assumptions, hopes, inspiration, personality, students, teaching, vision

Which Lens Do You View the World With?

Pernille Ripp

We choose how we view the world, a line taken from an excellent post recounting a mother whose daughter has autism speaking to a group of MIT professors. Think about it for a moment, it is a quite deep sentence, we choose how we view to world…

Now flip that to your classroom, your school, your community; we also choose how we view these. Do we come to school with dark colored lenses where no matter what our students do, it is simply not good enough? Are our lenses wonky where we end up treating our students unequally? Is one eye closed to the world so we only see one side of the story? Or do we wear rose-colored lenses so that the world always seems bright and cheerful?

My lenses are clear, therein lies no fog. I view the world every day with a slight rosy tint to it but clear nonetheless. And more importantly, my lenses work both ways; they view the world and they view myself. I am always checking, readjusting and cleaning off my lens, so that whomever I encounter gets a clear view and not one tinted by perception. Is it time you clean your lenses?

being a teacher, community, difference, hopes, self

We are Not Born Selfish

Pernille Ripp

As I watch my daughter interact, I realize that we are not born selfish. Instead we become it as our lives turn into one long competition for more, bigger, better. This can be seen in school where many teachers suffer under constant business or stress, and if they are not suffering from it, they are a rarity. I used to be one of those teachers, too busy to even think some time, until I realized that by projecting this frantic persona, I was being selfish.

When you are constantly busy, or claiming to be, you shut yourself off to others. People realize that you will not be able to help, because you are too busy; you will not give them that precious time they may need, because you have too much to do. This is detrimental to furthering personal connections. When people stay out of your way because you are frantic, they often do not come back.

So when you return to school, make a conscious effort to turn off your busyness. Instead open yourself up to others. When someone approaches you for help or an extra hand, give it to them, even if it interferes with prep time. This small gesture of giving time fosters goodwill in your environment. When we actively help others, they notice and they in turn may help others as well. We all know that helping breeds helping, so why not live it? I know we are busy, all people are, but it is how we choose to deal with that busyness that makes the difference. So remember that doing something that may seem inconvenient to you may make a huge difference to someone else. Don’t be selfless but be less selfish.

balance, being a teacher, hopes, inspiration

Have You Balanced Your Account?

Pernille Ripp

This year it will be all about balance for me.   The accounts of our life have to be balanced and mine seem a bit unbalanced at the moment.  I have started this incredible blogging adventure, well-knowing that I then chose to give some of my precious time to this investment.  And it has certainly paid off in big ways.  However, whenever I choose to give my time somewhere, I am taking it away from somewhere else.

So as I continue this learning journey, I am resetting my calculations, deciding how big of a percentage of time each big category will have.  These categories are the thread of our lives, the love, the drive, the inspiration.  Those memories we carry with us, the ones that us feel like we have lived.  So I look forward to taking stock, reinvesting where I need to, and diminishing where I must.  It has to add up to 100% since there is only so much of me, so much of time, so much of life to be lived.

Are your accounts balanced?

being a teacher, inspiration, lessons learned, students

Not More Resolutions but Renewals Instead

Pernille Ripp

It is indeed a new year, resolutions abound, and people fell eager, excited, rejuvenated, and ready to change their lives.  I am one of these people as well that truly views a new year as a time for transformation, a time to renew vows made to oneself, to reflect, and to reevaluate.

I, too, made a resolution, a small one to save more money for traveling, but that is it.  Professionally, I have quite a few resolutions going on already, as my husband reminds me, such as limiting homework, throwing out grades, student blogging, and my fun new blog for sharing lesson and.  So yes, I have a full load, but a fun one.

So instead of a resolution, I decided to remember the goals I have already made for the year.  We get so busy with piling new ones on, that we can forget about the awesomeness of the old ones.  So the goals I renew to myself are, in no particular order:

– Remember they are all of our children. There is no such thing as just “your” students anymore, make yourself visible to all, and treat them all as if they did indeed belong to you, because they really do.

– Question yourself. Why do you do the things that you do in your classroom? Why do you teach this way?

– Take time to discover your passion. Your passion may be apparent to you but to some people it isn’t, however, if you don’t give yourself the gift of time to really reflect, how will you ever discover that you love zombies, technology, and Neil Gaiman?

– Give the gift of now. Be present wherever you are, whether it be in your classroom, with your family, or in the car. Give that moment in time the honor of being there fully, even though that may be hard, it is worth it in the long run.

– Reach out to others. Whether it be through Twitter, your PLN, or staff members, use them, reflect with them, and praise them. These are the people that will support, encourage, and challenge you on a regular basis, these are the people that will raise you up.

– And finally, don’t survive it – live it!

internet safety, technology

Why the Internet is Like the Mall

Pernille Ripp
Image from here



Another cross posting from my other blog, this one has taken on a life of its own, with others putting their own spin on it.  When we discuss internet safety, it is vital that we are able to relate it to students’ lives, so that they can understand that being behind a computer does not mean that they are protected.  While I am not in the business of scaring students, there are plenty of other ways that can happen, we can stress the importance of proper behavior.  And thus this lesson came about; linking the internet to going to the mall.


I believe in the importance of honest conversation with the kids, where they supply the answers, rather than me hitting them over the head with it.  I simply started out this lesson by writing the words “Internet Safety” on my whiteboard and turned to the kids.  They volunteered what these words meant to them and then I ventured into the mall analogy; so what would they do to stay safe at the mall if their parents dropped them off?  


Some of the students answers were

  • That they would not talk to strangers
  • Give anyone their information if approached
  • Go only to the place they were supposed to
  • And they wold go straight there, rather than take detours or stop at other places 
  • They wouldn’t give their money to strangers



By having the students provide the safety rules, taken from their own memory of rules drilled into their heads by their formidable parents, they connected real life danger with things that can happen on the internet.  Sometimes students think they are safe on the net, as we all know, and this brought the responsibility home for them.  


So as we continue learning proper safety and etiquette, we will keep referring back to the mall analogy, for example, would you walk up to a friend and tell them their outfit was ugly when talking about how to comment?  Today was one of those moments where I was able to make students understand something they have to learn in this day and age.  A lesson not just meant for 4th graders or 5th graders but hopefully something they will keep in the back of their minds when they go on the internet themselves, or maybe even next time they go to the mall.  Once again today I realized how huge my responsibility is for these kids and how glad I am to be their teacher.  

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being a teacher, Lesson Planning, New Adventure

A New Adventure Begins

Pernille Ripp

With the start of a new brilliant year, I am excited to unveil my new blogging adventure:  Lessons from the Fourth Dimension, a blog dedicated to sharing lesson plans and resources in my classroom.  While I teach 4th grade, these plans are meant for anyone to use and adapt to suit their needs.

I have been inspired by so many people, so this is my way of trying to give something back.  Thank you so much for your support on this blog, I hope you enjoy this new adventure.