Share a day of your life
Create a one day photo or drawing journal with captions, arranging events into a timeline and sharing your daily routine with family or class.
About this activity
Create a one day photo or drawing journal with captions, arranging events into a timeline and sharing your daily routine with family or class.
What you need
Step by step
- 1
Step 1
Choose whether you will make a photo journal or a drawing journal today.
- 2
Step 2
Write a list of 6 to 10 events from your day that you want to include.
- 3
Step 3
Add the time next to each event so you know the order for your timeline.
- 4
Step 4
Open your paper and draw a title with today’s date and a long line for your timeline.
- 5
Step 5
Mark equal spaces along the timeline where each picture and caption will go.
- 6
Step 6
Create a picture for each event by taking a photo or drawing the scene.
- 7
Step 7
Write a short caption under each picture that has the time and one sentence about what happened or how you felt.
- 8
Step 8
Arrange the pictures in time order on the timeline and attach them with glue or tape.
- 9
Step 9
Add colours stickers arrows or labels to decorate and make the flow easy to follow.
- 10
Step 10
Take a photo or scan of your finished journal and share your creation on DIY.org.
Fun facts
How do I help my child create a one-day photo or drawing journal and arrange it into a timeline?
Start by choosing a single day and decide whether to use photos or drawings. Encourage the child to capture or sketch key moments—morning routine, meals, playtime, and bedtime. Write short captions with times and one-sentence descriptions or feelings. Arrange pages chronologically in a notebook, on a poster board, or in a simple digital slideshow. Review together, let the child reorder events with sticky notes, then share the finished timeline with family or class.
What materials do I need to make a one-day photo or drawing journal with captions?
You'll need a camera or smartphone for photos or paper and crayons for drawings, plus a notebook, sketchbook, or loose paper to make the journal. Add pens or markers for captions, sticky notes or labels for arranging, glue or tape, and scissors. Optional items: a ruler or printable timeline template, a tablet or simple slideshow app for digital sharing, and props like toys or costumes for photos.
What ages is making a one-day photo or drawing journal suitable for?
This activity suits ages roughly 3–12 with adjustments. Preschoolers (3–5) enjoy drawing with adult help for writing captions and arranging pages. Early elementary children (6–8) can take photos, write simple captions, and sequence events with some guidance. Older children (9–12) can create detailed timelines, add times and reflections, or make digital slideshows independently. Tailor complexity, time expectations, and supervision to each child’s skills.
What are the benefits of making a one-day photo or drawing journal?
Keeping a one-day photo or drawing journal builds sequencing, observation, vocabulary, and storytelling skills. It boosts memory, fine motor control, and confidence as children narrate their day. Sharing timelines with family or class strengthens communication and social connections. For privacy and safety, review photos before sharing, avoid including exact addresses or personal identifiers, and ask permission from anyone who appears in images.
Watch & Learn
Need help?
What can we use instead of a scanner, stickers, or glue if we don't have them?
Use your smartphone camera to photograph the finished timeline instead of a scanner, replace stickers with colored pencils or cut paper for the 'Add colours stickers arrows or labels' step, and use clear tape or a glue stick when you 'attach them with glue or tape'.
What should we do if the pictures don't line up or the timeline looks messy?
Use a ruler to 'Mark equal spaces along the timeline', lay out all pictures in time order without gluing to test spacing, and trim or resize photos so they fit before you 'attach them with glue or tape'.
How can I adapt this activity for younger or older kids?
For younger kids choose 4–6 simple events with drawings and parent help for writing times and gluing, while older kids can include 8–10 events, use real photos, write more detailed one-sentence captions, and add labels or arrows for clarity.
How can we enhance or personalize the journal beyond the basic instructions?
Personalize it by color-coding events with markers, adding mood icons next to each caption, decorating with washi tape or arrows, or scanning the finished journal and turning it into a digital slideshow to share on DIY.org.