What are journals and how are they used?
Your child spends 15 minutes writing in a journal during Small Group Time. The journal is a Mead Composition Book where your child can write or draw anything he/she pleases. Children learn best when learning is meaningful to them. Your child is then encouraged to write something about his/her drawing by independently sounding out words. Throughout the day, our classroom activities (The Morning Message, and learning letter sounds through Alpha-Friends)support this type of independent writing. The Teacher and Aides do not sound out words or trace words/letters for the children. We do not transcribe words or correct your child’s phonetic spelling. Ask your child to sound out the word he/she is writing and write whatever sound he/she hears. Some may write only the first letter, some may write letters not in the word. Embrace and value any approximation of your child’s writing. As the year progresses, your child’s writing emerges from scribbles, to letters, to phonetic words, phonetic sente
