We’re always looking for ways to help kids express themselves with creativity. We also want them to be able to express their feelings in a healthy way. That’s where art journaling comes in. Art journaling is a great way to explore creativity and communicate emotions. Plus, it’s a lot of fun!
I interviewed art therapist Caren Sacks, author of Draw and Discover, an Art-Making Journal for Kids, to learn more about how creativity and self-expression fits as part of mental health. “Art journaling offers us a space to express our creativity, it can be a healthy strategy and coping skill for managing stress and anxiety.” says Sacks.
Photo Credit: Alissa Zorn.
We live in chaotic and uncertain times. According to the American Psychological Association we are seeing a rise in mental health concerns in youth in the past few years. They include social isolation, anxiety, and depression.
“There are numerous ways to address these concerns.” says Sacks, “If your child is struggling, speaking with their pediatrician or school psychologist can be helpful. If we think of an aspect of mental health as managing stress and anxiety, as self-awareness and self-expression, art journaling can be helpful. The process of art making can be calming and relaxing, it also allows for the expression of feelings, and experiences.”
What Is Art Journaling?
There are no hard and fast rules with art journaling. Kids can use whatever materials they like, and there’s no need to worry about making things perfect. The goal is simply to give them creative outlet to express themselves and have fun.
“As adults, we often have to undo our desire for perfectionism to try art making.” Sacks explains, “Children create naturally. They express and share their creativity in so many ways, in their art making, their building, their storytelling, their play, their dancing and singing, all with the joy and playfulness of childhood.”
Whether it’s drawing, painting, or collage- art journaling tugs on their imagination and taps into their inner artist. “Creativity is about exploring and experimenting, it can be joyful, it offers opportunities for self-expression as well as for relaxation. It is an expression of our originality.”
Why Is Art Journaling Important for Kids?
Art journaling helps kids to express themselves in a healthy way. Sacks says, “Art can create order out of disorder. This is true for children as well as teens and adults of all ages.”
“When children make art, it gives them ways to express themselves and tell us what they are thinking, feeling, and experiencing, so we can support them and help them manage their varied feelings and experiences, and to seek professional help if needed.”
“Drawing provides children with the potential to tell stories, share their feelings, present their world views, find ways of coping, channel their energies, and tell us what’s happening in their life. Any expression of art can be a way to obtain pleasure, release tension or express anger. When children share their drawings with a trusted adult it also makes space for communication, sharing, and receiving support.”
Image Credit: bbernard/Shutterstock.
How Do I Get Started Art Journaling With My Child?
The best way to get started with art journaling is to jump in and start doing it! There’s no need to wait for the perfect moment or buy expensive supplies. Gather whatever you have on hand and start creating.
“Kids can often create very meaningful thoughtful art as well as silly and funny drawings without any suggestions or prompts.” says Sacks, “When I do offer kids suggestions for art making, I always give options, I try not to be too prescriptive, in both Draw and Discover and Vision and Voice children and teens can choose any page that suits them at any time to respond to.
If you are new to art making, experimenting with a variety of basic art materials can be helpful and enjoyable. Scribble drawings can also be freeing and playful.”
If you’d like some ideas, Caren’s site has art making videos with topics and suggestions that can be helpful when getting started. One is about love, another about favorite things, another about feeling grounded and one is about gratitude.
If you’re feeling crafty you can even make your own journals with paper you have on hand using our easy book making tutorial.
How We Grow Art Journal Prompt for Kids and Grown-Ups
An art journal prompt that I enjoyed doing with my kids showed all of our different hand sizes together.
Photo Credit: Alissa Zorn
I used a page that I water color painted during a diferent art session which I talk about here: three ways to prepare an art journal page. I drew over the watercolored page using my very fine point Staedtler Fineliner Pens and slightly thicker Paper Mate Colored Pens. The kids made their own versions however they liked.
Art Journal Prompt and Activity
Kids love seeing their hand size in relation to yours. Take turns tracing your hand and your child’s hand on the paper. You can overlap handprints in an orderly fashion such as I have done here, or take a more wild all-over-the-page approach. The overlapping hands make for interesting shapes to color and write in.
Prompts for Chatting With Kids About Growth:
Do you think you will grow bigger than your mom and dad?
What would it be like if your could snap you fingers and grow as tall as you wanted?
How about as small as you wanted?
What does it feel like to make a mistake? Does it help you grow?
Encourage your children to enjoy the process instead of worrying about getting it “just right.” You might show how you can make “mistakes” and then use creativity to incorporate the mistake into your art. Mistakes are a natural part of the creative process. It’s not about getting it perfect, it’s about enjoying the experience.
Photo Credit: Alissa Zorn
Journal Prompts for Adults About Growing
Read through these prompts and respond to which ever catches your eye – I tend to enjoy painting or drawing while simply pondering the questions, but you may wish to write or make a list.
What do you think you would feel like when you were a grown up? Do you feel like a grown up now?
What motivates you to keep growing as a person?
What do you need to let go of right now in order to grow?
More journal prompts on growth and new beginnings.
Photo Credit: Alissa Zorn.
Art Making Is a Wonderful Tool for Stress Relief
Having mutiple tools for managing stress and mental health gives our kids the best chance to thrive. Caren Sacks created Draw and Discover with this in mind.
It’s an art-making journal that gives a child a place to draw about what’s happening in their day, how they’re feeling, and what they like to do. This journal has lots of drawing ideas. Some are silly, some may help them feel calm, and some may help them draw about different feelings, ideas, and experiences.
Draw and Discover, an Art-Making Journal for Kids allows for the freedom to create and to draw and to discover in their very own journal. Vision and Voice, An Art Making Journal for Teens, offers age-appropriate, art-making invitations for teens. They too can have a space of their own to create, explore, and express themselves.
Alissa Zorn is an author, and founder of the website Overthought This. She’s a coach and cartoonist passionate about helping people overcome perfectionism and shame to build authentic, joyful lives. Alissa is certified through the International Coach Federation and got her Trauma-Informed Coaching certification from Moving the Human Spirit. She wrote Bounceback Parenting: A Field Guide for Creating Connection, Not Perfection, and is always following curiosity to find her next creative endeavor.