Daily Pages for Reflective Practice

In the book, The Artists Way, author Julia Cameron writes about a practice called "Morning Pages." The practice, performed in the morning, involves writing in longhand, three pages of whatever comes to mind. Morning pages are not a creative process. Morning pages are a process to clear the mind and help a writer prepare to perform creative work and live more present in the day's work.

In early childhood education, teachers often experience busy multitasking days. Our days are full of joy and challenges in the care of others. There is a delicate balance between solving problems and promoting self-care in our practice. 

Part of the practice of working with children is observation and documentation. The process involves removing oneself from the moment-to-moment action in the classroom. During observation, educators record what happens as children work and play. Documentation is usually written and often uses media like photos and video. The information collected informs the practice of the educator. It helps the educator form the direction of the children's learning journey.

How can early childhood educators document our work in the classroom? 

How can we use the information as a tool for improvement?

Writing daily pages is a tool an educator can use for reflective practice. The definition of reflective practice states. "A process by which you stop and think about your practice consciously. You analyze your decision-making and draw on theory and relate it to what you do in practice."

Daily pages will help educators reflect on the day's events and open new windows into what is actually happening in the classroom. Reflective practice will help illuminate your thoughts and feelings. Through reflective practice, you will learn more about who you are. Reflective practice reduces stress, assists problem solving, and builds emotional intelligence and mindfulness.

How does the process work? The exact method follows the individual educator. The goal is to write a one to three-page recap (in longhand) each day about the current events in the classroom. Some educators will write when the last child departs for the day since the information remains fresh in the mind. Some educators write pages in the morning the following day before the work ahead. Finally, some educators will record events during the workday creating a new page several times a day. The method is not as important as recording the information on the page and out of your mind. 

The final step involves using a few uninterrupted minutes to read the written pages. Use this time to soak in the words and feelings about the experiences of the day. Next, recycle the finished pages. The words exist only as a tool for the individual educator to assist their personal growth. When reading over the pages, there may be some new insight about the events of the day. Sometimes the words may induce little meaning at all. 

Proceeding through the entire process of morning pages will help the educator. It will help us become better informed and more insightful. Writing daily pages will aid educators in discovering answers and will help us encounter events in a different light, clear our minds and inform our practice.

What method do you use to reflect on your daily practice?