Quick Notes for Journal Writing

         One of my personal goals this year was to respond to my student's journal writing on a more regular basis.  Our writing journals are used throughout the year. Sometimes I assign a quick write and other times the kids just enjoy writing stories. I find that I am recording information about their writing anecdotally and on checklist rubrics on my clipboard but I don't always record something for the students.  In second grade we learn that writing is an ongoing process so sometimes the kids will go back to old stories and improve on them.  Like most students, they always want to show me their writing.
        This year I started something new...I call it the Love and Look! My students have class numbers so on Mondays I read journals 1-6, Tuesday 7-12 and so on.  If the student has something they want me to read, they put it on my desk on their assigned day.  I read them at lunch and leave them a sticky note message. I tell them something that I loved about their writing and something they have to look for. Hence the title "Love and Look". My kids love seeing their stickies and always try to improve their "look" for the next week.  Plus, it is quick and easy for me. I simply put a heart and an eye!  :-)
          This particular student had a great story with wonderful word choice but many errors that could easily be fixed by reading aloud to check. I find a lot of kids are excited to get their work down on paper. Simply reading aloud to check often finds the simple mistakes.  I told her that I would post a follow up picture of her edited work.