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Hi I'm Laura from youngwritersworkshops.com and I'd like to talk about how to start journaling
with your child to write down some personal thoughts or feelings. It can also be a good
way just to get started on writing in general and on some of the mechanics of writing, holding
a pencil, putting words on paper. Those are all really important things that a child gets
from having a journal. I always suggest having the child pick out a journal that they will
really feel good about, one that feels good in their hand and it is one that they like
to write in. It could be something as simple as a spiral notebook with a picture that they
like or a color that they like or it could be a little bit fancier something like a bound
book that is blank with lined pages. Start by encouraging a topic that you think your
child will be able to respond to and you might give them a prompt like my favorite thing
I did today or what my perfect day would be. This of course depends on how old when you
are starting to journal with your child but make it a process where they feel it is really
fun and they feel really connected to the process of sharing their thoughts. I always
encourage young writers to also write down their idea for writing so that they do not
feel free to not have to expand on something but just to use their journal as place to
store ideas for things that they might want to write about in the future or just passing
thoughts that they have that they want to capture and not lose. So a journal doesn't
have to be a specific place where you write entries or stories or any specific kind of
writing it is just a book where anything that you want to express can be written. I think
one of the most important things for you to remember is that this journal is something
that your child gets to be in charge of so even if you are doing the project with them
be sure to let your child take the lead. So that is a little bit of information about
how to start journaling with your child.