Preschool Lapbooking

When Esmé was 2, I realized that lapbooking was a most excellent way of keeping themed printables and mini-projects organized and easily accessible for review (and for future generations, but that is a whole other topic).

I’ve discovered that other homeschoolers have never tried lapbooking because it seems too complicated (totally understandable considering some of the awesome creations I’ve seen in blogland), so I thought we’d share our top secrets for lapbooking with little ones…

1.  There is no right or wrong way to lapbook.  As far as I know, the only rule is that you use a file folder – and even that rule could probably be waived by the lapbook police if necessary.  Fancy folds and materials are totally optional.

Speaking of folds, my favorite is just the pre-made half-fold already on the folder.  We cut the tab off and then turn the folder so that it opens to the right (opposite of how you would normally open a book or folder).  This allows you to hole-punch the left side and store the lapbook in a 3-ring binder.  But that’s just us.

2.  Mix up the materials to your child’s taste.  You’ve got the file folder now; what do you put in it?  Whatever you like!  Minibooks, pockets with puzzle pieces or sorting or matching cards, file-folder games, coloring pages, small crafts, worksheets, photos, even preprinted flash cards.  You can make a quick pocket by taping down a piece of cardstock on three sides.  Or create a flap surprise by taping down one side of a postcard and gluing a picture or sticker underneath it.

4.  You can start at any age.  The more advanced a child is, the more he will do on his own, of course, but I know some moms who make waterproof creations for their teeny tiny ones to look at and handle and manipulate.  For Esmé (3yo), I do most of the cutting ahead of time (I love straight-edged printables), leaving one or two less complicated items for her to cut.  And I generally position things and guide her in gluing, except for decorative things like stickers.

5.  Stick it down well.  I use packing tape for adding cardstock pages to the book, making flap cards, or creating quick pockets.  Hot glue is helpful for items that will get a lot of handling.

When Esmé was younger, I used double-sided tape and let her stick stuff down.  (I’d still do this if I could find my stash of tape!)  Before she could squeeze well, I introduced her to white school glue in tiny cups with a paint brush.  Cheap glue sticks, in our experience, don’t hold very well.

6.  Add an envelope or zippy bag for extras.  All that stuff that just doesn’t fit – sewing cards, finger puppets, little tissue-paper crafts – can be stored in a gallon-sized zippy or large clasp envelope that is stapled inside the lapbook.

7. Color it up.  Use colored folders.  Use colored cardstock for your printables.  Print with color ink.  Have your child color the printables.  There are lots of different ways to color things up.

If you have a bunch of printables that “need” to be colored and your child is not a coloring fanatic, bring out the watercolor paints.  Paints cover a lot of ground quickly, and the watercolors are usually light enough to to allow the print to be seen.  I highly recommend diluted liquid watercolors.

8.  Have fun!  One of my favorites was an easy 4th of July lapbook.  We made a US flag on the cover, and then Esmé pasted pre-cut clip art, poems, songs, and quotes on the other pages, finishing it up with a big round of stickers.  No coloring or writing assignments, no special placements or special folds, just creativity and plenty of fodder for discussion as we discussed the meaning and origin of the flag and symbols.

And that’s really what lapbooking is all about:  creating learning opportunities in an organized, compact, fun way that’s easy to review and share with others.