Teachers listen to a presentation by Kristi Mraz.

Math literacy was also a focus of this year’s All Write conference. Pictured is math educator Steve Leinwand with a group of teachers.

WARSAW — There is joy in the journey of teaching and the All Write Consortium wants to help educators find it and pass it along to their students.

“Finding Joy in the Journey” was the theme for the 2016 All Write Summer Institute, held Thursday, June 23, and Friday, June 24, at Warsaw Community High School.

Far from being simply a local event, the All Write Summer Institute draws hundreds of educators from around the country for two days of in-depth presentations on reading, writing and math literacy. Speakers include educators, researchers and even children’s authors, who share the latest knowledge and work to inspire teachers to, in turn, inspire their students.

Teachers laugh along with children’s author Jeff Anderson as he relates stories to the world of teaching. (Photos by Amanda McFarland)

This year’s lineup included Wawasee School Instructional Assistant Ruth Ayers; author and consultant Ralph Fletcher; reading specialist, Title I teacher and staff developer Linda Hoyt; English teacher and literacy coach Penny Kittle, North Conway, N.H.; high school English teacher Allison Marchetti, Richmond, Va.; Instructional Digital Age Learning Coach Katie Muhtaris; high school English teacher Rebekah O’Dell, Richmond, Va.; author, teacher and consultant Terry Thompson, San Antonio, Texas; novelist Linda Urban, Vermont; author and fourth-grade teacher Patrick Allen, Parker, Colo.; English teacher and author Jim Burke, San Francisco, Calif.; Principal Research Analyst and math educator Steve Leinwand; author and Reading and Writing Project Staff Developer Marjorie Martinelli, New York; Educator Collaborative Book Ambassador, staff developer and Common Care facilitator Joellen McCarthy; author, teacher and consultant Kristi Mraz, Brooklyn, N.Y.; and past classroom teacher, special education and Title I teacher and gifted programming coordinator Mark Overmeyer, Denver, Colo.

The keynote speaker was Ralph Fletcher, who opened with a presentation titled, “Removing the Chill from Writing Classrooms,” which focused on putting excitement back in the classroom at all grade levels.

Over the course of two days, teachers participated in workshops on fiction, poetry, vocabulary, writing with mentors, encouraging creativity, increasing student engagement and even ways to improve math teaching.

All Write Coordinator Mindy Hoffar estimates this to be WCS’s sixth year as the event host. Previously, it took place in Shipshewana but eventually outgrew the location.

“Warsaw has really been a great partner with us,” Hoffar said.

For more information and bios on each presenter, click here.