What first graders chose to put in their journals when given no direct suggestions for topics was studied during the 1985-86 school year in a suburban Birmingham, Alabama, classroom. Journal writing was scheduled for 30 minutes daily throughout the school year, but not all children chose to write every day. At the end of the year, all of the journal entries for the 20 children in the class were studied and placed into ten categories: (1) pictures only, (2) scribble and/or random letters, (3) labels or descriptions of pictures, (4) lists, (5) copies of texts, (6) retelling of texts, (7) personal content, (8) imaginative content, (9) informational content, and (10) other written forms such as puzzles. Regardless of the children's writing levels, all were confident of their writing abilities. They varied in capability and in selection of topics, though some common writing behaviors were noted. Informational content accounted for 28.4% of journal entries, personal experiences for 36.6%, and information about holidays for 11.9%. A given student's entries were not always at a consistent level, but researchers interpreted the variance as part of normal writing development. The children enjoyed journal writing and gained confidence in their writing ability during the year. (Tables and writing samples are included.) (AEW)