@writingmindset
Teaching, journaling, and finding joy—one page at a time.
Hi, I’m Stephanie—writer, educator, wife, mom, and lifelong notebook-carry-er.
Here on Writing Mindset, I share real-life reflections on motherhood, wellness, creative journaling, intentional planning, and teaching reading and writing to kids. Whether I’m scribbling ideas in the margins, testing out a new recipe from Pinterest, or savoring my third cup of coffee (no shame!), this space is all about finding joy in the everyday and using writing as a tool to live more mindfully.
Visit the blog home page to get started. Learn about me, read the blog, and access all the resources for teaching and journaling.
After Dinner: A Small Evening Ritual for Paying Attention to Your Life
What if five minutes after dinner could become your favorite part of the day?
After Dinner is a simple journaling ritual designed to help you slow down, find presence, and notice the little moments that make up your everyday life.
Each evening, you'll pause, look back on your day, get curious about what stands out, and put a few words on the page. Some days you might write a paragraph. Other days, a sentence, a list, or a few words may be enough.
Inside, you'll find:
A simple five-minute evening ritual
Mindset shifts to help you approach journaling with less pressure
Guided prompts for noticing, reflecting, and making meaning
Three creative approaches for changing up your ritual
Gentle reminders that your writing doesn't have to be perfect or profound
This isn't a journal about having a perfect evening routine. It's about creating a small pocket of time to come back to yourself and your day.
Pause. Find presence. Notice your life. Let it be enough.
Note: The download includes 15 pages, including one page designed to print and tuck into your notebook.
This article examines how integrating writing-to-learn strategies with outdoor, nature-based experiences simultaneously strengthens students’ literacy skills and deepens curiosity, reflection, and environmental awareness across varied educational contexts.
The main resource, The Everyday Noticing Field Guide, is a 22 activity guided experience designed to help teachers, writers, and curious observers reconnect with attention, creativity, and meaningful reflection through everyday life.
Little Noticers: A Letter Practice & Wonder Toolkit for Early Writers is a flexible 10-day learning experience for ages 4–6 that builds early literacy, language, and observation skills through playful noticing, storytelling, and hands-on exploration.
Grab free activities. Find out more.
Mentor texts are an amazing tool for so many reasons: They build reading appreciation and motivation, they show examples of great writing, and they provide students with an outlook that they could be an author someday because they can write just like the pros. If you are reading books in your classroom, you have mentor texts. Mentor texts are also one of the best teaching tools for not teaching grammar in isolation.
Shop my favorite notebooks and supplies. Grab discount codes to my favorite brands to get a discount on your purchases.
Take your notebook into the outdoors and discover activities and resources you can use to get started right away.
Visit an archive of trainings, workshops, presentations, and publications.
Get access to the resource hub where I post free materials for teachers, writers, and people who love journaling.
Are you a teacher wanting quick writing instruction tips or training? Start with the mini-webinars on the writing process, summary writing, and claim-evidence reason writing.