Nicole and I started our action research project this week. In our project we are asking students to write math process papers (short ones) and then switch journals to respond to another students' process. Our first few days were a bit rough as we start learning this process. Students aren't very good at explaining their thinking in writing, especially when it comes to math. It took two days a a good deal of modeling to have about 80% of the kids write a full journal entry, answering all the questions I asked. I was a bit discouraged at first, but after the second day I felt a little better about our progress.
Today we switched journals and students responded to one another. I had originally given them very strict prompts and instructions for how to respond, but it was clear that those prompts were restrictive so I said they simply needed to read their partner's process entry and respond with their feelings and reflect on their partner's approach. I was so impressed by how well these responses went. I think the kids really began to understand why I was asking them to be so detailed in how they explained thier thinking, because as they read the partner's journal they realized how crucial it is to make every step explicit. I was also touched by how excited they were to write to one another. In preparation for the project Nicole and I read some studies about the power of partner journaling, but it was really cool to see how motivating it is for the students to have that written conversation.
Your project sounds like the kind of experience we should be sharing with our STEM students back on campus. And the marriage of science and literacy, well, it warms the cockles of my heart :-) I'll be excited to watch as your students develop more skill at writing about their science thinking and responding to each others' processes. I have one really great book about science journaling by Betsy Fulwiler. Did you come across her name in your research? I'm happy to bring it to you the next time I visit, or I can arrange to drop it off sooner if you'd like.
ReplyDeleteOne connection between science journaling and your lesson planning (yes, there is a connection!)is that you can look for examples that students have met a language objective by reviewing their journal writing. What a great data source for assessment, right?