Chapters International Writing Institutes by Carl Anderson, Dan Feigelson and Lester Laminick 27th - 28th October 2012,Warsaw
	Overview Today, anyone can be a writer.  Unlike in the past, when newspapers and publishing houses decided who could be a writer, anyone with access to the internet can be a writer--someone who publishes their thoughts on blogs or via Twitter, someone who can be read by people across the globe in a matter of seconds.  In every sphere of our lives--academic, professional and personal--people are writing more than ever before.  Writing, in fact, is a skill essential for success and fulfillment in all the dimensions of our lives. Fortunately for students who are growing up in this new world, we live in a time where we have developed a rich knowledge base about how to teach writing.  In this two day institute on the teaching of writing, we invite you to spend time with internationally recognized literacy experts who will share with you what they know about writing instruction. Keynote Day One Keynote Speaker: Carl Anderson  "What Do Teachers Need to Learn to Teach Writing Well?" Day Two Keynote Speaker: Lester Laminack “Where Ideas Come From—An examination of the spark that ignites a story” Panel Discussion Chaired by Dan Feigelson Grade K - 2 Intitutes Lester Laminack Digging Into Details We often hear ourselves suggesting to young writers, "add some details".  That suggestion may lead to a loss of focus or confusion. I've been taken by the way children are using details.  It seems that children are thinking of detail as a way to make their writing longer or that more is better.  It's as if they are thinking a string of adjectives and physical descriptions scattered throughout the text makes it stronger.  That has prompted me to return to my stash of picture books with attention to how writers use details. Together we will explore a collection of texts including narratives, fiction, poetry and an assortment of nonfiction formats to examine the critical role of detail.  Digging in to details will lead us to deeper understanding of the power of specificity in all writing. Lester L. Laminack is Professor Emeritus from department of Birth-Kindergarten, Elementary and Middle Grades Education, at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina where he received two awards for excellence in teaching [the Botner Superior Teaching Award and the Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award].  Lester is now a full-time writer and consultant working with schools throughout the United States.  He is an active member of the National Council of Teachers of English and served three years as co-editor of the NCTE journal Primary Voices and as editor of the Children’s Book Review Department of the NCTE journal Language Arts (2003-2006). He also served as a teaching editor for the magazine Teaching K-8 and wrote the Parent Connection column (2000-2002). He is a former member of the Whole Language Umbrella Governing Board, a former member of the Governing Board and Secretary of the North Carolina Association for the Education of Young Children, and a former member of the Board of Directors for the Center for the Expansion of Language and Thinking.  He served as the Basic Reading Consultant to Literacy Volunteers of America from 1987 through 2001.  He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Our Children’s Place. His academic publications include several books including Learning with Zachary (Scholastic), Spelling in Use (NCTE), Volunteers Working with Young Readers (NCTE), andhis contributions to The Writing Workshop: Working Through the Hard Parts (NCTE), Learning Under the Influence of Language and Literature (Heinemann) Reading Aloud Across the Curriculum (Heinemann) and two books from Scholastic Cracking Open the Author’s Craft (2007) and Unwrapping the Read Aloud (2009) from Scholastic. In addition he has several articles published in journals such as The Reading Teacher, Science and Children, Language Arts, Primary Voices, and Young Children. Lester is also the author of six children’s books: The Sunsets of Miss Olivia Wiggins, Trevor’s Wiggly-Wobbly Tooth, Saturdays and Tea Cakes, Jake’s 100th Day of School, Snow Day! and, Three Hens and a Peacock all from Peachtree Publishers.  He has three new titles under contract including, Sam Loves Pink (Peachtree), BULLYING:  Working Toward Kindness and Civility and Human Compassion. Taking a Proactive Stance Through Guided Read-Aloud and Conscious Conversations (Heinemann), and The Writing Teacher’s Troubleshooting Guide (Heinemann). Grade 3 - 5 Institutes Carl Anderson Assessing Writers In this two-day workshop, Carl Anderson, author of Assessing Writers, How's It Going?: A Practical Guide to Conferring with Student Writers, and Strategic Writing Conferences Grades 3-6, will offer participants smart, ready-to-use ideas and strategies for assessing the writers in their classrooms.    Carl will first discuss assessment lenses that will help participants uncover what their students know about writing, and help them figure out what to teach them next in mini-lessons and one-on-one writing conferences. He'll give special attention to assessing how well students write, and show participants how to read student writing to figure out what students know about traits of writing such as meaning, structure, detail, voice and conventions. Carl will also talk about the importance of setting assessment-based writing goals for individual students that can help teachers prioritize what to teach in units of study and in writing conferences. Throughout the workshop, Carl will show and discuss typical writing samples from upper-grade classrooms and well as videos of writing conferences with students, and use them to demonstrate how to assess student writers with the goal of helping them grow as writers. Carl Anderson is a literacy consultant who works with elementary and secondary schools across the United States and Canada. He is the author of Assessing Writers (Heinemann, 2005) and How's It Going?: A Practical Guide to Conferring with Student Writers (Heinemann, 2000) and is a favorite speaker with Heinemann Professional Development. Carl worked for eight years at the renowned Teachers College Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University, where he was Lead Staff Developer. He also was an elementary and middle school teacher in the Bronx, in Kentucky, and Illinois. Carl lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Robin, and his two children, Anzia and Haskell. He has been a lifelong fan of the music of the Beatles, and a new convert to Bob Dylan fandom. Grade 4 - 8 Institutes Dan Feigelson Reading Like A Writer: Deepening Our Use Of Mentor Texts in Writing Workshop In this workshop, teachers will learn a variety of strategies for weaving mentor texts into their writing workshops.  Among other things, we will think through: using mentor texts to teach qualities of strong writing, ranging from the more descriptive/craft oriented (e.g., vivid language, sensory description, interesting word choice, voice, etc.), to the structural (transitions, beginnings/endings, etc.), to the "mechanical" (punctuation, grammar). incorporating read-alouds and other texts into our writing mini-lessons, conferences, and share sessions; teaching students to independently notice and learn from specific qualities of writing in books and authors they read; coaching young writers in making decisions about how to effectively incorporate ideas from mentor texts into their own pieces. Dan Feigelson is a literacy consultant who specializes in all aspects of reading and writing workshop, grades 2-8.  He has worked extensively in New York City schools as a teacher, principal, staff developer, curriculum writer, and local superintendent.  An early member of the Teachers College Writing Project (led by Lucy Calkins and Shelley Harwayne), Dan served as a fellow at the University of Pittsburgh’s Institute for Learning, where he helped develop literacy standards for cities across the United States.  He is featured in many instructional videos and web materials, and has led institutes, workshops and lab-sites around the country. A regular presenter at national literacy conferences, Dan is the author of Practical Punctuation: Lessons In Rule Making And Rule Breaking For Elementary Writers (Heinemann, 2008).  He is currently working on a new book about teaching reading comprehension in K-8 classrooms. Agenda: Day 1 Registration - 7.45am - 8.15 am Keynote 8.30 -  9.15 am Institute 9.30 am - 11.00 am Break 11.00 - 11.15 am Institute 11.15 am - 12.30pm Lunch 12.30 - 1.30 pm Institute 1.30 - 2.45 pm Break 2.45pm - 3.00 pm Institute 3.00pm - 4.00 pm Day 2 Keynote 8.00 - 8.45 am Break 8.45 - 9.00 am Institute 9.00 am - 10.30 am Break 10.30 - 10.45 am Institute 10.45 am - 12.30 pm Lunch 12.30 - 1.30 pm Institute 1.30 - 2.30 pm Break 2.30pm - 2.45 pm Panel Discussion 2.45pm - 4.00 pm Potential Audience: All Educators, Assistants, Administrators and Literacy Coaches, for grades K-8 Central office curriculum and instruction coordinators and university instructors in teacher training Investment:   You choose one presenter whose workshop you will attend for 2 days. The Keynote and Panel discussions are common for the full group.   Euro- 495/- Closing date 1st September 2012   Euro 450/- Early Bird offer till 1st March 2012   Special Group Discount for 8 or more participants Euro 400/- 15th January 2012   Investment includes Certificate of Participation for 16 Professional Development hours.   This also includes Lunch, 2 coffee breaks and workshop handouts. Venue:   Warsaw Contact:   Shonal Agarwal CEO Website: shonal@chaptersinternational.com chaptersinternational@gmail.com Website: www.chaptersinternational.com       Register Now