John: More Than a Journal

"I have to find someone to take my baby," I heard a teenage girl say as I was standing at my door for hall duty. I looked and saw a teenage girl just barely starting to show signs of pregnancy holding the hand of a boy who looked barely old enough to drive a car. I don't teach this student. I have never actually noticed her before, and I don't know her name. She is certainly not alone at my school as a teenager who is pregnant and taking classes, but there was something about what she said that struck me. High school is hard enough as it is. This girl's biggest concern is weightier than passing a geometry quiz or memorizing a few lines from Shakespeare.

I don't have any pregnant students in my class, but I am constantly both heart-broken and immensely proud of my students when I hear the stories they have to tell. My favorite way to hear from my students is through a daily journal. Every day I give an employment-related prompt. Of course it goes along with what I am teaching in class and has a standard that is applied to it, but aside from all the academic reasons for a journal, I like it because it gives me a glimpse into what my students are experiencing.

Like today when I asked my students to tell me who they will be most excited to tell when they get their first job and one wrote, "my stepdad because I will prove him wrong and show him that I can support myself and live independently." Last week, I asked my students to tell me an example of a time they showed responsibility. One wrote, "I was responsible after my dad died last year. I help my mom around the house and take care of my brother and sister."

This week one of my tough boys came to my room raging with anger. I had seen him angry before, but not like this. Before class started I was able to talk to him in the hall to try to find out what was going on. When he started talking, his voice cracked and tears started rolling down his face. To help him save face, I told him he didn’t have to tell me what happened. He could skip the journal prompt and instead write about what was upsetting him.

When he finished, he called me over to his desk to read his journal. Normally, I read them after school, but he was too eager for me to read it to wait until then. As he wiped tears from his face, I read his journal. Someone had made fun of him for the way he walks. I know this wasn't the first time he has had people say things about it, but something about this time was too much for him to hide. He is probably the main reason I took the anti-bullying training to heart during in-service.

Textbooks can tell you all the positive academic aspects of using a journal, but I have learned to use journal assignments to go beyond syntax and grammar and get to know my students. Now, I don't take it personally when my student is teased gets red-faced angry in class when I ask him to do something. He is probably venting on me what he wants to say to the kids picking on him. When a student is struggling to stay awake in class, I remember that she was probably up late helping her mom with duties around the house. And when another student seems bitter and angry, I remember he is just trying to prove wrong everyone who ever doubted him.

I don't lower my expectations for my students. I still have consequences for misbehavior in class, but I do give behavior consequences with compassion as a result of the daily journal.

How do you use a daily journal in your class? Do you have other ways of getting to know your students?

Comments

[Kelsey]

John,

I think that journaling can be a very powerful tool in creating a trusting relationship between students and teachers. Children these days are having to deal with more than I can wrap my head around and by providing them with a tool to vent or release some anger/frustration, you are thereby allowing them to learn better and teach them a tool on dealing with anger in a non violent way. I believe that all behavior is communication and journaling is a way for students to express what they are feeling using words instead of harmful actions. As a future special education teacher, this is not always possible for my students as many of them cannot write or freely express how they are feeling. I think that other methods such as drawings, role playing, and tape recording are other great ways to help students release some of their daily pressures.Keep up the great work!

[Emma]

John,
I think journaling is a great way to communicate with students. Depending on what specifics you want the student to write, it's a great way to not only getting to know your students but also to show them the progress that they are making with their writing. I too have students who can't write everything yet, I work with elementary schoolers, but we have them use an Alphasmart (if they can) or have them draw a picture of what it is they are writing about and then we have them explain the picture and we scribe for them.
I've seen students who have shared a lot in their journals, but I also have had some students who won't share or even refuse to do the journal because they feel that they will be ridiculed or graded on it. In one of my experiences, the teacher did the journals, but she didn't grade it and even wrote back to her students. Just so that they could see that it's not grade and to give them the sense that she is really reading and caring about what they have to say and what's going on.

[Brittany]

John-
Thank you for this post. Journals are a great way for students to think, process, and vent out many things and topics. The only problem with using journals is that not all of my students in the DCD classroom are able to understand the concept. There are also may that have a hard time communicating in any form. It makes it hard to find ways where these students can share their thoughts and feeling without demonstrated behaviors. It is very rewarding for the students to be able to write their name or even type a few sentences about what they have done in school for the day.
Journaling is a great way for students that are able to do this to process their thoughts and feelings. It can be a way or time for them to be creative or expressive depending on if they have been given a prompt or it if free writing. It is a good practice for students to have a place they can express what is going on in their lives that they feel that they can't share with anyone. Some students don't want to take the time to journal and it is a task to get them to even write a few sentences. Hopefully more students decide to take the time to journal.

[John]

@Jennie your post is a great example of how a journal can help students express themselves. You are right when you say it isn't for everyone. It is important to give multiple means of expression for the students to use. Thanks for the comment!

[jennie]

I have seen journaling every time to start the class period show such insight into a students life that doesn't talk much. We haven't had super profound journal prompts in our class, but the ones that we do have, this student expounds on and gives us such insight. We have been able to see that he expresses himself gloriously through writing. One day on a journal prompt that asked the students to write down three things they like doing...most students responded with play video games, play with friends, or playing a certain sport, but he was able to write about how he loves helping other people. We were able to sit him down and talk to him about what kind of help he likes doing. We found out that he loves helping his peers in classes and such. We would have never found this out other than through his writing because he isn't very open with us or his staff verbally. Writing isn't the way that all students can express themselves best, but some can. Using multiple methods of self expression for all students, but especially the students in my class help all students tap into and use their strongest multiple intelligence and succeed in more areas of their educational career.

[John]

@Stephanie C thanks for the comments and encouragement! I think you hit on a very important part of a daily journaling--teacher response. If students don't think that you are reading the journal, they won't get the impression that you care about what is happening with them. I was in an IEP meeting recently where a parent brought her student's journal to the meeting and flipped through dozens of pages of journals without a single comment from the teacher. This defeats the purpose of having a journal. This kind of journal is just a time filler.

I don't respond to every single journal my students write, but I make sure to comment on at least 2-3 journals a week.

[John]

@Denise thank you so much! I really enjoyed writing this one.

[Stephanie C]

John,

I really enjoyed your post about student journaling. It shows how much you care about your students and their lives outside of school. I have always believed in getting to know students, and student journaling is one of the best ways to do so. Since the entire class is participating in journaling, it allows for students to write things down that they may not verbally discuss. It also allows for students to write what they feel without having to worry about grammar and correct sentence formation.

In a previous classroom experience I had, the teacher had the students journal on a weekly basis. Once the students submitted their journal entries, she would read them all and respond back to each student. I really liked the idea of two-way journaling because it showed the students that the teacher really read the entry and cared about what was written. The teacher response also allowed for the teacher to demonstrate his/her understanding or lack-there- of. It also allowed for the teacher to possibly relate to the student response.

I am an avid journal writer myself because it is one of my biggest stress relievers. I cannot wait to have my own classroom and to get to know my students through journaling. Thanks again for sharing your post, you can really tell how much you care about your students in every post you have written!

[John]

@Kristin I LOVE the idea of having students record a journal. What do you use to record the journals? I would love to be able to have students record on an iPad... maybe someday when all students come to school with an iPad. :)

[John]

@Brooke thanks for the comments. It sounds like you had a great experience this summer. I would love to use a two-way communication journal if I had elementary-middle school students.

[John]

@Sabrina I love all the ideas you suggest here, especially pasting pictures. I think the important part is that students have an avenue to express themselves no matter what communication difficulties they may have.

[John]

@Brandi thanks for the comments. One thing you mention is that it is important for students to know we care about them through the journal. I have seen some teachers give a daily journal, but never give any feedback or comments on the journal. I don't grade my journals at all. As long as the students wrote something, they get a 100%, but I always make comments, underline sentences, circle words, and make other marks so they know what I liked in the journal or how I responded to it. It also lets them know that I am actually reading the journal and not just putting a check mark at the top.
Also, I love the ideas of using art for a journal. Pasting pictures, drawing, and finger painting are all ideas I have heard in response to this blog, and I think they could be excellent alternatives to writing.

[John]

@Kristine thanks for the comment. Another reader commented and said that she lets some students with strong writing anxiety draw pictures instead of writing a daily journal. I love the idea of students drawing and explaining what they drew. Maybe you will be able to use this tip as well.

[John]

@Andrew thanks for the comments! It's awesome that your class is using the blog as part of an assignment. Best of luck with student teaching! Hopefully something you read here will be helpful to you.

[John]

@Jamie thanks for the comment. Great thoughts! Best of luck with student teaching. I hope you are able to work a daily journal into your routine!

[Kristin]

John-
Great Post! Having student’s journal is a great way to express them selves with out being judged by their peers but like some people said some of the students cant write there thought down on paper. I have in the past let students tape record there journal. You are right we as educators to need to take a step back and realize some of the heavy burdens these kids have to deal with. So letting them write/ talk about there problems/ vent what they have to say is a great idea. Keep up the great work you do!

[Brooke]

John-
That was a powerful post about journaling and it really shows how much you care for all of your students. I am currently a student and will be student teaching later this year. But I have worked with students all summer long and one thing we did with them was journaling. Every child had a summer journal that they wrote in or colored in every day. It was a way to communicate to their parents what they were doing each day that they were with us. I never thought about getting to know students and their unique experiences through journaling but that is such a great idea! It wouldn't work for some of my students, but it's a great idea for others. I will definitely use this idea in the future.

[Sabrina]

I do see how journaling is not "for" every student, in all situations. I have, in my own experiences, had students draw a picture if they were physically able. When they are not able, it is important to watch students body language. I think it might work to have students point to pictures that would show emotions or scenarios. If a teacher wants a "journal" the student who has difficulty with writing or drawing, can paste pictures on the pages that explain what is going on inside their head.

[Brandi]

John, I loved reading your post. I can really see how passionate you are about your students and your teaching. I think that it is incredibly important for your students to have that journal time because they obviously all have their own problems and struggles, but it also shows them that you do care about their lives. Students in high school, those with and without disabilities, are struggling to find their place in this world and by giving your students an opportunity to be heard and understood is great for their state mind. They just want someone to listen and understand. Its easy for us as adults and educators to understand their academic struggles and how to help, but all the other factors aren't as easy to understand. For example, I have never had to help my mom around the house with younger siblings after the death of my father. This isn't something I can relate to, so giving your student a change to help you understand that part of her life with give her that opportunity to trust you as well as feel safe.

With my future career as a special educator I may be working with students such as Emily described, who are unable to journal. For these students I think I would let them create a video journal, or use art or music to help describe their feelings. Every student is different in terms of their abilities, so differentiating the options for journaling can only meet their diverse needs.

Thanks for your great work and blog!

[Kristine]

John,
Thanks for sharing your positive experience on journaling. Working in pullout or push in situations, I have not found an effective means of getting my students to write. For one thing, it is my job to work with students on their IEP goals and get them back to their gen ed classes as quickly as possible. While having students write in a journal can be connected to nearly any IEP goal (including math goals), most of my students abhor writing. It is difficult to get even one full sentence from them. As many of the comments to your post suggested, technology may offer a more efficient and motivating way to get students reflecting.

[Andrew]

Hey John,
I am a currently a student and finishing up my classes and student teaching this year. In my practicum I typically would try to talk to the students to try and get to know them, but for many of the students, verbalizing how they felt was a barrier. I like the idea of using daily journals as a way of helping the students get thoughts out. I was also reading what Emily wrote about giving them a chance to write in an atmosphere where they aren't judged or graded and that makes a lot of sense too. Thanks for the post, also I liked how you threw a question or two in at the end there. We are posting weekly for a class I am taking and that helps to get the ball rolling.

[Jamie]

John,
I was almost in tears reading about your student being made fun of for the way he walks and how upset it made him. I think journals are a wonderful way to get to know your students and to learn about their successes and/or struggles which you may not ever see. These, as you mentioned, provide great insight into why certain behaviors may or may not be occurring.
I am currently student teaching in a 7th grade classroom and think it would be a great idea to implement daily journals. Students at the middle and high school levels go through so much that we don't know about and many could use much more guidance during tough times that they may never get simply because we don't know. I can think of more than a handful of my students who could probably benefit from having a positive role model to speak to about what they are experiencing. I know schools have counselors in place for these types of things but let's face it, are students really going to go to someone they hardly know at all to discuss personal issues? I don't think so. I believe they are much more likely to confide in a teacher they know and trust, but they may not know how to go about this. I will mention adding a daily journal into our daily routine to my cooperating teacher and see what he thinks. I personally, would love to use this tool with our students.

[Mary Beth Diehl]

Hmmm--maybe tablets or a previous "gen" of a new model? [ex: Iphone 4 vs. 5]--have noticed that prices drop significantly for older models when newer comes out. I've seen/heard of sites for donating old models. BTW, anyone who knows me would now be laying on the ground CRYING with laughter that I was sending tech advice--took my an hour to get the Ipad up & running, and that was with help! It just seems that with so much tech out there today, there should be a way for some of yr students to do this on a device--doesn't sounds like all of them need an adaption from pencil & paper. Good luck! :)

[John]

@Mary Beth I would LOVE to have iPads for my students. I really think that we could use more assistive technology that we currently have at my school, but for whatever reason, we are stuck looking for low-tech alternatives.
However, I do have my own personal iPad and have been able to do some pretty awesome things with it in the classroom. I have an article coming out in CEC Today that you should read on a way I way I am using my iPad.

[Mary Beth Diehl]

John-what about apps/technology/software? Most of the special ed students @ my early childhood center are nonverbal, and many of the 'typical peers' do not speak English as a first language. The staff are trying to use many different technologies [speech-to-text (and vice-versa), Picture This, Writing with Symbols, Boardmaker, etc]. A great side benefit is that these can also be used @ home. My district just bought me my first Ipad [welcome to the 21st century! :) ] and I'm waiting for the weekend to actually check it out--am afraid I will be up all night & tomorrow's lessons will consist of "let's try this App! and this one! and this one!"

[John]

@Emily P Thanks for the comment. I love the movie Freedom Writers! Have you found any alternate ways for your students who can't write to "journal." I have a couple students who can barely write. I was wondering if an emoticon style journal where they could circle different smiley or frowney faces etc. What do you think?

[Emily P.]

John-
Daily journaling is nearly impossible in my DCD classroom. Although about half of my students are able to write, their thoughts and ideas get lost in translation. Try as they might, their thoughts just aren’t as clear on paper as they are in words. The other half of my students are unable to write or even speak. Those students are undoubtedly the most difficult (and most rewarding) to “read.” For students who are unable to journal or express their thoughts, reading their emotions and expressions becomes key.
I will agree that students are ALWAYS willing to share more during daily journaling than teachers think. Daily journaling allows for a risk-free opportunity to practice their writing. They don’t need to feel pressured by a grade, grammatical corrections, or proper sentence formation. They also don’t have to worry about anyone reading it, unless, of course, that’s what they want. Think: Freedom Writers?
Daily journaling is a practice that teachers should never forget, because it develops students, not only academically, but emotionally. It helps them become self-aware and be in control of their own thoughts. It is a free-write opportunity that, unless students are given specific time, they more than likely won’t take the time to do on their own.