Journals
Your journals are part of your binder grade. You must do
them. First, write down the journal number
(Journal #1), the date, then the prompt, and lastly
jot down what comes to mind. Be appropriate!
You may use the same piece of paper for more than one
journal entry!
Journal #1: Delivery!!

You answer a knock at the door
and find a delivery guy holding a
package for you. You open it up
and find . . . what? Describe the
best package you can imagine
receiving.
Journal #2: Epitaph
On My Headstone.
An epitaph is sometimes a humorous saying
or poem engraved on a headstone.
For example:
Here lies the body of our Anna
Done to death by a banana;
It wasn’t the fruit that laid her low
But the skin of the thing that made her
go.
What epitaph would you want on your
headstone? Would it be funny? Sweet?
Serious? Write a draft of your epitaph.
Journal #3: Contractions
Goodbye is a contraction, like don’t or
isn’t. Originally, people parted by
saying “God be with you,” but over
the years this phrase was
shortened to goodbye.
List 10 other contractions:
a.
f.
b.
g.
c.
h.
d.
i.
e.
j.
Journal #4: Why I’m Famous
If you could be famous for anything,
what would you be famous for?
You could be an inventor, an
athlete with tons of
championships and
endorsement deals, a Pulitzer
Prize- Winning author, the
scientist who discovers a cure
for cancer, an Oscar-winning
actor, a rock star, or something
else entirely. Give me 5
sentences.
Journal #5: Bad Habits

Bad habits range from nail-biting
to overeating to procrastinating
to gossiping. What are your bad
habits? What can you live with,
and what would you rather
“stamp out” altogether? Give
me 5 sentences in your best
cursive.
Journal #6: Give up a
Sense??

Most people are born with five
senses—sight, hearing, touch,
taste, and smell. If you had to
give up one sense for the rest of
your life, which would you pick,
and why? Give me 5
sentences.
Journal #7: Text Me!

Write a text message to your
friend (not a real text message
but on a piece of paper with a
pencil in text language). Make
is school appropriate. For
example, U R GR8!
Journal #8: Dreaded Exercise

Come up with as many words
as you can in which the first
letter of the word is the same
as the last letter in the word—
EXAMPLE: test
Journal #9: Dirty, dirty kids!

When you’re a little kid,
certain aspects of personal
hygiene seem ridiculous
(shower everyday? Why,
whatever for?) What do you do
DAILY now that you found
ridiculous when you were
little? Give me an example
and three sentences to
support it.
Journal #10: Music to my
Ears!

What is your favorite song?
How do the words make you
feel? What images or
thoughts come to mind when
you listen to it? Is this song
currently popular, or is it a
song from your childhood?
Give me 5 sentences.
Journal #11: The Power of
Change

If you had the power to
change one thing about your
school, what would it be, and
why would you want to
change it? Give me a thesis
(a topic sentence) and three
supporting details.
Journal #12: How many words
in the Alphabet?

In the next five minutes, see
how many words you can come
up with that contain some or all
of the letters in the word
alphabet. The one with the
most words gets a prize!
Journal #13: Crack the
Anagram



An anagram is a word that has been
formed by rearranging the letters of
another word. For example, silent is
an anagram for listen.
Each word in the following sentence
has been rearranged into an
anagram. See if you can piece
together the original sentence.
Ethos eel pope ta snake sport ruse
era gater.
Journal #14: Are You a Quick
Brown Fox or a Lazy Dog?



The following sentence contains
all 26 letters of the alphabet:
The quick brown fox jumps over
the lazy dog.
In the next five minutes,
brainstorm as many sentences
as you can that contain all 26
letters of the alphabet.
Journal #15: An Excellent
Experience

Brainstorm words that contain
the letter X. Are there any
patterns to the kinds of words
you come up with?
Journal #16: What are Civil
Rights?

Have you ever thought about
what Civil Rights are? Martin
Luther King, Jr. was a great man
who fought for equality for ALL
people. Do you think people still
struggle with the concept that
we are all created equal? Why
or why not? Explain your
answer.