Journaling for Kids
Summer 2008, Benelux Region
By Jenna Ross, M.A.

Benefits to Journaling
• Encourages you to become observers of the world
• To be reflective of your experiences
• To tell your own stories
• Enhance your reading and writing skills!

Types of Journaling
• Diary: Tell a story about you!
• Writer’s Notebook: Capture family stories
• Spy Pad: Create mysteries
• Travel Journal: Record special vacation memories
• Scrapbook: Collect pictures about which to write
• Deployment Journal: Write how you feel while a special someone is deployed

How to Begin Journaling:
• For children ages 4 to 7
– Benefit from a great deal of using both their developing skills of writing and their visual skills through artistic expression.

Journaling for children ages 4 to 7:
• Choose a journal or loose paper
• All About Me (20 minutes):
– Trace your left hand
– Write your name above your handprint
– Write or draw five things about you, i.e. your age, where you live, what hobbies you like, how many siblings you have, and favorite foods

Journaling for children ages 4 to 7:
• Personalize your journal (30-minutes)
– Cut out pictures or paper and glue onto the outside of your journal – or make a cover page for your journal if using loose paper

How to Begin Journaling:
• Journaling for children ages 8-15
– Usually prefer to approach journaling in a more adult-like fashion with a few creative twists

Journaling for children ages 8-15:
• Choose a journal or loose paper
• All About Me (10 minutes):
– Trace your left hand
– Write your name above your handprint
– Write or draw five things about you, i.e. your age, where you live, what hobbies you like, how many siblings you have, and favorite foods

Journaling for children ages 8-15:
• Five-Minute Sprint
• “My Journal Jar” question
• The A,B,C’s
• Telling the story of you!

Journaling for Kids
Summary
“There is nothing more thrilling than helping children develop a love for the written word. One of the best ways, depending on the age of the child, to get children involved is to help them design and construct their own journals.” – journalinglife.com