How do you make an immediate impact on learning?

Conference with students!  Have specific, targeted discussions with students about their learning and understanding of content and skills.  By keeping it brief and specific, you'll find it can be a manageable component of any classroom structure.

As students work in collaborative groups, it's a great opportunity to gauge comprehension of a new skill or topic.

While conferencing with one collaborative group, have a clear expectation for what other groups should be doing.

To ensure conferencing time for uninterrupted conferencing, this teacher made a "table lead" to help students writing their lab conclusions.  The table lead had demonstrated their proficiency prior to earning this prestigious role, and other kids used their expertise.

Conferencing before a quiz:  a few quick questions can help you gauge if a student has the knowledge and skills necessary.

Conferencing is an ongoing component of writing workshop.