Journaling might not sound like an activity kids will be interested in. After all, you sit down to write about your day, how you’ve been feeling, and note down any plans of what you’d like to do in the near future. Those things all sound like adult concepts, while kids should just live in the moment while having as much fun as possible! However, journaling is great for teaching kids a few things. Here are some of the examples it sets as an activity.
It’s a Healthy Way to Cope with Emotions
Journaling can help you to work out your feelings, and get them out without having to tell anyone, if that’s something you’re not ready for. And that’s an important lesson to teach your kids. They don’t need to bottle things up, but they can still take time to think about what they want to say.
Journaling removes some of the pressure from sharing. And remember, these books are totally private too! This means your kids can learn something essential about boundaries: just because they put their thoughts down on paper, no one has a right to read it. This sense of privacy is essential to carry into adulthood and can help them forge positive relationships (even when in conflict) as they grow.
It Can Help Them to Discover Their Passion
Journaling allows kids to write down things they wouldn’t necessarily share with anyone else, creating a space where they can explore their interests freely. Whether it’s doodling, writing stories, or making lists of their favorite things, journaling can be the starting point of a deeper exploration into what really excites them. Over time, this practice might help them identify a passion they want to pursue further, whether it’s in the arts, sciences, or any other field.
Journaling also fosters creativity and curiosity. By regularly writing down their thoughts and experiences, kids are more likely to observe their surroundings and question the world around them. For example, perhaps they saw an article by Daniel Todd Lerner about baseball which sparked an interest in the history of the sport, or that they want to give baseball a shot. This curiosity can lead to a more informed and enthusiastic participation in their areas of interest.
It’s Fun!
If you want to encourage some more proactive indoor activities, journaling should be top of the list. It can be a lot of fun to sit down with an open page in front of you, and write whatever you want to about the day you’ve had, or even just a story you’ve had circling round your head.
From there you can doodle, cut out pictures from magazines and glue them in, and use the best online sticker printing website you can find to print out favorite characters or phrases. Make sure your kids have got more than paper and a pencil when they start to journal; the more sparkly, the more glitter, and the more color involved, the more fun this activity is going to be for them.
It’s Something You Can Do Together
Journaling is a very accessible activity. It’s something all kinds of people can do, no matter their level of ability. This also means you can try journaling alongside your child, and it can become an activity you bond over.
You’re both designing and filling your own journals, and even though you’re doing so privately, you can still sit together and talk as you write. That’s a very casual set up, and goes a long way to allowing a child to open up to you. You’re there with them, the atmosphere feels calm, you’re both having fun – this is a prime situation to share things in.
Journaling is a great activity for kids. If you want to give your child an outlet, or you want them to spend some calm time indoors without getting bored, buy them a journal and plenty of materials to put in it.
