Since the introduction of the Metacognitive Theory, which encourages the assessment of students' thinking skills, many teachers have incorporated journaling into their curricula.
"While many scholars directed their energies toward how to construct spelling instruction, others focused on taking a new look at how students learn to spell" (Fresch, 2007). The practice of journaling can be used for any subject matter, and gives valuable insight for teachers on how they can improve the lessons that they construct.
Take, for example, a study conducted by Dahl, et al. (2003), which involved interviewing elementary students about how they thought about their spelling strategies as they edit classroom writing.
Marty, a first grader, was asked to write in a 'math journal', which would be used by the teachers to improve spelling skills. Marty wrote: "The ansr is 9. I counted bake from 13." The teacher then asked her how she figured out the spelling of 'answer' ('ansr'). She replied, "I knew the an sound is A-N and at the end I thought there was an R. I thought there was an E, but I didn't put it there. Then in the middle, it sounded like C. No, S sounds more like it" (Dahl et al., 2003).
This very detailed explanation from a child gives adults insights into how children devise their own methods to spell words, which could then be used to improve spelling instruction.
Journaling is beneficial in that students are encouraged to write their thoughts while keeping grammatical and orthographic rules tolerant.
They may even write as a response to poetry and literature, with question frameworks that "lead children into being meaning makers as they analyze what they write about" (Morton, 2002).
Kids learn to appreciate their lessons more when they are given the chance to reflect on the relevance of what they are taught. Moreover, their spelling skills are honed once the teacher checks their work for orthographic and grammatical errors.
It can be extremely beneficial to make use of multi-feature spelling software at home and in the school, such as the popular Ultimate Spelling software, from which students can check the spelling of the words they wish to write in their journals.
In cases where a child has limited knowledge of a certain word, but is eager to use it in a journal, the word can be looked up on the Ultimate Spelling software.
Apart from being given several usage examples for a particular word, its audio pronunciation, an illustration, and several fusion drills, the child can also take advantage of the 100 spelling lists and monitor his or her progress by checking the learning curve generated by results on the tests.
To take full advantage of journaling and the subsequent improvement of spelling skills, excellent spelling software is recommended for both the classroom and the home.
References:
Dahl, K L et al. 2003, 'Connecting developmental word study with classroom writing: Children's descriptions of spelling strategies', The Reading Teacher, vol. 57, no. 4, pp. 310-319.
Fresch, M J 2007, 'Teachers' concerns about spelling instruction: A national survey', Reading Psychology, vol. 28, no. 4, pp. 301-330.
Morton, C J, 2002, Book review of Writing in the Elementary Classroom: A Reconsideration, Childhood Education [online] 79 (1). Available from: http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Writing+in+the+Elementary+Classroom:+a+Reconsideration.-a093348909 [Accessed 20 July 2010].