A great reading conference only takes five minutes, but its impact can last a lifetime. That's because conferences are the critical, one-to-one teaching that forms the backbone of reading instruction. Conferring with Readersshows you how to confer well and demonstrates why a few moments with students every week can put them on the path to becoming better, more independent readers.

• researcha student's use of skills through questions and observations
• complimentto support and build upon successes
• follow upon prior instruction for accountability and depth of understanding
• explain a reading strategy by providing an explicit purpose and context
• modelthe strategy to make the invisible brainwork of reading more visible
• guide a readerinpracticing the strategy
• link the strategy to independent reading.

• matching students to just-right books
• reinforcing students' strengths
• supporting students during whole-class studies
• helping students move from one reading level to the next
• holding students accountable for previous learning
• deepening students' conversations about books in order to deepen their thinking.