being me – Page 29 – Pernille Ripp

being a teacher, being me, community, new year, Passion

Confessions of a Dream Crusher

August 21, 2015 Pernille Ripp

We call ourselves the dream makers, the curiosity protectors, the people who will change education from within. We see ourselves as open-minded, always willing to change, and always looking to do what is best for students. We come to school on those first few days with dreams spilling out of our arms. New ideas floating around our heads as we dream of the possibilities. As we eagerly embark on a new journey.

Yet a few weeks in and our arms seem to be empty. The dreams gone, reality set in, and we think, “Well, maybe next year will be the year we change education, maybe next year these dreams will work.”

We can blame politicians for crushing our dreams. Sometimes we can even blame administration. But more often than not the blame lies within our own communities, our own teams, and ourselves. After all, how quick are we to dismiss the dreams of others before we even hear them out? How often do we think that we know better than someone else? How often do we make it a point to share just why something will not work. Yet, we get upset when someone dares to tell us that our dream is impossible, that our idea will never work, but forget that we say those some words to others.

We are so quick to tsk tsk other people’s new ideas. We are so quick to jump in with our own opinions, to share our own better ideas. To not truly listen because in our minds we have already decided that that idea will never work. We are so quick to burst the fragile bubbles of hope that we all bring back at the beginning of a new year. As if bringing someone down to Earth is a good thing.

And we can blame society. We can blame standardized testing. We can blame the Common Core. Or we can take responsibility for how we speak to others. For how we judge. For how quickly we dismiss. We can stop crushing the dreams of others.

Schools starts in 10 days. I will not be a dream crusher anymore. I will not be the one that says that something cannot work. I will not be the one that discourages others. Instead, I will be the one that says, “How can I help?” What will you be?

If you like what you read here, consider reading my book Passionate Learners – How to Engage and Empower Your Students. The 2nd edition and actual book-book (not just e-book!) comes out September 22nd from Routledge.

being a teacher, being me, books, Literacy, Passion, student choice

On Hating Reading

August 18, 2015August 18, 2015 Pernille Ripp

I have loved reading as many years as I have lived. Reading wove its threads throughout my life, from my mother reading aloud to me every night, to learning to read English books in the lap of my now-father, biking to our public library with a plastic bag empty waiting for the books that would fill it, and now passing my love on to my own children as they beg for just one more book, every single night.

I have brought my love of reading into the classroom, cementing that in this room we are all readers. We all spend time finding those books that will transform us. Finding those moments where we beg for just one more page, one more minute, and hope that the teacher will give it to us.

I love reading, but I do not ask all of my students to love reading. I do not expect them to fall as madly in love with reading as I have, because if I did then I would ask them to accept the identity I have shaped for myself. I would ask them to sometimes do something impossible.

Instead, I ask them to like it more. To give it another chance, even if their hatred has been cemented in years of torturous reading experiences. I make them promise me to give it a chance, a proper one, to keep their minds open as we grow throughout the year. There are some students who will never love reading. Who will never feel like reading is the one thing they must do every day to sustain their souls. And yes, that makes me sad, but I also need to make sure that our classroom welcomes all students. Even those that identify as reading haters.

So we should carry our torch for the love of reading wherever we go. We should exude passion. We should help each child believe that they are readers. That books are for them. That they too can immerse themselves in something so deeply that they almost forget to breathe. Yet, I must remember, that if I tell a child that they must love reading, some children will rebel simply on principal. Some children will find every reason to hate it more. So I do not assume that all children will love reading. I assume instead that within our short time together, I can make them hate it less. I can change their minds, if even just a little bit. After all, our classrooms are created by the true personalities of our students. We must meet them where they are and help them grow on their journey.

I will never stop loving reading. I will never stop telling my students that they are readers every single day. Even those that don’t believe they are. I will never stop sharing my own love of reading, but I will allow students to figure out where their emotions fall and then help them move from there. I will see my students for who they are, even if they do not love reading. Even if I will never understand how you cannot.

being me, Literacy, Passion, Reading, student voice

At Any Given Moment We Have the Power to Stop the Hatred of Reading

August 13, 2015August 18, 2015 Pernille Ripp

It used to astound me that my 4th graders would come to me and profess a hatred of reading. It used to shock me to the core. After all, these were the same kids that would ask for just one more page of our read aloud. Who would ask me to read a picture book aloud the minute it came to our room. Who had no problem confessing the love for the book we were sharing, but had none for the one they were reading alone. I always thought that the next year’s teacher would surely get them on the right path even if I couldn’t.

Now I am the next year’s teacher, and their dismay of books has only grown further. The group of children telling me that they never read outside of school has only grown. And this is not a boy-reader problem, this is an any gender problem. This is not something just caused by poverty, nor disengaged parents, nor reading difficulties. I see the hatred of reading defended the most from my students who have had every opportunity to fall in love with reading. I know I am not alone in this. And I know I cannot wait for someone else to fix it.

So I started to dig a little deeper. I get that they “hate” reading, but why? What parts was it that caused so much emotion, or sometimes so little, that students would have a physical reaction to whenever we had independent reading time. And their truths were not pretty, because the finger they pointed, pointed right at me. Or us, as educators.

We may think that it is too easy to blame teachers for the systematic destruction of reading love in our schools, and it is, because there are forces beyond our control that have a huge part in this as well. But part of the blame does lie with us, and that means we can do something about it. Especially in the upper grades where reading is no longer treated as something magical, but instead merely something useful.

At any given moment, we have the power to stop ourselves from telling students what to read. In our eagerness to shape well-rounded readers we are instead creating non-readers. In our eagerness to make sure students are exposed to all types of books, we are limiting them from discovering their own reading identity. Would we rather have a child that reads every single fantasy book they can come across, or a child that begrudgingly only reads a few books a year from other genres?

At any given moment, we have the power to make reading fun again. Fun is a not a swear word in our schools. There is nothing wrong with discovering a book that makes us laugh, or makes us wonder, or makes us think. Reading does not always have to have a purpose. It can be just to share a wonderful experience.

At any given moment, we have the power to stop interrupting children while we read. To not point out every single detail. To not have them do post-its for every thought they have. To not have them turn-and-talk every few minutes. Let them reach the reading zone as Nancie Atwell calls it. And not just once in a while but most of the time.

At any given moment, we have the power to reclaim what reading should feel like in our classrooms. To stop always using whole-class novels. To stop furthering our own vision for what makes a reader a reader. To stop hanging our own reading identities around the shoulders of students and wonder why it does not fit?

At any given moment, we have the power to create classrooms where reading is magical. Where reading is celebrated. Where reading is taught, but taught in a way that does not extinguish the love of the very thing we are trying to promote. But we have to look at our own practices first, we have to stand up and change. We have to ask our students what we are doing so that we can be better. So that their love of reading does not have to survive our classrooms. So that their hatred for reading does not have room to grow. But it starts with us, not them.

aha moment, being a teacher, being me, ideas, new teacher, new year

The One Great Idea Promise

August 13, 2015 Pernille Ripp

School is nearly starting here in Wisconsin. Less than three weeks until we say hello. For some of my friends, it has already started and for others this is not the beginning of a new year. We are surrounded by the buzz of excitement that comes from starting anew. We are surrounded by the energy that will lift us up and carry us forward, led by dreams. We are surrounded by the myriad of ideas we have concocted, come across, and considered as we inch nearer to that first magical day.

But what do you do with an idea? to quote one of my favorite picture books. Because we have all of these ideas that we cannot wait to try. We have all of these ideas that will change the way we teach, change our students’ lives, and hopefully inspire change overall. We have so many ideas that we often overwhelm ourselves before we even begin.

So I give you the one great idea promise; promise yourself that you will hold on to just one idea and pursue it with every thing you’ve got. Find your essence, find your core, and hold on to that with every planning step you take. Write it out, hang it up, and keep it in the forefront whenever you plan. This is where your energy should go. That doesn’t mean to dismiss all of the other ideas you have, but to let them slide in when they fit. Write them down because you will forget them, but circle the one that will set apart this year from last. Find your one great idea and love it with all of your might.

We say we want to change the world, but sometimes we need to just change one thing. So find your thing and do it. Don’t give up because you didn’t do them all. The students don’t need you to do all things, they need you to do just one; love them and your job. The students await.

being me, student choice, student voice, voice

I Wrote This Post

August 12, 2015August 13, 2015 Pernille Ripp

I wrote this post three different ways, and none of them spoke my words well. I wrote this post three different ways but none of them said what I really wanted to say. I wrote this post three different ways all leading me to the same question; where are the students’ voices in our professional development?

Where are the voices of those we say we need to reach?

Because if they are not speaking to teachers as we prepare for yet another year. If they are not on our committees. If they are not at some of staff meetings. If they are not there speaking to us throughout the year, then who are we really preparing for?

That’s it.

PS: In my district today at our vision conference, we had a student-led panel for an hour and half talking about the good and bad in their education. The whole afternoon was then spent reacting to what the students said. I have learned more today about being a good teacher then I have at many conferences. And that quote at the top came from one of our students today.

PPS: To see all of the surveys I use with students and parents to get to know them better, go here.

being me, books, Literacy, Reading

10 Picture Books that Spark Empathy

August 10, 2015 Pernille Ripp

To find more information about the August 10 for 10 Picture Book and see all of the amazing posts go to the hosts’ sites: Cathy Mere at Reflect & Refine and Mandy Robek at Enjoy and Embrace Learning.

I had a hard time picking which type of list to make today. Should I do one on laugh out loud picture books? One on wordless? How about those that make us cry? Yet, I kept coming back to this list; the one that stuck with me the longest; the picture books that spark empathy. These are the ones that leave my students speechless at times, other times eager to discuss. The ones that stick with us throughout the year that push us to think about our actions and become better people. Those were the ones I wanted to highlight today.

I have long loved The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson for its straightforward story of two girls living on either side of a fence and yet many miles apart. For some of my students this is territory they have not gone into yet, so the conversations about race, our history, and even what is happening now in our world abound.

I don’t remember how I came upon The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig. My guess is that someone shared it on their blog, so thank you to them. This story so beautifully encapsulates what it means to feel invisible and every time I have used it with students it has led to deep conversations. We read this more than once so we can pay attention to the illustrations as well.

Students immediately fall in love with Pete & Pickles by Berkeley Breathed for the illustrations but then come back again and again for the story of an unlikely friendship between a pig and an elephant. This is a must read aloud at any age. (ANd truly they all are).

It has been established already that Peter H. Reynolds is a creative genius. I have loved all of his books since the first time I read them. This book, I’m Here, is one that doesn’t get a lot of attention standing next to The Creatrilogy, but it should. It’s eloquent story about a boy who feels so all alone is one that will settle into the hearts of students.

Thea, my kindergartner, came home and told me that I had to get this book about a big red crayon. Okay…. I thought. But she was right, Red – A Crayon’s Story by Michael Hall was one that I had to read aloud to my 7th graders. And then we had to discuss what it meant staying true to one’s own nature as well as facing the pressures of others. I swear this book was written for middle schoolers and not young children secretly.

It is a celebration in my life whenever the talented Ame Dyckman comes out with a new picture book and Wolfie the Bunny was definitely a cause for celebration. This book about assumptions and what they can lead to has not only made my students laugh outloud, but more importantly, has led us to question our own assumptions about others.

I have Bluebird by Bob Staake on many favorite picture book lists, and there is a reason for that. The shock on my students faces when we get to that page. The questions, the discussion when I step out of the way are priceless. This is a wordless picture book which also means that my students love interpreting the ending.

I cried when I read aloud The One and Only Ivan so it only seems fitting that I cried when I read out loud Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla by Katherine Applegate. My students love to ask questions after this book, they love to talk about their own animals, what they would do to save others.

I read this book out loud to all 5 of my 7th grade classrooms. It was astounding how similar the reaction was; disbelief, outrage, questions and perhaps a tear or two shed by me. This story Malala, A Brave Girl from Pakistan/Iqbal, A Brave Boy from Pakistan by Jeanette Winter is one that will stay with you for a long time. This is sure to elicit conversations and calls for action.

I always seem to cheat on these posts and never stick to just 10, so for my 10th pick I will give you several instead. All of these are worthy of being read aloud and discussed. We need more empathy in this world, I am so glad these authors give us a chance to do just that.