Fruit of the Spirit ~ October Journaling Ideas ~ JOY

Below are some journaling ideas that you may like to use this month with your child:

Copywork ~ Have your child copy the following "JOY" scripture into his/her journal:
"Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." ~ Nehemiah 8:10b

Copywork Assignment ~ Have your child look up in his/her own Bible one or two favourite verses about joy. To help you get started here are some references:
Romans 15:13
Psalm 33:1
Proverbs 15:13
Proverbs 17:22
1 Thessalonians 5:16

Music and Journaling ~ Listen to the song "Hymn to Joy"by Beethoven at the following website: Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee. Play the song once and have your child listen and move to the old hymn. Play the song a second time and have your child draw a picture in his/her journal to represent the song. Encourage your child to write a sentence or two at the bottom of the journal entry that describes his/her drawing.

Webbing, Charting, or Listing ~ Have your child brainstorm words and phrases that are descriptive of JOY. Encourage your child to record ways that people demonstrate joy. (Here is an example of a web layout: Webbing)

Prayer Journal ~ Have your child write a prayer asking God to help him/her to demonstrate daily joy even during trials and hardships.

Acrostic Poem~ Encourage your child to write an acrostic poem for the word/phrase "Joyful", "Joyfulness" or "Filled with Joy". First, have your child brainstorm words or phrases that are related to joy. Then, have your child match the brainstormed words with each letter in the acrostic poem. Following is an example of an acrostic poem:

J is for jovial faces
O is for often praising
Y is for your pleasant words
F is for feeling content
U is for up in spirit
L is for laughing often