Moon Journals: Writing, Art, and Inquiry Through Focused Nature Study

by Joni Chancer, Gina Rester-Zodrow

One of our greatest sources of wonder-the moon-becomes the focus of a classroom inquiry in this vivid illustration of integrated curriculum at its finest. Here, teachers Joni Chancer and Gina Rester-Zodrow recount how their students observed the moon's transit for twenty-eight days, recording their impressions in written and illustrated records called "Moon Journals." As time goes by, we see these journals evolve from empirical observations into rich anthologies filled with prose, poetry, and artistic renderings using watercolors, pastels, printmaking materials, collage, and more. As the students experiment with multiple forms of composition, they begin to make sense of the world-and their place in it-in surprising ways. Moon Journals contains some twenty-eight Writing Invitations and twenty-eight Art Invitations that are actually mini-lessons. Each is illustrated with samples from actual Moon Journals and each includes easy-to-follow, step-by step instructions for reproduction in the classroom. Also included are a full-color insert, samples of teachers' own journals, a bibliography, discussions on developing portfolios and the studio/workshop environment, and a chapter exploring the theoretical underpinnings of this approach to writing, art, and science investigation. Moon Journals was written primarily for K-8 teachers, but it can also be used in high school and even at home. Above all, it is meant to serve as a model of fruitful inquiry in any subject area--in the realm of nature, or beyond.

211 pages, Paperback

First published January 30, 1997

Reviews

[Joanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing collection of creative activities focused on the moon. When I taught school, I had my students create a Moon Journal full of poetry, water color paintings, and other creative art projects. They turn out so beautiful. I know Joni and Gina personally and have taken some classes from them. They are learning experts who care about children and the creative process.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

With the luminous moon as a focal point, the children in Joni Chancer and Gina Rester-Zodrow’s classes find their creative voices through an innovative multi-media journal project detailed in this paperback book. The moon journal project involves nightly observations at home, followed by workshop-style sharing time and artistic projects in the classroom. One writing assignment provides inspiration for a poem by having the lunar observer ask questions of the moon. Example poems showed that the children were first scientific in their inquiries and then evolved into more artistic, insightful lines of questioning: “Do flowers grow in your light? Will I grow, too?” While the book is directed towards grades 3-8, the activities detailed in the writing and art exercises are appropriate for a much wider range of ages. Even the adult naturalist will find inspiration and use in this book. The classroom accounts are moving and immensely readable, leading into the well-organized and simply described activity pages.
Heinemann Publishing. $32.50, 250 pages, paperback.