I am a new convert to lap-booking. Definition at botom of this message...... And I LOVE it! Are there other Lap-Book-ers, here? Do you have any links, ideas or templates to share? Let's make this a lapbook thread! We made our first lap-books! See Photos Here! Our subject? The Solar System. The 6 year old First grade twins, loved it! And I was sold! We made everything from scratch. I finally had some REAL use for all those printable things on ABCteach.com and EnchantedLearning.com! hahahaha! We plan to get more creative for our next subject: Weather! What I did: My idea was to organize that which the twins already knew, and have them retell what they knew, in graphic form. They loved the physicality of the cut and pasting of the information, and they learned what "Research" meant. There was no need for a "Science Test" as the exam was right there in front of me! I also learned that lapbooking helped me, as a teacher to have "Check-off" topics, within each over-all leasson, of things to cover. For example, we knew that we had to have sertian things in our lapbook to make it complete, therefore, it gave us a way to check ourselves for "Holes" in the lesson, itself. I used no lesson plan. I simply used a couple of references, including the "What your K,1,2,3,4,5,6 Grader Should Know" books and other sources for general ideas of what topics to touch on. I then decided how deep I wanted to go. And I drew out a general diagram of what the final lap book might look like. Like a floor-plan, if you will. This changed as we began to make the lap book, which is normal. Anyway.... The boys know soooo much about the solar system, and now, so do I! And this is now how we are going to study all things in Social Studies, Geography, History and Science! We still have a spelling book, Our sentence and grammar practice and mathematics and reading and so on. But this has made "Schooling" Fun, again! So, speak up, if you are a Lap-Booker! Description excerpt from the following page... http://www.cindyrushton.com/Lapbooking.html What is Lap-Booking? [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]A Lapbook is a complete collection of booklets and display material from a particular study gathered and displayed in a folder-book that fits in your lap. . A Lapbook is commonly prepared using a file-folder, folded in a “shutter-fold” with a display of bookslets and other information from a study. A Lapbook is displays the highlights of the study. It is used for display of information from a study and as a tool for reviewing material as the child comes back to look at the Lapbook. [/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] [/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The term “Lap Book” was first coined by Tammy Duby, a homeschool mother and writer from Virginia. She named it that because the whole project could fit into a “book” that fits in the child’s lap. A Lapbook is a project book that fits in the child’s lap! [/FONT]
THANK YOU for posting this and the pictures (great job on the book). I've been considering doing this since I saw the other thread about it. Now I am totally inspired. We will do it with our botany. Thanks again!
That is awsome! Funny, I'd never heard of them till recently and I just realized we're making one as we're doing our rainforest unit. Each day we add something to her rainforest book- I'm not using a file folder, but essentially it's the same thing.
I like it. We just finished the solar system too. One of the things we did was pretend to be planets and rotated around the sun. Then we were a moon going around a planet, going around the sun. It was a fun day.
I've meant to do this for years now, and still haven't! I really should with my dd, cuz she's very creative! Thanks for the sites Jen!
Great Job!!!! Ems and I are working on a lapbook for plant life. It is going well. It is going to be a long term project that will take us over a few months. It is our first one and we are really enjoying it. I would love to make more but it will really throw us off of our semester objective that has already been submitted. Next year it will be lapbook mania around here. I am loving it. The things you can do!I am also thinking that I want to try a lapbox?!:? I made it up... I think. Same concept as the lapbook but everything we make will have more bulk and it will include a lapbook. We are going to start will insects and arachnids next school year. We will make paper mache(sp?) bugs and also catch some and preserve them. Everything will be kept in a box of its own. We have covered this topic in the past, but this will allow us to dive into it. I have many bug books from school and they are really going to come in handy. I look foward to hearing more ideas. Lapbooking is a breath of fresh air from the everyday. Patty
Cindy Ruston is GREAT!! When I first decided to hs and went to a local conference, I heard her speak on notebooking (lapbooking wasn't her topic ). She has great tips for organizing in general! We made one lapbook this year. But I do want to try another one. THe solar system is a great idea for mine. We are doing astronomy and we have learned TONS of great stuff! Your boys did a great job, Jen. Thanks for the inspiration!
That looks great! I know my dd would love this, too. I really need to try and get this done with her!
I think we are going to do History and Science next year that way. I just don't like the books we have now. They just go over it lightly and then on to something else. I want to do something to make them remember and have fun. This is it. I know it.
That is the cooooolest idea ever! I'm stealing it! Now... where to find shoe boxes... hahaha! Seriously, I thought lapbooks were stupid a few months ago, when I first heard of them. Then, I thought more about it and realised they are definately the way to go, for us! Last night, I sat and asked the kids what they wanted to know more about... Let's say that we have PLENTY of interest from this crew! And plenty of inspiration, now! Before, they just wanted to see how fast they could get thier work done, so that they could get to the playstation.... they actually have forgotten about the playstation when working on their lapbooks! WOW! Oh! And they completed a 3-5th grade Solar System Exam, just on the information they learned while making the lap book. Crap! I am sooo sold! Now I am planning out layouts and searching for more creative ideas. I do not want to get TOO creative. I don't want the lapbook creation to ever overshadow the information that goes into it, of course...But we do want more color.... WHoooo Hoooo! I am so glad ya'll like it!
I checked out the enchanted learning site and we like it. I have just glanced at it before. It has stuff for my DD and my toddlers. I just printed out stuff for St. Patty's day. It's going to be good filler work. Easy enough for her to do w/o me.
Jen, I LOVED your pictures! I think I am a lapbooker! Just never knew it had a name. I have done this several ways. I have used scrapbooks. I have used card stock cut to fit into ziplock bags and then all stapled together. Or just construction paper stapled. I had never thought of using folders. How are you cutting them I really couldnt tell by the pictures how it is all cut and put together! Thanks alot for the idea and giving me a name to what I have already been doing! =) Jill
We are lapbookers too... We just started after hearing about it here. dd is making them for the books she's studying in the english program - sh'e onto her 3rd one. both kids made one each when we were travelling last month - it included journals, postcards, reports on things like zoo animals, art gallery etc... ds10 is just now making his first lapbook for his english work, and both are making them for magnets We are totally converted!!! When ever we start a new unit now, I say to them, so do you want a book or do a lapbook? Lapbook is becoming the more common answer. I don't plan out the layout or anything - they have to do all that. I figure they are 10 & 11 and old enough to do it themselves. It's been great for ds10 in other ways too, because he doesn't like to rule straight lines, or take time with cutting out, pasting etc..so this is motivating him to do that stuff for the first time. I love the lapbox idea - we will definately use that. It's always tricky to know what to do with all that stuff they create, so the box will be perfect. I am looking forward to hearing others ideas and inspirations too
My son did a lapbook on the Oregon Trail. I learned how to do these at a Mother's Night Out. The woman had been doing them for years. She calls them "Wisdom Books". We sat and made examples out of a book called The Big Book of Books and Activities by Dinah Zike. It has how to do pages in your lapbook and little books of all kinds - tri-fold, shutter fold, four door book, matchbook, layered book, question and answer book, accordian book, pyramid book, pop up book(my kids love this one), pocket book, envelope book, etc. They make up a bunch with brightly colored paper in one sitting and then use them for their lapbooks throughout the year. She also showed us how to make pages in the lapbook and different ways to fold them. We need to make more of these. You have re-inspired me!
can you post instructions for making all those different kinds of little books? Also, if you make a double lapbook by joining 2 together, when it is closed there is always an open side because the front cover isn't big enough?? Is this right - or are we doing it wrong?
we are just completing a lapbook on catepillars and butterflys..so we called it the very hungry catepillar. we finished the lesson with a visit to our garden center that has a butterfly exibit..got some awesome pictures that day. when I get my computer up and running at home I'll scan it and post it.
We love doing lap books! They are a great activity to keep kids interested during the summer months, too. That's when we get some of the wildest most creative ones done!