being me – Page 32 – Pernille Ripp

Have You Submitted Your EdScape Proposal Yet?

July 23, 2015 Pernille Ripp

I first heard about EdScape a few years back when my Twitter feed exploded with knowledge during the weekend of the conference. For years I have wanted to go and be a part of this conference created by the amazing Eric Sheninger, but life seemed to continually get in the way. Well, this year is my year. Not only do I get to go to EdScape and learn with educators from all over the USA, I also am honored to be the opening keynote speaker.

So why should you come join me October 17th in New Jersey? Because this amazing conference is an incredible space for learning, allowing us all to not just be inspired but also to come away with tangible things to do as we change education. Because this conference is a one day don’t-want-to-miss event. Because during lunch there will be an EdCamp. Because this conference is $35 to attend – yup $35. Even better, if you present, your registration is free,

So if you have an idea that you would love to share. If you love presenting and meeting people. If you want to come and inspire as well as be inspired, come to Edscape. Submit your proposal before August 15th because I hope that you come and learn with me, I hope you come and share your amazing ideas, I hope that we can connect. I know I cannot wait.

To submit your proposal, go here

To register for the conference, go here

To see more about this amazing event, go here

aha moment, being me, books, Literacy, MIEExpert15, Passion, Reading

6 Simple Ideas to Get Kids to Read

July 22, 2015July 22, 2015 Pernille Ripp

Loving reading, loving books, being a reader, and finding your own books to share are central goals in our 7th grade English classroom. And I spend every waking moment at times it seems trying to find ways for students to find that special book that will make them feel like they are a reader. I spend hours planning, prepping, buying books, and yes, reading them to make sure that I am the best teacher possible for all of my many students. Yet, sometimes we do not need a lot of time, nor a lot of work to inspire a love of reading. So behold, these are my 6 simplest ideas for getting students to fall (a little bit more) in love with reading.

Public Display of Book Affection

I believe in public displays of book affection every single day and on every surface allowable. When students enter into our team area (Go sharks!), they are greeted this year with our giant poster wondering how many picture books we can read in a year (Thanks Jillian Heise for the idea). They can also see what I am reading, as well as what my team is reading. In our room, there are books everywhere. Many are faced out and the displays change depending on our mood. Books are everywhere. Book love is everywhere. I take great pride and care in showing that books are central to our world. There is no willy-nilly displays allowed.

The 1 Minute Book Talk

I will start most classes with a 1 minute book talk highlighting the book I just finished, a book I cannot wait to read, or a book that I purchased for the classroom. As the year progresses I hope to hand this over to students. But think about it? 180 days equals 180 books talks. That’s a lot of exposure. since I have 5 English classes, there will be 5 different book talks every day. Once done, they go on the whiteboard ledge for anyone to grab.

The Repeated Question

I always ask students, current and former, what they are reading. Even when we are not in class. That constant focus on literacy coupled with the innate expectation that they are reading means that students start to think of their answer before they see me. And those that don’t read? Well, this question opens up to a discussion of why not and I can usually sneak them a book recommendation or two as we talk.

The Pushy Book Handler

I am always handing books to students (and colleagues too). Books do not get read by sitting on your shelf. Books do not get discovered by being in a bin. They get discovered and read by someone picking them up, flipping through them, and perhaps reading a few words. So we have to physically hand books to students if we want them to get excited. We do monthly (or sometimes weekly) book shopping in our classroom where piles of great books await the students. With their “To Be Read” list in hand, they take five minutes to browse the piles and find new books to read.

The Getting Out of the Way Trick

Easy access and check out to books is a must. Donalyn Miller and Teri Lesesne told us at ILA that if books are across the hallway they are too far away. We need classroom libraries in every room, not just the English classroom. We needs books at the fingertips of our students so that at any moment they can be inspired to reach out and find a new text. Books are not a distraction, they are a necessity in our classrooms and should be treated as such. This is also why I don’t have a check out system really. To see more about how I organize my classroom library, see this post.

The Guest Book Shopper

If you have that one child that will not read. If you have that one child that keeps reading that one book and not because they love it so much. If you have that one kid that never likes anything you have to offer, this is a great way to spark an interest in them. Simply hand them a book catalog. Get them on Amazon. Take them to a book store if you can and ask them to select a few books. Before the books arrive get them excited about their impending arrival. And then when they get make it a priority to get them to the student that day. It is a matter of urgency now that the books are here, so they should find their home right away.

Those are my top 6 ideas. Very simple indeed and take very little time. What are yours?

I am a passionate teacher in Oregon, Wisconsin, USA but originally from Denmark, 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. The second edition of my first book “Passionate Learners – How to Engage and Empower Your Students” is available for pre-order now. Second book“Empowered Schools, Empowered Students – Creating Connected and Invested Learners” is out now from Corwin Press. Join our Passionate Learners community on Facebook and follow me on Twitter @PernilleRipp.

being a teacher, being me, Student

If You Don’t Love the Kids

July 19, 2015 Pernille Ripp

I did not love school as a child. I went. Did my work. Spent time with my friends. Followed the directions and did my homework, mostly. I did not hate school as a child. It simply didn’t have enough significance for me to garner much of my emotion. School was something you did, not something you loved.

Yet, as a teacher, I love school. I love the feeling of coming into my classroom in the early morning hush waiting for the students to fill it. I love the deserted hallways after the last bell has rung and the remnants of forgotten pencils remind us that the kids were just here. I love the ideas. I love the creativity. The freshly sharpened pencils, the unused pens, the brand new books that are crying out to be read. The camaraderie that exists in my school, the stories that are shared, the laughing, the tears, and even the frustration when we just can’t seem to get that one thing right. I love the passion that goes into creation a community. But most of all, I love the kids.

I love the kids and their faith in us that this year will be incredible. I love the kids and how raw they can be, daring us to believe in them when they have stopped believing in themselves. I love the kids and their uncovered stories, their attempts at fitting in, and the way they secretly look for guidance even when they try to push us away.

I love the kids because if I didn’t I shouldn’t be teaching.

I love the kids because my job as a teacher is not to love the learning, the teaching, or the content. It is to passionately believe that the kids I get to be with have something amazing to give to the world. All of them. And so as we prepare ourselves for a new year here in the United States, I hope that we all keep in mind that we are here for the kids. That school is about the kids. Not us. That we became teachers not to kill the love of learning, but to protect it. So if you don’t love the kids, please take a moment to think about what you should be doing. Take a moment to reconsider. Teaching isn’t about us, it is about them. And we start from a place of love.

being a teacher, being me

To the Girl Who Wrote Last Night

July 17, 2015 Pernille Ripp

Dear you,

This morning I woke up in St. Louis, ready and excited to present at yet another conference, wondering if I would ever get over my nerves. I quick jumped on my email and couldn’t believe what you had sent me. That long of an email. SO many words. I quick skimmed it to make sure you were okay and then sat down and couldn’t believe what you wrote.

As teachers, and particularly of 7th graders, we don’t know whether what we do matters. Whether what we try with you actually makes a difference. Half the time I felt crazy last year trying to make you and everyone else feel like you were part of a community and that I cared about you. Half the time I felt the eye rolls follow me home, sure that I was not good enough to be your teacher. So thank you. Thank you for not giving up on me as a teacher. Thank you for letting me in to your world, for trusting me, for thinking that I had worth because there were days that I felt like I was the worst teacher in the world.

I am so proud of you and who you are. You have so much to offer to the world, so much creativity to unleash, and I am so thankful that I get to be a tiny part of your life’s journey. I, too, miss school, which is weird, but mostly I miss you students. I miss our every day. Our inside jokes. Our routine, our stories, our moments that took my breath way. I can’t believe that I have to start all over with new kids, start from the bottom again, and only see you guys in the hallway. Yet, that’s what we do as teachers, we put our hearts out there so that you kids have a chance at knowing that you matter, that someone cares about you, even when you don’t seem to care about yourself. So thank you for giving me your words and letting me in. For sending that letter last night. I have been telling the world about my amazing 7th graders, and you were one of them. I have hared your words hoping that others will see the truths that bestowed me with. Hoping that together we can change our schools. I am so incredibly grateful that I got to be your teacher. You will never know how much that title means to me, even after you leave OMS and move into the world.

Love,

Mrs. Ripp

being me, Passion, questions

Where Are All of the Female Leaders?

July 14, 2015July 14, 2015 Pernille Ripp

where are

One of the most asked questions I get wherever I go is; how do you do it all? And by all they mean be a mother, wife, teacher, author, and speaker and still seem somewhat normal. Not dazed, not frazzled, not crazy. I wish I had an amazing answer or a magical formula that would somehow give me more hours in the day and peace of mind to the person asking. But I always answer honestly; I don’t. There’s a balance and sometimes that balance shifts one way or another, but I never lose track of what is most important. Yet, the many times I have been asked that question, I cannot help but wonder; how many times has that same question been asked to my male counterparts? To those male educators that seem to have a million things going on as well. Do they get asked how they do it all, or is it just a female question?

I ask, because this post does not have inspiration or answers, but it does have a lot of questions that I am hoping you will discuss with me. Because I have started to notice that there seems to be a double standard when it comes to female educators in leadership. That females who lead in some capacity are always assumed to be sacrificing something for that leadership, whether it be time with their husband, time with their kids, or time from their job. And that supposed sacrifice means that we should feel guilty (which trust me I do) and at some point we need to apologize for the fact that we sacrificed something in the first place. That we are not supposed to sacrifice time with our children to further our own learning. That we are supposed to become leaders only after our children go to college, not whenever we want to. (Just to make clear, I have no issue with women who choose to wait until later in life, I do take issue with being told I should wait). Not while they live at home. That we tend to say no to opportunities presented to us because we feel bad, and boy, are we good at feeling bad.

So I wonder if this is just a female thing? Do males get asked how they do it all? Are they supposed to feel guilty when they leave their families behind to pursue a leadership opportunity? Or am I biased because I am obviously a female myself.

It is not just because I wonder about the whole notion of feeling guilty when we are away. More importantly though, I wonder if this guilt is stopping us from speaking up, from going to conferences, from taking leadership positions that we know will swallow more of our time? Are we creating a barricade to strong female leadership ourselves? Because it seems like everywhere I go, males are dominating a lot of the leadership roles still. And it can’t just be me, I cannot be the only one noticing this. So I wonder; where are all of the female educational leaders?

Because I am surrounded by them in my daily life. I am surrounded by them at my school, in my district, in my network of people. And yet, the minute we are asked to point out leaders, how many times do our fingers point to males? How many times when we see a new initiative being pushed out is there few females involved? How many pictures of leadership meetings feature mostly males? And what are we doing about it?

So what happens to those women who want to be more than “just” a teacher? “Just” a principal? Are there enough opportunities out there for them? Are we holding ourselves back or is it a societal thing where conference committees, editors, and other people with opportunities tend to gravitate toward males rather than females because there is an assumption that women don’t want these opportunities? Why in a profession that is mostly female are most leaders still male? Did we do it to ourselves? Or am I completely wrong here?

PS: Kaye and Leah, this one’s for you.

aha moment, Be the change, being me, learning, lessons learned, teachers

Try To Be You

July 13, 2015 Pernille Ripp

I have been surrounded by greatness for a while now it seems. It has been awe-inspiring to hear the stories of what amazing educators are doing in their schools as I go to conferences. It has been profound to see the supposed ease with which some of my colleagues at Oregon Middle School navigate their days. I am not there yet, I don’t know if I will ever be.

So this past year has been one of inspiration, but it has also been one of frustration. I have left many conversations wondering why I am not doing that, why I didn’t think of that. Read a book and wondered how I can become that teacher. Heard a speaker and wondered what I need to change to be them. And yet, tonight I realized that I will never be someone else. That when I try to be someone else that I lose the very essence that makes me me. That when we try to imitate, even the best ideas, they will never fully be what we hope for them to be but only shadows of the original.

So do be inspired this summer. Read a book, start a conversation, go to a conference and meet amazing people. Learn from them. Create with them. But don’t try to be them. You never will be. I never will be. We can only be ourselves so change accordingly. Find ideas that will inspire you to be a better teacher but don’t try to be someone else. It will never work, our students will see right through it. Instead make a vow to better yourself, trust your own ideas, and know that you, you are amazing too. You may just not have discovered it yet.