DOUBLE Early TO ZOOM 6   Pedagogical Documentation in TAP Childhood WITH PHONE OR TABLET and photo of only one or two moments during the day, but it transmits the flavor of the children’s investigations. In the junior primary program at Halifax Gram- mar School, we placed our daily log on a small table just outside our door. Parents browsed through it with their children at departure time. Younger siblings also loved to look at this book, as did older students in our school who were just passing by. Documentation Developed by or with the Children Whenever I sit down at a classroom table to do some on-​the-​spot documentation during the school day, curious children immediately surround me. This tells me some- thing. They love to see their work, they love to see photographs of themselves working, and they love to see their work validated. They have plenty to say as I mount the photos and hand- write the text. So I have to adjust the words as we go. It is a fluid, organic process. The process helps me get a deeper sense of what happened, and it fascinates the children because they are seeing their own thinking made visible. Individual Portfolios Many child care centers, preschools, and ju- nior and senior kindergarten programs develop portfolios for individual children. Often, teach- ers use these portfolios for assessment purposes. They might include checklists or progress notes. However, a portfolio can show as well as tell a child’s developmental story. Pieces of documenta- tion can reflect the child’s involvement in project L. enjoys examining his own portfolio, work and complex play in remembering activities and understand- various areas of the room. ings from past classroom life. And transcripts of conver- sations with others can demonstrate understanding of a concept or a certain the- ory about the world. When a portfolio includes such documentation, it becomes much more than an assess- ment tool. It is also a story of ideas, investigations, and learning. COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL