2. Area of Research
• The Art of Writing Workshop Conferences
• How does conferring affect student progress?
• How frequently should conferences take place,
and how long should they last?
• Where do I begin?
• How can I use anecdotal notes to drive my
instruction?
3. Personal Connection
Conferring with writers has always been a struggle
of mine and something I strive to improve each
year. For my own personal improvement, I
would like to learn more about how I can
strengthen my writing instruction by making my
conferences more individualized for my
students.
4. “The writing conference lies at the heart of the
writing workshop. At its best there’s a
marvelous kind of tai chi in which you work off
the student’s own energy, affirming the writer
yet slightly redirecting flow.” – Fletcher and
Portalupi
5. Applied Project
• Since this is an area in which I struggle, I would
like to create a reference guide for teachers, a
kind of cheat sheet that will provide quick and
easy guidance for writers.
• The reference guide will include:
▫ Conferring strategies
▫ If/then scenarios
▫ Important points to remember
▫ Valuable resources such as books or websites
6. Reference
• Fletcher, Ralph & Portalupi JoAnne. 2001.
Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide.
Heinemann, Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
