by 8 people |
A Step by Step Guide
Once you understand the basics of lapbooking, you can easily plan your own lapbook to match whatever topic you are studying. You don't need to buy a kit, so you save money. And you can custom design the lapbook to reflect your children's interests and educational needs. So grab a pad and a pen (or print my lapbook planner page), and let's start planning.
Step One -- The Topic
What will your lapbook be about? You can choose any topic under the sun!Some moms use lapbooking to motivate a reluctant learner. For example, if your child loves animals, a horse or cat lapbook may really delight her. If your child is a fantasy fan, a lapbook on Narnia may be a winner.
Or maybe you want to choose one of the academic topics you're already studying. Don't look at lapbooking as adding something new or in addition to an already overloaded schedule. Consider lapbooking the way you will learn the topics you've already planned to study.
Once you've chosen an overall topic, break it down into the smaller chunks of information. These chunks or subtopics can be thought of as a day's lesson. List all of these on paper or use my lapbook planner page (free PDF). Be sure to list your reference material whether it be a book, a website, or a video.
At this step, you're simply choosing what to study about your topic.Personally, I find that having a book serve as the basis of my study to be invaluable. I simple look through that main book, listing the main ideas that I want to be sure to cover.
How many chunks of information do you need? Well, each topic is different. It could be from eight to twenty! Don't worry if it seems too few. As you study, your children may ask questions you hadn't thought of which may lead to new subtopics.
By All Means, Plan.
But hold loosely to your plan.
Be willing to explore teachable moments and go on tangents with your children.
Step Two -- Select Minibooks
The next step is where it gets fun! Take your list of subtopics/chunks of information, and consider what type of minibook would best fit the information.Pencil in one or two minibook options on your list, beside each idea. (My lapbook planner has a space for this.)
There are lots of mini-books --a layered book, a circle book, a jigsaw book, a trifold, on and on. And you can get creative if you'd like! Create your own original folds or styles.
Some things lend themselves to certain types of folds. Lists work well in top tab books, life cycles are suited to wheel books, and timelines are perfect in accordion books, for example. But don't get bogged down in choosing the "perfect minibook" for this chunk of information. Generally any minibook will work for whatever type of information you want to record.
Now that you have a general plan, you do one of two things.1. You can fine tune your plan by selecting exactly which minibook style to use for each chunk of information. Just aim for a variety of minibooks to give your lapbook more visual appeal. Try not to use a minibook style more than twice in one lapbook.
2. Or if you prefer to give your children more ownership in the process, give them options each day for the minibook style.
By the way, I don't plan the layout of the lapbook -- the actual placement of each minibook in the filefolder base. But you can if you want. That will lead to considerations of minibook size. Instead, I prefer to add more extensions to our lapbook if our books are too large or too many to fit on the base.
Reference Lapbook to Show the Various Minibooks
Click the images for larger views of this clever lapbook highlighting types of minibooks . This homeschool mom not only includes actual tempates for various types of minibooks, she also includes written directions for making the books. This is sure to be a helpful reference in her lapbook planning and creation!
Minibook Guide
When you start lapbooking, you need some sort of list of the minibooks. You can use my Minibook Gallery as a reference, but you'll probably need something printed out as you plan.
You can make your own list to reference. But one problem with that is that it's easy to forget the names of the books. A solution is to create a reference lapbook with a blank template of each type. Label each book with the name you prefer to use for it. Then when you plan, you can visually see the various options.
If you would prefer, you can just put the labeled mini-book templates into a ziplock bag. As you learn to make more mini-books, your reference kit can grow.
Here are more helps for making a Minibook Guide.
- Lapbooking Reference Lapbook
- This homeschool mom made her own lapbook reference tool. It's a great example with pictures and directions!
- Reference Lapbook
- Another great example to get you thinking!
- Reference Lapbook
- Walking by the Way blog shows a very colorful example! Ami used this when her son wanted to plan his own lapbook. She gave him the reference lapbook, and let him choose!
Lapbook Planning Dos and Don'ts
- don't overplan in too much detail.
- if you know that you tend to overplan and simply can't resist, then allow yourself freedom NOT to complete a few of the minibooks you've planned. (no guilt allowed!)
- be prepared to revamp your plan partway through the process as you discover your children's particular fascinations.
- be willing to explore tangents and bunny trails -- that's where some real learning can happen!
- allow the children to take ownership; don't require perfection; let them do it their way.
Other Planning Helps for Lapbooks and Unit Studies
Want to hear it said a different way? Visit some of these links about lapbook and unit study planning.
- The Completely Comprehensive, Thoroughly Thorough Way to Plan a Unit Study
- How tos written by a homeschool mother!
- Planning a Unit Study or Lapbook
- Matschsticks shares how she plans a unit study or lapbook in an easy to read outline form with great examples!
- SunFlower Faith's Lapbook Planner
- This homeschool mom is offering a free PDF lapbook (or unit study) planning page.
- Cindy Rushton's Advice (PDF)
- Cindy offers this free PDF document jam packed with ideas and photos. Pages 20-22 are where she talks about planning a lapbook, sharing the ideas that Amy Pak gave her in an email.
- Lapbooking 101
- Another take on the unit study/lapbook planning approach. Worth a click!
- Lapbook Lesson Guide
- Don't let the drab look of this site fool you. This check list gives you a day by day plan for how to make a lapbook with a single living book. A great resource!
- Farm Animals Lapbook
- Actually, if you read the commentary beside the photos, you see that this link gives some basic how-tos for making simple lapbooks. The model used happens to be farm animals.
Other Bookmaking Resources
BOOKMAKING BONANZA
Amazon Price: $12.43 (as of 11/07/2009) 
Used Price:
Kid-Created Number Books: Math Bookmaking Ideas to Flip, Flap, and Fold
Amazon Price: (as of 11/07/2009)
Used Price: $3.95
Hey! I Can Read This!
Amazon Price: $15.25 (as of 11/07/2009)
Used Price: $7.36
How to Make Books with Children: Science & Math
Amazon Price: (as of 11/07/2009)
Used Price: $9.98
Read a Book-make a Book (How to Make Books With Children)
Amazon Price: (as of 11/07/2009)
Used Price: $1.49
Guestbook
As always, your comments and questions are welcome. If you have other links to share about lapbook planning, please feel free to share them here.
Summerm wrote...
Thanks so much for this! We're going to try lapbooking today, so I've got this bookmarked. :)
Posted September 29, 2009
Jennifer wrote
i was wondering what type of colored paper can go into a computer printer. or whenusing colored paper, do you sometimes just write and not worry about typing?
also, where to go to get good free clipart.. i have found a few good places
thanks so much for all the info already on your website! i am new to this and can't wait to get proficient in it.
my kids are artsy and my son (5 1/2) came up with an idea to put a stem on my daughter's petal book for part of her cinderella lapbook. he even got the green paper out for her! she is 4yr.
Posted July 30, 2009
Jimmie wrote...
in reply to Kimmer Kimmer, look /www.squidoo.com/lapbooking#module2319456">here at the original lapbooking lens. This will help you.
Posted April 06, 2009
Kimmer wrote
My 9yo daughter is starting her first lapbook (on cats - a favorite subject). I was able to download a variety of templates for the minibooks, but I haven't been able to locate ideas in how to 'fold the folder(s)'. I would appreciate any info on a source for this. Thanks!
Posted April 05, 2009
Jimmie wrote...
in reply to The Homeschool Nanay
Thank you so very much for pointing that out! I've replaced that link with a PDF ebook Cindy Rushton offers for free! It's even better than the previous link.
Posted March 25, 2009
Other Pages You May Find Helpful
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Lapbook Video Showcase
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Wouldn't it be great if another homeschooling mom could come over with a lapbook in hand and simply show you what lapbooking is all about? If she could let you see an actual lapbook and explain how it works, how it's made, and what her children lear...
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The Best Lapbooking Blogs
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Want a regular supply of lapbooking inspriation? Subscribe to the feeds of the best lapbooking blogs. Each day you'll see some brilliant ideas and lots of links to explore.
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How to Create an Animal Lapbook
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Planning your own lapbook is quite do-able because of the wealth of free and instant resources available on the Internet. This lens will point you in the right directions for a free DIY animal lapbook. Once you understand the process, you can use the...
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What Do I Need to Get Started With Lapbooking?
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If you're ready to take the plunge to use lapbooks in your curriculum, you should evaluate your resources. Do you have what you need to do it well? Where do you store your craft and art supplies? Do you have the essentials for lapbooking? Do you know...
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Lapbooking -- Frequently Asked Questions
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Most any topic comes with its own set of FAQ --frequently asked questions. Lapbooking is no exception. These questions seem to be asked by most new lapbookers. The fortunate thing is that there are lots of other lapbookers who've already come up with...
by Jimmie
Hello! I am a homeschooling, stay at home mom who loves to teach and learn. I enjoy cooking from scratch, blogging, photography, and traveling, but I...
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