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Journaling in the garden is a way to integrate a variety of
language arts benchmarks, such as constructing a complete sentence, developing a
concise paragraph, writing a narrative, using concise,descriptive words, or
writing a clear message with well-chosen details.
A journal can be a way to collect data, record
changes, and note student observations. It can help students demonstrate
what they have learned or express creatively how a gardening experience
made them feel. With your classroom teacher's input, decide what
type of journal would best suit your students and their needs.
Pre-formatted journal pages can be used
to record observations or a blank sheet of lined paper to write about an
assigned theme.
| Types of journal pages |
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Garden Observations - a report for students to write about weather and
garden observations. |
|
Sensory Garden Report - for younger
students who will write about their garden experience using sight, sound, and
touch. |
|
Picture Journal - for younger students when drawing a picture is more
age appropriate than writing observations. |
| Field
Notes - an activity for older
students to record observations in a garden area or on
the nature trail. |
| Growth Chart
- a table for students to record plant growth, weather conditions, and other
observations. |
Things to consider:
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Will each student create a journal, will groups work
as a team to create one, or will students add pages to a class journal?
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What will the cover be? Consider a pocket folder or hand-made cover.
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Will all or some of the pages be blank or would a
pre-formatted page be better?
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Open-ended entries can be pictures or sentences expressing
what they observed, experienced, or learned.
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Structured entries can meet specific criteria you
set.
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Show your class that the journal has value by
consistently recording in it and referencing it.
Suggestions for entries:
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Record weather, temperature, wind, season, time,
date, seasonal changes.
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Listen. What do you hear both near and far?
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Record general changes to the garden.
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Record specific plant changes.
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Look for birds, insects, and other
animals.
What did they look like? What were they doing?
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What did you do today? What did you learn?
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Have each student adopt a “special spot.” Observe,
sketch, and note how the spot changes over time.
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Look from an ant's point of view. Lie down
and see the world as an ant would see it. How big would a blade of
grass seem? Where would you hide if a lawn mower or predator came?
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Write responses to literature that
you read to students in a garden area.
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