How Reading Journals Help Your Kids Succeed

Reading journals help your kids succeed by building strong reading skills and boosting motivation. Done the right way, reading journals can cure most cases of disinterested reading by focusing on twin attacks: the why of reading journals and the how. Building reading skills happens almost automatically, as long as reading journals are used regularly – but NOT reading logs!

But before we dive into the details, some clarification is needed: reading journals ARE NOT reading logs. A reading log is simply a chart your child (or you) complete that lists the title and author of a book and how many minutes your son or daughter read. Sometimes, even the book titles aren’t required, just the time.

In a school setting, these logs mean nothing because there is no way to know if they’re accurate or just someone putting down something to have a form to turn it. When I taught elementary school, I was often required by my administration to have my students keep reading logs. But they were never graded or used in any way to guide instruction.

In other words, reading logs are boring, useless, and massive time-wasters. Plus, they’re very good at killing a child’s desire to read. Basically, reading logs kill trees for no reason whatsoever.

Reading journals, unlike reading logs, are useful, engaging, and build multiple reading and writing skills.

One more thing before we start: in a contest between screens and books, screens will always win. So don’t play that game. Set firm family rules about screen use and clear expectations about reading. When whining starts, just repeat the rules and expectations. Sooner or later the whining will end – or at least it’ll die down a lot!

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn a small commission from qualifying purchases. Read my full disclosure notice here.

Three Reasons Why Reading Journals Are Helpful

The “why” behind reading journals is captured in these three words: choice, thinking, and connecting.

Choice

When children are allowed to choose the books they read, within the parameters set by parents, they are far more likely to enjoy what they read and to finish each book.

If you think about it, this makes perfect sense. If you are bored to tears by history and someone orders you to read a biography of Abraham Lincoln, you’ll hate it or not finish it. Or both.

On the other hand, if you love science and you choose to read a biography about Marie Curie, you’ll most likely love it and finish it quickly. Additionally, you’d probably be excited about reading other biographies of other scientists. Plus, chances are, you’ve learned some facts about science, expanded your vocabulary, and even learned a little bit of history – because Marie Curie lived in a particular time and place.

Certain guidelines for children choosing books are necessary. For example, most second graders are not ready to read War and Peace. Most college students aren’t either, but that’s another topic. So reading level matters to a degree.

But letting your child choose harder books that interest her will strengthen her reading skills and motivate her to read so she can read what she wants to.

Additionally, not all topics are appropriate for all ages of children. For example, your third grader is quite capable of understanding everything involved in planting a garden and raising vegetables. However, the intricacies of heirloom seeds versus hybrid seeds might be beyond his understanding. The broad topic of gardening is wide open to him, but some aspects are better left until he has more knowledge and greater reading comprehension skills.

Another reason parents might choose to limit the selection of books for their children revolves around values. The fact is that every family is different and has different values. As a Christian family, we had values that we wanted reinforced in every way. Therefore, we limited our sons’ reading options. For example, horror stories, books that belittled Jesus, or books full of swear words or sexual activity were all off-limits.

Every family will make different decisions about acceptable topics and reinforcing values. We had good Christian friends who were fine with Goosebumps books but not with Harry Potter. We had other friends who were OK with Captain Underpants, while I couldn’t stand them. Sometimes it’s hard to make the ‘this is OK, but that isn’t’ decisions, but praying, talking, and studying the Word of God will help you. Don’t expect perfection from yourself and your decisions. Just do your best and when you learn better, do better.

Back to the idea of choice. Even if you restrict your child’s choices based on their ability to comprehend, certain topics, and your family’s values, your child will still have plenty of options. Your restrictions will change as your child grows, but there will always be lots of possibilities.

Remember, when your child is free to choose her book, she is far more likely to finish it and, just as importantly, to enjoy it. Choice is KEY to motivation and enjoyment.

Need some ideas to get started choosing great books? Check out this article and my Pinterest boards on books.

Thinking

Children can, of course, be motivated to read and also enjoy reading without keeping a reading journal. This brings us to the second reason reading journals are so great: Thinking.

Have you ever listened to someone talking and then, when asked a question, realized you hadn’t really been listening? Or have you ever read an entire page of a book and then realized you couldn’t remember a single thing you read?

Of course you have! We all have – it’s perfectly normal. But not good. When having a conversation, it’s important to listen well. And when reading, it’s important to think well. In a conversation, the other person holds you accountable for listening (usually). But with reading? Someone who doesn’t have a teacher asking for a book report often will read and forget all in one day – or hour!

Reading journals can fix that. Children – and adults – who keep reading journals remember what they read more frequently and more clearly. Which is great. But even more importantly, they learn to think critically about what they read.

A question such as, “Why do you think Charlotte decided to help Wilbur the pig?” will cause a reader to think more deeply about the characters and look for clues to that answer.

A question like, “How did Henry feel when Mudge got lost? Have you ever felt that way?” helps readers build empathy and understanding.

Asking, “What lesson did Rainbow Fish learn? How can you be more like Rainbow Fish was at the end of the story and less like he was at the beginning?” helps the reader make personal connections to each book.

Questions such as these, which are ‘thinking’ questions, will teach a reader to comprehend what is read, to make connections in life, and to make judgments based on facts, as presented in the book, instead of just feelings. These are critical thinking skills every child (and adult) needs.

As a side note, when children are just learning to use a reading journal, starting with familiar picture books gives them a great boost of understanding and confidence, no matter their age or reading level. Think of using familiar picture books as a child uses training wheels when learning to ride a bike. The training wheels will come off, but while learning, they provide support and build confidence.

Remember this when using a reading journal: Reading is thinking. But sometimes, the thinking needs a helping hand. A literal hand, writing things down.

You might also find this article about reading aloud helpful. Because, yes, your child can start keeping a reading journal before she can read. And also make reading journal entries on books you read aloud to him.

Connecting

This was briefly mentioned in the “Thinking” section. However, making connections while reading is so important that it deserves its own discussion.

Readers can make several different types of connections when reading. In educational circles, these connections are named:

• Text-to-Self
• Text-to-Text
• Text-to-World

Below is an explanation of each of these types of connections. As you read the description, remember that making connections is just a specific type of thinking that the reader in doing.

Text-to-Self

This type of connection is the simplest and usually the first for children to make and understand. As a child reads, he will think about how this book or story relates to him. Some questions that apply to these connections are

• What does this story remind you of?
• How is this character like you (or not like you)?
• What are some similarities and differences between this character’s life and yours?
• Would you like to be this character? Why or why not?

Text-to-Text

This type of connection is when the reader connects what she is reading to something she has previously read. Questions that help readers make these connections include

• How is this story similar to or different from [title of another story]?
• Does this book remind you of another book you’ve read? What book and why?
• How is this story the same as or different from other books by the same author [or name a few]?

Text-to-World

Making text-to-world connections helps readers expand their horizons and ideas. It helps them see connections between subjects frequently separated in school, such as science and history or math and government. Questions used could include

• How is this story like real life (or not)?
• What was like real life in [title of book} and what was not like real life?
• Could something like [this passage or story] happen in real life? What would happen if that happened in [our school, town, country]?
• Most of this story could never happen, but are any parts possible? Or could be possible, you think, in the future? What are those parts and why do you think they feel real? Questions like this are great for helping readers distinguish fantasy from science fiction.

All three of these ways of connecting, text-to-self, text-to-text, and text-to-world, help students to

• Build background knowledge
• Understand themselves better
• Increase their reading comprehension skills
• Relate to other people better
• Understand the world better

When children take the time to think through and answer questions, making one or more of these connections, their ability to read and comprehend harder text grows. But so does their ability to communicate well, to separate important facts from less important facts, and to feel empathy.

How to Use Reading Journals

The easiest way for children to use a reading journal is to simply (1) give them a blank journal, (2) write some sentence stems at the beginning of the journal, and (3) tell them to use one sentence stem every day, but not the same one every day. Here’s a list of 10 sentence stems to get you started:

1. I was surprised when…
2. The character most (or least) like me is… because…
3. I was surprised by…
4. It was funny when…
5. I wonder why…
6. I’d like to know more about…
7. I learned…
8. This book would be better if…
9. I think the most important part of the story is…
10. If I had to be one of the characters, I’d be…. because…

However, a more detailed approach can be more valuable for a variety of reasons. First, if your child keeps a more detailed record of what she reads, that record will help her to choose books she’s more likely to enjoy. Second, sentence stems are great, but can only go so far. Reading responses can also involve drawing, creating word webs, making lists of favorite quotes or words from the book, or writing a creative sequel to the story – among other things. Finally, the more variety in a reader’s journal, the more connections, the stronger the comprehension, the greater motivation, and the more growth she will experience.

The steps below are a great starting point for keeping a more detailed reading journal.

1. Record the Basics

After your child chooses his book, have him record the (1) title, (2) author’s name, (3) illustrator’s name (or photographer), (4) genre (or type) of book, and (5) the year it was first published.

2. Make a Prediction

Your child’s prediction could be based on any combination of the following:

• The title
• The front and back covers
• The interior illustrations or photographs
• Her knowledge of other books by the same author
• Her personal knowledge

3. Read

Read the book straight through in one sitting if it’s a picture book or a short, beginner chapter book such as the Henry and Mudge series. For longer books, have your child write at least a sentence or two after every reading session, responding to some aspect of the story.

For not-yet-independent readers, you could also record how much help he needed to read the book and who helped him.

4. Reread and Make Lists

Some children will love doing this and some will hate it. Don’t force those who aren’t into list-making to do this. But for those who enjoy it, have them make lists of

• Unfamiliar or new words
• Words they like the sound of
• Real places from the story they’d like to see one day
• Things a character did they’d like to try one day
• One or more favorite sentences

5. Talk About the Book

Have a short discussion with your child about the book. What did he like? What didn’t he like? What was the book about? Would he like to read more by that author? Was the book too hard or too easy? Did he think it was scary or funny or sad? Did the story make him angry or upset? Why? Who was his favorite character and why? Who was his least favorite character and why?

6. Write a Summary or a Review

A summary should be 1 – 2 paragraphs retelling the most important parts of the story. Young children usually struggle with summaries, as they think everything in the story is important enough to include. Talking about a summary first will help.

A review should be written with the goal of convincing someone else to read the book. Your child should think of a real person to convince to read the book. She may want that person to read the book either because she thinks he’ll enjoy it or because she wants to talk about that book with him.

The review may include a summary but is more focused on motivating someone else to read the book. Your child will want to include why she liked the book, her favorite parts, and why she wants the other person to read it.

7. Rate It

For younger children, go with a 3-point rating scale: 1 = I didn’t like it; 2 = it was OK; 3 = I really liked it.

As children grow and become better readers and read harder books, move to a 5-star rating system. Encourage them to reserve 5-star ratings only for books they’d read at least two or three more times just for the fun of it.

8. Make a Final Response

This “final response” is optional, but including it will guide your child in making good choices for future books. The idea behind the final response is to use his knowledge of the book he just finished, along with his feelings about that book and the reasons for those feelings, to choose his next book.

For example, if your child reads “Strega Nona” and enjoys the story, she might want to read another Strega Nona book. However, if she didn’t like the story, but loved the pictures, she might want to read a different Tomie dePaola book. Or, if she thought the story was OK, but wanted to know more about Italy, so she might want to read a book about Italy or Rome or Florance. Or she might want to find another traditional tale set in Italy.

What Now?

Now that you know how great reading journals are, go grab one for your child. Make sure each of your children have their own and be prepared to help them build the habit of using them.

If you’re going with the basics approach, any blank notebook will do, but composition books are great because they hold up over time. However, if you’d prefer a reading journal prepared for you, with room for all the important information without being overwhelming, this reading journal may be just what you need. Plus, it includes reading challenges, book recommendations, and a helpful explanation of genres of children’s literature. It was created by a former teacher with a doctorate in curriculum literacy and a passion for saving parents from overwhelm (that’s me!).