Shared Journal

       Shared Journal is a daily literacy/writing process in which children share real life experiences with the class. The children learn about each other’s families and lives outside of the classroom. This process helps to develop children’s ability to decipher and tell stories so that others can understand them.  They decide as a class, through questions, discussions, and exchange of opinions which story will be written in our journals. Allowing children to vote on the story they wish to write about, forms a democratic community. This method provides a written class history. Children are allowed the freedom to experiment with writing and construct their own ideas about written and oral language. Through this experimentation, children are encouraged to use their knowledge of initial consonant sounds to record the chosen story. Children’s invented spellings are a valuable part of the process that provides evidence of their growth as a writer, from scribbling to conventional spelling. Through conversations and questions involved in the Shared Journal process, children become more accepting of cultural and individual differences. Teachers provide daily one-on-one instruction to facilitate each child’s advancement in his/her writing ability.

SHARED READING

Shared Reading is a playful literacy experience in which children are engaged in reading poetry, rhymes, and children’s literature. The children gain knowledge about letter sounds, self correction of words, directional conventions on how to turn pages, that print is read from left to right, as well as from top to bottom, letter sound associations, punctuation, predicting text, and intonation patterns while participating in this fun activity. This experience is pleasurable to children and allows them to be successful in reading, which provides them with the desire to experiment with reading and writing at other times.

Theme Development

This year, our theme is Hawaii. We are learning about the landforms, animals, people, and their customs. We started our lesson with a KWL chart about Hawaii. We have learned about the state flag, bird, and flower. We located Hawaii on a map and made our own classroom maps. We have also learned about volcanoes, the ocean/beaches, and the rain forest. Below are some pictures of our experiences.