What to do on a rainy day? If I’d had my druthers, as I woke I would have snuggled back down into my covers and listened to the melodic drip drop pattering of raindrops on the roof until I was lulled back into a decadent lazy rainy day sleep.
Instead, when my alarm went off at 5:30 am, I got out of bed, heard the rain–with a bit of dread–and got myself ready to head out. This is the day of the San Diego Area Writing Project annual Spring Conference! We don’t do rain well in San Diego, so when my husband said my phone was buzzing as I emerged from the shower, I worried that people were contacted me to let me know that they wouldn’t be attending. (That wasn’t the case.) I made my way through the raindrops and occasional imprudent rainy day drivers to the university.
And as is always the case…there is amazing energy in teachers coming together to learn on a Saturday morning! Close to 150 educators dodged the raindrops for continental breakfast, coffee, and comradery…along with opportunities to learn together. And we were in for a treat! The hardest part of the morning was choosing which sessions to sit in, there were so many good choices!
Storytelling strategies, using mentor text to improve student writing, inserting craft in non fiction writing, amplifying student voice (with students sharing their process and outcomes), harnessing the power of technology to support young writers, and employing thinking routines for social justice in the classroom were all options this morning. And thirty years into my teaching career and with almost as many years with the writing project I continue to learn and be inspired in this community of educators.
As always, Christine inspired the audience in her opening, reminding us that it is wholehearted connections that make the biggest difference in learning. I am grateful for the opportunity to spend a rainy Saturday morning in the company of dedicated professionals.
I didn’t get to sleep in this morning, but I am refreshed and inspired by a morning spent learning with colleagues.
Thinking Through My Lens 
Sounds like you had an amazing day. Your alliteration, “continental breakfast, coffee, and comradery”, made me smile. Thanks for sharing about how you turned a rainy day into a rainbow experience!
The conference sounds amazing! I practically drooled when I read about all the session options! You structured this piece really nicely and I especially like how your ending echoed your beginning, but with a twist. Happy writing!
Gatherings like this — at our WMWP, too — remind us of the connections and the larger networks, and are solace on those difficult stretches of teaching. It’s a reminder that we are not alone, in our four walls of classrooms, but part of something larger, vibrant, supportive, inspirational.
Kevin
A little rain just made the day all the more special. I love the slide in your photograph. Grace is my one little word this year.
I love attending continuing education opportunities and although it sounds like an early (and wet) morning, it also sounds like an amazing way to spend the day with colleagues!