of 2016

December 9, 2016 Pernille Ripp

It is with great trepidation that I make this list. Inevitably a book will be left off or I will somehow screw this up. But…these books have shaped my year. These books with their worlds, their heart, and their dreams have made me better. Have offered me solace on long winter nights, have lulled me to sleep on airplanes and in hotel rooms. When work has been too hard and life has been too busy, these books have kept me afloat. So how can I not praise them? (Thank you Goodreads). While are new this year, some are not, but all were new to me.

Please read them. Please love them. Please share them with others. After all, books may just be the very thing that brings us all together.

It is always exciting when I discover a new series and The Reader by Traci Chee did not disappoint. While it took me a few days to read, my confusion was rewarded at the end when everything made sense and I was left with a longing to read on. PG13 and up.

I had heard of Gene Luen Yang before he was chosen as National Book Ambassador but his new title led me to discover more of his work. While I loved all of his that I read American Born Chinese was definitely my favorite. This is a must add to any middle school classroom and up.

It is hard not to love Pax by Sara Pennypacker. This book was the Global Read Aloud choice for elementary and up for 2016 and I still think it is one of the most powerful reads of the year. This story of a fox and his boy will simply stay with you for a very long time.

I thought I knew a lot about hurricane Katrina but after reading Drowned City by Don Brown, I realized how little I actually knew. Sparse, powerful, and haunting is the best way for me to describe this graphic novel nonfiction book. Must add to middle school and up.

It is hard to not admire Kate Messner and her formidable brain, she epitomizes to me what it means to be creative. I love her new series, Ranger in Time, geared toward early readers and have brought the books in to my own 7th grade classroom as well. What a wonderful way to discover history.

This was my very first read of the year and it was oh so good. In fact, I think Shadow and Bone from Leigh Bardugo was the series feeling I chased all year. Magic, action, love, this series has it all for our PG13 readers.

It is hard to describe the sadness that overcame me as I read the graphic novel Yummy – the Last Days of a Southside Shorty by G. Neri. After all, this is the story of an actual child, this is the story of something that actually happened. This is the story of a child who got so lost that he ended taking the life of another child and then losing his own. PG13 and up.

I teach using the Notice and Note signposts, and a A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park is one of the texts used. I knew I had to read it when I saw how it captivated all of my students. This story of the Lost Boys of Sudan is one that many students throughout the year has also gravitated toward. This could be placed in the hands of the right 5th grader who was ready for it.

There is always something bittersweet when you realize a book you loved and booktalked is missing in your library. This is the case of Nimona by Noelle Stevenson. I loved it, I book talked it, someone snagged it to read and poof it has disappeared. This is a graphic novel tale I will gladly re-order though.

I wonder how many times I have booktalked Gym Candy by Carl Deuker this year? This is the book I reach for when I am running out of options for my resistant readers. This is the book that I found myself sucked into as I ignored my family on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. This is one of those books that becomes a magic weapon when we try to help students love reading more. PG13 and up.

With the 15th anniversary of 9/11 we saw a slew of powerful books being published about the events. While I read almost all of the ones published, Eleven by Tom Rogers is still the book that for me captured the day in the most powerful way. 4th grade and up but my 7th graders devour it as well.

I came across Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins as I booktalked poor covers. My librarian told our class that while the cover might leave something t be desired, this was a really popular series. I therefore promptly took t home to read it and boy was she right. Love, action, magic, yes please. Great middle school and up series.

Another fox book? Yes please! Maybe a Fox by Kathi Appelt and Alison McGhee is a powerful story of loss and discovery. Of a family seemingly torn apart. Of a fox that knows that it plays an important part in the healing. This book is beautiful and for 4th grade and up.

This was the year i started to re-think my hatred of dog books and Maxi’s Secret by Lynn Plourde played a big part in that. While yes the dog dies (it is told to us in the first chapter) this story is bigger than that of a dog. It is about friendship, finding your place, and finding yourself. 4th grade and up.

I was told to read The Diabolic by S.J. Kincaid this summer by a friend because she thought it would be one of those books that I could not wait to share. She was right. The Diabolic is a masterful piece of work; challenging science fiction that still is a page turner. PG13 and up.

I don’t know how I missed A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness for so long but I am so glad that I now have many copies of it in my classroom library. This is one of those books you hand to those kids that say that they don’t like reading much. I, along with many students, are eagerly awaiting the movie adaptation that is coming out in January. Middle school and up.

Another book recommended to me by a trusted friend was Lily and Dunkin by Donna Gephart. This book is needed in our libraries, especially as we focus on creating windows, mirrors, and doors into the lives of others. Middle school and up.

I love complex fantasy, ones that have deep story lines where I need to find the time to fall into its pages and forget about life for a while. Kelly Barnhill’s The Girl Who Drank the Moon is just the right kind of fantasy book. Beautiful language and a story line that mesmerizes, I am glad this now a part of our library. 4th or 5th grade and up.

How amazing of a storyteller is Kate Messner? I loved The Seventh Wishso much that it got it’s own stand alone review on this blog, and I stand by those words. This book belongs in our classrooms, in our libraries, and yes even with elementary children.

Hands down one of the best non-fiction autobiographies I have ever read. Melissa Sweet’s Some Writer! about E.B. White is a masterpiece in visual layout as well as text. I have ordered another copy to house permanently in my classroom and will be using it to teach writer’s craft. I cannot wait for children to fall into the delight of these pages and to be inspired to write more themselves.

I have loved the genius of Jenni Holm for a few years now and her new book Full of Beans is a delight. This is one of those perfect books that will make for a great read aloud, especially in our 4th and 5th grade classrooms. This is also a Global Read Aloud contender for 2017.

I started my summer with The Best Man by Richard Peck. Spurred on by my friends’ love of this book and by the sad fact that I had never read a Richard Peck book before, I was glad to start the summer with this one. I was delighted, surprised, and ever so wonderfully tangled into the story and have loved booktalking it to students. This one is great for middle school and up, or even a 5th grader.

How I have managed to go these years without falling in love with The Raven Boys series by Maggie Stiefwater I am not sure. This has been one of my most recommended books this summer because I dropped everything just to read this whole series in a week. Now that that the whole series is out there is no reason to wait to get this for your classroom library, I would recommend middle school and up.

The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner is still one of the best books I have read all year. This is the book I hope most of my students discover. This is the book I keep recommending. A masterpiece in story-telling that I could not put down and neither could those I have handed it too. This debut author has taken everything that is right about a great YA and put it into a book. I cannot wait for his next book.

I was handed Fenway and Hattie by the author herself, Victoria J. Coe, and read it the very next day. Delightful, fun, and imaginative I have recommended this book to many people since. I love how Victoria Coe writes it from the perspective of a dog and will be using this to show perspective writing with my 7th graders. While this is geared toward a younger audience, I think some of my 7th graders will enjoy it as much as I have. This is also a contender for Global Read Aloud 2017.

Loving Vs. Virginia by Patricia Hruby Powell and illustrated by Shadra Strickland is a must add to your library. This text sheds light on the landmark case of marriage equality and is riveting in how it unfolds. You fall in love with the Lovings and their simple fight to simply be allowed to be married. (Note: Available for pre-order now).

What an incredible book Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk is. In fact, I would be surprised if we did not see this book receive awards later this year. Unlike anything I have read in a long time, Wolf Hollow draws you into a world that speaks of simpler times and yet the story unravels in a way you would not expect. From 4th grade and up, this book is also a must add in middle school.

I loved the scary tale and the beautiful language of The Jumbies by Tracey Baptiste. I rooted for the main character Corinne as she fights for her father and the rest of her island, protecting them from the supernatural beings that live in the forest. For kids that love a great scary story, I cannot wait to book talk this, and even better; there is a sequel coming.

I had the incredible honor of seeing Erin Downing, the author of Moon Shadow Moon Shadow, at NCTE. This book is a must read in 2017 (our in May!). With its creepy yet deep story, it promises to be a book that many middle grade kids will want to read, discuss, and share.

Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson is the book I keep telling people to read, keep telling people to pre-order (out in February). This powerful story is one that simply needs to be experienced and then placed in the hands of our middle schools and up. Powerful, eye opening, and also just a great example of wonderful story telling.

The Wolf Wilder by Katherine Rundell is a book I didn’t expect to love as much as I did. I had heard from others that it was a great title and yet whenever I picked it up, I just didn’t quite fall into the appeal of it. Its tale of honor, family, and yes, wolves left me mesmerized from page 1. This is the best of books; nature and survival, historical fiction and fast paced adventure. This is a must for 4th grade and up.

One of these days I might write an entire post about how much I admire the talent and work of Jacqueline Woodson. The conversations she invites us to have in our classrooms are profound and I am so thankful I finally discovered her book If You Come Softly. While the story is set in high school it is not high school langue which makes it even more accessible to many students. This book about race and love and growing up is one I won’t forget. I also read, and loved, Behind You, the follow up novel.

I cannot imagine the painstaking work it must have been for Allan Wolf to write The Watch that Ends the Night. This is the Titanic story like I had never experienced it before. Middle school and up.

Can Jennifer A. Nielsen do no wrong? She once again had me hooked from the early pages of The Scourge, what a great story of mystery, survival, and also devious means to fight back. 4th or 5th grade and up.

I am not sure I have enough words to publicly declare how much I love the brain of Dav Pilkey and his new series Dog Man. This one book has completely transformed my daughter’s life, who is 7, but is equally loved by my 7th graders. This is what great books are made of.

Another book I was surprised I had missed until now. Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate is her other master piece. This book with its free verse formand heart wrenching story is everything great books are made of. This is also GRA contender for 2017.

I don’t know how Jason Reynolds manages to crank one book out after another but I am thankful that he does. His latest book Ghost is the beginning of a series, thank you! It is a Global Read Aloud Contender, and it is oh so good for middle grade and up.

I finally settled into my new reading chair and fell in love with The Wild Robot by Peter Brown. It is always such a delight when simple language brings us deep reading experiences. This is also one of those books that I know I can hand to many kids and they can have a successful reading experience with it. 4th grade and up, but 7th graders love it too.

I always have room for a great creepy book and Janet Fox’s new book, The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle, is just that. Mysterious, creepy, and suspenseful will keep readers tuned in from 5th grade and up.

I tend to steer away from WWII books simply because I have oversaturated myself in the genre, but for The Plot to Kill Hitler by Patricia McCormick, I knew I would make an exception. What is crazy about this story is that it is true, and also one I had not heard of before. This was book-talked once in my classroom and I have not seen it since. Perfect for middle grades and up.

I think My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and JodI Meadows is one of those books where you either love it or hate it. I loved it with a capital l. This felt fresh, funny, and of course I had to read just one more page to see what would happen. Perfect for middle school and up.

I can be very hit or miss when it comes to historical fiction, I feel that I either love it or really do not like it. The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming by J. Anderson Coats is a book that I loved reading. I loved the can-do attitude of or female protagonist and also how it provided me with a glimpse into the settler time period. This gem comes out at the end of February and is not to be missed for middle grade and up.

Argh, cancer books. I am terrible with you and yet I also feel myself drawn to their pages. Love, Ish the new book by Karen Rivers is one that will take you for a ride whether you wanted it to or not. Powerful storytelling brings us right there with Ish. Out on my birthday, March 14th, this is a great book for middle grades and up.

There were so many other books that I loved this year but I tried to stick to a little bit of a shorter list. To see all of the books I read and rate follow me on Instagram or on Goodreads. Which books did I miss?

being a teacher, being me

Look for the One

December 9, 2016 Pernille Ripp

There is always one moment of good, our job is to find it. @pernilleripp

This year has been a year of amazing reflection opportunities for me. This year has brought these incredibly resilient and demanding (in all of the best ways) students into my life. There have been glorious days and then there have been those days where I feel like the worst kind of teacher. Where I feel like all of my best laid plans, all of my great intentions, all of the dreams that I carefully crafted meant nothing, did nothing and I stand there feeling like the worst kind of teacher. I am not alone. As speak to my fellow educators, we all have those days, we all have those long nights where we reflect on what we did wrong and how we can get better. So I write this to myself, to all of us, for the days where I feels like nothing went right. I write this a reminder, as a message on the days where I forget. On those days where we all forget.

Dear you,

I am so sorry that today seemed like one of those days where there was a perfect storm. Where we seemed stretched too thin and it is almost as if kids picked up on it and every single thing that could go wrong, went wrong in the worst of ways. As if every dormant issue rose up and came alive to create one glorious, awful day. Where we feel like a bad day kind of teacher and we are not sure just what to do.

So know this, as you lick your wounds and go home downtrodden; it is one day. One day of awful. One day of not so great among many days of great. Know this; that what separates the good from the bad is that you choose to go home and not blame the children, but instead look at what you could have done better. Asking; how can I make it better and telling yourself that tomorrow will be a better day.

And on those days, when that feeling of awful settles into your stomach, ready to overshadow your night, then you must look for the one moment. The one moment where what you did mattered. The one moment where what you did today was not a complete loss for that one kid. Because there is always one kid. Even when everything else burns around us and our walls come down and we feel like the biggest fraud in the classroom, and we feel like we are a part of the problem and not the solution. There is one kid who had a good moment today, and so your job is now to find that one good thing. To find that one good thing so that you will remember that even the best teachers have bad days. That you are better than you think you are. And that having a bad day is just that; a human being having a bad day, and because you had a bad day does not make you a bad teacher, nor does it mean that tomorrow will be bad.

So look for the one.

Look for the one thing that you forgot, that you missed as you look back on the day. Hold on to that one as you think of the bad and don’t beat yourself up too much. We were never promised it would be easy but only that it would be worth it.

being a teacher, books

Win A Copy of My New Book!

December 4, 2016December 16, 2016 Pernille Ripp

Thank you to all of those who entered, the contest is now closed. Both winners were randomly selected by a number generator. Congratulations to the two winners! To purchase a copy of the book, please see here.

For the past year I have been sitting behind my computer most nights trying to figure out how to put into words the work we do in our classroom while writing two separate books. Trying to figure out how I can help others go deeper with their literacy instruction, even within the 45 minute English classroom. Trying to figure out how others could incorporate more global collaboration into their literacy instruction without it feeling like just one more thing to do. Trying to figure out how to make the literacy instruction we all do more meaningful, more passionate, more connected. There have been great nights and there have been early mornings. There have been days when I have felt like the biggest fraud, imposter syndrome for the win, and others where I finally felt like what I had to write might actually be meaningful to someone else.

The past year has been grueling, but oh so incredible, and now I get to celebrate the first release of one of those books; Reimagining Literacy through Global Collaboration. This how-to book is meant to help those that are new to global collaboration or have been dipping their toes in for the past few years. It is meant to inspire, meant to give you the why, and meant to help you create more meaningful literacy opportunities for your students. It is meant to give you a glimpse into our classroom as we try to make the world smaller, kinder, and the work we do more relevant all in less than 80 pages.

new-cover

The official description says:

Prepare your students to adapt and thrive in the world beyond their classroom. This how-to guide offers strategies for how to establish classrooms that give students globally connected literacy experiences. Learn why students must create school projects aimed at an authentic audience beyond school walls, and plan for more purposeful opportunities for students to engage with what they learn and create. You’ll discover how to use readily available technology tools to create environments where students gain 21st century skills, collaborate with others around the globe, and realize that their work matters.

Enter to win:

So in order to celebrate the impending release of this book, I thought I would give away two copies of it. It should be out within the next first few weeks so before Christmas and you will receive you copy right from Amazon.

All you have to do to enter is to write a comment below, make sure you enter your email address in the field where it asks for it so I can contact you if you win. I will draw two randomly selected winners after Friday night, December 9th at 8 PM.

To order the book yourself:

While Amazon says it will not be released until January, Solution Tree says otherwise. So if you would like to order your own copy of the book, please go here.

What is my other book?

I am currently working on a new literacy book. The book, which I am still writing, is tentatively Passionate Readers and will be published in the summer of 2017 by Routledge. It is the tale of how I changed my literacy instruction to create passionate readers even within the 45 minute English classroom. It is the wisdom of my amazing 7th graders and what they wish all teachers of reading would know and do. It is how we can bring our own reading identity in and let it help us become better teachers of reading. It is a book filled with the practical, the inspirational, and the tools we need to hopefully help our students embrace reading as part of their identity.

If you like what you read here, consider reading my 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, student choice, student driven, Student Engagement, Student-centered

A Better Way to Write Fiction Stories

December 2, 2016 Pernille Ripp

We have been immersed in fiction writing for the past three weeks. I have been amazed at the focus of my students, at the need for creation,and also their creativity. As always, the plans I started with now look nothing like the plans we had, and so I thought it only fair to share what writing fiction in 7th grade English has looked like for the past three weeks and what I have learned and remembered.

Create Something

I knew that I did not need them to create the same product, after all, my standards assessed involve organization, word choice, conventions, and plot. Nowhere does it say that they must write a certain story, but instead I asked them to create something that would allow me to assess these things . I have been enthralled with their creativity process; yes, many students gravitated toward a written story with a neat beginning, middle, end, but others stretched their legs writing Minecraft fan fiction, movie scripts, picture books and even choose your own adventures. I have students co-creating stories from opposite perspectives, I have students writing free verse (it is harder than it looks). I have tales from their own lives and ones they have invented with made up words of their own. Because it has been their story, their way, they have wanted to work on it every day, excited to share it with others.

Few Lessons

I have spent most evenings leaving feedback to students, thank you Google Classroom for making my life easy. I have spent most class periods meeting with students asking them to tell me what I should look at when I read their work and then helping them from where they are. I have gathered information on lessons needed and tried to support each child on their own writing journey, with the help of the support teachers I sometimes have. Always trying to move students one step further and helping them think about what they need next, rather than a broad lesson that could apply to all. The few whole class lessons we have had have been brief and centered around reminders on paragraphing, dialogue, and consistent verb tenses.

Speak Up

I have asked the students to please speak to one another, to please share their stories, to find those they want to write with and use each other as I use my own writing friends. I started with putting them into writing trio groups but since abandoned the idea, realizing that the stilted conversations they were having would never get them much further and instead asking them to find someone that will not only read their work, but also be honest in their criticism. This is still a work in progress, but I have seen the improvements, I have seen the growth and know there is something there.

Best Draft

I have asked them for their best draft, not their final version, and I owe so much to Kelly Gallagher for this wording. Gone is the anxiety over perfection. Gone is the notion that they must reach an unachievable goal as they hurtle toward the end. Instead they work diligently, trying to get it to the best of their abilities before they turn it over to me. Before they turn it over for more feedback that will ultimately push their story even further. They know the process is not done just because they hand it in today, because the project is called best draft, even though in reality, many of them have handed in amazing stories that need little more work.

Use the Space

I have asked them to please find out how they write best within the environment we have. How they best can support their own writing process, how they can use the classroom in a way that helps them better focus and find their flow. Kids have been in corners, moved tables, on bean bags and in the team area. We have had music, gum, and conversation. For some we have had headphones for quiet and spaces to concentrate. Each child is now a step closer to knowing how they write best, even within the confinements of a typical English classroom.

Find the Experts

For the past three months we have reached out to those who have walked the path before us; the authors that inspire us to write better. Using Skype we have asked amazing authors whose books delight us what their writing process is and how they edit. Every class has had different conversations but they have all centered around the same thing; find your own way, there is no right way for all, just a right way for you. Hearing it from the mouths of those whose books inspire us will always amplify the message we already teach; writing needs t be a part of you so find your way of writing.

So now what? We rest a little. We change our focus as our stories simmer in our minds and then in a about a week we return. Once the dust has settled, we look at the feedback we have received and we try to make it better. We speak of revision as if it is just one step but I know from my own writing experience that revising is ongoing, editing is hard, and that it sometimes means stepping away only to come back later. I still have much to learn as a 7th grade English teacher, I still have much to figure out, but this process? It made a difference in the last three weeks. Who knows how they will grow as writers next?