Compliments & Conferring

I received an encouraging e-mail from a good friend of mine back in the States today!  I didn’t know she read my blog often. It’s exciting to know that my friends can stay connected to me in this way.

“i love reading your blog and staying connected to you in that way – i love that i can be a witness to a side of you that I normally wouldn’t be a part of when we talk about life. i love your passion for your kids and for teaching.”

So a special thanks to my friend for encouraging me to continue writing this blog! Sending my love to you…<3

I know that encouraging words like these help me to continue to blog even though most nights after a long day of school I just want to watch TV and sleep!

This made me think about my students and their writing. It’s so important to genuinely compliment my students’ strength in their writing during our conference. Usually I start out my conferences by asking them how their writing is going. As they explain to me what they’re working on. As I listen to them and read their writing, I give them a compliment on what they’re doing well.

These past two days during our writing workshop time, I’ve been trying something new. During their work time, after the mini-lesson, I told students that I would have a small group conference on writing strong endings. So the first 4-5 students that came to the back table would get some help and strategies on how to make a strong ending. It was exciting to see some of my students rush to the back table in hopes to get a spot for the small group conference! It’s so rewarding seeing students excited to improve their writing!