Ch. 9 Conference with Students

This chapter helped ease my mind about conferencing. I too, always seem to become overwhelmed with trying to fit in all the conferences. I like the various types of conferencing that were suggested. It helped me realize that not every conference has to be a "sit down and fix all" meeting. One thing that still remains a puzzle to me is how to get the kids to do most of the editing and fixing. I know that it all boils down to expectations and frontloading, but I have yet to figure out how to raise students' personal level of responsibility. I really liked the description of the term frontloading. It's a concept that I've always been aware of and use but a new term and way to think about preparing the kids for writing. Finally, I think Regie makes a great point about always starting with the positives in a child's work and building a rapport of trust. Children seem so easily turned off with writing that we must make every effort to keep it positive in order for them want to grow as writers.