Four Quick Active Learning Journal Pages

I’m back with 4 quick ideas for active learning journals, all apple themed of course!!

If you have never heard of an active learning journal, you need to be introduced to Theresa from Literacy in Motion. Head over to her blog or her Instagram to get some more great ideas on how to use an active learning journal!

I’ve said before that I hate worksheets for little guys, but some kids are motivated by what they see as “school work”. Maybe it is from watching an older sibling do homework or an innate desire to learn from pencil and paper. This is where an active learning journal can become handy. Not only do they serve an actual purpose (unlike some busy work worksheets) they become a physical record of learning and growth which is important if you intend on homeschooling long term.

My oldest charge, E, turned 3 last week. While she could be in a full time preschool, her parents have chosen to have me as her nanny! This means lots of play, art, dancing, outside time, and a little structured learning throughout our day. We usually do our dedicated “work” time right away when I arrive in the morning since interest is high. I created these first four pages for our apple unit.

Color match the apples, simple enough! We will use crayons to work our fine motor skills. You could also use green and red stickers. If you child is older, you could add more colors to the mix.

For this page, we will use our Do a Dot markers to match the apples. Here’s a great set! For an older child, you could put letters inside each apple and they pick a specific letter to stamp.

Now for some prewriting skill work. This is one of my favorites, we will use highlighters to trace the paths. E is highly motivated by any new type of tool! You could also use stickers for an additional fine motor work.

Practicing vertical lines is important for E to learn so she can start forming the first letter of her name. I’m not sure what tool we will use for this page yet, but it will probably be highlighters as well!

I hope these simple active learning pages can give you some ideas on how you could add one into your homeschool classroom. I’ll be sharing more ideas over on my Instagram throughout the month be sure to follow along!