Homeschool Morning Journals – Perfect For ALL Kids

As a homeschool mom, I am always looking for things that will work well for both older children and younger children. When I first heard about creating a morning journal practice, I was skeptical because I assumed it wouldn’t work for my youngest child. However, I have discovered a great way to make homeschool morning journals perfect for ALL kids! Even the little ones who can’t write on their own yet!

Starting Point

Allow me to start off by saying what should be completely obvious, yet, as homeschool moms we tend to ignore this fact at times – much to our own detriment. Every family’s homeschool journey is different. Please, don’t compare your homeschool or your children to anyone else’s! Give yourself the grace and freedom to take the information I’m giving you, and apply it however you see fit for your family.

Comparing yourself to other homeschool families is a trap, and I’d like to encourage you to try your best not to fall into it. I’ve actually written an article which covers this exact topic, plus other common experiences homeschool moms go through. You can take a look at it here. 

The reason why I stated that as our starting point is because I don’t want you to feel you need to replicate exactly what we do with our homeschool morning journals. My hope is that reading this will inspire you, and get you going in the right direction to create the best morning journaling routine possible, for YOUR family!

What are homeschool morning journals?

Before you can decide if having a morning journal time will work for your family, let me first explain to you exactly what it is and how we use it in our homeschool.

Essentially, it’s exactly as it sounds – homeschool journals that you incorporate into your morning routine. But there are various different ways of doing these journals. Some are dependent on the ages of your children, interests they have, or what your morning time usually looks like. 

Here’s what we do with our homeschool morning journals:

When

• Every morning at a certain point in our homeschool schedule (after breakfast/Bible time), the kids pull out their morning journals. I have found that doing this first, before we get into any other subjects, is their best time for daily journaling. Their brains are awake, they’re ready for the day, and those two things really benefit their creative writing skills. 

What

• I have told the kids that they can write about whatever they want in their homeschool morning journals. I do not check their entries for spelling errors, or grammar mishaps. This is a time of absolute freedom for them to put their thoughts and emotions down on paper. Sometimes, they write about events they are excited for such as birthdays, or an upcoming holiday. Other times, they use their journals almost like gratitude journals, and write about something they’re thankful for. It also helps them when they’re having some negative emotions about something. I’ve found that one of the benefits of journaling, is that they can quietly express themselves within their journal with zero pressure or fear of judgement. 
• My youngest child however, is only 5 years old. So because he isn’t fully writing on his own yet, the best way for him to do his morning journal is by dictating to me what he wants written down. This has worked so well! He loves when I read back to him what he “wrote”. Plus, he always draws a picture for each journal entry. 

Why Should You Do Homeschool Journals?

There are so many things you could be adding to your homeschool schedule or morning routine, why should homeschool morning journals be one of those things? Here is a list of reasons why you may want to include homeschool morning journals into your daily schedule:

• Journal writing is a really good way for kids to be creative and express themselves.
• Morning journal time has a positive impact on your child’s mental health.
• The ability to write down your thoughts improves emotional intelligence.
• Journal writing is one of the daily activities that can be done anywhere and during any season of life.
• It is a great way to encourage a reluctant writer.

Favourite Morning Journal Prompts

If your kids feel stuck on what they want to write about, here are some ideas to get their creative juices flowing:

• Is there something you are excited for?
• What is your favourite thing to play with right now?
• If you have any prayer requests, write them down.
• What is the funniest thing that happened to you last week?
• What have been your favourite field trips so far this year?
• Take your journal outside for a nature study and record the things you find.
• List 3 of your favourite Bible verses.
• In your own words, describe the last book you read.
• List 10 positive things in your life and what you’re most thankful for.

The Big Picture

Sometimes as homeschool moms, we wonder what our children will remember most about their homeschooling experience. We want their education to be more than just academic progress. We want it to be meaningful and memorable as well. 

Homeschool morning journals are not only beneficial when it comes to practicing creative writing and spelling skills. They are also a fun, memorable part of your child’s homeschool day that will stick out in their minds when they reflect back on their own homeschool journey.

Over the course of an entire year of homeschool, my kids will go through multiple morning journals –  we use a scribbler or spiral notebook for our journals. And even during that same year, they love to look back through their completed journals and read through each entry, remembering the day or season in which they wrote it. So just imagine how much fun that will be for them a couple of years from now, or even when they’re an adult! Homeschool morning journals are definitely worth doing. 

How To Make Homeschool Morning Journals Extra Enjoyable

Chances are, your kids won’t need you to convince them to pull out their morning journals, but there are a few ways to make the process even more enjoyable for them! I’ve come up with some great ideas of how you can add some “flare” to your morning journal time. I do many of these things with my own children on a daily basis, so I know for a fact that they are effective!

• Put on some music! This is a great way to create a fun and relaxing atmosphere in your home. We are huge Christmas people and like to play Christmas music pretty much all year round – yes…seriously! But if that’s not your thing, try some classical music, or allow your children to choose their favourite songs and create a morning journal playlist! Having calming music in the background really has a positive impact on the overall environment of your home. 
• Let your kids decorate the cover of their journal any way they want to! My kids love putting tons of stickers all over it. It really makes it “theirs”.
• Provide your children with a few additional supplies they can use to be creative. For a little extra cost, you can purchase some decorative tape, special markers, stickers, and more. Kids love using these types of elements and they make a perfect addition to their homeschool morning journals. 
• Give them a snack. Sounds simple, but this works great especially for children who have a harder time focusing. Allowing them a healthy snack while they’re brainstorming and writing down their thoughts, makes the process a little bit easier for them. Plus, what kid ever turns down a snack?

When To Start 

Often times, there are some subjects or activities that we feel should only be added at the beginning of the school year. This is not one of them! The perfect time to start incorporating homeschool morning journals into your daily schedule, is now. There is no wrong time to add this activity to your homeschool day. 

Also, don’t worry about whether or not your child is too young for this. Even toddlers can take part in daily journaling simply by colouring one of the pages! And remember, you can write for them until they have learned that skill themselves. The ability for a young child to think about what they want to say and then verbalize their thoughts to you is huge! Formulating thoughts and communicating them are life skills that this activity will help to develop within your child. It will also help to give your young children a sense of purpose in their homeschool day, because they will have something of their “own” in the context of your homeschool. 

As the homeschool parent, you can also take part in morning journal writing. This is a great opportunity to bring some peace and clarity into your own life during these busy homeschool years. And just think how much you will enjoy looking back on your journals in the years to come as you remember all the stages of life you and your children have been through. I know you will treasure having these daily memories available to read through whenever you want!

Plus, early mornings can be hard for some people – adults and kids alike! So starting each day with something calm and enjoyable, really sets a good tone for the rest of the day.

My Encouragement To You

I really encourage you to give homeschool morning journals a try. For us, it has become one of our favourite parts of the day, and I believe it has actually brought us closer as a homeschool family. Not only is it something fun for your kids to do, but it really does benefit them in so many ways. 

Teaching your children how to express their thoughts on paper can really be useful during difficult times in life as well. So it’s always a good idea to start creating these daily habits when they’re young. But even if your children are older, it’s most definitely not too late! Guaranteed, they will welcome the mental freedom and creative space that journaling offers them. 

And please know, there is no “right way” of doing this. Meaning, you can’t mess this up and do it wrong. I’ve given you a list of things that could be helpful to you but ultimately, you decide what will work best for your family! Personalize this experience and make it unique to your children. However if you choose to incorporate this into your homeschool day, I am confident it will be a blessing to you and your kids for years to come. 

Blessings!

~Maryann