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Learning Logs               

The learning logs I use ask the student to summarize the learning of the day through responses to specific guided questions.  It may ask for an explanation of how to solve simultaneous equations, the process of long division or what is meant by the vertical line test.  This 5-7 minute exercise towards the end of class allows the student to bring closure to the topic, be clear on the goal of the lesson and evaluate whether his own understanding meets that goal.  The final question in the daily log asks the student to complete the sentence “Before I leave explain to me ….”  This is a place for students to record what they don’t yet grasp about the lesson.  Before dismissing the students, I glance through the logs and respond to those individuals with questions.  It is so important for students to leave my room confident in the knowledge that they did indeed learn something and have the necessary tools to practice the skills in their homework.  It also allows me to assess whether or not  the students have learned the concepts enough to explain them back to me.  I am often able to see the holes and nuances I need to re-teach or modify. 

The next day’s class begins with a reprisal of the previous day’s learning.  I return the learning log from the previous day with my comments and corrections for their clarification.  The students are then given a new learning log which begins with questions on the prior content.  It also asks the students to list their score on the homework of the previous evening and to list any further questions concerning those concepts that may have arisen from the homework or in response to my comments on their learning log.  Then I begin the new lesson and the cycle starts again.  Samples of learning logs I have used and those of several students may be found on the sample documents page.