Why should I motivate my students to start Journal writing?

I used to work at a fine and applied arts college.  It was there that I revealed to my students that I had been keeping a daily journal since 1987.  I found that whether I had something important to write or not, I kept at it, and when something intriguing di occur (a snippet of music, poetry, an idea for a story, an article, or a lesson for my classes), I had a place to put it and a way to remember it.  I have always maintained that I have a terrible memory about some things, but that if i write it down, I can keep it fresh in mind.  This is especially important when a good idea for a creative venture arises in my mind.  If I write it down, then I can just look it back up when I am struggling for an idea to write about and I have a ready bank of ideas to work on.

My students were intrigued by the idea and several of them subsequently followed my lead.  three of them are published authors now, and a couple of them are internationally known artists of various media (one is a famous tattoo artist now).  By keeping a journal, they were able to record and later recall those good ideas they had and make good on them.

I recommend it as a useful practice for anyone who has a creative aspect to his or her work, or who wants to develop a latent creativity.

Journal entry assignements will benefit students by improving of reflection, facilite critical thinking, expressing feelings, and writing focused arguments.

Daily writing in a relaxed format provides a non-threatening way to be able to explore different thoughts, ideas and topics without being concerned about audience presentation.

Journal writing has the following benefits (summarized):

• Strengthens the confidence of the student
• Allows the Teacher to Gain Student Insight
• It is a refuge for the beginning writers
• Promotes Indirect Growth in Grammar and Mechanics

Its all about a domino effect in growth and improvement of language. Once learners write they become more confident in expressing themselves in other areas also like speaking and reading. 

The growth here is also quite personal. Through journal writing they are forced to reflect on their feelings and thoughts and through it can end up making important decisions and discoveries about themselves. 

Journal writing isnt given enough importance yet it should be. Give examples of your own growth and development through it or show how famous people reached their goals through it. What you use to motivate your students will depend directly on who your learners are and what interests them. 

Good luck 

Motivation is always the thing that drives a person to do a lot

In answering your questions, I need to at first define the key word which is "Journal". A journal is a daily record of events on a personal nature; it is also known as a diary.

The importance of keeping a journal cannot be over-emphasised and it is enumerated as follows:

It helps the students articulate their goals clearer than when they were only visualising it and it also makes achieving such goals appear easier.

Students need to understand that their journals serve as a permanent record of their progress and that such journals show how they have been able to overcome their past problems and difficulties.

When students are motivated to write in a journal, it is most probable that their hidden thoughts, aspirations and mindsets are revealed. Through this you as the teacher would know what inspires and motivates your students.

Writing a journal allows your students think maturely and it helps them transition easily into articulate writings. Encouraging your students to write journals make them become more familiar with the acceptable mode of writing and it also helps them build extreme confidence in their writing/academic prowess.

Journal writing helps a student to be be more focused on the task at hand and when you look at all these advantages with your students discovering these themselves as time goes by, you as a teacher will be well motivated beyond looking at the initial resistances you might encounter as you introduce journal writing to your students to discovering keeping a journal is really a blessing in disguise

I m not sure why in the first place you have to instigate this skill, but if you need it, tell'em to sharewhat they like and describe what they feel excited about 

Journal writing helps students develop their creative and writing skills as they are encouraged to “experiment with writing, to experience, perhaps for the first time, writing that may be highly personal, relatively unstructured, speculative, uninhibited, tentative, in process, in flux”, according to Alan Anderson, 1993.

One of the best things about daily journal writing is that it can take so many forms. Teachers can use journal writing to meet specific goals, or the purpose can be wide open.