Growing up, I was a journal junkie. I wrote of my troubles, wonders, heartaches, dreams, gossip, secrets, and daily happenings. For a few minutes each day, I would just write. Whether it was a few lines or few pages, each entry helped me get something off of my chest and kept me from bottling up my emotions. But most importantly, I loved it and it was fun! Below I’ve provided a few reasons why I think kids should write in a daily journal and some benefits of keeping a journal.
Reasons Why Children Should Keep A Journal
The benefits of journaling apply to children, students, and adults alike. It is a great habit to develop as a child. This will leave you naturally inclined to turn to it as an adult for a coping mechanism when your problems may feel larger and more overwhelming. These 5 benefits of keeping a journal were provided by Meredith Rodefer.
1. To Preserve Memories
Keeping a journal is a great way to preserve memories. It’s fun to go back and read through some of my old journals and experience who I’ve been. The detail within each story is astonishing. Old photos might show memories, but journal entries TELL them. That’s valuable! The gift of story telling can help us not only remember details more clearly but also to make sense of our lives.
2. It’s Technology-free
Social media has paved the way for kids to express their thoughts on the internet. And while I believe that the growth of the blogging sphere is positive, it’s not private. A journal IS private, and it ensures that kids are focusing on themselves and not on the commentary or approval of others. Plus, it can be relaxing to turn off the technology for half an hour!
3. Can Reduce Stress And Provide An Emotional Release
Stress often stems from uncertainty. Organizing his/her thoughts on paper can aid in problem solving. Taking a minute to write it out on paper can make a situation clearer. Journals or diaries, as opposed to other forms of writing, are outlets for expressing the difficult emotions, like anger or frustration, without hurting loved ones. The benefits of journaling for stress management will help your child more and more as they go through their often difficult teen years and into adulthood.
4. To Develop Positivism
Have your child literally write down positive thoughts and throw away negative ones! Physically throwing away negative thoughts can help clear your child’s mind. And writing down positive thoughts can help a child appreciate him/herself and what he/she has. Personally, writing down things I loved about myself in my journal as a child made me feel more confident, and consequently, happier!
5. To Gain Perspective
Sometimes, writing troubling situations down can help kids to discover a new perspective. Writing forces children to retell the story to themselves. Most of the time, details that were in the background before will rise to the surface. Maybe they’ll find new lessons. Writing in journals can help remind your children that they are the authors of their own lives. Only they can alter their stories.
Remember, it’s never too early or late to start a journal!
Here is a funny journal entry from my son’s journal when he was 5.
Benefits Of Journaling For Students
In Kindergarten, my son complained that he was bored every day. His teacher decided he should start keeping a journal to make his day more fun when he had spare time. Though she had prescribed this journaling activity for her student at school to fill his spare time, he took this concept home with him. He began journaling if he got bored at home too. At 5, you can see that his journal entries were pretty much a sentence with a drawing. I believe he enjoyed communicating with me this way and he could tell I got a kick out of reading his journal which I believe contributed to his self confidence growing.
Over time he progressed to poems and comics and lists as journal activities and they are entirely self-motivated and at his own convenience. Journaling provides him with an outlet for his creativity and helps him develop into a better writer and communicator.
Different Types Of Journals And A Few Journal Prompts For Kids
It is important to let the child chose the method of journal that works best for them. Kids should feel free to mix it up and try out several options before settling on one.
An Art Journal
Some kids are not into writing and expressing their emotions is hard work. These children may benefit most from an art journal. I used to pick song lyrics or quotes and write them in my journal then do artwork around them. I liked that I knew what emotion I was working through when I selected the quote and why but others wouldn’t be able to know exactly what I was feeling. As I drew and colored around the words, it was like therapy for me to think about it and release it.
A Spiritual Journal
Some kids may enjoy writing down a scripture or bible verse and talking about it means to them. This is a great way to reap the spiritual benefits of journaling.
A Daily Journal
This may be the most traditional type of journal. Your child can simply write about what happened to them each day. This is a great way for them to begin to record their daily life and as they do so, they will naturally learn to explore their thoughts and feelings as time passes and they grow more comfortable with writing.
Gratitude Journal For Kids
A gratitude journal is a wonderful way for kids to work on their positivity. Having the opportunity to express what we are grateful for allows us for build a framework to process our lives. Often times, family therapists will suggest that children of divorce or children suffering with depression or anger, try keeping a gratitude journal to help learn to view things from a more positive perspective.
Nature Journal
Maybe you have a little scientist on your hands who is not as into writing but is interested in learning about science. You can interest them in journaling with a nature journal where they can record the things they find on their daily walks and write down facts about flora and fauna.
A Bullet Journal
This is a new fangled idea! Bullet journals are a newer concept and they tend to incorporate to do list, goals, and charts that track anything from exercise to feelings. My daughter started bullet journaling when she was a tween and has stayed with this style into her teens. Many adults also enjoy a bullet journal.
Journal Prompts
Some children may prefer journal prompts. They can be centered around their interests or their activities. I have included a printable of journal prompts for kids in image form above or here in pdf. Here are a few extra examples of journal prompts:
- List of your favorite school activities and share why you enjoy them.
- What is your first memory?
- Who are your best friends? What qualities do you enjoy most about each friend?
- What are you feeling most grateful for today?
- Write about your ideal way to spend a day off.
- What are some of your favorite things to do?
- What is your favorite family memory?
- If you could go anywhere, where would you go? Why?
- What are some of your favorite quotes?
- What did you do today?
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed learning about the different types of journals for students. Let your child chose the one that appeals to them the most. Journal writing for kids is such a great habit to develop early and they will benefit in so many ways. Journaling for tweens and teens and even adults still offers all the same benefits of developing writing and communication skills as well as organizing thoughts, improving coping responses, and allowing for the flow of creativity. You may want to try making your own journal too!
Do you or your kids keep a journal? Tell us how journal writing has affected you!
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Journal Ideas: How to Fill the Pages
Importance Of Writing Skills For Your Child
35 Awesome Kindergarten Math Journal Prompts
Make A Digital Journal Online To Preserve Your Family Memories
I love this. Keeping a journal also helps kids develop their communication skills. These are some great journal prompts to help kids get started with journaling!
I’ve kept a journal since I was very young. I think it helps us to realise how we have grown and matured, as sometimes I think because it happens over time we don’t realise it and don’t give ourselves enough credit. You’re also right that it helps us to gain perspective, occasionally I will read back on entries and see that things that I was so worked up about don’t even matter to me anymore, and that little things like that in the future shouldn’t matter so much either.
Nice article. I used to write in my dairy every day as a teenager. My mother preserved them and now, many many years later, I went through them and yes, it cracked me up to read them now 🙂
We bought a ‘secret’ dairy for my daughter and she writes in it regularly.
Thanks again!
Sujatha Lalgudi