Journaling with your Wee Ones
We do journal writing about three times a week. It is a very simple process and takes about 10 minutes of the school day. I would write a journal prompt at the top of each of my children's composition books. They would then respond to my prompt. It's that simple.
My rules to them were that each response had to be a complete sentence. I would teach them complete sentences by repeating back to them the words that they wrote. If they made sense, then most likely it was a complete sentence.
My suggestions to you as parents are:
1. Don't tell them how long it needs to be.
If they love your topic they will write pages. If they don't, they will respond with one sentence. Your response to their writing is what encourages them to write more the next time.
2. Don't correct spelling or grammar.
When they know you will be editing their writing it makes them hesitant to write. Journaling is where they are free to write and not worry about their mistakes. The only thing I required was a complete sentence.(I would, however, look over their writing to get ideas of things to teach them at a later time. Sneaky!)
3. If your wee one doesn't write yet then you become the scribe for them. When they start writing they will take over the journaling themselves.
These journal books are treasures that I will keep until the day I die. These are the thoughts my children had, the memories we made together, and their written responses to questions I had. If you don't journal - I encourage you to get started. If you do - how do you use journaling in your home? email me kathy@careitpatch.com and let me know.