This year conferencing has truly benefited my instruction. My favorite moments are when I get to sit down with a student and listen to them read. I love hearing my students apply the strategies I have taught so far the year. I usually conference with my students during our independent reading time. Conferencing has helped me know my students individually as readers. I can easily pinpoint their strengths and weaknesses. Most importantly, conferencing provides a time where I can help students set goals for their learning. Knowing their struggles helps me to differentiate my instruction to meet the needs of each student. I plan mini-lessons and guided reading lessons based on my notes from conferences. The best part of conferencing with the students is seeing growth throughout each week. This is much more meaningful to me than a STAR scaled score.
One challenge I am facing is getting to conference with all 22 students each week. I attempt to conference with 4 to 5 students each day. However, I tend to spend too much time during each conference because I enjoy listening to the students read and share their thoughts. I also like to compliment the students on the strategies they are applying. I believe that conferencing has helped a few of my students become more confident when reading aloud. My students beg for me to conference with them each day. They love to tell me about the books they are reading. I am looking forward to learning more about using conferencing as a resource to drive my instruction.
There is nothing better as a teacher than to see the value of what you are doing while talking with a student. Making it all work is a constant challenge, but as you can see, it is all worth it.
ReplyDeleteI love that you have seen the benefits of conferencing! Squeezing in all the students in limited time can be a challenge. You could consider having a partner or small group conference every once in a while to save some time. I personally prefer individual conferences, but we have to find ways to make time work for us!! :-)
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