My Favorite Nature Journals (for Kids and Grown-Ups)
Looking for a nature journal, perhaps to use as a part of the Southern California Nature Kids family science curriculum? Here are some ideas:
The Best Nature Journal is the One You Use
Choosing a nature journal can feel very overwhelming. For years, I browsed Amazon and read posts in nature journaling Facebook groups, looking for the elusive “perfect nature journal.”
Finally I realized - the perfect nature journal is the one you’ll actually use!
I was letting my quest for perfect keep us from ever getting started. These days, I’m trying to just choose something “good enough” and not worry about whether it’s the very best.
It doesn't matter if it’s a 79 cent spiral-bound lined notebook from Target or a fancy leather hand-sewn journal with watercolor paper… what matters is that you have a journal to get started with. After awhile, you may discover you’d really prefer thicker paper, or you do/don’t want lines… but you probably can’t figure that out unless you get started with something. So, feel free to just pick up whatever they have at Target, Dollar Tree, etc. for now!
Possible Nature Journals for Your Family
With that said, here are a few notebooks my family has used, in case you’d like to take a look (these are Amazon affiliate links) -
Handbook Journal Co. Artist Watercolor Sketchbook Journal, Large Landscape 5.25 x 8.25 Inches, 95lb / 200 GSM, Hardcover w/ Pocket. We have used this before, and my favorite part is the size. This is small enough to fit into a backpack, but not too small you don’t have any space to write or draw anything. The paper is meant for watercolors so it’s a little “bumpy” - if you won’t be watercoloring, it might be bothersome to have such textured paper. One of my 6 year olds will use it this year - I think he’ll like watercoloring, as he’s not ready for fine details in colored pencils yet. (P.S. In case the link doesn’t work, I find this one one Amazon by searching for “Speedball Large Landscape”)
Handbook Journal Co. Artist Canvas Cover Travel Notebook for Drawing and Sketching, Cadmium Green, Large Landscape 5.5 x 8.25 Inches, 130 GSM Paper, Hardcover w/ Pocket My 7 year old was bothered by the “bumpy” paper on the watercolor journal above, plus she wanted a colorful cover, so this year she’ll be using this similar (but hopefully smoother) drawing version. She doesn’t love watercolors, so she will just use pen/colored pencils. I plan to use a ruler to draw some pencil lines on the right side of each page so she has a space to write. Inspired by this nature journaling post at Charlotte Mason Poetry, I plan to use a ruler to draw some pencil lines on the right side of each page so she has a space to write.
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Softcover Sketchbook, 5.5" x 8.5", 150 gsm (Heavyweight), White Paper, Medium Grain Surface - I just ordered this new one for my 10 year old to use this school year - she wanted the option to watercolor, and was heavily swayed by the colorful cover. Inspired by this nature journaling post at Charlotte Mason Poetry, I plan to use a ruler to draw some pencil lines on the right side of each page so she has a space to write.
Leuchtturm Dotted 1517 - I use this notebook as a daily planner/bullet journal, but I think it would work for a nature journal as well. Be aware the pages are a little slick, so some pens will smear (I use ballpoint pens or the Micron 05 black ink pen in my planner, and they don’t smear). This would be best for colored pencils - markers will bleed through to the other side, and watercolor will just slide right off. I prefer the dots or plain pages (not the grid or lined pattern). Bonus: so many color options!
US Art Supply 9 x 12 sketch pad- I just ordered this for my 6 year old son to use. He loves to draw, and usually covers up a whole page of printer paper with little details, so I knew he’d want a bigger nature journal. It will be too big to carry easily in a backpack on a hike, but we do most of our nature journaling at home anyways. I expect he will just use colored pencils (though looking at the link again just now, it looks like it may work for watercolor as well).
Field Artist leather watercolor journal (can’t find the link right now) - These are great quality, but my children found them too small to use. They are probably ideal for taking out “in the field” in a backpack, especially for older children who can write with small penmanship.
I generally “refresh” my children’s nature journals at the start of every school year. You can also just use them until they run out of fresh pages.
Other Nature Journaling Supplies:
colored pencils - Prismacolor Premiers are wonderful if you can afford the higher prices point, but my children also like Prismacolor Scholar colored pencils, Crayola colored pencils, or whatever we happen to have lying around
X-acto School Pro electric pencil sharpener - my children aren’t picky about what type of colored pencils they use, but they do love to sharpen their pencils constantly so they’re as sharp as possible. This one works well with regular lead pencils and colored pencils too (occasionally the tip of the colored pencil does break off into the sharpener, but not too often)
pens - in general, we use whatever pens and pencils we have lying around. I do like the Micron 05 if you’re looking for a “nicer” pen that won’t smear much or bleed through. It also won’t smear if you paint watercolors over it.
date stamper - it’s nice to record the date on nature journal entries, but for little hands, writing those numbers can be tedious, and I find we end up with lots of undated entries. I just ordered this stamper, in the hopes that it makes recording the date a little easier and more fun!
Some people like watercolor in their nature journals. I’m still not sold that this is the best way to nature journal… it seems to be complicated and less precise than just colored pencils (but I’m working on it!) Here are some of the supplies we’ve used:
watercolors - if you dive into the nature journaling world, many people use liquid watercolors. I’ve never figured those out though… it just seems too complicated for the beginner artists in our family (myself included). We like the relatively inexpensive Prang palettes, and I also like the travel size Winsor Cotman palette (which seems fancy but is easy to use).
watercolor brushes - finding nicer watercolor brushes than the plastic ones that come in the cheap paint sets has made watercoloring more enjoyable and successful for me. A few years ago I made the mistake of buying brushes that were so long they were unwieldy… these ones are nice and short, like the length of a pencil.
Watercolor with Me in the Forest and Watercolor with Me in the Ocean - these are workbooks (on very nice watercolor paper) that demonstrate how to paint different animals. This year, I ordered one book for each of my children and they’re going to complete a page of their choice every week. This won’t go into their nature journal, but I hope it equips them with how to paint animals.
Do you have a nature journal you recommend?