Conferring—Clear Expectations and Reasonable Goals

This video shows a conference between Christie and Connor, one of the fourth-grade boys in her class. Uninitiated, Connor begins by summarizing the chapter he just read in Hoot, by Carl Hiaasen. Christie asks questions to clarify some of the story details, and then brings the conference into focus by complimenting Connor on what he is doing well as a reader. The conference shifts as she coaches him to reflect about the inferences he is making to help with comprehension.

We appreciate how Christie helps Connor set a reasonable goal for tomorrow with clear expectations regarding what they will discuss next time they get together. Christie notes brief details about the conference on her conferring sheet. She also writes his name on her appointment calendar for tomorrow. Not only is Connor accountable for a certain amount of reading, recording of his thinking, and the text that supports it, but Christie is accountable as well for following up with him. We love this simple and effective organizational strategy.