Ever thought about journaling with your students?
As a veteran teacher, I canโt deny the benefits of writing journals in the upper elementary classroom. Journaling is such a powerful tool! It has a positive impact on studentsโ creativity and social-emotional learning. And writing journals are a simple, effective, low-risk way for students to practice writing skills, both in and out of the classroom. Plus, journals provide a safe place for kids to navigate their thoughts, feelings, and experiences.ย
Our Current Chaotic Life
Right now, it feels like everything in our lives is instantaneous: texting, live streams, video chats, 24-hour news cycles. Click this! Tap here! Buy it now! Weโve become a society of instant gratification! Of course, I include myself here, too. I’m guilty of Googling for immediate answers and having groceries sent to my front door with a few clicks on my phone. Ok, so I confess, I tend to hang onto old technology a bit too long. For instance, I was one of the last in my family to trade in my flip phone for an iPhone. But now, I can’t imagine my life without the world at my fingertips!ย
And yet, there are times when everything feels so rushed, and itโs nice to take a moment and slow down. Breathe. Listen to silence. Hear my own thoughts. And this is where the benefits of writing journals come in.
Journaling as Mindful Counterbalance
Journaling provides a mindful, calming counterbalance to our fast-paced world. By putting pencil or pen to paper, our minds have to downshift to record the thoughts from within. And this is not just limited to adults. Kids today are experiencing this same phenomenon of instant gratification and can also benefit from calming the rush. Using writing journals with our students is a wonderful way to accomplish this. It also can enhance writing skills, creativity, and healthy coping skills that students can take with them beyond their time in the classroom.
Before we dive into the benefits of writing journals, if you have reluctant writers, I have 7 simple writing strategies that can help. Click here to grab your workbook and get started today!
My Journaling Journeyย
Journaling is extremely important to me. Writing my thoughts and feelings without worrying that someone will argue back at me allows me to get out all that I hold inside. It’s one of my creative outlets. It serves as a medium to vent, to remember, to memorialize. Itโs also my way of documenting my life experiences as the years go by. I can read through my own words and see both struggles and growth along the way.
Iโve been journaling in one form or another since I was about 12 years old. Writing is a constant in my chaotic life. Itโs provides great stress relief. Definitely cathartic. And itโs a place where I can unleash the power of my creative thoughts and not censor myself. I am free to write freely.
My Journal Collection
My bookshelf overflows with volumes of whatโs been in my heart and mind all these years. Handwritten pages of daily minutiae, school experiences, surgeries, cancer survivorship, first dates, and my first day of teaching. A time capsule of sorts. Pocket-sized diaries with clickety metal locks. Black-and-white composition notebooks with sappy teenage poetry. Floral fabric-covered journals from the shelves of Barnes & Noble. My current obsession: vintage-inspired journals from Peter Pauper Press, the kind with satin ribbon bookmarks, delivered in one click by Amazon.
During the early 2000s, I transitioned to a digital diary with a Word document on my new Apple PowerBook G3. I felt like Carrie Bradshaw, writing all the dreamy feelings of hope and newfound love after a first date in July 2005. After our dates, I’d pour my heart out into that file, writing about the man who would become my husband in 2008. I’ve backed up that file from laptop to laptop, zip drive to thumb drive. It holds all the delicious moments of our courtship, engagement, new apartment, and wedding planning.
And thenโฆ I stopped journaling on my laptop. While cleaning my bookshelves, I was drawn to a brand new fabric-covered book that I had yet to use. That discovery left me feeling nostalgic. I missed the tangible feeling of holding my journal and blue pen, the gentle looping of my script on the page, and the mindfulness with which I used to write while listening to music. And just like that, I abandoned the keys of my laptop and found my way back to the thick hardcover journals once again.ย
Journaling With My Students
Using pen and paper felt like coming home. It also gave me an idea: while my students were writing in their journals during part of our literacy block, I wrote in mine. I brought my journal into school, along with my favorite blue pen. During one of our mini lessons on how to increase writing stamina, I introduced my journal to the class. I only shared the cover with my kids, of course. But I wanted to show them that I am a writer, too. That I wonโt ask them to do something in class that I wouldnโt do myself.
Writing Journal Rules: No Right or Wrong, But Keep It School-Appropriate
During that particular literacy period, we wrote individually, yet together in the same mindset. I kept my entry student-friendly that day, so if anyone glanced onto my open journal page, it would be age-appropriate. That in-class journal writing session became the first of many.
When journaling, there was no right or wrong in terms of what students could write about. Well, except that I asked them to keep it school-appropriate for practical reasons. I didnโt want kids getting in trouble for writing! But other than that, they were free to write what they wanted during this time. If they wrote something funny and felt like laughing, go ahead! If they wrote something upsetting and felt like crying, itโs ok! When we write with big emotions, we feel them. I wanted my students to know that our classroom is a safe space for these emotions. And what I observed during journaling time was my kids wrote, drew, sketched, doodled, and expressed themselves freely and had fun while doing it!
Benefits of Writing Journals #1 – Journaling Enhances Creativity
First and foremost, kids are super creative with innate imaginations! Journaling is a great personal way to express this creativity freely. They don’t have to worry that adults will tell them theyโre wrong. They have the freedom to experiment with various forms of writing, drawing, sketching, doodlingโฆ just about anything they wish! Journaling time is personal time to experiment, take risks, and discover their own voices.
The blank pages of a journal are like an artistโs canvas. Here, kids are free to write their thoughts, ideas, wishes, and dreams. I have had students practice writing a story with dialogue and invent their own comic book superheroes. Other students have written their own song lyrics and devised secret codes to share with their best friends.
It is within the confines of their journals where students can be themselves, explore their interests, curiosities, and passions. In past years, my students have created their own comic book series and written their own short stories. Some even used their journals like personal travel logs when visiting family overseas, complete with photos and captions!ย
What Kind of Journal to Choose?
The actual materials that kids choose to work with can also be as simple or complex as they want. For simplicity in the classroom, I’ve used plain hardcover composition notebooks that are easily accessible and affordable for my students. They were free to decorate them as they chose.
If you’d rather students choose their own journal books, that’s another option! For some students, a plain hardcover or spiral notebook will do. For others, a sequin-covered unicorn journal with a matching pen is their jam. Iโve also had a group of girls who DIYโd journals using looseleaf paper and construction paper covers. They brought them to the cafeteria to work on during lunchtime. And writing is not limited to the #2 pencils that we use in the classroom. Rather, offer students a wide variety of options, including colored pencils, pens in different colors, thin-tipped markers, glitter pensโฆ the list goes on and on! Allow students to create without too many constraints and youโll be pleasantly surprised by what they achieve!
Benefits of Writing Journals #2 – Journaling for Social-Emotional Health
The second benefit of journaling for students is social-emotional health. In recent years, we have increasingly recognized the importance of social-emotional learning, or SEL. Journaling is a wonderful way for students to explore both positive and negative situations and emotions that they encounter in their daily lives.ย
Journaling provides a safe private space for kids to reflect on their feelings about things that have happened to them and around them. By writing about what is bothering them, kids have an outlet in which to vent, to think through and deal with anxiety and worries. They can use their journals to get out negative emotions in a healthy way. Writing about their experiences helps them put a name to what they are feeling.ย
Journaling also gives students a constructive outlet to manage and reduce stress in their lives. It can help solve problems by letting them see their feelings on the page, whether it is through words, or pictures, or a combination of both. For example, kids who are feeling anxious about a test or are having a disagreement with a sibling can write or draw their way through it, helping themselves through the problem-solving process. Which brings me the next benefit of journaling that builds upon SEL and coping skills.ย
Benefits of Writing Journals #3 – Journaling Builds Self-Awareness & Self-Confidence
The third benefit of writing journals for students is building self-awareness and self-confidence. Combined with the SEL factor, writing down emotions about particular events and experiences helps students acknowledge their emotions. Clearing their minds and hearts onto journal pages helps decrease anxiety. It gives their feelings a safe place to go. Kids can get it all out on paper and leave it for a while, then come back to look at their writing or drawings with fresh eyes. We adults often do this when we journal, and itโs a healthy coping skill to teach to students.
Students learn to reflect on their reactions, thus building their self-awareness. They learn insights about themselves. They learn to use a larger vocabulary to express themselves. And they learn to identify negative emotions and experiences so they can work through them to build up confidence in themselves.ย
Journaling can help students can gain a deeper understanding of themselves. It can also give them space to practice ways of managing their emotions to challenging situations. Becoming more attuned to their own emotions can also help kids tune into the emotional needs of those around them. This can help strengthen their empathy and compassion for others. In this way, they are learning there is a world larger than themselves. Having a better grasp on their own emotions can improve how they interact with family, friends, and classmates.
Benefits of Writing Journals #4 – Journaling Strengthens Communication Skills
The fourth benefit of writing journals is that they strengthen written and verbal communication skills. When kids engage in journaling, they are practicing how to express themselves. In essence, they are developing their personal voice.ย
We live in an era of โtext speak.” Common words and phrases have been diminished to single letters like U and R, as well as emojis. Communication modes are ever-changing as technology evolves. We, as teachers, have a front row seat to help steer our students towards their futures. No matter where students go after they leave our classrooms, communication skills will be important. And journal writing is a great low-risk activity to practice different ways of communicating.
Journaling as a No Judgment Zone
As technology zooms past us, kids tend to know more about coding and computers than their parents. With journaling, we can help our students slow down to go faster later. What do I mean by this? Well, journaling, especially when written by hand, literally forces students to slow down. They can’t write as fast as they think. No human can! Figuratively, we give them the freedom of experimentation of ideas and formats. They can make mistakes, try new things, and organically figure out what works for them. It’s writing practice without judgment or a grade attached.
By putting pencil or pen to paper, students learn to record their thoughts and ideas in various formats. We give them tools to help them along the way in their writing journeys: anchor charts, brainstorming strategies, writing prompts, word lists, revision and editing strategies, and more. Our kids learn to play with words, make revisions, add in details, and cross out things they no longer need.
Writing Practice in Various Forms
Journal writing offers a great balance for students to practice both informal and formal writing without fear of looking silly or sounding stuffy. Itโs for their eyes only, unless they choose to share. They practice the art of penmanship. They experiment with higher-level vocabulary. And they use figures of speech and slang words in pop culture. Recently, during one of these in-class informal writing sessions, a few of my 5th grade boys taught me proper use of “sigma” and “rizz” in complete sentences. As I attempted to sound serious while reading my sentences to them aloud, the smiles on their faces and their giggling said it all!
Journaling is a personal form of writing. Students donโt have to be as strict in their sentence structure or as formal as they would when writing the ubiquitous upper elementary 5-paragraph essay. No matter what they write, the more they practice, the better they become. By journaling on a consistent basis, kids will strengthen their communication skills.
Benefits of Writing Journals #5 – Journaling Encourages Organization
The fifth benefit of journaling is that it encourages organization. There is no one way to keep a journal. Personal journals take many different forms: daily diary entries, lists, plans, schedules, goal-setting, step-by-step instructions, a collection of memories, a group of sketches, pictures with captionsโฆ the possibilites are endless!ย
One Journal or More?
Let students know that itโs a good idea to have one central place to store all of their important ideas. Some students like to keep one journal book for everything and anything under the sun, which is perfectly fine! Other students like to have several books, each one dedicated to a specific topic or idea. For example, one lined journal for writing stories, a blank journal for sketches and drawings, and a third journal with photos and captions like a scrapbook. Additionally, students may choose to use a multi-subject notebook as their journal, dividing up the sections into specific topic areas. This is similar to how many students will use notebooks or binders in middle and high school, so doing so now in elementary school will give kids a jump-start on organizing methods for their future learning experiences.
Itโs important to stress that no matter which way kids choose to create or customize their actual journals, itโs important that they use them on a regular basis.ย
Include Journaling Time in Your Schedule
A great way to encourage organization through journaling is setting aside time for the act of journaling itself. Carve out time in your class schedule for journaling. That’s a great way to show students that this is an important routine that they are creating.ย
I did this with one of my 4th grade classes outside of literacy block. That year, I chose last period on Friday afternoons due to scheduling constraints. Classwork finished. Schoolbags packed. Journals and writing tools on top of desks.
Together, we came up with a few simple rules:
ย ย ย 1) Find a place to sit (without arguing)
ย ย ย 2) Write when the music is on (no talking)
ย ย ย 3) Stop & put things away (when it’s time for dismissal)
I turned off two of the three rows of overhead classroom lights, leaving the middle row on for those who wanted lights. Then, students went to the journaling spots they chose earlier in the day. Some kids stayed at their desks. Some were on the floor. Others near the windows. A few up against the bookshelves. And then I turned on the music: instrumental smooth jazz on my iTunes projected through the Smartboard. I took out my own journal and sat at an empty student desk near a small group of students on the floor. And together, as a group, we wrote until dismissal time 20 minutes later. It was so relaxing!ย
Journaling with students is powerful! Give it a try!
As you can see, journaling with students can be very rewarding! The simple act of putting pencil or pen to paper and writing whatโs in your heart and mind is an incredible way to promote creativity and encourage students in strengthening their writing skills. There’s no one correct way to approach journal writing with students. So there are plenty of opportunities to differentiate writing activities for your specific students’ needs. For students who need more structure, print anchor charts and scaffolds 2 or 4 to a page, then cut and glue into their journals for extra writing support. For writing with music, there are plenty of free channels on YouTube with peaceful instrumentals, or fire up Alexa or your Spotify playlist and write. I hope you give journaling with your kids a try! There are so many awesome benefits of writing journals in the upper elementary classroom!ย
MORE RESOURCES ABOUT WRITING :
Journaling for Emotional Wellness
10 Ways Journaling Benefits Students
18 Benefits of Journaling for Students (and Teachers!)
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Are your students asking โWhat should I write about in my journal?โ Help them get out of the โI donโt know what to writeโ rut with these 7 simple strategies! Download your FREE writing guide HERE!