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We keep you informed throughout the year with poignant posts and informative articles.
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BLOG
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We keep you informed throughout the year with poignant posts and informative articles.
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We are so glad that we were able to send a journal home to every student in the December supply drop, along with a roll of washi tape - perfect for adding ephemera to your journal.
The journals sent home were made by hand. If you want to make another at home, you can do it easily with some staples and a few pieces of paper - any kind works! You and your student can make a new journal when this one is filled up, or make a journal for another family member to start a journaling practice together with your student. Making journals is a great way to reuse and recycle paper. 10 pieces of paper will make a journal with 40 pages. Add one more piece of paper for a cover. You can staple first - put two staples in the middle (cover-side up so the staple fold is in the middle inside your journal), and fold in half. Or you can fold your pages first and then staple. Or you can get a little fancier and recycle a cardboard box to make a journal with a sturdier cover and even more pages. You can even learn basic bookbinding and sew your pages in! Check out this video for some great ideas and inspiration!
The journals have a page for every day in December, through January 4th when school starts again in the new year. Throughout December, we will be sharing ideas and inspiration for your student and your family to explore art journaling together. Watch here as well as our newsletter, Instagram and Facebook pages for more!
Our Art Docent co-chair, Brynn Freal Lawrence has some experience and inspiration to share with us on how and why to start an art journal, and why gratitude is so important.
I’ve journaled since I was a child, on and off, and I’ve made more of an attempt at it as I’ve gotten older. I still remember the Christmas that I received two diaries with locks and colored pencils and markers to go with them. I spent hours adorning pages with stickers and magazine clippings, while writing down the ins and outs of my days, my plans and dreams. Later I started drawing in the journals as well, when my mom begged me to stop using so much good paper for single side drawings. Now, as an adult, I keep a traveler’s notebook with a calendar and journal for memory keeping and gratitude. Every time I finish one of the soft-sided inserts, I feel overwhelming joy and I have a record of the things that are important in my life.
- 10 Reasons to Keep a Journal - Medium Journaling has long been touted for its many positive attributes. Psychologists have long sung the praises of journaling. (83 Benefits of Journaling for Depression, Anxiety, and Stress from Positive Psychology) Some of the largest benefits of journaling are decreased depression and anxiety, improved sleep, decreased stress and aggression, and increased self-esteem and resilience. Once upon a time all the studies on the benefits of journaling were only centered around adults, but in the last few years there’s been a lot of research on journaling during childhood. Most of these studies focus on gratitude journals, and show the same benefits as have long stood with adults. In addition to things listed above, gratitude journaling also helps children feel happiness, protects their mental and physical health, and increases their levels of optimism. I know we all want to raise children that are resilient and grateful, rather than entitled, and gratitude journaling is a great way to do just that. It is especially important to remain grateful during times of stress...you know, like during a pandemic. Here is a great video full of wonderful inspiration and ideas to help you start thinking about what materials you can use in your journal, and what you can put in it.
In addition, journals are also a great way for kids to keep a record of their lives, what they like and don’t like, a good place for drawing and writing practice, and a safe place for art exploration. It can all be done in just one spot in just a few minutes a day. It’s also a great place to recycle items! Packaging and birthday or Christmas cards can be reused to make envelopes and “tip ins”, photos can be slid into washi taped pockets, stapled or taped to pages for memory keeping. Instax camera photos are a great small way to add photos to any journal.
Journals can also be a perfect place to practice sketching skills. Mixed media artist James Luke Burke has several free holiday themed courses on Teachable, called Merry Mixed Media, perfect for the holidays. He breaks down drawings into smaller shapes, and is clear and concise in his instruction with some fun characters, bound to make you smile this holiday season. In addition to James, there are many, many artists in the YouTube universe that are great resources for journaling, such as Ali Brown (Ali Brown Creative), Courtney Diaz (Little Raven Ink), Brie Hatton (Documented Journey), and Job Airam (Job’s Journal https://jobsjournal.org/). I strongly recommend taking a walk through their websites and Instagram rolls to help your student get some inspiration and ideas for their own journals. Here is a taste of their beautiful work.
You can’t go wrong starting or ending the day with gratitude. We encourage families to find a few minutes a day during the holidays to simply take a deep breath and put a little thought into what they’re grateful for this year. You may even find some absolute gems and memories you’ll want to hang onto forever.
Here are some more resources to help you get started, and keep reading below for more prompts to help your student explore gratitude. - How to Start a Gratitude Journal for Children - Mindful Little Minds - The Power of Gratitude: 30 days of Gratitude Journal Prompts - Live Well with Sharon Martin Gratitude Prompts
Here is a list of gratitude prompts the entire family can get in on. Some of these can even be great ways for kids to connect to memories and tap into hope, as well. You can help younger kids by writing their answer or having them draw a picture of what they’re grateful for.
- Tell about a time you were grateful for something a friend did for you. - Tell about a time you were grateful for playing with someone - Tell about a time you were grateful for someone helping you when you were hurt. - Tell about a time that someone helped you solve a problem. - Tell about a time when someone helped you find something that was lost. - Tell about something you’ve learned this week. - Tell about a family member you are grateful for. - Tell about a pet you’re grateful for. - Tell about a toy you own and love. - Tell about a time you got to play with a toy that belonged to someone else. - Tell about a time you were able to help someone else. - What is your favorite place in your home? - What is your favorite place outdoors? - What is your favorite way to move your body? - What is your favorite activity to do? - What is something unique about your family that you are grateful for? - Talk about all the people that worked to bring food to your house. - Talk about all the people who had a hand in making the clothes you wear. - Talk about people who work in your community. Who are you grateful for? - Talk about the ways a family member or friend makes your life better. - Choose three people to say “thank you” to today. - Who is someone you have a hard time getting along with? What are three positive things you can say about that person? - What is one thing you are grateful for today? - What was the best part of your day? - Who is someone that really helped you this week? - Who is someone that lives far away that you are grateful for? - What is a sound you’re grateful for? - What is a smell you are grateful for? - What taste are you grateful for? - Which of your five senses are you most grateful for? - Which season are you most grateful for? - Talk about the ways you are healthy. - Talk about the people that keep you safe. - What wild animal are you most grateful for, and why? - What is your least favorite type of weather? Think of three things to be grateful for about it. - Pretend you are writing a thank you card to yourself. What are three things you can thank yourself for? |
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