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Conference with a First Grader

3/4/2016

10 Comments

 
Picture
Yesterday I was working in a first grade class during writing workshop. Connie, the teacher, explained that the class had been doing a lot of writing, but she needed some help with conferencing.
 
“Great!” I said, although I was really thinking Oh, no! Conferencing is one of those hard parts of writing workshop that I think takes a lot of practice, and I have to admit I was feeling a little rusty. Connie explained to her writers that she wanted each of them to choose a piece of writing that wasn’t yet finished and to jot down on a post it what it was they needed help with. While this was going on, I had a chance to jot down some standard phrases in my notebook, just as a reminder:
How can I help?
Praise-Ponder-Polish
Tell me what you are going to do.
What will you work on next?
I hoped I would know what to say to help these young writers.
 
First up for me was Hunter who came to the table with a large volume of Dr. Seuss stories (really, he could barely lift it) in addition to his writing. He was writing facts about Dr. Seuss, and the post-it said he wanted help with “bold beginnings” and interesting facts.” When I looked at his work I noticed he was trying to copy the reference information at the end of the book, thinking that it was a listing of facts. I explained to him that what he was looking at was information that told where and when each story was made. Hunter looked disappointed. Clearly, not the interesting facts he was looking for. Luckily, I had noticed that some of the references were photo credits, so I flipped to the front pages and discovered that the collection opened with biographical information on Dr. Seuss, complete with pictures. Yes!   
 
“Hunter, I think I can show you how to find some interesting facts about Dr. Seuss. Would you like me to show you?” I asked.
“Sure,” he replied.
 
I pointed to a picture of Ted Geisel as a young man with two small children. We talked about the picture and I explained that one of his facts might be that Dr. Seuss had two children, a boy and a girl. Then we looked at a picture of the author as a young boy proudly holding a fish at the end of a rod.
 
“What can you tell me about this picture?” I asked.
“I think he liked to go fishing,” said Hunter. “And look at this one. I think he was in the Army! And I could say that his real name was Ted.”
“How did you know that?” I questioned.
“I can read some of those words,” Hunter replied, pointing to a caption.
 
We talked some more, and at the end of the conference I asked Hunter what he learned. “I learned I can find facts in the pictures,” he said with a smile.
 
Thanks to Hunter and his confidence and knowledge of himself as a writer, it was a good beginning for me, maybe even a bold one.
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10 Comments
Diane Dougherty link
3/4/2016 03:37:04 am

Rose, great reminder to those of us who are retired that conferring with students (no matter the age) affords many opportunities to teach and to learn. Connie, the teacher, prepared her first graders well!

Reply
Lynne Dorfman link
3/4/2016 04:01:48 am

Loved this piece and hope you will give me a classroom snapshot like this for the formative assessment book! It was so enjoyable to read - I felt like I was there in the classroom with you. You captured Hunter's excitement! Love the way you took him to the photos in a book that probably wasn't written for first graders, but his choice to use it - and you guided him (not told him) so he could be successful. Wonderful!

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Aileen Hower link
3/4/2016 04:03:13 am

I am so glad to read this. I can hear myself having said similar things. This gives me confidence as a writing coach, sharing these conferring techniques with teachers.

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Clare link
3/4/2016 04:49:27 am

Love this - I agree with Lynne -- perfect snapshot of effective formative assessment. If we listen and observe --they tell us what they need and we know what to do. I love that you trusted the process!
Clare

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elsie
3/4/2016 08:14:28 am

I loved the strategy you shared, but more so, I loved that you had that "Oh, no" feeling when the teacher wanted help with conferring. Yes, conferring is the hard part, but the most important part. Thanks for this glimpse into your conference.

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Karen Szymusiak link
3/4/2016 08:33:35 am

Rose, thanks for sharing this snippet. Conferring can be so powerful. The student learns and the teacher learns. Happy Writing!

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Tara link
3/4/2016 11:56:25 am

I love conferences like this where the kid takes the lead...which is how it should be, really.

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Shelly
3/4/2016 04:59:55 pm

Loved reading about your conference with Hunter. I loved his excitement! Conferencing has always been the hardest for me, but so rewarding when students are inspired by what you share with them and show you time and time again they are doing what you discussed in your conference independently!

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Alan j Wright link
3/4/2016 07:02:59 pm

Rose, I think you both made discoveries in this conferencing moment. I loved the way you gently guided the writer towards an important realization. A life lasting realization at that. The young author is thus empowered by this quality conversation with a more experienced writer. Loved it!

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best essay rush link
7/29/2018 10:40:18 am

It seems like you've learned a lot of things from Hunter. Well, I cannot blame you. We can never expect when and whom to get an inspiration because it happens all of a sudden. How was the conference with a first grader student? I am pretty sure you were expecting a different ending form the encounter, but what really happened was different. I appreciate all the time for sharing this story. I couldn't be happier for you!

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