Journaling

 In the science classroom, journaling can be used to provide writing practice while reflecting on relevant topics.  Students record their thoughts in a bound notebook and share their writings periodically with their teacher.  The process of translating an idea into writing helps students process and clarify ideas. When a learner is required to discuss a concept in writing, the idea eventually takes shape.

Journals are typically evaluated on the basis of the quality and quantity of thoughts expressed, not on the quality of the syntax, spelling, and form.  Journals should be kept in a bound notebook (figure 3.2) with the date written at the top of each page. It is important to have regular entries, so assignments should be kept short and distinctly different than traditional worksheets or homework.  The following is a list of journaling topics for the science classroom. 

Current events – seeing the connection between science, technology and society:  Summarize an article about a relevant scientific discovery.  The summary should include the title, date, author and source, as well as a paragraph summary of the article. The summary should be written in the student’s own words.  There are numerous sources of current events in science, including the science sections of many newspapers.  These can generally be accessed online [sciencesourcebook.com or search New York Times science].

Observations – building observational skills:  Record as many observations as possible about an object or process selected by the teacher.  Be certain to record only observations, and not inferences that you have made (see section 5.3).  Suitable things for observation include teacher demonstrations or experiments, samples of items from the natural world (e.g. rocks, fossils, plants, insects), chemical reactions (e.g. Faraday’s burning candle activity in section 5.2.1), photographs (e.g. plant communities, machines, animals), and video clips (e.g. athletic feats, natural processes, technological innovations).  Observations can include color, shape, odor, texture, structure, composition, organization, movement, direction, location, temperature, magnetism, pressure, and many other features.

Longitudinal Studies – recording observations over time:  Scientific observations and experiments often take place over numerous days (longitudinal studies) and require careful note-taking.  Record your observations and measurements on a regular basis of such things as: bacterial growth on an agar plate, the germination of a seed, the growth response of a plant with respect to gravity or light, the decomposition of plant material in a plastic bottle decomposition chamber, the growth of crystals in an evaporating dish, or other long-term process. 

Prior knowledge – reflecting on what you already know.  Write down everything you know about a particular topic, prior to its introduction in class.  For example, if the topic is “electricity”, write down all know about electricity, how it is produced, what it is used for, how it is delivered to you home, how it is stored, how it is purchased, who produces it, etc.  This can be done for virtually any topic in science.  

Misconceptions – using critical reasoning.  There are many common misconceptions in science that may serve as prompts for journal entries.  For example, many people think that the reason temperatures are higher in the summer is that Earth is closer to the Sun at this time.  To explore this misconception, a journal prompt could ask, “If it is true that seasons are a function of our distance from the Sun, then why is it winter in the Southern hemisphere when it is summer in the Northern hemisphere?  Provide a reasonable explanation for seasonality.”  Students will gain experience writing as they wrestle with such misconceptions. See sections 7.4-7 for a series of misconceptions that may be used as journal prompts.