Conferring

CONFERRING IS THE HEART

OF THE WRITING
WORKSHOP. CONFERRING IS
HARD. WHEN IT IS DONE
WELL, IT CAN CHANGE THE
COURSE OF A WRITING LIFE
FOREVER.
CALKINS

As you watch the brief Powtoon, jot down

the four key components that make up
the architecture of a conference.

Did you catch them all?

The Architecture of Conferences
Research: Name what the child has done as a writer and

remind them to do it often in future writing.

Compliment: Try to use words like, "I would like to

compliment you for . . That's what writers do."

Teach: Decide what you want to teach and how you want to

teach it. Help the child get started doing what you hope he/she
will do.

Link: At the end of the conference, name what the child has

done. Repeat the teaching point saying this is what you have
seen the child doing. Encourage the child to continue to do this
often and in many writing pieces in the future.

Let's Read and Learn Together!

Each member of the

group will read two
pages from handout on
conferring.
Be prepared to share
what you read
Chart main ideas of each
section

Conference Characteristics
They have an explicit point.
They have a predictable structure.
Teachers pursue lines of thinking with students.
Teachers and students have conversational roles.
We show students we care about them.

Approximation
Compliment what is done well and what you want to

continue to see. Be specific!

Research the writing and see what they are almost
doing correctly and teach to that point.

Assessment
We assess student writers everyday in our writing

workshops. Assessing writers is a habit of mind for

effective writing teachers.

Assessment makes it possible for us to:

Make teaching decisions in writing conferences.

Construct individual learning plans for students that help us

zero in on students needs in conferences.
C. Anderson

Conferences are focused on helping

students become better writers.
We need to remember to teach the writer, not the

writing.
When we finish a conference, we should be

able to name what it is we did to help that student

become a better writer.
Keep anecdotal records of student conferences,

focuses, and teaching points.

Teachers Role: 1st part of conference

Invite the child to set an agenda for the conference.

Ask a research question.

Ask assessment questions.
Read the students writing.
Make a teaching decision.

Students Role: 1st part of the conference

Set the agenda for the conference by describing

writing work.
Respond to the teachers questions by describing the
writing work more deeply.

Teachers Role: 2nd part of the conference

Give the student critical feedback.
Teach the student.
Nudge the student to have a go.
Link the conference to the students independent

work.

Students role: 2nd part of the conference

Listen carefully to the teachers feedback and

teaching.
Ask questions to clarify and deepen understanding
of the teachers feedback and teaching.
Have a go with what the teacher has taught.
Commit to trying what the teacher taught after the
conference.

Jot down what you notice about the strategies this

teacher uses to improve the writer.

When finished, turn and talk with your partner to discuss what
purposeful instructional moves she made to ensure an effective
conference.

Jot down what you notice about the strategies this

teacher uses to improve the writer.

When finished, turn and talk with your partner to discuss what purposeful
instructional moves she made to ensure an effective conference.

How do we find enough time to confer

with all students on a regular basis?
You should touch base with each student at least

once a week.
This can include individual conferring but also

strategy groups.
Each conference should take no more than 10

minutes, and preferably fewer.

Lets See it in Action

Watch the conference in action. Using the conferring

checklist, jot down notes and check off as you hear each
component addressed.

REFLECTION
On your reflection sheet, please record your thinking
about conferring with students. Use evidence from
the videos and the readings that we did today to
support your answers to the following questions:
What was an aha moment for you today?
What is still challenging for you?
What did you learn that you will try tomorrow with your
young writers?