When it comes to journaling there are many different ways to engage your child in the wonders of writing such as having a: weather journal for kids, mindfulness journal for kids, bullet journal for kids, nature journal for kids, or travel journal for kids.
Journaling doesn’t have to be done one way or in one style, and instead it should be customized to fit the person using it. Checkout 6 different types of journals below, and how you can use them to help your child build self-confidence, self-awareness, access their creativity, and inspire a growth mindset.
Weather Journal for Kids
Weather journals are a simple and easy means of inviting your child to sit down and become aware of their surroundings. A weather journal for kids can be focused on exploring different seasons throughout the year, or describing the weather of each day.
Inviting your child to explore the seasons will give them an opportunity to engage with the world around them and witness transformation up close. Have them take their weather journal for kids out on a hike and describe all the things they see / find that relate to the current season.
Taking time to pause and see these natural characteristics up close also lends an opportunity to learn about animals, the cycle of life, and different flora that are in season.
A weather journal can also be used to focus on the daily forecast and take notes about the sky, clouds, sun, temperature, and humidity. Writing down these different components to our atmosphere invites children to engage with their surroundings and ultimately practice presence daily.
As your child watches the weather shift day to day, they are also likely to find patterns in the forecast. The subject matter of weather offers an opportunity to learn more about why certain weather exists in places around the globe through wind patterns, climate differences, and etc.
Overall, this type of journal can inspire a deep connection with your child’s surroundings, and instill a greater understanding of how the world changes both day-to-day and season-to-season.
Becoming aware of these cycles reminds your little one that life keeps moving and there is no need for them to ever feel too stuck in one experience or phase of life.
Nature Journal for Kids
No matter where you live or what the season is, collecting things in nature is a wonderful inspiration for writing and can be a good foundation for those who want to help their children start journaling. Having a nature journal invites your child to observe the world around them and watch how it changes.
Nature journal for kids can create a unique opportunity for your little one to get outside and embrace the physical world around them—which can also be a useful technique to get your kids off technology and more engaged with the world around them.
Your little one may observe plants, insects, animals, shifts in the atmosphere and temperature, all while writing down notes that reflect on their findings.
Each nature journal for kids can be turned into a collage of findings to include leaves, flowers, or any other delicate and small findings that add to their pages.
Bullet Journal for Kids
If your little one is feeling quite feisty and doesn’t always want to write or is resistant to the idea of journaling, a bullet journal for kids offers an alternative that will still engage their communication skills.
Instead of having your child write narrative stories, observations, or long entries, simply encourage them to sit down and make a list.
This list could include words that reflect their emotional state, their week at school, their favorite songs, or anything else that invites them to express who they are and what they are experiencing on paper.
A bullet journal for kids is also a great way to encourage those busy children to take a few minutes a day to check in with their emotions and internal world, even if it is for a few moments after they wake up, before school, on the bus, or before bed.
A bullet journal can easily fit in to any small empty pockets throughout the day is a great alternative to screen time that may otherwise be directed towards gaming on a phone or other device.
Travel Journal for Kids
Whether you’re taking a trip to another town or city nearby, or you’re traveling to a new country with your child, inviting them to start a travel journal is a wonderful way to capture memories and experiences.
Traveling can often be a stressful time for children—especially if you have a little one that struggles with routine or is prone to anxiety—so dedicating a travel journal for kids to their thoughts and reflections can provide a safe space for them to feel settled amidst transition.
As you go from place to place, invite your child to write down the different signs they see, maybe new words in a different language, and any notes of the cultural differences they spot: How do people dress? What do they eat? How do they greet each other?
All of these moments of reflection can help your little one become more aware of how their behaviors and mannerisms are heavily influenced by where they were born and how they were raised.
Mindfulness Journal for Kids
Having a quiet space to reflect on thoughts and emotions can be a wonderful way for your child to ground themselves throughout the day. Having a mindfulness journal has lots of benefits and it can provide an excellent space for your child to capture their feelings in the moment and pour them onto a page without judgment.
Mindfulness itself is about arriving in the present and observing it without a need to react right away—and journaling offers a perfect outlet to process emotions that can develop a thoughtful response to whatever life is challenging your child with.
One great way to engage with a mindfulness journal for kids is by tapping into the senses. Invite your little one to sit down and explore each of their 5 senses (taste, touch, smell, sight, hearing) and write about how they experience their senses in the moment.
If your child is a bit older and feels like they are ready to put more words to their emotions, you can invite them to write about how their recent experiences / relationships / friendships make them feel.
Conclusion
Regardless of the type of journal your child chooses, what's important is that, they get to express themselves through writing. All forms of journaling can leave a positive impact on your child such as: becoming more observant of weather patterns, learning how observe one's own mind, jotting down words that allow for consistent yet quick expression of connecting language with writing, fostering a deeper connection to nature and understanding other places and spaces through a collection of notes and memories in travel journals.
At the end of the day, what’s most important is that your child begins journaling in any shape or form, so they can begin building their self-confidence, self-awareness, creativity, and inspire a growth mindset.
Don't forget: Journali offers different types of journals for kids with different interests and needs. Visit our collections pages now.
