Notebook writing in three fifth-grade science classrooms

In this study we examined the ways in which 3 fifth-grade teachers facilita ted notebook writing as a part of an inquiry of electric circuits. Analysis of videotapes of a sample of science lessons showed that teachers promoted notebook writing through explicit instructions and prompts, provided frequ ent opportunities for students to write, and checked to see that students h ad documented procedural aspects of investigations. Consistent with these o bservations, students' science notebooks contained records of teacher-dicta ted purposes and procedures and student-generated observations for each inv estigation. Discussions of task-related concepts and references to variatio ns in problem-solving strategies and solutions across student groups were o bserved in these classrooms but were not documented in student science note books. Implications for using notebooks as a tool for monitoring science in struction and assessing student learning are discussed.