Creating Journals with Book Creator: Activity Ideas for Every Classroom

Best

Introduction

Why journals? Journals are a fantastic way for students to share their progress, gather ideas, and reflect on their experiences.

A multimedia journal lets students go beyond adding text to the page to include:

+ photographs
+ images
+ video
+ links
+ narration
+ and more!

Journals might have a structure, but can still provide lots of space for students to be creative and decide on how to capture their thinking.

Best

Practices

for Journals

Give students a structure and share an exemplar

Introduce the different media options available

Encourage students to try out different media on their page

Provide a series of prompts for students to choose from

Give students opportunities to share and ask for feedback

Back-to-School Journals

A great way to start off the school year is with a back-to-school journal! Students can chronicle their first few weeks starting a new school year and share a bit about themselves.

This lets their teacher learn about them at the start of the term, and provides an opportunity for students to share their interests, excitement, or hesitations at the beginning of the school year.

Prompts you might use:

+ What is your favorite thing about school?
+ What topic do you hope to learn about this year?
+ How can I help you be your best?

< Extra Tips

Today is the very first day of school! Super excited to learn how to write my own stories!

Science Experiment Journals

A science experiment has lots of steps and a journal is a great way for students to keep track! Students can use a journal to keep track of the growth of their bean plant, chemical reactions in a petri dish, or any experiment.

This type of journal lets students pause and reflect on experiences. It brings English Language Arts skills into the science classroom. Students can snap pictures, record their voice and give daily updates in their journal.

Prompts you might use:

+ Summarize the steps you took today.
+ Describe a challenge or something unexpected.
+ What extra support do you need to be successful?

< Extra Tips

DAY 4

Science Experiment Updates

Accomplished tasks

Unexpected results

Plans for tomorrow

Community Interview Journals

A great way for students to learn about their community is to conduct interviews! Over the course of the school year or semester, students can interview a different person from their community once a week.

Students can interview a new person each week and reflect on that experience in a journal entry. This series of interviews will leave them with a journal capturing lots of details and fun facts about their community.

Prompts you might use:

+ Who did you interview and what did you learn?
+ After the interview finished, what lingering questions do you still have?
+ What new piece of information did you learn about our community?

< Extra Tips

Interview Notes

Name: Ms. Anderson

Notes:

Spoke with Ms. Anderson, our school nurse. She has worked here for 22 years. That's double my age!

Summertime Journals

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Any time of year is great for journaling, but a summertime journal is a great activity for kids learning at home! Students can add a few entries each week to create a multimedia journal that captures their summer adventures.

A summertime journal gives students lots of space to be creative. Teachers can give students a set of expectations or ideas to explore, but still provide lots of options for students to share the story of their summertime with daily or weekly entries.

< Extra Tips

Learn more: The Big Book Creator Activity Book

Prompts you might use:

+ What did you read, watch, or listen to today?
+ Describe a moment you used math this week.
+ Name one thing would you change about your day?

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My Top Moments of the Week

August 10th – 17th

Visit my cousin in the city!

Zoom call with my best friend

Paint my brother's nails

Reading a book about Unicorns!

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Healthy Eating Journals

If you are teaching nutrition this year, a healthy eating journal is a great option for having kids reflect on their food choices! A journal doesn't have to be a log but a place for students to record their thoughts and ideas.

Journals are great places for reflection and capturing ideas. A healthy eating journal can help students collect favorite recipes or recipes they'd like to try with their family. Encourage students to snap pictures, add links, and use the embed feature to include YouTube tutorials they find!

Prompts you might use:

+ Share a favorite healthy snack.
+ What healthy meals would you make for your friends?
+ Where do you learn about fruits and vegetables?

< Extra Tips

Learn more: Healthy Eating Curriculum with Book Creator