Customer Reviews

Deployment Journal for Kids

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a wife of a soldier who is preparing to be deployed to Iraq, I thought this book would be a perfect way for the kids to express their feelings and write down their thoughts.

I was very disappointed when I saw that the "maps" were just a grayed out block of continents. There were no countries listed on it....something you would expect from a 4th grade continent quiz.

There were no colors in the pages, just the plain black and white text. No photos or other eye catchers for the kids.

The calendar it came with only has enough for 6-7 months and the blocks are really small. There is no way my 8 year old can write small enough to fit anything in there. Most soldiers are deployed for a lot more than 6 months, so I can't even really use that part of the book.

The pages for the kids to write down their feelings are VERY LIMITED. There is one and a half pages for "What I am feeling" and other such titles. How is a child supposed to use this journal for a whole year with that kind of limited space?

This journal is NOT FOR EVERYDAY USE by the children. It can only be used to highlight certain feelings. Like I said, I really expected something more and something the kids could really use on a day to day basis to write out their feelings.

I think it is okay for what it is, but the reviews I read made me think it was some great book that really helped the children and gave them room to express themselves. There was no publisher or Amazon description and you could not look in the book electronically.

I would recommend you get a diary and small map book to go along with this. A scrap book would also be a good idea to compliment the limited book.

I really enjoyed having this journal. It has helped me learn about where my dad is deplyed. And I get to write and drw my feelings in a place that I can keep forever.

I am a fourth grade teacher and I ordered this journal for the kids in my class last year. For the military kids, we focused on having them write about their experience during their parent's deployment. For the nonmilitary kids, we focused on learning about common deployment locations and thinking about what it would be like to have a parent deploy. All of the kids LOVED the project. The journal writing extended naturally into other areas, such as using the globe, learning simple phrases in other languages, learning about the cultures of people in places like Iraq and Afghanistan. It has been positive and rewarding for everyone. I think the nonmilitary kids have a better appreciation for the challenges of military life and the military kids felt like others really cared about their situation. And they loved having their own place to write about this time in their lives. Wonderful journal and idea. I highly recommend it to families but also to teachers and counselors, especially in elementary and middle school settings. I have incorporated it into my plans for the coming school year b/c I was so pleased.

My daughter is 11. She has been feeling very down about her dad's deployment. When this journal arrived, oh, the smile on her face! She immediately went to her room and started writing. She came downstairs after about a half hour and said, "Mom, this is so awesome! I have a place to say what I want to say about this deployment!"

It made her feel like she has her own voice in the matter. She has put some of her favorite notes from her dad in the envelope. She has started keeping a scrapbook to go with it. Among other things she loves about it, she's proud to have learned how to say hello in six languages and learn more about some of the places soldiers are deployed to.

This was a great idea. Thank you for helping my daughter!

I like the design of the colors on the journal. I like to write about things that happen at school. I write what I will say to my dad when he calls next time. I draw pictures on the blank pages. I write poems. I miss my dad. This is a good journal. From Kacee.

Bought this for my 8 and 11 year old girls. Their dad is deployed for a year. Both of them really loved the journal and were very busy writing and looking up information. Very interactive with lots of interesting information about different countries. My girls liked that the book offers questions to talk to their dad about. Questions about where he is...not just dadddy we miss you. It also makes writing about how you feel fun with choices offered in a creative way. We have been doing the military thing for 16 years and I tend to be a little jaded but I would really recommend this book to others....also not just for deployed parents, this book would work just a well for Aunts, Uncles, Brothers..etc.

I have a 5 year old who is faced with dealing with Dad's 2nd deployment. We've talked to him about it and explained that this time daddy will be in a place with phones etc... He is very smart for his age and is well aware of what daddy is leaving for. Being a miitary family comes with a great deal of pride for the entire family, but at the same time it comes with many other feelings that sometimes are hard for a 5 year old to explain, or actually want to explain. this journal makes that difficult experience easy to express and in some ways a little fun. He can fill it with things to show is dad when he comes home, and he looks forward to writing in it already