Journaling for Children

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Journals for Children

When my daughter was 5, I noticed that she wasn't enjoying writing anymore. All the writing she was doing at school were on topics that she wasn't interested in. Because of that, she barely wrote, and her handwriting didn't improve like her peers did.

So, I though a little and realized that I had a project that she would be interested in -- a journal. In this book she can write about the best (or worst) part of her day. She could put pictures, draw, or do whatever she wanted.

This project is very educational. It helps with learning dates, handwriting, spelling, vocabulary and much more. The writing suggestions can be pretty simple for the young, but can get more complex as your children get older. Best of all, the project creates a book that they can look at for years to come. It will show them a little slice of how their life was when they were young.

Step 4: Get Writing!
Writing Prompts
Printable Writing Prompts

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Step 1: Get a notebook or journal

First step: You need to get a notebook that your child can write in. If possible, let your child choose the notebook. They will be using this notebook for a long time, hopefully it will be something they like.

There are two schools of thought. Some like notebooks with pretty pictures already on them. Others like a plain notebook that they can decorate themselves.

If you are practicing handwriting, make sure the notebook has lined paper. It would be nice if you can find one with the extra large lines (with the center dotted line) but those are harder to find than the simple spiral bound notebook.

Moleskine Ruled Notebook Large

Amazon Price: $12.21 (as of 12/04/2009)

Moleskine Ruled Reporter Notebook

by: Moleskine

Amazon Price: $9.60 (as of 12/04/2009)

Green Embossed Tree of Life Leather Journal - Lined

Amazon Price: $13.89 (as of 12/04/2009)

Red Embossed Heart Leather Journal - Lined

Amazon Price: $13.89 (as of 12/04/2009)

Dolce Notebook Personal Journal - Lined Journal | Rungtong & Co.

Amazon Price: $12.97 (as of 12/04/2009)

Step 2: Find a space to write

I tend to find that my daughter does better if I create a quiet space in the house for her to write. I got a small table that she can put her pencils, crayons and other creative tools in. It is in a quiet part of the house, but still near me, so she can ask me questions if she needs some help.

Step 3: Get the tools

My daughter has an artistic mind, so I wanted to let her be able to draw and make crafts for her notebook. So, she needed pencils, crayons, and pens for her drawing and writing. She also needed scissors, glue and tape so she could tape any pictures or tickets she wanted to keep.

I have found that pencils work better than pens for this project. My daughter wants to have her book look perfect. Any letter that she wrote wrong makes her sad, and she wants no one to see it. With pencils, the mistake can be erased. With pens, she crosses things out, gets annoyed, and wants to rip up the whole page.

Prismacolor Col-Erase Colored Woodcase Pencils with Eraser, Assorted Colors, 24 Pencils per Set (20517)

Amazon Price: $10.84 (as of 12/04/2009)

Dixon Prang Presharpened 7-Inch Colored Pencils, 12-Color Set (22120)

Amazon Price: $2.50 (as of 12/04/2009)

Prismacolor Verithin Colored Pencils, 24 Colored Pencils(2427)

Amazon Price: $7.99 (as of 12/04/2009)

Dixon Prang Presharpened 7-Inch Colored Pencils, 24-Color Set (22240)

Amazon Price: $5.24 (as of 12/04/2009)

Prismacolor Thick Lead Art Pencils, 120 Color Set (SAN03602) Category: Colored & Drawing Pencils

Amazon Price: $94.99 (as of 12/04/2009)

Step 4: Get Writing!

Once you have the paper, pencils and a place to write, your child should be ready to go.

I have my daughter start each journal by writing the days date. (For example, Jan 25, 2009). The date is on the top of every journal entry.

Because my daughter is only five, I just ask her to write something about her day, and then draw a picture. That usually ends up being one to three sentences. This is nice and short, so she doesn't feel overwhelmed. I have her try to sound out what she is trying to write, and don't tell her how to spell the words.

Then, if she wants to add anything else, I let her. For example, when she went to a party, she asked for a picture of the party that she could tape to her journal entry.

After she is done, I have her bring the journal to me, and I ask her about it. If she mispelled any words, I re-write her sentence underneath hers. I never say she "did it wrong". Instead I praise her on how good she guessed the spelling.

I don't grade the notebook. I don't want her to stress when she is creating this project. This is supposed to a fun project for her. I will give her tips on how to write and spell, but I don't criticize.

Writing Prompts

Here are some ideas of questions you can ask your child if they can not think of what they want to write.

1. What was your favorite thing that happened today?
2. Did you teacher (or friends) say anything funny today?
3. Did your pets do any exciting today?
4. What did you learn today?
5. What was the weather like? Did you like it?

Printable Writing Prompts

I found this great printable writing prompt project:

http://organizedchristmas.com/printable/child-journal-jar

It has several pages worth of writing prompts for children.

Word games for the Journal (Age 4-6)

Did you go over writing prompts with your child and they still not feel inspired? Don't feel bad, this can happen every once in a while. Here is a couple of games I use with my daughter that she can write in her journal.

Game 1
I will choose 2 letters. She will take these two letters and see how many three letter words she can make with them.

For example: I choose T and P

She can write top, tip, tap, pat, pit and so on.

Game 2
I will find a three letter word. My daughter will write that word down. She will then change the first, middle or last letter to try to make a different word. She will keep on going until she has run out of ideas.

For example: I choose Dog

She could write: dig, then pig, pug, put and so on.

A Great Book on Creative Journaling for Children

The Creative Journal for Children A Guide for Parents, Teachers and Counselors

by: Lucia Capacchione

Amazon Price: $15.61 (as of 12/04/2009)

Inspiring books

At age 6, my daughter found some books with children who write a journal too. These books got her inspired and changed the look and content in her own journals.

Junie B., First Grader (at Last!) (Junie B. Jones, No. 18)

by: Barbara Park

Junie B. writes a journal in class. You can see her notes every once in a while in the stories.

Amazon Price: $4.99 (as of 12/04/2009)

Junie B., First Grader: Cheater Pants (Junie B. Jones, No. 21)

Amazon Price: $9.95 (as of 12/04/2009)

Amelia's School Survival Guide

by: Marissa Moss

Amazon Price: $9.95 (as of 12/04/2009)

This lesson introduces notebooking and independent more...0 points

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DesignedbyLisa DesignedbyLisa Oct 12, 2009 @ 11:48 pm | in reply to Jimmie

Thank you so much!

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Jimmie Jimmie Mar 26, 2009 @ 3:56 am

My daughter loves to journal and write creative stories! I am pleased to encourage her desire to write!

You're officially blessed!

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DesignedbyLisa

by DesignedbyLisa

DesignedbyLisa is a stay at home mom that started making cafepress and printfection stores in July 2008. (more)

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