Practice, Practice...

Conferring effectively is a new art for me. It is not one that I have perfected by any means. Just like when I began taking tennis lessons, I was pretty rusty, I am also a novice in the writing conference. I had played tennis before, but I didn't know all of the intricacies - how to hold the racquet, how to swing properly (low to high), and how to follow through. Now that I know those elements, I need to practice, practice, practice what I have learned.

In the same way, I need to practice conferring. My son volunteered to help I volunteered my son to help me. We read Vera B. Williams's  A Chair for My Mother and I taught him a mini-lesson on small moments and adding details.

Then I asked Lukas to write for a bit before we conferred.

I would love to tell you to watch this video as a perfect example of conferring, but I can't do that! I can tell you that it was a really good exercise for me to walk through the writing conference with my son and to then go back and watch myself.

Here's what I noticed:

1. Conferring can be awkward--especially when it's new for both the student and the teacher. We had the parent-child element going on, as well, but Lukas hasn't experienced very many writing conferences (with a focus on the writer and not the writing) so this was new for him, too.

2. I needed my notes. I definitely will put my record-keeping binder to good use!

3. I should have focused on ONE teaching point. Instead, I showed him how to make revisions AND I asked him to stretch the small moments by adding details.

4. I need to keep the conference brief!

So, I will continue to practice. And as I practice, I hope that I will continue to learn how to be a successful coach during the writing conference.

Assessment and Record-Keeping

Record-keeping is something that I have always wrestled with. Lucy Calkins says “Our records need to embody our teaching priorities” (2005). I have found a number of resources that I compiled into a record-keeping binder. I'm hoping this will help me keep my conferences focused and effective.

CONFERRING NOTES

Jessica Hursh -- The Teacher Talk

Carl Anderson

Mrs. Bainbridge's Class Website

Julie Shope

Teach Talk Inspire

RUBRICS

First Grade Writing Rubrics -- Miami-Dade County Public Schools

Sarah Paul

Here's a peek into my binder.

Anchor Charts

I love to use anchor charts in my classroom! Here are several anchor charts that can be introduced during a mini-lesson and referenced during the Writing Workshop. The hard part is finding enough wall space to display all of them!

The First Grade Parade

This anchor chart is a great way to launch the Writing Workshop. It's also a nice reference point during a one-on-one conference or a "drop in" conference to direct students to why they are writing.

 

The First Grade Parade

I introduce this anchor chart after we read The Best Story by Eileen Spinelli. I teach students that our best stories come from our heart and we brainstorm topics we can write about. The students make their own heart maps and add them to their writing notebooks or folders.

Apples of Your Eye

Anchor charts can be used to introduce expectations and the basic structure of the Writing Workshop. It's helpful to have an anchor chart to refer to during an Expectation/Behavior Conference with students.

Writing Checklist

I'm not sure of the original source for this anchor chart--if you know where it's from, please comment! I like to introduce a checklist like this to teach my first graders how to use individual checklist with their writing. 

 Spotted in First Grade

I love to use interactive anchor charts. This Writing Goals anchor chart can be used to introduce various writing goals throughout the year. It could be added on to as each goal is taught. Then students or teachers can choose a goal for individuals to work on in their writing. 

There are so many wonderful examples of anchor charts available online. I truly believe that anchor charts are an excellent resource for both students and teachers to refer back to after a mini-lesson. What anchor charts do you find to be essential for Writing Workshop?

What is Conferring?

What is conferring and how exactly does it work? 

Different teachers may approach the writing conference in various ways. As with many educational practices, there are a variety of perspectives to the conference approach. But almost all research says the student ought to be the focus of the writing conference, regardless of the technique.

According to Lucy McCormick Calkins, conferring is essentially having a discussion with the writer (1994).  Ralph Fletcher and JoAnn Portalupi tell us that writers need response (2007) and as teachers our first response ought to be to react naturally to our students’ writing. Instinctively, we laugh when the piece is funny, cry when it is sad, and so on. Sounds easy enough, right? But here's the twist...during this essential one-on-one conversation with writers, the teacher does not act as an editor. Rather he or she encourages the writer along in the writing process. 

In her book, No More "I'm Done!" (2010), Jennifer Jacobson notes that in order to fully listen to the message of the writer, she always has the student read his writing to her first. Jacobson says, 

If I look down at a sheet of writing, my brain becomes a convention detective and notes every missing capital letter, punctuation mark, or misspelling of a frequently used word…So instead, I ask students to read their work aloud and that allows me to focus on content.

Oh how I can relate to the pitfalls of becoming a "convention detective"! Can anyone else?

After the conferring discussion, Fletcher and Portalupi remind us “...the conference is simply the next utterance in a longer conversation." Ideally, that conversation continues once the student leaves the conference through dialogue with himself or with his peers in regards to his piece of writing and any future writing he does.

When it is a new concept for a writing teacher, conferring without a constant focus on editing can seem difficult and even awkward, at times. But, “...conferring with students is a skill we can all learn” (Fletcher & Portalupi). Effective instruction is linked to the gradual release of responsibility. During the conference the teacher gives individualized guidance within the student’s zone of proximal development. The level of scaffolding provided by the teacher is determined by the specific needs of the writer. Donald Graves (1994) suggests a “good conference” consists of the student speaking 80% of the time and teacher speaking just 20% of the time. 

Linda J. Dorn and Carla Soffos say the success of the writing conference is based on the teacher’s knowledge of the writer and the teacher’s knowledge of the process (2001).

So...there's more to conferring than just "simply" meeting with a student one-on-one. And there's so much more to conferring than editing a student's piece of writing. As I continue to research and learn about conferring, I aim to become more of a writing coach and less of a convention detective. 

What does conferring look like in your classroom?

References:

Calkins, L. (1994). The art of teaching writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Dorn, L. J., & Soffos, C. (2001). Scaffolding young writers: A writers’ workshop approach. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers.

Fletcher, R., & Portalupi, J. (2007). Craft lessons: Teaching writing K-8. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers.

Fletcher, R., & Portalupi, J. (2001). Writing workshop: The essential guide. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Jacobson, J. (2010). No more “I’m done!”: Fostering independent writers in the primary grades. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers.

The Beginning

I've decided to start a blog. A blog about writing. Why write about writing? I'm aiming to write more specifically about the Writers' Workshop as it looks in a primary classroom setting. I aim to begin this blog as a part of my final graduate project for my Masters in Reading Education degree. My topic proposal is as follows:

Coaching Writers: Conferring during the Writing Workshop

Lucy Calkins says, "Teaching writing must become more like coaching a sport and less like presenting information. You have to do more than call out the errors."Just as a coach gives individualized instruction to his or her athletes, teachers give focused feedback to their students. In the realm of Writing Workshop, this instruction is fostered within conferencing. In my own classroom, I find myself tending to focus on the mechanics of student writing, rather than the craft of writing during conference times. I would like to explore the "art of conferring" -- both individual conferences between teacher and student and peer conferencing between students. Within those areas, I want to understand more deeply the various topics covered during conferences including, but not limited to, establishing the conference routine, finding ideas, solving problems independently, fostering good writing habits, staying focused, and using conventions of writing.  I would like to know if conferring will look different as students explore different genres of writing. I want to develop my own repertoire of conferring language and routines.  I also hope to strengthen my utilization of anecdotal notes and record keeping. As a teacher, I want to learn how to better guide the writer in his or her craft rather than spend time editing student writing. My goal in conferring with students should be to advance the writer and the writing. I propose to do this through a literature review and reflection as well as a personal blog. The literature review will entail organizing my findings after reading a variety of scholarly articles and texts. The blog will serve as a collection point of ideas, a space to reflect on and share my learning with others, and a list of links to blogs and other digital resources on conferencing during the Writing Workshop. Troy Hicks, author of Crafting Digital Writing (2013) says, "Digital writing is connected writing." I aim to connect my writing in a relevant way and I hope to be connected with other educators. Through my research and study, I hope that each group of individuals will leave my classroom equipped with the skills needed to become independent and successful writers. I will be able to better give them the tools they need as I learn to internalize the art of conferring. As I approach each writer, I will be able to determine on the spot what is most productive to confer about with him or her at that time. I will hone my coaching skills in order to meet the individual writing needs of each of my students.

So there you have it. The beginning of a blog. For the sake of my particular project, it begins with a focus on Conferring during the Writers' Workshop, but I hope it will grow into a sort of "collection point" for me (and for others!) to refer to in order to organize and implement a successful block of writing for both students and teachers alike.