Double-entry Reading Journal

What is it? A double-entry journal (also called a two-sided or dialectical journal) allows the writer-reader to record notes on one side of the page (left or right, top or bottom) and to use the other side to comment on those notes.

Rationale: We retain more and learn more deeply when we reflect on our own thoughts. The double-entry journal encourages this practice, called metacognition. Side one of the journal allows us to get our thoughts down quickly, just as they occur. Side two of the journal allows us to step back from the initial thoughts and consider implications, connections, and further questions. This process of recording first thoughts and reflecting on them also helps us to understand our strengths and challenges as readers, scholars, and writers. Each of us approaches a piece of reading with our own experiences, and the double-entry reading journal encourages us to rely on that expertise, develop our voices, and exercise our intellect.

As you read… Listen to the questions and observations your mind makes as you read and capture those mind-noises on paper. Some things to note are places where you  are confused, puzzled, or surprised  are struck by the language, an image, an argument, or an example  relate the text to something in your life, or to another text, or to something happening locally or globally  predict what might happen  react strongly.

After you finish reading… Re-read your notes. On the second side, write down any thoughts, comments, or questions that jump into your mind as you re-read your initial notes. Follow your thoughts. Write down any answers you’ve found. Note things you might want to research or study further.

Example Double-entry Reading Journal – See the next page for my double-entry journal on William Carlos Williams’ short poem, “The Red Wheelbarrow.” Notice I haven’t come up with a lot of answers, but I have followed my own thoughts. I needed about twenty minutes to do the assignment. The Red Wheelbarrow – William Carlos Williams so much depends upon a red wheel barrow glazed with rain water beside the white chickens.

Side 1 - notes, observations. questions Side 2 – reflections on first thoughts is that it? wow, that’s a short short, but really structured. maybe poem the shortness is like the subject of the poem: easy to overlook, not you can get well known for this pay attention to kind of poem? William Carlos Williams is supposed to be a really maybe I need to read some more great poet, but I’m not sure how. Williams’ poetry. ask in class? this sounds like a three-year-old wrote it. sorry, William! maybe I’m making too much of the ok, so first thing I notice is the pattern. but why would he break up pattern…three words, one word for his words like that? also, no each stanza. the single word is rhyming. always 2 syllables but the first line of each stanza isn’t always the same number of syllables: line 1 – 4 syllables; line 3 – 3 syllables; line 5 – 3 syllables; line 7 – 4 syllables the whole poem is just one sentence there’s no capitalization, but – and the subject is “much” NOT there’s one period – no other “wheelbarrow” – that is, the punctuation subject of the sentence is “much” while the subject of the poem is another thing that stands out is “wheelbarrow.” I think. color: just red and white yup – one word. so he doesn’t wheelbarrow is one word, isn’t it? hyphenate it wheelbarrows are important? the what does this poem mean? rain is important? and what’s up with the chickens?