Shared Journal

Materials Needed:

Journals for each child – 1 page for each day of the month in the journal (including Saturday and Sunday)

Pencils

Crayons

Journal Sharing Sign-up Board

Chart with every child’s name- used to record when a child shares and when a child’s story has been written about

Process:

Prior to journal sharing time:

• Child tells the teacher they have a story to share for journals.  The teacher screens the story for content, appropriateness, to help the child remember the details that need to be shared, etc. (Most teachers have 3 children share each day.)
• If the teacher and the child agree that the story is appropriate, the child signs up to share the story on the Journal Sharing sign-up board.  The teacher may also assist the child in thinking of a title or keyword for the story.  The child then writes this title or key word on the board beside the child’s name using their knowledge of the alphabetic principal, spelling rules, etc.

Journal Sharing time:

• At journal sharing time the class is seated on the floor.  The teacher and children check the journal sharing sign-up board to see who will share.  The children share their stories in the order listed on the board.
• After the child tells his/her story, the child asks classmates for questions.  The teacher must decide how to manage the questioning time so that the length is appropriate.
• Some teachers choose to have the child wait to give the story a title or a key word until this time.  Then the child, teacher, and classmates decide on a title or key word together and the child writes the title or key word beside his/her name on the sharing board.  The child uses his/her own spelling, but can get assistance from classmates in spelling the word.
• After all 3 stories have been shared and questioning has occurred, the teacher leads the children in a discussion about which story should be written about in the journal for that day.  The focus is on the story – it’s content, detail, interest, and relevance to the time – not on the child who shared it.  The teacher questions children to get to their reasoning about why a particular story should be included in the journal.  Reasoning and negotiating are difficult skills for young children, but skillful teachers are able to help children make progress in their ability to de-center and think thoughtfully about other’s points of view. 
• The length of the negotiating time depends on the skill/level of the children.  The teacher decides based on her students when negotiating time is over.  If agreement is not reached on a particular story, the children vote.
• The teacher reads the title or key word for each story (not the name of the child who shared the story).  The children vote in whatever way the teacher deems appropriate. This should, however, be a secret ballot.  The teacher counts the votes and puts tally marks or the numeral that represents the votes next to the story title/key word.
• The children and teacher look at and discuss the results of the vote.  The teacher discusses more, less, etc.
• The story that receives the most votes is then recorded in the journal.
• The teacher keeps up with who has shared and who has been written about on the chart.  The chart is displayed so that children can see it during journal time.
• Once the story has been decided upon, the teacher and children quickly review the story and discuss things that could and should be included in their writing and illustrations.

Writing time:

• Children go to their seats and find the page for the day’s story.  Some teachers have the children write the date in their journal as part of their “morning work”.  Others have them write their date in their journal before they go to centers.  Others have the children write the date as soon as they get to their seats during writing time.  The date includes the day of the week, the month, day, and year.
• On Friday or on Monday (teacher preference) the children date their journals for Saturday and Sunday and draw a smiley face or some other designated symbol to remember that these days are weekend days.  The purpose of dating the journal for Saturday and Sunday is to help the children solidify the very abstract concept of time – day, 7 days in a week, number of days in a month, etc.  It also allows the journal to be used as a history.  If the class wants to find out how long it has been since Johnny lost his tooth, they can count the pages in the journal since that story was recorded.
• Once the date is written the children illustrate the story before writing about it. 
• The teacher circulates among the children during this time observing what they are drawing, the details in their picture, etc.
• Once the picture is completed the child begins to write the story.
• The teacher continues to circulate during the writing time.  The teacher questions children as they are drawing and writing to extend the content of the picture and story. 
• The teacher usually spends individual time with the children during the writing portion of journals.  This depends on the needs of the child.

Sharing/Conferencing time:

• When the child feels that they have completed their picture and writing, the teacher goes to the child and the child reads the story to the teacher.  The teacher and the child discuss the picture and writing.  During this conferencing time, the teacher gives the child authentic feedback about the picture and the writing.  The teacher points out strengths, areas of improvement that have occurred based on prior conferencing and small group work, and one or two things to work on.
• During the conferencing time, the teacher observes areas of growth for each child.  The journal then becomes a data source for planning small group instruction. 
• After the child and teacher have conferenced about the picture and writing, the child makes any changes, additions, etc.  Then the child reads the story to 2 friends.

Sharing with family:

• At the end of each month the children take home their journals to read to their parents.  I always kept a listing of the stories that we had written about to put as an index in the front of the journal.  This is helpful when you are working with writers who are at lower levels on the developmental progression of writing.
• After the journal has been read at home, the child brings it back to school. 
• Each month’s journal entries are kept in a large binder and are housed in the classroom for children to read, use as a reference, etc.
• At the end of the year the binder with all of the journal entries for the year goes home.

Benefits of shared journal writing:

• Builds a sense of community
• Allows for the development of oral language skills
• Provides opportunities for children to be both the speaker and the audience
• Develops the concept of story and story sequence
• Provides opportunities for children to practice the skill of “careful listening”
• Gives structured opportunity for children to practice asking and answering who, what, when, where, why, how questions
• Provides daily practice in segmenting
• Provides daily practice in applying the alphabetic principle
• Provides meaningful, purposeful practice in handwriting
• Provides practice in story comprehension
• Provides daily opportunity for children to read their writing to the teacher and to classmates
• Provides opportunities for and practice in exchanging ideas and points of view
• Provides opportunities to solidify concept of day, week, month, etc.
• Provides opportunities to count, add, work with concepts of more and less, etc.
• Writing serves as a data source for planning small group and individual instruction