The first day of school comes with so many little moments that are easy to forget once the school year gets busy.
There’s meeting a new teacher, seeing friends again, exploring a new classroom, figuring out where everything is, and deciding which part of the playground is going to be the favorite this year.
That’s why I created this free printable Back to School Journal for kids!
Instead of simply asking kids to write about their first day, this journal is filled with different activities that encourage them to draw, write, explore, play, and record some of their first school memories.
There are traditional Back to School Journal Prompts, but there are also activities like making a comic, creating a secret code, exploring the school, and even completing a movement challenge.
You can use the journal as one of your first day of school activities, or spread the pages throughout the first week so kids have plenty of time to complete them.
And, of course, you can download the entire Back to School Journal for FREE at the end of this post!
What Is Included in the Back to School Journal?
I wanted this journal to be more than a collection of writing prompts.
Not every kid wants to sit down and write paragraphs about their first day of school, after all!
Instead, these Back to School Journal Ideas For Kids include writing, drawing, observation, imagination, and movement.
Here’s a closer look at some of the activities you’ll find inside.
School & Me
The School & Me page is all about capturing a few details from the beginning of the school year.
Kids can draw a picture of themselves on their first day, record who their teacher is, and write or draw their favorite lessons.
They’ll also take a little walk around the school and think about what they can see, hear, and even smell.
It’s a simple activity, but I think it will be especially fun to look at again once the school year is over!
My School Playground
What’s your child’s favorite part of the playground?
On this page, kids get to draw a map of their school playground and mark their favorite spots.
They might include the swings, slide, basketball court, monkey bars, trees, benches, or whatever else they see around their own playground.
This is a fun page to complete after recess when everything is still fresh in their minds.
Make a Comic
This might be one of my favorite pages!
Instead of simply writing about something that happened at school, kids get to turn a funny school moment into their very own mini comic.
They can draw what happened in each box and add speech bubbles, captions, or little details.
It’s a fun alternative to traditional Back to School journaling, particularly for kids who would rather draw a story than write a long journal entry.
My Secret Code
This page adds a little puzzle to the journal.
Kids can invent their own secret code using shapes and symbols. Then, they can write a message using their code and see if someone else can figure it out.
If you’re using the journal in a classroom, kids could even swap codes with a classmate and try to solve each other’s messages.
First Day Feelings
Starting a new school year can bring all kinds of feelings.
Kids might be excited, nervous, curious, happy, or a little bit of everything!
The First Day Feelings pages give kids a chance to record how they felt when they woke up for school. They can also write about the first person they talked to and what they talked about.
But it’s not all serious reflection.
There are some silly Back to School Journal Prompts, too!
Kids get to invent a funny school rule they wish everyone had to follow and imagine what they would teach if they could be the teacher for a day.
Let’s Explore School
Time to do a little exploring!
For this activity, kids look around their school and find things that match different descriptions.
They’ll look for things that are round, square, rectangular, blue, have a fun pattern, or simply make them smile.
They can either write the name of the object or draw it in the corresponding space.
This can be especially helpful for kids who are in a new classroom or school because it encourages them to slow down and really look at their surroundings.
The ABCs of School
How many school-related things can you find for each letter of the alphabet?
For example, kids might find an “apple” for A, “backpack” for B, or “crayon” for C.
They can walk around the classroom looking for ideas or think of school-related words on their own.
Younger kids don’t necessarily have to write every word, either. They can draw their answers or work together with an adult or classmate.
Let’s Move
After all that writing and drawing, it’s time to move!
The journal includes a movement checklist with silly challenges kids can complete one at a time.
They can stretch like a sleepy cat, hop like a happy frog, tiptoe like a sneaky ninja, stomp like a dinosaur, do a silly dance, flap their wings like a bird, and more.
It makes a great little brain break between some of the quieter journal activities.
More Back to School Journal Ideas For Kids
You don’t have to stop when the printable pages are finished!
There are lots of little ways you can add to the journal and make it even more personal.
For example, you could add a first-day-of-school photo or leave an extra page for kids to draw their classroom.
At the end of the first week, add another page and ask a few simple questions:
- What was your favorite part of your first week?
- What was something new you learned?
- What made you laugh?
- Who did you spend time with?
- What are you looking forward to next week?
- What was the best part of your first day?
- What surprised you today?
- What made you smile?
- What does your classroom look like?
- What is something you want to learn this year?
- What is something you want to get better at?
- What was your favorite activity today?
- What did you do at recess?
- What is something new you noticed about your school?
- What are you most excited about this school year?
Another fun idea is to revisit the journal on the last day of school.
Have kids read through their answers and see how much has changed!
If your kids enjoy keeping journals, you can also try my free printable Nature Journal for Kids. It’s another fun way to encourage kids to observe what’s around them, draw, write, and record their discoveries.
Why Back to School Journaling Is a Great First-Day Activity
There are plenty of fun Back to School Activities you can do with kids, but journaling is especially nice because you’re creating something you can keep.
Those little first-day details might not seem important right now, but a few months or years from now, they’re exactly the things that are fun to remember.
It Helps Kids Capture First-Day Memories
The beginning of a new school year goes by FAST.
Before you know it, the new classroom isn’t new anymore, and everyone is settled into their routines.
A Back to School Journal gives kids somewhere to capture what things were like right at the beginning.
You can add the finished journal to a memory box along with their first-day photo, school artwork, and other little keepsakes from the year.
It Can Get Kids Talking About Their Day
If you’ve ever asked a child, “What did you do at school today?” and received a very enthusiastic “Nothing,” you know why specific questions can be helpful!
Instead of asking one big question about their entire day, Back to School Journal Prompts give kids little things to think about.
Who did you talk to first?
What did you notice around school?
What made you smile?
What was your favorite lesson?
Their answers can become easy conversation starters at home, too.
It Combines Writing, Drawing, and Play
Back to School journaling doesn’t have to mean sitting quietly and filling several pages with writing.
Kids can draw pictures, create a comic, make maps, solve codes, explore their surroundings, and complete movement challenges.
That variety is one of the reasons I created these Back to School Journal Ideas For Kids.
Kids can express themselves in different ways without every activity feeling like another writing assignment.
It Helps Kids Explore Their School
Several pages encourage kids to look closely at the classroom, playground, and other parts of their school.
This turns the journal into a little school exploration activity!
It can be especially fun during those first few days when kids are still getting used to their new surroundings.
How to Use Your Printable Back to School Journal
To make this journal, you need simple materials:
- Back to school journal template
- Scissors
- Paper
- Printer
- Stapler
- Coloring supplies + pencils
First, download and print the pages. Regular printer paper works perfectly fine for this activity.
Then, cut the pages through the middle line.
Decide how you’d like to put the journal together. You can simply staple the pages, punch holes and place them in a small binder, or keep them together in a folder.
Let kids start by personalizing the cover.
They can write their name on the “This Belongs To” line and color or decorate the cover however they’d like.
And don’t feel like you have to complete every activity at once!
In fact, I think the journal works particularly well when you spread the pages throughout the first few days of school.
Some activities can be done right away, while others make more sense after kids have had time to explore the classroom, visit the playground, meet their teacher, and talk to their classmates.
Download the Free Back to School Journal
Ready to start recording those first-day memories?
You can download the free printable Back to School Journal below!
Print the pages, put them together, and let kids make the journal their own.
Whether they fill it out during their first day, complete a page every day during the first week, or work through it at home after school, I hope it gives them a fun way to capture some of those little moments that make the beginning of a new school year so special.
[DOWNLOAD THE FREE BACK TO SCHOOL JOURNAL]
More Back to School Activities for Kids
