By Allaisia Cotton
I have been attempting writing conferenced with my students since last year, and it seems like I can never get it just right. If my conferences feel really productive, then they were too long. If I'm able to get to 6 students in one writing block, I feel like my conferences were rushed, or that I neglected my students in some way. When I follow a conference protocol closely, conferences can feel stale and impersonal. When I don't follow a protocol closely, my conferences can feel unfocused and less productive. To say the least, I have felt discouraged about writing conferences!
One of the best things I pulled from "How's It Going" is that writing conferences should feel like conversations and that they should be based on what kids tell you about their writing first. I like the idea of the student setting the agenda for the writing conference by describing their work. Too often, I have started right in on what I think that student should be doing better based on notes I have taken on them or on some strategy I think the class should be focusing on. This reading made me realize that more often than I originally thought, opportunities will still arise for me to address things I've noticed when I let students set the agenda. And I realize that if those opportunities don't present themselves sometime, it's okay.
Another really overwhelming part of trying to conduct writing conferences is the number of things I notice the student needing help with. Just by reviewing one writing piece, I might notice some huge deficits in spelling, grammar, developing ideas, flow--and sometimes there are so many important aspects of writing that the student needs guidance with that it feels as though I could never address them all! This anxiety of feeling like I could never do enough ironically makes me try to do more. So many times, I have jam-packed conferences with pointers for the kids. Even though I know how overwhelming it is for me when I receive too much feedback at one time, I forget how overwhelming this must be for my students. I love the way Anderson encourages the use of a line of thinking in conferences-- ONE thing that comes directly from what the student has expressed, to focus on and help the student with. Just as Rome wasn't built in one day, it takes time to help students develop their writing.
The third most important thing I took from the reader was the importance of listening during conferences. Even when I begin my conferences by asking kids how things are going, I find that I am often too busy thinking about which strategies I should work on with them, or reviewing notes on where we left off to actually listen to what they are saying. And as I ask probing questions, I am usually ignoring their responses as I read through their work to determine what they need my help with on my own. It's so important that I start showing my students that I care about their writing, by listening intently. When I show how much I care, it motivates them to work even harder and makes them feel as though their writing is important--and it is.
Lai-Lai,
ReplyDeleteI love your honest reflection of your role during writing conferences. I can tell this reading was very meaningful for you as I read through your struggles and celebrations as you think about how your helping your children become better writers. I agree with the line of thinking. It is important to focus on one strategy or one goal because there are times that we do see so many things going on in a writer's work. But then again, thats because we are focusing on the work and not the writer.
I am also trying to focus on the art of listening as I engage in these conversations with my students. Too often are we preoccupied with our own thinking and the strategies we want to teach the child that day that we forget how important it is to listen to the writer. I know that you will take a lot of this points and make them happen in your classroom.
Tenagne
Thanks for your honesty and transparency -- I think that we can all empathize with these struggles, especially since I have just recently started conferring. You highlight some really important points, and I'm glad that you mentioned the part about only focusing on one thing. I find myself getting very overwhelmed, too, when I confer with a writer who needs help on SO many things, and it literally takes everything in me not to discuss all of these things. I think it's great that you have related this to how you feel when you're burdened with too much feedback -- that's great to keep in mind.
ReplyDeleteAnother really important point that you mentioned was that the conference should start with the writer sharing their writing, and not you setting the agenda. I know that this is something that I definitely struggle with, so I'm glad that you mentioned that.
Keep on doing your thang and being that reflective writing teacher that you are!
You make a good point about trying to fit everything in during conference. After reading the first two chapters what I'm thinking is just simply first focusing on meeting with kids and gauging their thinking then teaching them strategies to develop their writing. I don't want to get too overwhelmed with trying fix every part of the grammar (unless it's really crucial to the point where it affects readibility). I'm thinking of doing more peer to peer workshops to deal with grammar and just focus on reoccuring grammar mistakes when I help edit their papers. I think not getting overwhelmed by a misspelled word here and there but if they consistently have a problem like run on sentences, wrong verb tenses, etc...that's something we can address in workshop. I also think helping to frame the purpose of the conference (like they suggested in the book) is also helpful. You might have a conference strictly on grammar, and maybe another on something else.
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate your honesty here, Allasia. It is so easy during any conversation we have with our kids to get distracted by what we think they need and all the work that needs to be done. I also agree with the difficulty of where to being- what should I focus on when so much needs to be addressed? I also really like and learned from your point that we should really pay attention to what our kids think they need. Maybe our ultimate goal as writing teacher is to share what makes solid writing and then they will be able to reflect on where their work is in reference to these examples. And then we can aid in their goals.
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