Pernille Ripp's Blog, page 9

Contest: Win a Copy of Give This Book a Title!

One of my favorite book releases this year is from the brilliant and generous Jarrett Lerner, “Give this Book a Title” . Since the pandemic shut us down he has been a major giver, inspiring many to kickstart our creativity with drawing and writing prompts, confidence boosting lessons and ideas, and general awesomeness. As I shared on Instagram, I can’t get over the brilliance of this book.

This book begs to be used with kids (and adults) as we search for ways to help kids draw, write, inspire, and feel like they can add value to the world. With more than 100 activities, you are sure to find something that you can use with your students as we continue to engage with writing, drawing, and playing with words.

As the blurb says, “This collection of fun, open-ended writing and drawing prompts will challenge kids to think and create in new ways with every turn of a page. In the Finish This Comic section, young writers are inspired to write and illustrate a six-panel story. Following How to Draw instructions will encourage kids to find their own drawing styles. Every fun activity and silly prompt will keep young readers engaged and entertained!”

So imagine my surprise when a whole stack of these amazing books showed up at my house yesterday! Turns out Jarrett Lerner thought that perhaps the world could use a few more copies and I couldn’t agree more. So, I have five copies to give away of this incredible book four to educators in the US and one to the rest of the world (I am paying for shipping, thus the wonky numbers). All you have to do to enter is leave a comment (make sure you add your email when you enter it so I can contact you) and let me know what you would use this amazing book for. The contest will run from today to lille juleaften which for all you non-Danes is December 23rd at 8 PM CST.

I cannot wait for more amazing creations to happen because of this great new book but if you don’t win, you should order it!

My Favorite Reads of 2020

While 2020 was a year of great loss, of feeling lost at times, and being distanced, within the pages of books I found hope, refuge, solace, anger to push me further in action, and love. Within the pages of books I was able to move into other worlds, some that were quite frightening while others were meant for dreaming. I don’t know how many books I read, there are nearly 200 favorites on this list, so coming up with my favorite reads of 2020 was an undertaking, after all, these books kept me company in a year that at times I would rather forget. I know I missed many amazing books, so please leave me a comment if you have one to recommend. While this only represents my favorite reads, I read many more, I highlight them on Instagram or on Goodreads as I read them.

While many were brand new books, some were just brand new to me. Either way, there are many books here to potentially check out, to gift from your favorite local independent book store, so in no particular order, here are my favorite reads so far in 2020.

I have gathered the list for shopping purposes at Bookshop.org – a fantastic website that partners with independent booksellers and pays them a higher percentage for anything they sell than Amazon. Please consider ordering the books from Bookshop.org– an independent bookstore that partners with local independent bookstores to sell books or ordering them directly from you local independent book store. You can see the list here and also stay abreast of other lists that I make to showcase our work and reading.

Picture Books







Pre-order for May 2021



Pre-order for April 2021



Pre-order for May 2021



Pre-order for May 2021











































Pre-order for March, 2021















































































































































Early Readers



Bunbun and Bonbon by Jess Keating



Our Friend Hedgehog by Lauren Castillo







Middle Grade



Cat Kid Comic Club by Dav Pilkey



Class Act by Jerry Craft



The Mirror Broken Wish by Julie C. Dao



My Life in the Fish Tank by Barbara Dee



Fish Out of Water by Joanne Levy



The Barren Grounds by David A. Robertson



Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley



All He Knew by Helen Frost



Land of Cranes by Aida Salazar



Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia



The Brave by James Bird



Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron



A Wish in the Dark By Christina Soontornvat



Twins by Varian Johnson and Shannon Wright



Efren Divided by Ernesto Cisnero



Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson



Superman Smashes the Klan by Gene Luen Yang and art by Gurihiru



Clean Getaway by Nic Stone



Once Upon an Eid edited by S.K. Ali and Aisha Saeed



History Smashers – The Mayflower by Kate Messner and Art by Dylan Meconis



From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks



The Moon Within by Aida Salazar



Birdie and Me J.M.M. Nuanez



The List of Things that Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead



Snapdragon by Kat Leyh




They Call Me Güero: A Border Kid’s Poems By David Bowles



Green Lantern Legacy by Mihn Le and Andie Tong



Go With the Flow by Lily Williams and Karen Schneemann



The Only Black Girls in Town by Brandy Colbert



Rick by Alex Gino



Stand Up, Yumi Chung! by Jessica Kim



Trowbridge Road by Marcella Pixley



A High Five for Glenn Burke by Phil Bildner



Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang



The Ghost Collector by Allison Mills



Bloom by Kenneth Oppel



All of Me by Chris Baron



The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate



Hockey Super Six by Kevin Sylvester (Order through a Canadian bookseller and cross your fingers that Scholastic USA publishes it here!)



What Lane? by Torrey Maldonado



City Spies by James Ponti



King and the Dragon Flies by Kacen Callender



When Stars are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed



Witches of Brooklyn by Sophie Escabasse



Young Adult



Flamer by Mike Curato



Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas – pre-order for January 21st, 2021



Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez



Long Way Down – Graphic Novel by Jason Reynolds and art by Danica Novgorodoff



Junk Boy by Tony Abbott



Kate in Waiting by Becky Albertalli pre-order for April, 2021



The Bridge by Bill Konigsberg



This is My America by Kim Johnson



All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson



Again Again by e. lockhart



Not So Pure and Simple by Lamar Giles



Wonder Woman – Tempest Tossed by Laurie Halse Anderson and illustrations by Leila del Duca



What Kind of Girl by Alyssa Sheinmel



Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin



The Revolution of Birdie Randolph by Brandy Colbert



Thirteen Doorways Wolves Behind Them All by Laura Ruby



The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan



Standing Strong by Gary Robinson



Manning Up by Bee Walsh



The Grace Year by Kim Ligget



Golden Arm by Carl Deuker



Check Please! Book 2 – Sticks and Scones by Ngozi Ukazu



Dig by A. S. King



Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas



Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo



Dear Justyce by Nic Stone



Something Happened to Ali Greenleaf by Hayley Krischer



Shine by Jessica Jung



A River of Royal Blood by Amanda Joy



Non-Fiction – All Ages Mixed Together



Lifting as We Climb – Black Women’s Battle for the Ballot Box by Evette Dionne



The Talk – Conversations about Race, Love, & Truth edited by Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson



Apple – Skin to the Core by Eric Gansworth



The Black Friend by Frederick Joseph



Give This Book A Title by Jarrett Lerner



Just Mercy- Adapted for Young People by Bryan Stevenson



All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys Soccer Team



Becoming by Michelle Obama



Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You – A remix by Jason Reynolds



Almost American Girl by Robin Ha



If I Go Missing by Brianna Jonnie



Dreaming in Indian edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale



Urban Tribes – Native Americans in the City edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale



A Stranger at Home by Christy Jordan-Fenton, Margaret Pokiak-Fenton



The Fire Never Goes Out by Noelle Stephenson



No Choirboy: Murder, Violence, and Teenagers on Death Row by Susan Kuklin



This Book is Anti-Racist by Tiffany M Jewell and illustrated by Aurelia Durand



How to be an Antiracist by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi


What about you? What were the books that song to your heart? That you have wanted to share with others? That you think deserve all of the praise, the hugs, the shares, the anger? I know I missed many from the year, so let me know, what should I read next? Happy reading in 2021!

I am excited to get to work with other colleagues around the world doing virtual and in-person coaching collaboration, and consulting right now. If your district or organization would like more information, please see this blog post.

Virtual Book Clubs in Middle School

Tomorrow, our very first virtual book clubs kick off. The project has been an immense puzzle and also quite a time consumer, and yet, I am excited to see these hopefully take off and help the students not only discuss amazing books but also just be together. We have been apart for more than 8 months physically, I hope that this will be a social boost for many and also a meaningful learning opportunity. I am also excited to jump into this inquiry unit as its focus is whether we already live in a dystopian society? I cannot wait to see what the students come up with and how they will expand their questions and answers as the unit progresses.

As we first started to plan for these virtual book clubs back in October, we quickly realized that unlike previous years, there were a lot more moving pieces to consider and that the orchestration would be a lot more immense. After all, we are fully virtual, kids do not come to school, so how would we pull this off?

So I am sharing everything I have here in this blog post in case you find yourself wanting to do virtual book clubs as well but it feels a little unwieldy. Perhaps the behind the scenes work we have done can help you start with them or perhaps you have some amazing ideas of your own to share. Either way, here you, you can make a copy of everything if you want to edit, just give credit. To see what I have done in previous years when we are in regular learning mode, go here.

To select their books – 4 weeks prior.

We knew that selecting and then distributing their books would be the first major hurdle but once again our incredible librarian team were prepared. They already have a safe weekly pick up for books, what we needed to make sure is that they had enough time to pull the books and prepare them for the pick up.

[image error] A slide from their book club choices

I introduced very briefly the unit in early November and then assigned students this slideshow to go through and select their top 5 books. They were asked to please select a book they hadn’t read before and also pick one that would feel manageable to them. Once students had looked through the slideshow, then then filled in this form so that I could start puzzling them together. And puzzle them I did. It took a while to get all of the students into manageable groups (less than five kids) and also to make sure that we had enough books. Our librarian had given us total number of books available for each title and a colleague had taken the time to breakdown how many books each of us would get. We revealed them in class the following week and kids then could email me if for some reason they had ended up with a book they actually didn’t want or if there was another group they would rather be a part of. Only one student did.

New this year is the short story option, we have a few students who are really trying but life is just a lot right now. We wanted to make sure they could also find success and not feel even more overwhelmed with the proposect of reading a long book. We pulled three short stories (The Pedestrian, Harrison Bergeron, and The Perfect Match), one for each week, and then distributed those to students. We will meet on Wednesday’s (our fully asynchronous day) and discuss the stories. I am excited to see if this will work and how the participation will work out.

The following week, students then picked up their books during our three pick up times. If a students was not able to pick up their book, they would get it delivered right to their mailbox. This was a massive undertaking but it worked, I am so grateful to all of the people who made physical book copies possible for the students to have.

Setting Up their Reading Schedules – One week before

Now that students had their books they needed to create reading plans and also set up discussion norms. In class, we had them work through three tasks: 1. Set up their reading plan, 2. Sign up for their discussion time with me, 3. Discuss and add to their norms. This took about 30-40 minutes, a lot longer than it would in class, but that seems to be the normal pace for virtual learning.

Their reading plan document is housed in the Hyperdoc we have created for the students with resources. This is their one stop shop for everything related to their book clubs such as teaching points, rubric, discussion help, meeting times, and reading plan. While it is available to the students, I honestly don’t know how much they will use it and yet having a shared collection of everything they need can only help.

To figure out their reading plan, they all went to this shared document and broke down their book. We reiterated that they shouldn’t finish their book more than two days ahead of the last day and if they wanted a bigger challenge they could read more than one book. This was hard for some students and easy for others so I jumped around from breakout group to breakout group to assist where needed. One group I am still assisting and will pick up the pieces with them tomorrow.

For their meeting times, I am hoping to have 2 groups discuss in front of me live during our 70 minute block. That means that only one or two groups a class have to discuss outside of their class time. I am also grateful to the support staff I have embedded within our class that are also observing and assessing discussions with us. They know the kids and the curriculum as well as I do. Kids signed up on a first come-first serve basis as it then served as a motivator to get their reading plan completed. They can see the meeting times document at any time, but I have also sent Google Calendar invitations to all of them with the link to our Google Meet for when we discuss.

For the discussion of their norms, we used Jamboard. I have had mixed results with it, but this time I was fairly pleased with how it turned out. You can see what it looked like here. Kids had decent discussions about accountability and also how they wanted this experience to run.

While all of the students have done book clubs multiple times before, 7th grade tends to be the first time they have to decide what they will be discussing and prepare accordingly, rather than the teacher telling them what to track. So we have a “cheat sheet” which really is just scaffolds in order to help them be successful. Some of these discussion points are learning targets from the Teachers College Dystopian Unit which we use as a foundational guidance and others are once we have discovered with book clubs throughout the years. Choice reigns supreme and it is important for us that students can steer their discussions ina natural way, they do not have to stick to these but this is a starting point.

Actual Book Clubs – Three Weeks

So how will all of these moving pieces work? Well, I am hoping (because I am writing this before I have kicked it off tomorrow) that our next three weeks will offer students a chance to work independently, as well as not feel overwhelmed. So in order to make that happen, I wanted to offer them up some self-paced learning opportunities using Peardeck, as well as short mini-lessons using our mentor text Ponies by Kij Johnson, and then give them time to read and discuss as much as possible in class much like we would if this were regular book clubs.

In class time will be spent on a mini-lesson – learning targets again are pulled from the Dystopian Unit created by Teachers College. I will be reading aloud our mentor text so we can refer back to it throughout the next three weeks, as well as any of the mentor short films they will be watching asynchronously. I will also have them go into breakout groups for 5 minutes in order to decide what they want to focus on discussing in their groups this week, before my listening on their discussion I ask them what they focused on and I listen for anything attached to that. They can use the “cheat sheet” linked previously in order to help them. Since tomorrow is the first day, I am thinking it may take a little bit longer to get them started but I need to wrap it up within 35 minutes in order to leave them 35 minutes to read, discuss, and work.

So during their in-class learning time and outside learning time, they will have a few things to work through. 1. They need to read their chapters and be ready to discuss. 2. They need to write down any ideas for discussion as well as find evidence. 3. They need to discuss in front of me. 4. They need to work through two learning opportunities in order to expand their knowledge. They will have all week to do this.

So for their discussion, students will be assessed live. I have yet to create a good electronic version of my rubric so I may just do what I normally do, which is print a ton of these rubrics as I like to write directly on them while they speak, as well as tally how much they say and any page numbers they use. I will then either scan and email it to them after their discussion, or transfer it to a markable rubric that will be posted in Google Classroom under their assignments so that each child has one ( I have it posted right now as an assignment for me to fill in).

For their Peardeck self-paced work, they will focus on two learning targets. The first one is simply diving into a book club discussion and understanding better what it is we are looking for. We normally do this during class time but due to virtual time constraints, it is moved into independent work. The Peardeck looks like this, it is short and sweet and to the point because this is not meant to feel like just one more thing to do but rather an exposure, example, and then a quick check for understanding. For the second learning opportunity of the week, they will learn more about utopia, dystopian characteristics and then compare and contrast their book to these definitions. They will also watch a dystopian short film and then write about the rules and how it links to our current society. This Peardeck looks like this. The students will be assessed on the analysis and evidence they use to draw their conclusions. Normally they would also be doing this in class but these are not normal times.

The next two weeks will follow the same format, I have not created the self-paced learning opportunities yet but you can certainly reach out to me if you would like to see what they look like. We will be focusing on our inquiry question; do we already live in a dystopian society and so the learning opportunities will center around that.

So there you have it, so many moving parts but I am excited and I think the students are too. I hope this was helpful to you, let me know if you have any ideas or questions.

To the Some…

Many of my students have yet to finish a book this year.

It’s 2nd quarter. We are fully virtual and have been since the beginning. We read almost every class together, dedicating at least 10-15 minutes of our much too short time together to the act of reading itself. I tell them to find a great book. To sink into the pages. To allow themselves the freedom to just read without a care of what comes next, without having to do work surrounding their book.

And yet, week after week, pages are barely being traveled, some books are not even being opened.

The questioning that has wrapped itself around my literacy decisions is at times suffocating. Other times it spurs me onward. It pushes me to constantly stay in creative mode, to try to think of new and perhaps inventive ways to invite them into reading. To entice them with books. To give them space to come back, to return to habits they left behind on March 13th when school first shut down. But the guilt and feeling of inadequacy is also there, a constant companion as it probably is for many educators teaching during COVID. What normally works, isn’t, because what I am doing is a shell of what it can be. By now, in November we would be soaring in our independent reading, almost all kids would have finished several books and the students who would have loudly declared to hate reading would be working on their relationship with reading and making some small progress. We would be getting excited for our upcoming book club unit, eager to venture into more books with people by our side, ready to discuss, to dissect, to grow in our understanding of society.

But that is not where we are right now. Not many anyway. Not this year.

And so in the search for yet another idea to try, I am reminded of my husband’s words tonight, he is student teaching (can you imagine?) during this time. He reminded me that all of the kids are trying to connect to reading. That they all want to make it better but that they may not be in a space to do that just yet.

That there is no sense in comparing this year to any other year because we have never lived in a time such as this. That when we compare we fail to see the beauty of what is happening, the resilience that continues to be shown and grown in all of our students, in all of us, every day. That perhaps the students have not finished a book just yet, but they are trying. And more importantly, they trust me enough to tell me the truth. They trust me enough so that I can be a part of their journey rather than apart.

Because our students could lie so easily about the books they have or have not read. They could check the boxes. They could walk away and sometimes we would not know.

But instead, they show up. Despite the internet failing. Despite their computer freezing. Despite being quarantined because another member of their family tested positive. Despite everything being cancelled. Jobs being lost. Friends being far removed. Despite the world and its endless hatred toward so many. Its endless inequities and disparities. Despite having never met me in person, never stepping foot as a 7th grader into our middle school. Owing me nothing. They still show up, they still tune in, and they still try.

So I continue to try as well. Not driving myself to exhaustion because this has to work for all of us but falling back upon the ideas we know work even if they don’t in the same way right now.

I book talk books that may never be read. But every class, there is a new one being introduced.

I offer to bring books to their mailboxes that they may never read.

I give them time to read even if it is not used.

I ask them to search for value within reading even if they see none.

I ask them to tell me about their reading lives even if they have nothing positive to tell.

And we discuss. And we build trust. And we build community.

One conversation at a time. One decision at a time. One page at a time.

And I read aloud right now, even if I don’t know if they are tuning in. Because some are. Because some are ready to be reactivated into reading. Some are ready to fall into the pages of a book because their lives allow them to. Some never left.

And so we make space for them all, we center our practices and decisions not in further work for them to somehow increase accountability but instead in what we know works. Even now, even if it takes longer.

We center it in choice.

In access.

In time to read.

In community.

In conversation.

In finding stories that they can see themselves in and in stories of lives they will never live.

We center it in them. Their chocies. Their lives. Their words. Their journeys.

And we make space for them all. Not for the kids we hoped would be here but the kids who show up. Who show up despite the world trying so hard to stop them.

And we show up too. And we see the small moments of success for all the kids who are trying and remember to give ourselves some grace too. Because we are right there trying as well. Because we are also far from what we had hoped we would be at times and yet we show up too, and we try, and we create, and we breathe and step away so we can come back the next day.

Perhaps what I need right now is not another new idea, but instead a moment of celebration. Of appreciation for all of us and what we are creating.

The reading will happen. It may just take longer. But look at how far we have already come.

I am excited to get to work with other colleagues around the world doing virtual and in-person coaching collaboration, and consulting right now. If your district or organization would like more information, please see this blog post.

How About a Digital One Pager?

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I continue to teach virtually 140 minutes a week English with my 7th graders as COVID-19 explodes around us. As we settle into the 2nd quarter we wanted to increase our focus on independent reading, as well as center our community in a read aloud. Looking ahead to December, we will be doing virtual dystopian book clubs and we wanted to provide students with some scaffolds leading into the discussions we hope to have them have do while recognizing that students are in many different parts of their reading journey. The COVID reading slump is significant, some kids are still not reading, and some still struggle with sustaining their attention to a text even when they are reading.

With all of this in mind, we decided to focus on a read aloud in November; Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson. A few key factors led to this incredible book; it is a beautiful story of family, community, and friendship and how you navigate hardship. It is free verse, it is accessible for all kids, and it is short. We knew we would only have 7 x 70 minutes for the read aloud and for the mini-lessons, that’s not a lot. Alongside the read aloud, we wanted students to focus on their independent reading books but also give them a little more urgency in their reading. While we do not have students write about their reading all through their year, we wanted to use this month to get them set up for discussions and deeper explorations into their texts. In the past, we have used one-pagers for this work or character autopsies. I have loved the art component of these assignments, as well as the brief glimpses of text analysis it would provide us with but had to wrap my head around doing this digitally as I cannot assume access to art supplies. We could use these projects as a way to review and introduce new concepts without students having to write a literary essay.

As I searched online for digital options for this project, I found many for sale but none of them seemed to fit what I wanted to introduce to our students or even review. So I decided to create one that fit our needs and hopefully would also be manageable for the students and not create an unnecessary burden in their reading lives, as did my amazing colleague, Liz.

So here is a copy of what we are mostly using with students. This one is a bit longer than the one I am using but I like all of the options provided here. I envision this being cut down to fit the unique needs of your students, I would not assign all 13 slides. This is not anything new or hugely innovative but it does help us see where students are at in their reading comprehension, as well as help guide them.

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The first slide is a review of story elements. One of the concepts we see a need to develop is simply recognizing narrator, as well as the setting’s effect on the story.

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The next slide speaks to plot diagram, while we discuss that not all stories are told in this way, we do want students to be able to recognize different parts of their stories as a way to think about their own writing as well. Many of my students are still working on figuring out the climax of a story so this provides them with a review of some of these components.

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We will be discussing conflict in our story more than once, this is a slide I did not assign this time though due to time constraints.

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Analysis is a huge focus in 7th grade and we want students to find meaningful quotes and then be able to discuss why they are meaningful to them. This also leads into work about connections to our books and to the world, as well as how literature can be powerful and lead us to action.

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Characterization is also a major focus as my students are developing people watching skills. We discuss a lot how analysis in literature is really just practice for how to read life situations and that when we can read people and situations well, we can often navigate them more smoothly. Tracking one character and how they change throughout the story is proving to be interesting for many students as they can often see the changes happening but don’t necessarily understand why the character changed.

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In 7th grade we expand upon theme, moving from theme idea to theme statement. Many students are great at recognizing theme ideas but have a harder time putting into word what specifically is being said about this theme. For this slide I want them to have an introduction but not dive too deep into it yet. In our dystopian unit, we dive much deeper into power structures, societal messages, as well as what calls to action a text provides us with, this therefore serves as stepping stone into that work.

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Finding images or drawing images that have a connection to the text is another way to deepen our understanding and analysis of a story. When we can see beyond the story and conceptualize further connections, we are digging deeper into our analytical skills and complex thinking. One way to practice this is to ask students to move beyond the obvious and think of abstract representation and connections to the curriculum.

The slides attached also have 3 choice options; a deeper dive into the setting, finding a song that connects to the story, as well as timeline slide – all comprehension strategies that will further the understanding of the book.

We have made a few adaptions as well for some students: A few students are refusing to read outright or this work is simply too overwhelming, so they are working through these using a short story instead. We have also discussed having students record answers rather than write them out if needed. Students could also choose to do this by hand and do more of a true one-pager with a bigger emphasis on the artistic components which are downplayed here, rather than this digital version. In my student version I also link to the one I am working through with students, as well as have videos explaining how to fill it in.

As always, feel free to use, or let me know how you would improve it, this is definitely a work in progress and always hindsight is 20-20. After releasing this to students to start working on Sunday, there are already many things that I would do differently, this is therefore the new and improved edition.

I am excited to announce that I am doing virtual speaking and consulting right now. If your district or organization would like more information, please see this blog post.

WriteReader – A Powerful Book Creator for Students

My own kids have been busy writing. In this time of virtual school where screen time is seen as both exciting and dreaded, and school is mostly something to be done with because they have been sitting in their rooms dictating, writing, and creating books for each other to read, running excitedly out to show me their latest creation.

Ida wrote a 5 pages story about a witch who lost her way.

Oskar wrote a story about candy and how he is the coolest, clearly.

Augustine continue to play with her letters as she tries to figure out how to best write the few words she knows how to spell in her story about her puppy.

The glee is contagious and the writing is furious.

What has gotten my own kids so fired up about writing, even the 6 year-old who has repeatedly told me that she does not need to learn how to write?

WriteReader.com

A research-based web-based book creator that not only allows for exploration of language but also drives them to expand their stories through letter-sound tools, recording capabilities, and a variety of templates that let them control the look of their book.

Why are we loving it so much at home? Because my three youngest kids with varying degrees of writing capabilities are totally engaged in their books and the excitement for writing is contagious as they create, publish, and read.

[image error] Ida’s book about a witch that had to find monsters was a big hit with her siblings as she recorded the story.

There are a few things that are really pulling my kids in with the biggest for me the less is more approach. As my own kids are inundated by “educational” games that are more focused on the gaming aspect rather than the learning aspect, WriteReader is a breath of fresh air. This tool is used for creating beautiful books, for exploring their writing skills, for written language acquisition, and for feeling accomplished. The kids can easily navigate it on their own, have figured out how to add pictures, speech bubbles on the pre-loaded templates, and also how to record their own voice. The reward is the creation process, the ability to be authentic writers beyond just the teachers’ eyes, and seeing their published books being read and shared, not points or tokens.

[image error] Augi’s book about a frightened puppy is taking shape

I also love how this product offers kids a way to learn through creation, taking chances with their writing and still feel like accomplished writers. This looks and reads like a book that they have created. There is no dumbing down of the work they are attempting and the finished product looks polished. The pride is palpable in my own kids.

Another lovely feature is that the books can also be printed, which my kids wanted to do immediately of course. They can also be shared with others through a link, so you bet the family is getting some reading materials right now.

As a teacher, I can see using this tool in many ways implemented into stations and throughout writer’s workshop and even though it is geared more toward younger students, I do think that older students could also use it for things like flash fiction and prompt writing. You could create templates for the students to go into and edit and students could see each other’s books as they are published. All it takes is an account for students to log into and they are ready to go. If students want to share their book in a broader way, the sharing capabilities open up great potential for impacting others with our words.

In our virtual learning right now, I keep thinking of how important it is to build community. For years telling stories, creative writing, and sharing our stories has been the cornerstone of my classroom. We have seen how storytelling can bond us all so why not use a tool like WriteReader to share our stories? We may not all be together right now but on the bookshelves in our classroom we can be. The free version allows for up to 100 books to be created plus other basic features, a great way to get started with this tool.

Still not sure if WriteReader would work for your students? My 6 year old just asked me to bookmark it so she can find it any time to write more stories and then told me that she didn’t want watch TV because she would rather tell more stories. I don’t know what further testimony you need.

I am not getting paid for this post, this post is written to hopefully help others discover this powerful tool, a way to pay it forward since I was lucky enough to be shown this tool myself. So where could WriteReader fit in for you? Perhaps as another powerful writing tool that can seamlessly fit into the components you already have? Or perhaps a much needed boost that brings our students together in a world that seems upside down?

Wherever it goes, I think you will be as excited about it as I am.

I am excited to announce that I am doing virtual speaking and consulting right now. If your district or organization would like more information, please see this blog post.

Helping Students Navigate the COVID Reading Slump

One of the most common conversations I have had with students over the last 7 weeks has been a description of what COVID has done to their reading lives. How they haven’t read a book since March, how their attention just seems to not be there, how they cannot seem to find the time, energy, or even the books they want to read. They know they should read but…the world just seems too big right now, their work is piling up, they are just too tired, and they just can’t. And we are not even together, I teach fully virtual, a constant reminder that here in Wisconsin, much like many other places, COVID is exploding and claiming more and more lives. The kids are not okay and neither are the adults.

It’s not just in our classroom that this is playing out. I recognize this disconnect from reading in my own life. Since March 13th, the world has been heavy. The work has been heavy. The books call quietly but I look at my to-be read shelves and it feels like work, not like an escape. Not like something I can do to relax. When I speak to educators globally, they share the same stories; the kids are not reading, how do we help them find joy in reading again? How do we make reading something important to us all when there is hardly any time to do anything?

So in room 203, we have focused on connecting with each other again. We have focused on meaningful work, conversations, and access to books. Is it fully working, not yet, but I am seeing a difference using the following tools to bring them back, one by one, and I think they are seeing a difference too.

Recognizing the enormity of the world. We will never work through this if we don’t recognize and try to understand the unique situations that students are working through. With the pressure to do school like normal when our times are anything but, we can easily forget that this is not normal, that it makes total sense that kids are not reading, and that assigning more accountability work is not going to be the way to bring them back to reading, far from it. So resist the urge to assign more work with their reading so they have to get a grade or get it done, more than likely assigning all of that extra work surrounding their reading is going to push them farther away from wanting to read rather than the opposite. Instead focus on each child’s humanity, recognizing that we are all doing the best we can everyday and that while that means for some reading is not a part of their life at this moment it doesn’t mean it won’t be. But we cannot plan and teach as if the world is not upside down.

Assigning less work. If I want kids to read then they need time to read, this means I need to assign less asynchronous work in order for them to actually have more energy to read. But it cannot just be English class, across the board we should have a schoolwide conversation about the work being assigned because if we are piling on so much work that kids don’t have energy or time to read then we have lost our way on the experience we should co-create for all kids. I know many of us are striving to keep the work challenging and plentiful but let’s not sacrifice reading joy on our way there.

Physical book access. I have marveled before at the comprehensive plan our librarians created to make sure students could still request physical books from our library and how they have helped us get books out to students. And it is working, one book at time, we see kids get excited about the stack of books they are either picking up or having delivered. Students can request both books from our school library or classroom collection using different forms, they can request specific titles or a bag of books that fit their interests and needs. While we also have digital access to books, the physical books seem to be making the biggest difference.

Continued conversation. I have written before about the daily reading conferences I am doing with students and how much hope they bring me. Every child is scheduled via a Google Calendar invite for a 15 minute reading conference every three weeks. We discuss how they are doing, how school is going, and then how their reading goals are coming – in that order. I have Wednesday off as our collaboration day for adults and kids who miss their check-in meeting can either reschedule with me or do a Flipgrid video where they answer a few pre-determined questions and I at least get a small glimpse into how they are doing. Then we try to meet again in the next cycle. The conversation is casual and centered in their reality. It allows me a chance to check in on them as far as how they are doing, if I can support with anything and then we talk about reading. There is no judgment as far as where they are at in their reading and whether or not they have been reading, but instead a conversation about how they can work on their goal. Do they need books? Do they need a new goal? Do they need help in some way? As one student ended our conversation with last week, “This was so nice, I really needed this,” and I couldn’t agree more.

[image error] One of the pages of their reading identity digital notebook can be seen above, this is the 6-week reflection page they will be filling in tomorrow.

Setting 6 week reading goals. Within our Digital Reading Identity Notebooks, students have a place to set a 6 week reading goal. We do it in class together, discuss what realistic goals can look like, and then discuss it during our individual reading conferences. Goals range from slowing down their reading to actually reading outside of class time and many other aspects of their reading journey and identity. Tomorrow in class, we will spend time reflecting on their first goal, write about it, and then use their reading data to come up with a new reading goal for the next 6 weeks. Their goals should be specific to their journey, challenging in a realistic way, and also something they actually want to work on. This gives me yet another glimpse into who they are and how I can best support them.

[image error] A snapshot of some of the question on their reading survey.

Weekly reading reflection. Every first class of the week, students do a very brief survey that allows them to take stock of their reading habits for the previous week and allows me a quick glance at their reading and what they may need from me. This is the data they will look at tomorrow when they reflect on their last 6 weeks. The survey takes less than 5 minutes, the students think it is easy to navigate and best of all, they answer honestly, knowing that it is a tool to help them not punish them because there is no grade attached to their answers (or to their independent reading for that matter).

[image error] Tomorrow’s book talk slide

Daily book talks. I am still doing very casual daily book talks featuring new or old books. While they are not having the same impact as when we are face to face, a few books have been requested after I have book talked them and that is enough for me to keep doing them. The booktalks are short and sweet, I have the cover on a slide and then discuss what I loved about the book, then I read the blurb. It takes us less than 2 minutes but allows the students to get a feel for the books we have available to the them in class.

[image error] Book Speed Browsing is coming back in November

Book Speed Browsing. I wrote about the September book speed browsing here and how it gave students a larger glimpse of the books we have available to them. I am currently working on one for November, the major change is that students will be asked to read about each book rather than just choose 5 and there is not a form they have to fill in but instead that students can choose to request books if they would like. This tool is meant to give them a broader access to our library and hopefully entice some more reading for the kids.

Independent reading in class. The first thing we do after I have greeted all students is to read. While we have a lot less time together than we would normally, the most important part of our time spent together is the time we dedicate to independent reading every class. We read at least 30 minutes in class spread throughout our two classes of the week. Students start to read after I have greeted and spoken to them, I ask them to keep their camera on if they can or once in a while they flash me their book cover quick as they read. Are there kids that don’t use the time for reading? Absolutely! We are working on that just like we would in class when kids choose to fake read or not engage at all. But many kids are reading and for some kids it is the only reading they are doing every week. This will always be the most protected activity we do. I cannot tell students that they should read outside of class and then not give them time to do so in class.

Listening to tips from students. As always, our students have great ideas for how they can navigate their reading lives. A few ideas from students have been reading two books at the same time – switch between books as one gets boring in order to actually finish books and keep their attention. Try a new format – what is something you haven’t tried before, now is a great time to try graphic novels, novels in verse or audio and shake up our reading habits. Try a new topic or genre – perhaps changing up the familiar will help you. Find a new routine – our routines have been disturbed greatly and so the habit of reading may have slipped out of routine as well, when does it make sense to let reading happen?

Patience. We are facing uncertain times and even if we feel like we are ready for the Corona virus to be done, it is still here. That means that kids, and adults, will continue to have their mental health affected, that the world will continue to be heavy, that reading will continue to be a chore for many. But we can take small steps, we can continue our focus on it as a central gathering point in our class, and we can continue to encourage our students to find books that speak to them, that connect to who they are, that they can find value in even if joy is not there right now. And we can wrap that up in the best practices we know, not forcing ourselves into more accountability work, but instead allowing the act of reading independently to be something we do as a community, something that we do to take care of ourselves, something that we do because it allows us to transport ourselves to a new world, even if just for a moment, and that can sustain us for a long time.

So I hope this blog post was helpful, please share your ideas in the comments, and allow yourself to breathe. Reading is not lost for all, it may just be hidden right now, but together we can reignite reading for ourselves and help others as well, as long as we start with connections first.

I am excited to announce that I am doing virtual speaking and consulting right now. If your district or organization would like more information, please see this blog post.

Introducing Virtual Consulting

There have not been many silver linings in the past seven months. With a world that continues to be upside down and an unknowable future, it all can seem too much at times. And yet, one thing has evolved in my life that I am finding great joy in; virtual consulting.

When we shut down in March, we saw conferences get cancelled or moved online. For the past 7 months, the learning I have done and created has been through a computer screen, trying to help others as they face uncertain school years, as they rethink practices, as they wonder how do we make this better for the students? For ourselves? I have been fortunate to be asked to be a part of many different school’s and district’s work as they brainstorm, plan, and implement new ideas, and not so new, in education.

It has been an honor and a joy to see the ingenuity and resilience of educators as they once again rise to an unsurmountable challenge and try to keep kids at the center of the decisions they make.

And so, I wanted to alert readers of this blog to the work I am available to support you with. Virtual consulting can look many different ways but the heart of it is the same; we work together to create experiences centering students’ literate lives, centering their identities, and help one another see our way through all of the decision-making that seems to be piling up every day in this new landscape of education.

I can be brought in for an afternoon or for a longer stretch of time. Every consultation period is personalized, of course, and grounded in research, best practices, and the practical tools I have developed or am developing in my own teaching practice. It is set up to meet the specific needs of the community that brings me in while honoring teacher sustainability, identity, and joy in learning.

Fees are flexible in order to meet the needs of the community and are based on length of time, number of attendants, and also the depth of the work. I try to stay as flexible as possible with school districts as much as I can as I get the budget constraints that many are facing.

My Areas of Expertise:



Creating a passionate literacy community.Personalized learning environments for staff and students.Student engagement and empowerment.Global collaboration through technology infusion.



What You Can Expect:



Personal attention and development of project intended to fit your purpose.Prompt communication.A personalized and interactive delivery that will fulfill the needs of the target audience.Accessibility and an ongoing relationship after the talk.  I become a trusted resource for the audience as they move forward.

So if you feel that I could be of help during these times, please reach out. You can send me an email psripp@gmail.com or through this page right here and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

More Picture Books to Teach and Practice Inference

5 years ago, I wrote a post sharing a few great picture books for practicing inferencing. Looking back, I realize it is time to update the list with a few new favorites as I have expanded my own collection of stories focusing on a broader worldview.

For ease sakes, I have also gathered the picture books I am sharing here in an easily accessible list on Bookshop.org – a bookstore site that supports independent book stores rather than that big one. If you order any books through the links I share here, I receive a small kickback through the affiliate link.

I remember I was told to teach inference as a 4th grade teacher, it was one of the many skills students were supposed to develop in literacy, and I was a stickler for following the rules.  So the first year I sat with my lesson plans, every word penciled out and guided my students through the lesson.  We inferred because the book told us to.  When a child asked me why they were learning this, I answered, “Because you will need it next year.”  That successfully quieted the child, and I felt satisfied, I had been able to give them a reason for what we were doing and so they did it.

Yet, the act of inferring is so much bigger than “next year.”  It is so much bigger than learning how to read text better.  It is a life skill.  One we need to navigate difficult situations.  One we need to read other people.  One we need to become better human beings that care about others.  And so we infer, yes, but we also start to trust ourselves and our opinions, build confidence in our intuition and get more astute in our observations.  And picture books are about one of the best ways we can teach it in our classrooms.  So here are some of my favorite titles that I use, updated from home so bear with me if I left any off the list that should be on here. Let me know in the comments which ones I missed.

The first time I read Another by Christian Robinson, I had to reread it immediately; what did I miss? This wordless picture book is great for discussing small clues to a larger story.

Small Things by Mel Tregonning is also wordless and invites the reader into symbolism through inference, a great double skill to practice for kids, while also opening up conversations about anxiety and other burdens we carry with us and what they can do to us.

Another great double-hitter is The Heart and the Bottle by Oliver Jeffers that works well for symbolism and inference. What does it mean when she places her heart in a bottle and why?

A crowd favorite, even in 7th grade, is Who Wet My Pants by Bob Shea and illustrated by Zachariah OHora. While the inferring may be obvious, it is a great book to introduce or refresh the skill.

What happens to the animals as the lights go out in A Hungry Lion or A Dwindling Assortment of Animals by Lucy Ruth Cummins? A great book to not just teach inference but also assumptions.

A beautiful picture book that is written in English with Woiwurrung language interwoven leads to a gorgeous picture book experience in Birrarung Wilam by Aunty Joy Murphy, Andrew Kelly and illustrated by Lisa Kennedy. While there is a glossary and word bank in the back, this would be a great way to have students decipher word meaning from context clues using inference.

I Lost My Talk by Rita Joe and Pauline Young is a great picture book to talk about what the author means beyond her language when she speaks of the loss she has.

What does the gorilla symbolize is this touching picture book just released? The Boy and The Gorilla by Jackie Azua Kramer and illustrated by Cindy Derby is a great addition to our collection for symbolism and inference.

Dreamers by Yuyi Morales has so many lines that beg to be discussed more deeply. Our daughter just used this picture book in 3rd grade to discuss author’s purpose and intent, another great way to frame inference.

Would a list be complete without a Jackie Woodson book? In The Other Side, we have to use inference to figure out the broader historical context behind the fence division. why can’t the girls play together?

I have to start with one of my favorites and the one I chose to start this year’s lessons with; I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen.  Beloved by so many, the students laugh out loud, love to infer right away, even when you tell them not to and fall in love with the simple yet devilish story of who took the bear’s hat.  Magic I tell you.

And I have to highlight the kind of sequel This Is Not My Hat also by Jon Klassen.  I use this as a follow up book, to give my students another chance at visiting the magical world that seems to be Jon Klassen’s mind and they love it as much as the first one.  I also love all of the theories of what happened to the little fish that my student concoct.

I do love wordless picture books for inferring work because they are great tools to remind kids that you can have many different theories and still be right. The Whale by Vita Murrow and Ethan Murrow is a great book to use for digging in further and trying to really decipher a story.

Boats for Papa is a picture book by Jessixa Bagley that I immediately fell in love with.  The story does not tell us where papa is, nor why the mother does what she does, leaving this open for interpretation by the students.

Knock Knock: My Dad’s Dreams For Me by Daniel Beaty is an emotional book that leaves the reader wondering where the father is.  I love the emotional connection that my students can feel to this book, as well as what they conclude.  This book will also provide us with a window into the lives of our students as they share their own experiences.

This amusing story of what really happened to a sandwich will allow you to peek into the minds of how deeply students understand textual clues, as well as how well they look for evidence.  The Bear Ate Your Sandwich by Julia Sarcone-Beach is one that makes me giggle every time I read it aloud and then leads to heated discussions of what exactly did happen to that sandwich?

Another book that is great for deeper level conversations as students try to decide why that skunk keeps following the main character.  I cannot wait to hear what my students will come up with, as well as what they would do in this situation if a skunk were to follow them home.  I have many of Mac Barnett’s and Patrick McDonnell’s book and love having The Skunk as well

Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan is one of those books you can turn to again and again because of the complexity within it.  I have used it to teach Contrast & Contradictions and will now also use it for deeper inferences.  What I love the most is that each child can truly have their own unique interpretation of what the entire book means and I don’t have enough books that allow us to do that.

Yes, I am biased when it comes to Amy Krouse Rosenthal, she was a prolific author and amazing human being who left us much too soon.  But Duck Rabbit is a great inference and discussion book.  The simple text and witty illustrations means that every student is bound to have an opinion in the ongoing debate of whether that is a duck or a rabbit.  I always keep my opinion to myself or change it over and over.

Another wordless picture book on this list is The Red Book by Barbara Lehman.  Again, this levels the playing field for all students as they try to figure out what is happening in the story and have to be careful observers to support their conclusions.  Plus, I just love the message this book sends.

Another favorite is Shhh!  We Have a Plan by Chris Haughton.  I love asking my students what they think will happen if the group succeeds and what their purpose really is.

I know there are so many more out there and will update as I remember them or see them in my own collection. I also asked the question on Twitter, to see the many suggestions click on the link here

If your district or conference are interested in bringing me in virtually or live throughout the school year, please see information here. I have been supporting teachers remotely and in-person as they plan for meaningful literacy instruction in an in-person, virtual or hybrid model throughout the years and would love to help others as well.

The Smallest Ideas that are Helping Me During VIrtual Teaching

I don’t think I have ever gone so long without writing on this blog. Through job changes, house moves, the birth of our twins, and then the birth of a very premature baby, this blog has been constant. My place to reflect out loud, share the big and the small, and let others see what it means to try to change your teaching one day at a time, from one small idea to the next. And yet, it has been almost a month since I last wrote. 4 weeks since school started fully virtual for us here in Oregon and Madison. 4 weeks of trying to engage these incredible students that have been placed in my care through 35 minute virtual classes. 4 weeks of trying to navigate my own kids learning virtually right next to me without being able to support them at the same time. 4 weeks of my husband student teaching also virtually and co creating tech-ed curriculum with an incredible team of dedicated high school teachers.

[image error]All day sitting in this chair…

Every ounce of energy I have left after our much too long of days seem to go into trying to come up with the next small idea to try in order to create a more engaging virtual learning space for all of my students. And many of those ideas don’t work. Or haven’t yet. So what do you share when you are fully depleted most of the time? What can you really reflect on when the task itself is this exhausting? Because the truth that I face along so many others is just how unsustainable this is.

That I teach to mostly silent students right now despite my many tries of helping them share their voices.

That I feel inadequate every day because I know what our learning can look like when we are face to face and yet that is not what is happening now in this virtual world.

That I have never spent so much time sending and answering emails, messages, video conferencing with students, checking late work and missing work and yet I know how much that one message, that one connection can do.

That I worry so much about the future, that I wake up too early, that I work too much, that I go to bed too late and yet it still doesn’t feel good enough but I am not so sure what good enough is any more.

So in order to not lose my mind completely, I have had to change a few things in my beautifully laid plans from this summer. And perhaps, within these changes, there is a small glimpse of hope for you as well if you happen to be in the same boat. Because while this may be unsustainable right now, I don’t want it to be. I want to love teaching again. I want to be the best teacher I can be for these incredible kids who are showing up in the ways they can and trying to make this work. So what have I changed?

Original plan: Scheduled reading conferences every afternoon for 10 minutes for each student so I would see all of my students within a two week period.

Reality: I need more than 10 minutes, I have to have one afternoon where I can do other meetings, and what happens with the kids who forget or don’t show up?

So now: Every child is scheduled via a Google Calendar invite for a 15 minute reading conference every three weeks. We discuss how they are doing, how school is going, and then how their reading goals are coming – in that order. I have Wednesday off as our collaboration day for adults and kids who miss their check-in meeting can either reschedule with me or do a Flipgrid video where they answer a few pre-determined questions and I at least get a small glimpse into how they are doing. Then we try to meet again in the next cycle.

Original plan: Small pieces of accountability work and reading data collected in their digital reading identity notebook every week.

Reality: Kids didn’t want to do it because it was one more thing to do that didn’t seem meaningful. Also since the digital notebook it is an all-year assignment and thus not being submitted until then, I had to scroll through each page to see if anything had changed. This was 50 pages worth of scrolling for each kid, you can imagine the time that took even when my internet was stable.

So now: The reading data pages and accountability pages are gone from the notebook so we are down to 34 pages instead which also allows for much quicker loading times. Kids do a weekly reading survey on Monday in class where they estimate how much they have read in the past week, they share the current book they are reading, any book titles they may have finished, and also whether they need a check in with me or with a counselor. So far almost every single kid has done it every week and it takes less than five minutes to do.

Original plan: Weekly or twice weekly free writing prompts in their digital writing notebook done during class time.

Reality: The notebook took too long to load so kids ran out of writing time. Some kids didn’t do it so I would once again scroll through empty pages and come up short handed. Kids saw no real purpose in it so many just skipped it altogether.

So now: Free writing has been moved to a once a week assignment with a few prompts to choose from. I want to expand the prompts and also give them free choice if that is what they want to do. They are asked to write for at least 10 minutes but know that the writing is not assessed so I just check to see if they did it. I am hoping this will also ease up some of the fear kids have about writing and whether their writing is any good. This one needs more tweaking, but this feels like a good step in the right direction. As usual their writing can take many forms: journaling, poetry, drawings, stories or if they have another idea to try they just run it by me.

Original plan: Check late work as it is submitted, grade and assess every day so kids’ work is fully updated at all times.

Reality: Hours and hours of work every day. No time for planning better lessons, assessments felt rushed, let alone the fatigue this created.

So now: Less work is assigned as we move into October, all late work or resubmitted work emails bypass my inbox and get put into folders where I then access it three times a week: Monday, Wednesday, Saturday. On these days I have more time set off to clean up as much as I can thus freeing me up for better planning and also time away from the computer.

Original Plan: We will kick off the year discussing what we need to feel safe and this will help kids be excited to engage and invest in their virtual schooling because we will finally be back together. This motivation will give us all a boost so participation, engagement, and excitement for the community will build.

Reality: I was fooling myself here (and I knew it but I was hoping…). Kids are exhausted from the screen, they miss their peers and normal life, many have incredibly huge things going on in their lives and are simply trying to stay afloat, being all virtual is strange when we have never been together a s a group, and it takes a lot of courage to unmute and share your voice.

So now: Every child is greeted as they enter and they share their voice as they speak to me in an effort to hopefully help them feel better about speaking in our virtual setting. I ask kids how they want to participate that day. Cameras are optional but encouraged. I do check in-questions throughout the class where I ask each kid to share outloud or in the chat box. We have work-time in class while we stay logged in so I can answer questions.

A few more simple ideas:

Only doing two breakout rooms rather than six. I have amazing co-teachers in my classroom for special education and we can split the kids between us. Or doing no breakout rooms at all as we try to navigate things together.

Asking kids to leave mics on for easier conversation. The whole act of unmuting seems to be a big one for many so those who can can choose to leave their mics on so they can speak like we would in class. I am hoping I will start to see a larger change in participation as we get more comfortable and kids can just speak rather than raise their hand or have to unmute.

Creating an independent study path for those kids who want to be challenged and are in a good space to do so. Students applied to do a 3-week independent study path for personal narrative, they will still be with our live classes for the beginning of class but then have work time as they navigate video lessons and mentor texts on their own. I will continue to teach and give choice to all kids who do not choose this path.

Using the 321 Enter or waterfall method as shared by Alex Shevrin Venet who also was passing on the idea. All students are asked to write their response in the chat box but no one hits enter until the teachers says to. This allows for further processing and wait time and also gives kids a chance to formulate their own thoughts without feeling like everybody else is going to say the same thing.

Inserting video timers on my slides while we are working or thinking of answers. Super simple I know, but having a visual timer (in Google Slides just insert a video timer for however long you want it for) help us all take our time and also stay on track.

Being a lot more comfortable with awkward silences. There are so many of them. I am just embracing them right now until we get to know each other better.

Walking at 6 am with my husband during the week. It is dark, it is getting colder, we are both tired but that weekly 2 mile walk makes the biggest difference.

Eating my lunch and not working. No more quick checking email, the news, social media, whatever thing I could just quickly sneak in. I am focusing on my food and staring out the window or speaking to my kids who are also eating lunch at the same time.

And finally….

Original plan: As long as I plan enough and bring enough enthusiasm, it will be really close to what it “normally” is.

Reality: We are teaching during a global pandemic in a county where we just yesterday broke the record for how many people have died of COVID-19 in a single day.

So now: I am reclaiming my boundaries and that of my own children. I am exempting work when kids tell me they are overwhelmed and trying to catch up. I am telling my own children to skip work when they have sat in front of their computer for way too many hours. I am trying to give myself grace and realize that this will not be best practice teaching but best practices for now. That the most important focus for me right now has to be the welfare of the children I teach and my own kids as well but that doesn’t mean I need to sacrifice myself in the process. I will raise my voice to discuss how unsustainable this all is. How there are not enough hours in the day for me to create a classroom experience like the one we normally have. How just because I am a teacher doesn’t mean I have to sacrifice everything in my own life just to make it work. And I am sticking to that.

While I am sure there are other things that have changed, all of these minor things have made a big difference. In fact, today for the first time, I was done with all student meetings at 2:30 PM, had an hour to plan for Monday, and I only have 4 pieces of work waiting for me to leave feedback for. The to-do list is still intense, my eyes are blurry, and yet, after hanging up with the last student today, I felt a moment of gratitude that has been buried in stress the last four weeks (or possibly even longer). We are trying to make this work, no this is not perfect, nor great, nor healthy, but small steps have been taken again to reclaim my own life and hopefully still create a decent experience for all of the students.

I don’t know if any of this is shareworthy, but there you have it. Sending love out into the world to those who need it.