5 Ways To Use a Reflective Journal

When I was a new director, I struggled to find a diary that worked for me. I tried so many different things, and then found myself with multiple books and systems to try and achieve the one thing. In about 2013, we decided to start making our own diaries... only we wanted them to be more than a diary. We wanted ours to be a place for reflection and planning and organising and taking notes and all of the things. 

Since 2014, our Reflective Journals have evolved - not only do we now have 9 different types, but the content has changed over the years in response to feedback from educators and our own growth and experience. 

Now, thousands of educators use our Reflective Journals, but we still have people ask us - how do I use it? how will it benefit me? can I share it with someone else? what's the right one for me? 

So, I thought I would try and answer some of those questions by sharing 

5 WAYS TO USE A REFLECTIVE JOURNAL

1. Use it to plan ahead - in addition to the double page weekly planner, there are so many places to plan. In the Nominated Supervisors journal, you can plan monthly meetings so that they are effective and inspiring. If you are are using our Student journal, you can plan for assessments. 

2. Use it to reflect on your practice - each of the journals has monthly reflections, which vary slightly depending on your journal type. There are reflections on the EYLF, Reflections on MTOP (for OSHC), Thinking about Compliance (for Nominated Supervisors) Reflections on Leadership (for Educational Leaders and Nominated Supervisors) and more. We all know that reflective practice is important, but sometimes just don't know where to start - having prompts helps us to stay on track! 

3. Use it to learn more about Aboriginal ways of learning and knowing - we've worked with the wonderful Uncle Wayne Anderson to unpack and support you to reflect on on the 8 Ways. This is a great partner to our 8 Ways Online Training with Uncle Wayne, but can also be used independently as a starting point for your exploration and learning. 

4. Use it with a team - a few years ago we had educators telling us that they weren't great at using their journal on their own (we can all get distracted!) but when they used it with a team, they were more likely to contribute, collaborate and keep one another accountable. This is why we created a Team Reflective Journal in 2025, and again for 2026. It's ideal for use in a room or a small service. Our OSHC journal is designed for a team too! 

5. Use it as evidence during your assessment and rating process - this is probably the best feedback that we have received from educators and services: our journals make great evidence. Educational Leaders tell us that they help them to evidence their discussions with educators, and their ongoing support and review of programs. While educator journals are a great way to evidence ongoing, meaningful reflective practice. We've had messages from services who said that they handed their journal over during a visit and the authorised officer commented that it made it so easy to see and understand their practice. 

Are there more benefits and more ways to use our journals - absolutely! Will they evolve again? always (we love getting your feedback to support that too) 

Planning and reflective practice doesn't have to be hard. If you haven't ordered your 2026 Reflective Journals... now is the time to ensure you get it before the end of 2025