Gulf Coast Writing Conference, Day One

I attended three workshops today: Engaging Boy Writers and Fine-tuning the Writing Process by Ralph Fletcher, as well as "Perky Pointers" (figurative language) by Julie Downing. Although I feel that the majority of the information was geared toward elementary teachers, I still believe that I can use it to enhance my teaching. I must say, however, that I commend the elementary teachers because they are the ones who spend most of their time seeking professional development on their time.
I received some really great hand-outs about similes, spoonerisms (learned something new--didn't know what these were), and onomonatopeias. I also obtained some "first days of school" ideas to get the writing juices flowing.
In my eighth and ninth grade classes next year, I plan to spend more time developing writers--not teaching the ADAW. So, my creative and practical juices are replenished.
I'm looking forward to the next two days.