Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Explorer Diary or Journal

           
        Journal writing is a great way to integrate Language Arts and Social Studies.  
 The "Dear America" book series is a perfect jumping off place.  I have acquired a small collection of these books in my class library.  While teaching about explorers,  I have my students write journals or diaries that these men might have kept.

A brown paper bag can be crumbled and smoothed to look like a leather cover.


Beautiful cursive handwriting is always a must in an old diary.
       We do research on different explorers.  The students find information concerning location, climate, dates of exploration, and what was seen or discovered by each explorer.  Then the kids begin to write their diary or journal entry in 1st person. 
A picture is worth a thousand words.


   
        How do you use journals in our classroom?


Please leave a comment and let me hear your thoughts.


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2 comments:

  1. Mary BauerMay 15, 2015 at 9:35 AM

    I have my students create journals for social studies. I use the Dear America books as mentor texts. I like the paper bag covers.
    Thank you for sharing on TBA.
    Mary
    Artistry of Education

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  2. A Full ClassroomMay 24, 2015 at 8:26 AM

    I too teach fifth grade and my school is departmentalized. I teach the language arts and it is always great fun to partner with the social studies teacher for a project. Your idea is clever! I will file it away for next year as our school year ended! Thanks for sharing!

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