Guide the Pig

I'm actually doing a little pre-planning for the school year, being that I am such an organized, go getter little whippersnapper.

(pause)

Okay, I'm doing all the fun stuff so I can procrastinate planning for the professional development presentation gig my colleague and I have been told we have to teach in a couple weeks. It's about Writer's Workshop and Literature Circles, both of which I love dearly. Here's the conundrum: I don't want to sound as though the way we do it is the only way to do it and that we're putting other people's practices down. I'm trying to finagle a way to present it that leads to a discussion of how we can come together school-wide on practices used.

So, all you smart people out there? What's the best way to do this and be interesting enough that people won't be cutting and pasting and labeling name tags while I'm talking? It's a real thinker, I tell you.

We've all been to countless horrible staff developments. So components do the good ones include? For me, it's time for me to talk and something practical and useful to take back to my classroom. (Not a screen by screen copy of a power point.)

Help me!!

Now I'm going to return to the fun stuff. I'm writing a story that I want to write aloud for the kids when we start Writer's Workshop. I'll post it tomorrow for proper critique a la Writer's Workshop.