reflection – Page 22 – Pernille Ripp

We Must Be the First to Stop the Labels

July 11, 2013August 18, 2015 Pernille Ripp

Right after birth

Brandon was the first to notice it. Moments after delivery, he asked the nurse, “What’s that on his face?” and he pointed to my newborn perfect little baby boy’s face and then waited. The nurse looked at it and said “Probably a port-wine stain…” At the moment I didn’t think much of it, perhaps it was a bruise like the doctor said, perhaps it was a strawberry birthmark that would go away, but a port-wine – probably not.

The next day we had the verdict, yes, that nurse was right and he would need to go see a dermatologist quickly because of its placement. (For those that do not know what a port-wine stain is, it is is birthmark that continues to grow as it fills with blood leaving the skin disfigured and dark purple as a person ages.) Later we were told that because of the placement on his face, we had to get treatment or the further growth of the birthmark would pull his skin up into his nose and away from his teeth, meaning he would have a harder time breathing and eating.

But that night in the hospital, all I could see were two little babies who needed me.

Yet, now 3 years, I realize how often I stare at that birthmark. How often I wonder what his face would be without it? I know that in the scheme of things this is incredibly minor, a mark that treatment will hopefully help (so far it has helped very little). And yet, it catches my eye too often and I realize that I have to be able to look past it. That his face is still beautiful, that he is still perfect, that I did not do something wrong during my pregnancy. That the world may judge him based on this mark, and that I therefore need to be the first champion of him, his rock if he ever needs it.

I think to the children in our classrooms that come to us with labels, whether physical or emotional ones. That come to us with people’s eyes already upon them, expectations different somehow because of either choices made or things out of their control. I think of those children and how I have to be their biggest champion at school, how I have to be the one that looks past everything and sees them for the whole kid they are. Not whatever the world would rather categorize them as. I have to be their rock if they ever need it. I owe it to them and I owe it to Oskar.

For a long time, I didn’t post pictures to Facebook of Oskar right after treatment, he looks much like a prize fighter after the laser has done its work. I didn’t want people to see how bad he looked, how much pain he had gone through. I didn’t want him to be judged. Now, though, I know that he does not care. That he still has a life to explore whether I can see past this birthmark or not. That he will not be stopped by something out of his control and neither should I be. My little boy is perfect, this is the way he was made, and no, I didn’t do anything wrong in my pregnancy to cause it. He bears no label as long as I do not create one for him. And neither should any of our students.

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.

Be the change, reflection, student choice

Our Classrooms Don’t Have To Be Perfect To Be Wonderful

June 29, 2013July 24, 2013 Pernille Ripp

image from icanread

Smeared glitter paint greets me as I step into Thea’s room and my heart drops a little. As I cautiously make my way through her piles of things, I spot more evidence of an artistic explosion scattered throughout the room. A drenched fluff ball there. Some brushes here. Finally, in the corner sits the artist herself; beaming as she turns to me and says, “Mama, isn’t it beautiful – it is for you!” She hands me a large, dripping wet, glitterfied painting in pink and purple shades and I bite my tongue.

I want to tell her she should have asked permission to use those paints. I want to tell her that she should not be painting on her bedroom floor. I want to tell her that she should be wearing her smock and have her hair pulled back. Instead I say, “Yes, I love it!” And I mean it, and I smile, and I hang it on the fridge, proud of what she has made all by herself. The mess we can deal with together.

I think of my classroom, of how I meticulously try to plan our days together. How I try to plan for when the students will create something and how that will be created. Although I give as much choice as I can, I still feel that there needs to be a plan in place. And yet, often the true beauty of a classroom lies within those independent, creative moments. When a child takes it upon themselves to create something beautiful.

We tend to overplan, oversee, and over-manage our students, afraid that if we don’t it will be a big mess. And sure, when students create on their own, it is messy, the room shows evidence of it, and yet, the excitement and pride cannot be emulated by any other activity. The way students show off what they came up with, what they pushed themselves to do cannot be replicated by a prescribed assignment.

So when I advocate student voice and student choice, I think back to Thea, who stands at the beginning of her school career. I hope that her teachers will see the artist she is inside, the creator she carries within her, and will build a classroom where creating, making, and exploring takes center-stage rather than just listening, doing, and producing. I hope Thea, some day, will turn to her teacher and beam with pride as she shows her work, just as my students do, when I step back and let them create.

My classroom on Innovation Day – our favorite day of the year

Be the change, reflection, student voice

We Must Do More Than Just Engage Our Students

June 24, 2013 Pernille Ripp

I recently had the privilege of having a post published on SmartBlog on something I am passonate about: student voice. And while they called it ” How to give students a voice in the classroom” I like my title better, thus the title change.

Those who know me, know that student voice is one of my biggest passions in education. And not just any student voice, but including the voice of my students, all students, in the education that is being done to them every day. And yet, when I discuss student voice, many people assume it is just another quaint term for student engagement. The truth is that it is so much more. Student voice means giving students power to change the way education is happening, to offer them an outlet and an audience, to have their voices heard. To change the way I teach.

I fight every day to include my students in their own educational experience. I fight the standards that tell us that yes, students should participate but here is how. I fight the prescribed curriculum that tells us when to stop and discuss and tells us when to keep on moving because there are too many pages to get through in today’s lesson. I fight the traditional way of teaching where the teacher is in locked control, holds all of the power, holds all of the knowledge and decides how and to whom they dispense these precious droplets. I fight because if I don’t fight, my students don’t stand a fighting chance to have their voice heard either.

So every year, I give the classroom back to my students. Every year, I have them blog, and not just what I ask them to write about but whatever they feel like. Then I give them an audience through #comments4kids and Twitter and anybody else who will listen to the voice of these fifth-graders with their grand ideas. I don’t shy away from hard topics; I don’t shy away from criticism. I cannot grow as a teacher if I do not ask my students how I am doing. How do they feel about the education that they are forced to be a part of? I give the classroom back by asking for their ideas, what their path to learning should look like and then actually incorporating that into how we do things. If lessons are boring, we don’t just get through it; we stop, reflect, and then we change it.

I say all this because it is easier than we think. Giving students a voice is not the hard part in education; listening to it is. You have to realize that when students tell you that something is boring, boring may mean that they just don’t understand, boring may mean that they are having a bad day, and yes, boring may mean that it is putting them to sleep. To facilitate a community where students actually have the guts, because it is indeed about guts here, to tell you how they feel about what you are doing — that is the sign of ultimate success in my classroom. Not the grades, not the test scores, but the kid who raises their hand, looks me in the eye and says, “Excuse me, but could we change this, please?”

So how do you start? First, you give them an outlet. Give them a blog. Kidblog can be set up in less than five minutes. Give them a Twitter account to connect them with others. Set up classroom discussion time. Ask them to make the rules of the classroom. When they criticize; listen and change, discuss their ideas and come to meaningful agreements. Your change will give them the confidence that you are not out to get them. After each unit, ask them what they liked, ask them how it should change. At the end of the year, survey them. What was the best and what was the worst. Ask the tough questions and be prepared for the honest answers. Thank them every time they criticize in a meaningful manner. Thank them every time they come up with a suggestion. Sometimes their change is not doable, but oftentimes it is; be open, be aware, and be a learner alongside them. Ask yourself: Would I like being a student in this classroom? If the answer is no, then figure out where to start with your change.

reflection

If I Were at #ISTE13

June 23, 2013 Pernille Ripp

While life got in the way for me to attend ISTE this year and present on the Global Read Aloud, I cannot help but think what I would do if I were there.

So if I were at ISTE, I would

Probably be totally overwhelmed but loving every minute of it. Big crowds, many people, millions of things to learn = brain overload.
Meet as many people as I could and not just the “important” ones. There seems to be a sort of twitlebrity thing going on at huge conferences which I find odd. Everyone that you meet could be the next big thing so why not treat them that way?
Talk less, listen more… I mean actually listen, not just pretend to listen until it is my turn to talk. (Thank you Jen)
Go to sessions I know nothing about. I tend to go to things that I kind of know something about but I think this time it would be all about discovering the unknown.
Go to hear about things I don’t agree with. I admit that I often shelter myself from opposing viewpoints once I have formed an opinion, after all, I am merely human, but here would be m opportunity to go and listen to why people do some things that I would never ever do.
Say thank you to the people who create the things I use. Thank you to KidBlog for creating the best blogging platform for my students, thank you to SimpleK12 for believing in me, to Edutopia for giving us all a platform to share, to Edmodo for making the behind the scens stuff so easy to do for the Global Read Aloud.
Be telling people about the Global Read Aloud. I am so proud of this project and how it has grown that I just have to share it with everyone I meet.
Find some alone time. I know that seems counterintuitive to my being overwhelmed comment but sometimes we need to take the time to just think and digest while we are in action.
Remember why I came; to connect and to learn and to be myself. I think sometimes when I meet people I think I need to be something I am not, so this for me would be my chance to be exactly who I am; an extroverted introvert who laughs at strange things and has a strange sense of humor.
Find as many as my #WIAmigos as I possibly can. What can I say bit that they are good group to hang out with!

If you are at ISTE what would you do?

being a teacher, reflection

Building a Team of Teachers

June 20, 2013 Pernille Ripp

I happen to be on an incredible team, and while I have always been on good teams, there is something rather magical about the team I on now. Whether it is sense of humor or mutual respect, I am not sure, but my team, yeah, it jives. Yet we are pretty different and we do different things, some of our major teaching philosophy points differ, and we deliver lessons differently, most of the time that would spell disaster but on this team it doesn’t. So why not?

Mutual respect. I believe my team mates are capable of teaching well and they know that.
We speak to each other. I know this sounds like a “well duh” but I am constantly surprised by how many teams don’t. We are constantly in each others rooms, we have official meetings and unofficial ones. We hang out outside of school, we text each other, and tweet each other. We discuss students, and school sure, but also life and dreams.
We know each others’ strengths. We also know each others’ weaknesses which is just as important I happen to know that Jarod is really good at getting kids passionate about their writing and Mark is a math expert. Both of them have many talents and I use their expertise whenever I can.
We care about the same thing; the kids. We do everything for the kids and we support each other to be the best possible teachers for our particular students. We also switch kids around for math so that all of the 5th grade become our kids. This is huge for us.
We are open to new ideas. I am not afraid to share ideas with these two guys, sometimes they like them, sometimes they don’t. We borrow ideas vigorously and then adapt to fit our class, no hurt feelings if we don’t use something.
We are honest with each other. And that even means if we have differences. I don’t talk poorly about something one of my teammates has done (although I cannot think of what that would be anyway) but if something does irritate we go straight to each other and figure it out.
We hear each other out. My teammates know that I am passionate about the detriment of standardized testing and punishment in classrooms. They also know how I feel about homework, grades, and all of those things that make my classroom a bit different. They always hear me out without judgment and even sometimes see my point. That doesn’t mean it wil work for them and I am ok with that.
Believe in them as professionals. I do not think my team mates are poor teachers because they do not teach like I do. We are so quick to judge others that haven’t gone a more nontraditional route and it leads to strife rather than understanding. I believe every teacher needs to teach in a way that suit them best.
We lead at different times. Mark and Jarod will attest to the fact that I like to be in control at all times, hopefully they will also attest to the fact that i know when to step down as leader. I would say our team has three leaders we all step up at different times for different reasons, that balance is huge. No one feels like they have to do everything and everyone shares the responsibility.
We laugh together a lot. Being a teacher is supposed to bring you joy so when we can we share funny things or just crack each other up. We have enough pressures from the outside, I want to have fun at school with both my students and fellow teachers.
We support each other. When I put on #EdCampMadWI they both showed up. Took the time out of their busy day and came to something because they knew it was important to me. When they saw how much I tweet they didn’t laugh or call it silly, they got it. When I told them I get to have a book published in September they congratulated me. I do the same for them, I am not jealous of their succeses only eager to see them succeed more because it boosts the whole team.

We certainly can teach in our own bubbles. We certainly can keep to ourselves and nt worry about what other people in our grade is doing. But why should we? The power of a team is the same as the power of a global PLN. Why not be surrounded by people who build you up rather than break you down?

PS: If you want to see my teammates, follow them on Twitter: Mark and Jarod (they are still learning…)

Be the change, first week, Reading, reflection, students

So You Want a Reading Classroom – 12 Ideas to Help You

June 17, 2013July 24, 2013 Pernille Ripp

I have always been a passionate reader and this year was no different, what was different though was that I finally unveiled this to my students. I don’t quite know what took me so long. So as I go into my second year as a reading classroom – and by that I mean, a room where reading takes center stage, students cannot wait to read, and there are books being passed around every single day – I am thinking of how to create that. Here are some of my ideas:

Showcase your reading – this year through the inspiration of Jillian Heise I did a Mrs. Ripp reading display. I cannot tell you how many book discussions this sparked with not just my students, but many students who just walked by the room.

Get rid of books – I know this seems so simple but in honesty my classroom library had plenty of books but not a lot of great books. So I weeded more than 100 books last year and then started replenishing as I saw fit.
Invest in great books – I lost count of how much money I poured into books this year and while I wish teachers didn’t have to pay so much out of pocket for things, it seems to be just the way it is. One great thing that happened was that my students would give the classroom giftcards for more books when they saw my passion – now that was awesome.
Give your library space – I have always had a decent sized library but it was more tucked in a corner and not fully getting the attention it deserved. While it is still in a corner, it is nice and open with short shelves and all of the books in labeled bins. I label them by genre, author, or interest, it just depends on the book. Books are easy to find and put back, which I think is a must as well and students take ownership over it. They want it to work well for them so they can spend more time reading.
Give choice – nothing will kill reading faster than constantly requiring students to read certain books. I hate it, my students hate it, so I had to find a way around doing small group instruction without using chapter books. I now use short high-interest articles instead to accomplish the same thing with my students and when they are done they get to read whatever they want.
Challenge them – I love the concept of some sort of a book challenge and am contemplating doing the 40 book challenge by Donalyn Miller. I love the idea that it is not about succeeding or failing but rather pushing yourself as a reader.
Give reading priority– the first thing I would sacrifice in our busy schedule was always independent reading time. Now it is the last thing to go; students crave uninterrupted reading time and many of them need it as a way to work on their skills. All students get this every day, after all, to become a better reader you need to read!
Read great picture books – I have always loved a great picture book but I had never really used them jus to hook kids. Now we start many days with a picture book and then cherish the story-telling. What I discovered is that every picture book can teach us something about reading or writing, thus making them both entertaining and purposeful.
Make it authentic – ask adults; when we read a great book we cannot wait to tell others about it so that they may read it as well. Students are no different, so many of them cannot wait to recommend a book to a classmate or me but you have to give them the time to do it. We did through blog writing, speed book dating – 1 minute book recommendations – and informal conversations. Students always had a to-read list going which made their next book selection so much easier.
Read the books yourself – this is a must for any teacher that want a great reading classroom. You have to read the books! Students need to know whether the book is a great book or not and the person they trust is you. So take the time and read the books; I have and I love discovering all of these incredible books that I need to get into the hands of students.
Talk about it – I book-talk books all the time, I show students my to-read list, I rush in excited about a new book I cannot wait to read and I created the Global Read Aloud. I even created a book review blog so my students can see what I am reading after they leave my classroom. I live the life of a passionate reader! Be a role model for the students and show them that it is okay to really love reading.
Don’t diminish reading – I ask students to read 30 minutes every day outside of school but what they read is completely up to them: magazines, books, websites, or whatever they think. I do not check whether they do it, I assume they do. I do not want them to think that they can only get better at reading by reading what I think is worthy, they need to see the power of any kind of reading (and we need to honor that).
Plant the seed early – I had my students create book bins with favorite books for the incoming 5th graders. These bins will be sitting on their desk the very first day of school and that is what we will start with; a discussion of why reading is the most incredible thing in the world – I cannot wait!