Pippi and Susan Marie Go to School

Like the children’s book hero Pippi Longstocking, author/educator Susan Marie Swanson sallies forth to foster laughter, friendship and adventure. The long-running Pippi Project is a joint venture with two Minneapolis elementary schools and the American Swedish Institute (ASI). While the program will continue, Swanson recently announced her retirement from it. As we thank her for her work, the award-winning author is quick to credit the program’s success to the collaboration between the schools and ASI.

Q to Susan Marie Swanson — How did this all get started?

To mark the centennial of Astrid Lindgren’s birth, I started developing curriculum for teaching writing inspired by her work, and in May 2007, I traveled to Stockholm to present at the Astrid Lindgren Centennial Conference. I‘d already approached former ASI staffer Nina Clark, and that fall we launched our first Pippi residency. Since then, ASI staffers Ingrid Nyholm-Lange, Britta Walstrom and now Lindsey Tscherne, in addition to many educators, including “founding” teachers Becky Ramgren and Catherine Lee from Bancroft and Andersen schools, have helped the program thrive.

Q to SMS — You describe the program as “bigger than you.” Why?

The Pippi Project is grounded in collaborative relationships with Minneapolis Public School teachers and administrators. ASI staff and volunteers engage children in lively conversations about their writing. Our work succeeds because teachers make space, draw out our best, and encourage students to participate wholeheartedly. And the second and third-graders themselves are the heart of the program. The individual child is always more important than my lesson or their words on paper.

Q to SMS — What can children can learn from Astrid Lindgren and Pippi?

Writers learn how to write by reading. In the Pippi Project, we’ve got a concrete example. Pippi is a remarkable 9-year-old. She sewed her own dress and makes pancakes for her friends. She's the strongest girl in the world! The student’s characters, like Pippi, have interesting pets and

particular places to live. They have amazing skills. They make stuff. They wear clothes that are just right for them. Astrid Lindgren first told Pippi stories to her daughter — and later wrote the stories down to give to her on her birthday. I ask students whom they’d like to share their characters with. Like Pippi, Lindgren lived on the edge of a little town as a child, wore her hair in braids, and climbed trees. The characters children create are rooted in their lives, too.

Q to Becky Ramgren, teacher at Bancroft Elementary — Why is the Pippi Project beneficial?

The first thing is engagement. Every student LOVES Pippi. There is something about this remarkable character that draws people in. Students who do not see themselves as readers or writers, find themselves reading and writing. The students take such pride in their work and use Pippi and Lindgren as their inspiration. This is one of my favorite units to teach; it creates lasting memories. Susan Marie sees the students’ amazing potential and makes us all feel like authors.

Q to Britta Wallstrom, ASI Program Manager — how do you think the Pippi project and Susan Marie have strengthened connections between ASI and the community?

I believe that the Pippi Project is the core of ASI’s community partnerships. The shareholders supporting it have allowed ASI to work closer with Minneapolis Public Schools. The partnership has been going on for so long, that families know us as a part of their child’s educational experience. Susan Marie shares her experience as an author and with Astrid Lindgren’s work to make learning fun. We can’t thank her enough. We’ll miss her, and we’re deeply appreciative of her contributions.