Curriculum Connections
As students
plan, plant, and otherwise engage with schoolyard
gardens and habitats, they can use journals for different purposes:
to document actions, describe changes over time, capture and reflect
on details of observations, record experimental data, ponder intriguing
questions, and creatively express thoughts and emotions. And that's
just for starters.
How you use garden journals will depend, in part, on your teaching
and learning goals, unique outdoor context, and students' abilities.
You might establish up front how you want the class to use
them or involve students in the decision making.
Student journal entries can be inspired by your deliberate questions
or challenges (e.g., How are people like plants? Compare
and contrast different leaf types.) or by their own schoolyard
"wonderings," observations, and experiences. Specific
activities, topics or themes, such as making compost, exploring
multicultural gardening, or learning about flowers and pollinators,
can also become springboards for journaling. Consider the following
suggestions.
Photo: Allie
O'Donnel, age 14 |
Cultivate
Keen Observers
Scientists and artists use their senses to truly
"see" the world around them. When students have time and
opportunities to carefully observe, muse, and draw or describe something
as they see it rather than as they think it should look, curiosity,
questions, and discoveries bloom. Journal images of cute, round-petaled
flowers soon give way to drawings revealing a stunning level of
detail. Here are some thoughts on using journals to hone youngsters'
observation skills.
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Set
up double-entry journals. Have students divide each page
down the center. They'll use the left side for observations,
drawings, and descriptive notes. The righthand column should
be reserved for questions and reflections inspired by the observations.
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Assessing
Entries
Ask yourself the following questions about observation-related
journal entries:
What is the quality and quantity of details represented
in words and images? Do the words and drawings detail
similarities and differences and show accurate sequences?
Do they depict actual representations rather than preconceived
or stereotypic ideas about what something looks like?
Do they portray accurate positions and relationships
between objects?
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Try
shifting perspectives. First have students take a "macro"
view of some aspect of the schoolyard or garden that intrigues
them. Give them a set amount of time to write about, paint,
and/or draw what they see. Next, have them move closer or otherwise
shift focus so they have a closeup view of a small area. Ask,
How do you "see" differently when you shift your
perspective? What new questions or "ahas" does it
inspire?
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Think
by analogy. Invite each student to choose a small detail
in your garden — a leaf, sunflower head, handful of compost
— and get to know it inside and out. Have them describe
it in their journals in enough detail (texture, shape, color,
designs, and so on) that someone else could draw it. Next, have
them think by analogy by asking, What else does it remind
you of? Give them time to ponder and write about what purpose
the different attributes might serve. (For instance, a leaf
is flat so it can absorb lots of the sun's energy.)
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Make
routine observations. Set a regular time (e.g., every Friday
afternoon) for students to make journal entries in the schoolyard.
They might focus on changes that signal shifting seasons (e.g.,
signs of spring), unfolding life cycles, or a garden's progression.
You might also set up long-term observations of relationships,
such as those between pollinators and flowers.
Capturing
the Gardening Season
Students can use individual garden journals, or one created by
the entire class, to document the planning, planting, and unfolding
of events in their garden or habitat. As they do so, they'll gain
insight into the science and art of gardening and how living systems
function. Here are examples of entries to include: maps of garden
areas or beds; drawings or photos of garden changes; planting
and garden maintenance records (e.g., when fertilizer was added);
descriptions, measurements, and graphs of plant growth; garden
events, and discoveries; plant responses to certain treatments
(e.g., compost tea); and things to remember or try for next year's
garden.
Thematic Project Journals
A long-term study of trees, pollinators, multicultural gardens,
or other themes can be the focal point of an entire journal. Such
as booklet might feature what students already know about a topic
or concept and questions they have, related observations and art,
procedures, notes from interviews and other forms of research,
and responses to (or creation of) related fiction. Students can
also use the booklets to summarize ideas and concepts and express
opinions on issues that have been explored.
Creative
Writing Connections
Gardens and other natural areas easily capture imaginations and
inspire creative writing. Consider having students use journals
for assignments such as these:
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Respond
to fiction and nonfiction readings in their journals.
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Write
poetry or short stories using elements or phenomena in the schoolyard
as a central theme.
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Write
from a specific perspective (other than their own), such as
that of a worm tunneling under their green oasis.
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Find
a favorite spot in the schoolyard or garden, sit quietly for
5 minutes. Use their senses to absorb the scene and then record
observations, ideas, and feelings
Science
Inquiry Journals
Teachers
often have students use science journals to describe investigations
and experimental procedures, record observations and data, and report
conclusions. But that approach can limit reflection and inquiry. Here's
another means that effectively supports critical thinking and helps
students construct understanding based on evidence.
Before an
investigation, have students draw or write what they already
know about the topic or concept, and list questions and predictions
they have. They should also explain the purpose of their investigation.
During an
investigation, in addition to including observations, diagrams,
and data charts and tables, your young scientists should record
questions and thoughts inspired by the observations and data. Next,
have them write about how what they are seeing relates to their
predictions.
After an
investigation, students should review their entries, organize
data, and look for patterns. From this evidence, they should try
to explain their results or findings and answer the following: How
does it fit with my original ideas? What have I learned and how
have my ideas changed? How does this tie into the real world? What
new questions do I have? How did collaborating with classmates enrich
the process?
As you talk
with students about entries during the investigation, you will gain
insight into their thinking and possible misconceptions. Use this
to determine next steps in instruction and to inform your assessment.
 Bookmaking
Through History
From
early clay tablets to electronic publications of our day, people
have been making and using books for millennia. Consider engaging
your students in delving into this binding tale. They might even
devote a homemade journal to the study. Lay the groundwork by asking,
What do you know about books? When and where do you think they
were first made and what were they make of? What do you think was
the first handwritten book? Printed book? What would you like to
know about the history of books? Student responses will, no
doubt, inspire some fruitful discussions.
Next, have
your young sleuths conduct research via books, interviews (with
an antique bookstore owner, for instance), or the Internet. They
could cover general history or focus on specific topics, from
paper and binding techniques to the impact of the printing press
on society. Consider starting with the delightful site, An
Animated History of Books. Share a few of the following highlights
to grease the wheels:
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The first "books" were in the form of clay tablets
(3,800 BC). Imagine carrying a bookbag with those volumes! These
were followed by scrolls made from papyrus. The plant stems
were stripped, laid side by side and crosswise, and then soaked
in the Nile. Once they were dried, they were hammered into sheets
and polished with ivory.
- Books today are
taller than they are wide because the pages were once made of parchment
(prepared from the skin of a sheep or goat) and it was more efficient
to cut the sheets horizontally.
- The word manuscript
means "written by hand." Monks and other scribes once carefully
hand copied books on prepared animal skins, leaving space for illustrators
to add pictures and fancy capital letters. These early books were
so expensive to produce that they were often chained to bookshelves!
- In the 10th century,
it took Feng Tao 21 years to print Confucian texts by carving woodblocks
(one of the first kinds of moveable type)!
- Spectacles (eyeglasses)
were invented in 14th century, enabling more people to read. Sometimes
bookmakers carved a place to put glasses right in covers of books!
- Although Johann
Gutenburg of Germany wasn't the first to use moveable type,
he combined it with a few technologies — a wine press, oil-based
ink, and paper — to invent the printing press. His first book?
The Bible.
- As the printing
press made books widely available in Europe, learning, literacy, and
the spread of new ideas flourished. In the 1800s, a new book form
— the novel — emerged.
Assessment
Prompts
"I try to take time to conference with students about journal
entries and periodically review each one on its own," says Diane
Gore from Durham, NC. "In doing so, I learn so much about students'
thinking, and can readily see where they need support." Many
teachers concur that one of the best assessment-related uses for journals
is to monitor students' progress and thinking, identify misconceptions,
and then use that information to guide instruction.
In addition to reviewing and discussing regular journal entries (or
the science journal questions described above), consider using occasional
prompts, such as the following, to help reveal students' thinking
and understanding:
Dialogue
Journals
This journaling strategy, in which a teacher engages in private,
written conversations with students over time, is a wonderful
tool for assessing and guiding learning. If you haven't used
it before, take a look at this Web page: Using
Dialogue Journals in Support of Science Instruction.
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Tell me what
you know about ___ concept. (How do you know what you know?)
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What
is your opinion about ___?
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How
do you think X topic relates to Y topic?
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How
would you explain ____?
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Write
3 questions, 2 new "ahas," and 1 suggestion for digging
deeper with this investigation.
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How
would you persuade ____ that it's important to ____ (e.g. compost)?
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Summarize
what you've learned this week about ____.
- Draw a
concept map to illustrate your understanding/thinking about ____.
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Discover
one new thing about your garden/habitat ecosystem and write
about it.
You can also
engage students in assessing their own thinking by using
the following types of questions as a lens:
Do I understand? What do I understand about ____? How do I know?
What evidence do I have? How would I explain ____? What do I not
understand?
Younger students might use a simple organizer with these headers:
What I did, What I learned, My questions, My thoughts/responses.
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