Confer

The goal of a conference is not to ask questions, it is to understand our students as writers.

Conferences are designed to give students time to ask questions and clarify their thinking, and it gives teachers the opportunity to shape instruction to meet students’ individual and collective needs.  The goal of a writing conference is not for the teacher to ask questions.  Remember that each student is different, and therefore you need to approach each conference differently.  Find out what that student needs to be a better writer.  Questions may come naturally once the conference has started, but questions should not be the objective.  I find myself coaxing some children into conversations by asking questions.  It just doesn’t work.  I find that silence works.  Students will start talking if I let them.  I have to remember to teach the writer, not the writing.    The Art of Teaching Writing by Lucy Calkins, 1994.  I also have studied Carl Anderson’s extensive work.  He encourages teachers to deliberately teach during the conference.  I agree.  This is a wonderful one-on-one time for the teacher and student.

Strategic Writing Conferences Carl on Camera

This is the description from Heinemann’s site:

Although conferences appear to be informal conversations, they are in fact highly principled teaching interactions designed to move writers along learning pathways. Used strategically, conferences can be powerful interventions that address individual writing needs. Carl Anderson’s Strategic Writing Conferences is a curriculum resource and diagnostic guide for writing teachers looking to use conferences to move young writers another step forward. These conferences will enhance your current writing curriculum and help you confer with greater purpose and effectiveness.

Components
* The Teacher’s Guide outlines the principles that shape Carl’s approach to conferring and provides tools for diagnosing common writing problems.
* Three conference books present over one hundred conferences organized around three stages of writing—identifying topics, crafting drafts, and polishing finished projects. Each book opens with a diagnostic guide that helps you locate a conference that addresses a student’s particular area of need.
* Two Carl on Camera DVDs provide video-based professional development support.
1 On Introducing Strategic Writing Conferences Carl explains the elements of an effective conference, conferring concepts, and ways to assess young writers.
2 On Modeling Strategic Writing Conferences eleven full length conferences let you eaves drop on Carl as he confers with students at various stages of the writing process.

www.heinemann.com

These books and 2 DVD’s are worth every penny of the $82.00 I spent plus postage!