teachers – Pernille Ripp

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.

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.

Be the change, being a teacher, believe, choices, MIEExpert15, teachers

We Are the Experts on Our Students

July 9, 2015 Pernille Ripp

I don’t remember when I started speaking up as a teacher. When my words no longer burned in my skull, my mouth tightly closed. When I finally had the courage to raise my hand and give my opinion and then wait and see what would happen. But I do remember how it felt; terrifying. My cheeks flamed red, all eyes on me. In my mind you could have heard a pin drop. Time slowed until someone else jumped in. Yet, in reality, it was probably not a big moment. Not something etched into history, nor remembered by the masses. So why is it we are so afraid to claim our expertise as teachers, ask questions, and speak up for the students we teach?

We seem to have no problem being told what to do as teachers. Whether we are a product of the teaching conditions we endure, or we simply don’t think our opinions have value, we mostly keep silent when it comes to new programs, new initiatives, and new decisions. We assume that everyone understands our students and thus the decisions being made will always benefit them. But we all know that that is not always true. And yet we wait for others to tell us what to do, so that we can follow their path. Instead of carving out our own, instead of adding our voice.

The thing is, we are the experts on the kids we teach. Not the amazing administrators we may work with. Not the consultant brought in or the outside expert. We are. And we need to speak up when things are not going to be in the best interest of those children. We need to at least offer our opinion, our advice, and then be allowed to adapt for the very students we teach.

If we know our facts. If we know our craft. If we know our research then we too are experts. Then our voices matter as well. But you have to allow yourself to have your voice heard. You have to trust yourself in adapting programs to make them work for the kids you teach. You have to allow yourself to ask questions, suggest modifications, create change so that the very students we are entrusted to teach will get the best learning experience.

Don’t wait for others to claim you are an expert, claim it yourself. Give yourself the same value that you place on your students. You know what is best for kids, so trust that. Stop creating more barriers than there needs to be because their future depends on you.

H/T to Jess Lifshitz and her early morning talks.

being a teacher, Passion, teachers

Before You Give Up On “Those” Teachers

June 29, 2015 Pernille Ripp

We have all heard of them; those teachers. Those teachers with their negativity. Those teachers with their fixed mindset. Those teachers that don’t like children, that don’t like change, that will always, always be the one who says no. Those teachers are at every school, often with the strongest voices, often with the most power. And we cannot wait for them to quit.

Yet, before we give up on those teachers, before we push them out, write them off, and definitely talk behind their back, stop for just a minute. Because those teachers had a dream once. Those teachers came into this profession wanting to inspire, to change, to create. They didn’t come to be the naysayers or the ones that brought us down. They came into this profession wanting to be the very best teachers they could be. To reach every kid and truly make a difference. To be the type of teacher that kids don’t forget, that leave their door open,and that try to and try and try. And yet, along the way something happened. And that something changed them at their very core. Changed their dreams and their optimism. Changed them to become something they never thought thy would be.

And here’s the thing. We will never know what that something is for a person. We will never know how many times they stood up and fought until to be broken down. We will never know how many times they were told to find their place, stay quiet, and keep their dreams to themselves. We will never know what path they walked to take them where they are now.

So before you give up on those teachers take a moment and ask; why did you become a teacher? What was your dream? What happened and what can I do?

Because those teachers are just like us, they just got a little lost. They don’t need to be pushed out, they need to be re-found. So do your share, don’t give up, because just like we continue to find new ways to reach all students, we need to find ways to reach all teachers.

aha moment, being a teacher, being me, end of year, teachers

To All the Teachers Who Cared This Year

June 9, 2015June 9, 2015 Pernille Ripp

5 days into kindergarten, my oldest daughter declared that she hated school. With all of the anger she could muster, which was remarkably quite a bit, she stomped her foot, scrunched up her face and told me that school was not for her after all because her teacher hated her and she was done. I chalked it up to her being tired. When on the 6th day, and the 7th, and the 8th, she told me that she still didn’t like school, and on the 9th she told me she had a stomach ache, I knew we had a problem.

It wasn’t that I thought that her school was bad. It was not that her teacher did hate her but in her mind, her reality, this was the truth she lived. And once that idea had set in, she was done. So 3 weeks into the school year of her very first year we open enrolled her in my district and Thea started kindergarten once again. I swear I have held my breath since then. Yesterday, she proudly showed me her kindergarten memory book and my breath caught for a moment when I saw what she had written. Under her most favorite thing she had written “Going to school.” And then I knew that I had to give thanks.

So to the teacher that loved my little girl so much that she cried on the night before the last day; thank you. I know how much you tried, I know much you cared. I know how many hours you worked, and how much time you spent thinking about all of those kids you taught. I know that there were days where I am sure you wanted to pull your hair out, we all have those days, but I also know that Thea told me that you were always happy. That no matter what you were happy to see her and she loved you for it.

You may not know, but that smile you put on your face, those little conversations that you had, the stories you told of your own adventures; those are what she told us about every single day. Those times you got silly, those times you held them to high expectations, she told us about that too. Every day a new story, every day a new memory. And so when she told me that she didn’t want any other teacher ever again, I knew that I would never have enough words to tell you how grateful we are. She hated school. You changed that. She faked stomach aches, threw fits, and cried those big fat tears, but you changed that. That is why great teachers matter. That is why people like you are so important for all of our kids.

So to all you teachers who cared this year. From this parent, who happens to be a fellow teacher, thank you. Thank you for putting in the time. Thank you for caring. Thank you for dedicating all of your emotional energy because you cared so very deeply for all of our kids. Thank you for inventing, for making, for creating. For giving students voices. For not giving up. For hugging. For listening and for seeing all of the kids for who they are. For giving hope, and for giving consequences. For making kids believe that they could achieve, even when the world was against them.

They say it takes a village to raise a kid, but honestly, sometimes it just takes one person. A person who sees your crazy amazing kid exactly for who they are and doesn’t think that something is wrong with them but instead tells them to be proud of who they are. So to Mrs. Huenink; the world needs more teachers like you so that more kids like mine can feel that they matter and that school is actually a place for them. Thank you.

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.

aha moment, being a teacher, being me, MIEExpert15, teachers

If My Mother Had Listened to My Teacher

January 11, 2015 Pernille Ripp

If my mother had listened to my teacher she would have realized what a horrible child I was. How I should be kept away from others. How I should not be with children my own age because I would corrupt them. How I was doomed to live a life of solitude because no one was safe around me.

She didn’t.

If my mother had listened to my teacher she would have realized how little imagination I had except for the morose. That my stories lacked depth, that my personality was dull. That writing was not my strength but something I could maybe get through if I just understood what it meant to follow the rules a bit more.

She didn’t.

If my mother had listened to my teacher she would have realized that I was far too outspoken. That I never put my hand down and I needed to learn to be silent. That yes having an opinion was great but listening was better. That it didn’t always pay off to fight for what you believed in if it meant disrupting the peace.

She didn’t.

If my mother had listened to my teacher she would have realized that there was something wrong with me. That I was special but not in a good way. That I may be smart but I didn’t use it for anything good. That other children couldn’t learn from me. That I needed to hide what I knew so that others wouldn’t find me odd.

She didn’t.

If my mother had listened to my teacher she would have realized that I had spunk. That I had nerve. That I had worth. She would have realized that I was creative, that I was a hard worker even if I couldn’t get something. That I was smart. That I had friends, that I could be a leader. That although I was not quite the person I wanted to be yet, that some day I would get there.

She did, because she already knew those things. I was the one that didn’t.

There are so many things that we tell parents every day, what will be the things that they choose not to listen to? What will be the things that a child carries with them the rest of their life?

I am a passionate teacher in Oregon, Wisconsin, USA, 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. I have no awards or accolades except for the lightbulbs that go off in my students’ heads every day. First book “Passionate Learners – Giving Our Classrooms Back to Our Students” can be purchased now. Second book“Empowered Schools, Empowered Students – Creating Connected and Invested Learners” is out now from Corwin Press. Follow me on Twitter @PernilleRipp.

reflection, teachers

When Do We As Parents Have a Right to Speak Up?

June 1, 2013 Pernille Ripp

image from icanread

The last many Saturday’s have been spent watching Theadora try to do gymnastics. With every glance our way, every smile, every shriek I can see just how excited she is. Yet it is not just her I see though, every Saturday I have also watched her gymnastics teacher and seen how her style affects Thea. You can call her style it nonchalant at best; she models a move once and then steps off to the side letting the kids try it, never once modeling it again. While Thea tries her hardest most of the time her move looks little like the one just shown and I wonder if she will ever be able to get it if the teacher doesn’t teach better. Yet I keep my mouth shut feeling like it is not my place to say anything about how my daughter would learn best because the teacher is a professional and surely must know what she is doing, right?

It is not that the teacher is bad, she isn’t, she just isn’t that great either but I let it slide because it is “just gymnastics” and I hold back because I don’t want to be THAT parent who knows better. That parent that corrects or advises, all in the best interest of their child. Yet every Saturday I really want to be that parent. While gymnastics is not life altering, Thea starts 4K in September, putting her with teachers that will mold her for the rest of her life, and that leaves me wondering.

So I wonder when do we as parents speak up for our child? When do we let a teacher know that there are better ways to teach? I think being a teacher and a parent puts us at distinct disadvantage because we know how it feels when a parent tries to steer us in a new direction, and so because we are teachers should we just keep our mouths shut if it is not “that bad?” Perhaps we are just too nice overall to anyone that teaches because we know how it feels?

A recent post by Josh Stumpenhorst has made me ponder just how nice we are as a teachers. We like to say that we are all great teachers and we certainly don’t ever tell a teacher we know that they should change. But I wonder; why not? Being nice to someone isn’t going to make them a better teacher, they are just going to think they are and then who are we helping?

So when do we step in and try to guide? How bad does it have to be? Do we keep our mouth shut until it gets really bad or is there a way to tactfully help?