This chapter was very reassuring for me in the emphasis on keeping conferences brief and simple. The admonitions to "front load" so the students are well-prepared going into conferences is valuable. If we have modeled and shared adequately, they and we as teachers will know what to expect in the give and take of questions to help them progress. Also, as Routman pointed out, conferences with the first few brave souls are models for everyone, and polite listeners pick up a lot of ideas and pointers as they as listen in and share the experience.
I also really appreciate the many reminders to focus on the content first. What is the writer trying to say? I thought it was a particularly good idea to have the student read to the teacher without the teacher seeing the paper, so as not to be distracted by spelling, punctuation, or other editing concerns. As Routman states, there's no point in getting all those things perfect in a piece not worth reading. Toward that goal, find something to praise first so the student feels competent and confident to keep going and polishing the piece, and then get to the editing. I also liked Routman's insistence that students can edit for themselves pretty well when we make it clear that's what we expect.
I was glad to see the sample chart for anecdotal notes for roving conferences. I have been wondering about tracking progress and grading, and that looks like a good tool. I'm also looking forward to the next chapter, and I'm hoping for lots of good insights into assessment.
I also liked the comment about having the student read what they wrote before they show you the paper. I feel like this could work better for me in a primary classroom because I tend to focus on handwriting and spelling, before the actual content. This will be my goal for the upcoming school year, have the students read it before they show me :)
ReplyDeletePatty,
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that you pointed out about having the student read the paper to the teacher first. I have the student read the paper, but I am also following along with the student. I think that having the student read the paper aloud is a powerful way to focus on the content instead of as you said, being distracted by the little things. I am definitely going to try to use that in my classroom next year.