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15 Writing in Journals

Page
129
from
Write on Course 20-20

Writing in Journals Opening Page

Start-Up Activity

Ask students to spend 3–5 minutes freewriting about this Anaïs Nin quotation: “Writing allows you to live life twice.” Have volunteers share their responses. Then have students count the number of words they wrote. Indicate that the greater number of words a person can write in a given time, the greater the fluency of the writing. Journals can help students gain fluency.

Read and discuss the introduction on page 129. Afterward, ask students about their previous journal-writing experiences and encourage them to keep journals.

Think About It

“A writer can get rusty just as an athlete can. It’s important to try to write something every day.”

—Nany Garden

State Standards Covered in This Chapter

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.10

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.10

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.10

LAFS Covered in This Chapter

LAFS.6.W.4.10

LAFS.7.W.4.10

LAFS.8.W.4.10

TEKS Covered in This Chapter

110.22.b.10

110.22.b.11

110.22.b.12

110.23.b.10

110.23.b.11

110.24.b.10

110.24.b.11

110.24.b.12

TEKS Covered in This Chapter

Page 130 from Write on Course 20-20

Journal Writing

Help your students set up their journals by leading them through the steps on this page. When you reach step "4. Write about ideas and feelings that are important to you,” have your class brainstorm specific writing topics they would like to write about. Then ask them to choose a topic they discovered or one of the bulleted topics and write a journal entry about it.

If you want to make journal writing a regular part of your class routine, have your students write in their journals every other day at the start of the class period. On the other days, have pairs of students read and respond to each other’s writing, plus count words to check for fluency. After five or six weeks, have students develop one of the ideas from a journal entry into a finished form of writing to share with the class.

Related Minilesson:
State Standard Reference:
LAFS Standard:
LAFS.6.W.4.10
TEKS Standard:
110.22.b.10, 110.22.b.11, 110.22.b.12
NE ELA Standard:
LA 6.2.1.g, LA 6.2.2

Related Resource Tags

Click to view a list of tags that tie into other resources on our site

Level:
Grade 6Grade 7Grade 8
Mode:
Personal Writing
Form:
Journal
English Language Arts:
Writing

Page 131 from Write on Course 20-20

Journal Entry

Ask for a volunteer to read the sample entry aloud. Analyze the entry using the PAST strategy to help students better understand the dynamics of journal writing.

  • Purpose: to reflect or think about personal experiences
  • Audience: the writer
  • Subject: soccer practice
  • Type: freely written journal entry

Point out that while a journal entry should be freely written, it should be coherent and neat enough for future readings.

State Standard Reference:
LAFS Standard:
LAFS.6.W.4.10
TEKS Standard:
110.22.b.10, 110.22.b.11, 110.22.b.12
NE ELA Standard:
LA 6.2.1.g, LA 6.2.2

Related Resource Tags

Click to view a list of tags that tie into other resources on our site

Level:
Grade 6Grade 7Grade 8
Mode:
Personal Writing
Form:
Journal
English Language Arts:
Writing

Page 132 from Write on Course 20-20

Types of Journals

Review the different types of journals listed on this page. Ask students if they have had any experiences with any of them.

To let students try out one of these special journal types, have pairs of students write an entry for a dialogue journal. First, assign one student to write a sentence or two based on one of the sentence starters on page 134. Then have the student pass the entry to his or her partner for a response. Students should go back and forth like this for 5–8 minutes. Point out that students should be respectful in their entries because they will be shared. Afterward, ask for volunteers to share their entries.

State Standard Reference:
LAFS Standard:
LAFS.6.W.4.10
TEKS Standard:
110.22.b.10, 110.22.b.11, 110.22.b.12
NE ELA Standard:
LA 6.2.1.g, LA 6.2.2

Related Resource Tags

Click to view a list of tags that tie into other resources on our site

Level:
Grade 6Grade 7Grade 8
Mode:
Personal Writing
Form:
Journal
English Language Arts:
Writing

Page 133 from Write on Course 20-20

Response Journal Entries

Read and discuss the two response entries on this page. Point out that each entry helps the reader explore and explain feelings about the reading. In this way, reading and writing are closely linked. Consider having students keep a response journal for their next extended reading assignment. They should respond before, during, and after their reading. See “Reading Fiction” (pages 387–396) and “Reading Nonfiction” (pages 369–386) for more information.

Related Minilesson:
State Standard Reference:
LAFS Standard:
LAFS.6.W.4.10
TEKS Standard:
110.22.b.10, 110.22.b.11, 110.22.b.12
NE ELA Standard:
LA 6.2.1.g, LA 6.2.2

Related Resource Tags

Click to view a list of tags that tie into other resources on our site

Level:
Grade 6Grade 7Grade 8
Form:
Journal
21st Century Skills:
Collaborating
English Language Arts:
Writing

Page 134 from Write on Course 20-20

Personal-Writing Topics

Have students turn to this page whenever they need a journal-writing topic. Also encourage them to list other topics as they come to mind. Once students get into a regular writing routine, they will always have something to write about.

Consider having students write an entry about one of these topic ideas and use their responses as a basis for discussion.

Related Minilesson:

Related Resource Tags

Click to view a list of tags that tie into other resources on our site

Level:
Grade 6Grade 7Grade 8
Mode:
Personal Writing
Form:
Journal
21st Century Skills:
Writing Project
English Language Arts:
WritingPrewriting