As the leaves begin to turn and the air grows crisp, there's a natural pull to slow down, reflect, and organize our thoughts for the season ahead. Fall is a time of transition—making it the perfect opportunity to get creative with your planning. What better way to capture the cozy, nostalgic vibes of autumn than by designing your own junk journal planner?

Junk journaling is a creative, personalized way to organize your life and reflect on your day-to-day. It’s a beautiful mix of journaling, scrapbooking, and planning, using “junk” or found materials like old papers, postcards, leaves, fabric scraps, and more. In this post, I’ll walk you through how to create your own cozy fall junk journal planner to help you stay organized while indulging in the rich, comforting energy of autumn.

Everything that reminds me of journaling also reminds me of fall types of things. This may be the best season for grabbing a notebook and getting ready to write.

Hot beverages.

Warm blankets.

Crisp mornings.

Sunlight in windows.

Nanowrimo.

Brain-dumping worries.

Moving a little bit slower in life as we get ready for winter.

Thinking about how the goals for the year are going so far.

Getting ready to think about goals for the new year.

Whether you like the fall for the football, changing leaves, or pumpkin spice lattes, journaling has a place in everyday routine. This post is an ode to fall journaling. Think of it like a fall journaling toolkit. These are all easy things you can add to your journaling routine to get the most out of fall. Included in this post, you will find an update on my fall journaling routine, cozy fall music links to set the vibe, fun accessories and stickers, and reflective prompts to get you thinking.

I love looking at what other people have planned for the first two weeks of school. While some people feel inventive and creative, I sometimes feel really pressured to make sure that the first two weeks feel…perfect. And I can guarantee that nothing feels particularly perfect this year as we head back-to-school with online learning. However, I told my classes today: “No matter where we are, we are going to learn and have a great time.” I meant it. I wanted to include my favorite resources, books, and the learning platforms that I am using for heading back-to-school. I know that my teaching will be forever changed due to the adaptations and modifications I am making for my instruction in the current moment. This post starts with my first day plans, and then it provides a simple-structured outline for the rest of the two weeks. I did not include any language regarding essential questions and standards. I wanted to focus on the main activities and the tools I used to plan those activities along the way.

The end of August and the beginning of September marks the official kick-off of back-to-school. Many of you have probably been planning for a while. Some of you may be still working out the first few weeks of plans for your classroom. Wherever you are in the planning process, this post is designed to give you some sparks of joy and added creativity in your planning and in your adjustment in the closing out of summer. If you have reached a dead-end, (like I had earlier this week) browse the posts below to find one that may help insert some much-needed inspiration into your plans or your own personal routine. You will find some posts about teaching including ideas for classroom activities, literacy instruction, and how to structure your class setup. You will also find mindset posts about anxiety, stopping negative teacher talk, and remaining uncomfortable as you approach this school year with a focus on anti-bias and anti-racist teaching. I know this school season of 2020-2021 is unlike any other we have faced in the world of teaching; however, I know we can do this through the collaboration of ideas and helpful reminders to see the good in all situations.

We can do this. I promise.