Now what? Making it real.

Safely back at home with my mind full of tips and tools and sound bytes, I am reminded that you can't do it all tomorrow. We have posted a tremendous amount of information that doesn't even scrape the surface of what we saw, heard, and tried during this conference. I imagine it is overwhelming to read and identify what is useful for YOU in a manageable way. So, below is a list of strategies, tools, resources, etc. that I could walk through with you (and sometimes explore more in depth alongside you) ASAP if one or two suit your fancy moving forward into the new year. Many of these cross disciplinary boundaries. Think creatively!

• Using graphic novels in a Primary School age classroom
• Using keynote (an iPad app) to create digital picture books written and narrated by students
• Setting up a blog for communication of classroom information (newsletter, dailys, etc.)
• Strategies for helping students collect ideas for writing (heart maps, fingerprints, hand maps, writing territories, memory chains, etc.)
• Using mentor texts (fiction and informational) as a regular part of writing workshop
• Using a simple acronym (CLAPS) to structure narrative (imaginative or creative)
• Growing as a writer yourself (and the importance of being a writer as a teacher of writing)
• Tangible activities for LA related professional development
• Creating a "tool kit" for conferencing with writers during Writing Workshop when they struggle and helping them solve the problem and move forward successfully
• Websites and apps for the iPad that allow students to read/watch/listen to digital picture books
• Using kidblog or edublog with student as co-authors and responders

Please contact me to set up a time to meet one-on-one if something here piques your interest!

--CMSchilly