"Backyard Birds" lap book

"Backyard Birds" Lapbook

Do you have a birdfeeder in your backyard? We've had one for years, and several years ago my daughter and I had fun creating this lapbook all about the birds in our very own backyard. 

We found this lapbook as a freebie from Homeschool Share here.

 The front cover

Inside the front cover:
Left flap- a poem that my daughter wrote and typed
Right cover closed- a drawing of a "not life size" yellow warbler by Rebekah

Left folder open:
Classification (biological)
Ornithology definition
I spy...flap book- general info about birds

Center:
Bird behavior
The Best Nest-Rebekah wrote about the Oregon Junco
Beaks anatomy matchbook
Anatomy fan book-we wrote about how birds can fly, their bones and muscles, their breathing system
Nest mini-book-we wrote about 3 kinds of nests

Right flap:
Home tweet home matchbook- we wrote about two types of bird nests and eggs
This place is for the birds!- we wrote about three types of bird nests and eggs
Color, Shape and Size tri-fold- we wrote about the peacock

Center folder:
Left flap-
Predators- we wrote about the predators of birds- there were more than we thought!
Ostrich- we wrote facts about the Ostrich
Baby Birdies- we chose one bird and my daughter answered the questions inside (we chose yellow warbler)

Middle of folder:
Watch out!- wrote about a predator birds need to watch for...
Feeder- we wrote about different birds we saw at our front feeder (now they are both in the backyard)
Bird Food- we wrote about what owls and eagles eat
My favorite weather is bird-chirping weather-Loire Hartwould- we wrote about the whip-poor-will
Take note of my song-we wrote about the bird's voices and how they sing
Fact- "What do you think Benjamin Franklin's idea was for the nation's bird? (Lift flap- the wild turkey!)

Right flap-
Bible verse (Matt. 6:26)
Scientific Name (Yellow warbler=...)
Scientific Name (Dark-eyed Junco=...)
Something to Chirp About!- described one bird's song

Blue Right folder:
Left flap:
Diet- the Early Bird gets the worm- what different birds eat
Favorite Deeder Food- - what birds like in feeders
Squirrel/bird graphic

Center:
Migration flap book- why birds migrate
Are you my mother?- We wrote about the dark-eyed Junco's pecking order
Who's who?- male/ female- how to tell them apart
Fancy Feathers-  what feathers are used for

Right flap:
Back feeder observations (dates and times)
Scientific name- house finch
Catching dinner on the fly- what parts of their bodies birds use to get food

Right flap closed:
Bird observations- we wrote about the birds migrating in the fall and V's we've seen in the sky
Did you Know?- we wrote about the blue jay and its nest

Back cover- a printed poem by Emily Dickinson about birds


We added bird stickers that we had in our own collection. It was a neat lap book that we have pulled out for several years to read/ review the information. We used our Field Guide to Birds- Western Region to gather info, as well as the internet.

I hope you will do this lapbook too, and enjoy it as much as we have-- what a great way to learn about God's flying creations!


Genesis 1:22
God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”

Matthew 6:26
Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.Are you not much more valuable than they?

Luke 8:5
“A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up.

Luke 9:58
Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

Holland Lapbook

This is another lapbook that my oldest daughter and I made several years ago. We got the overall template from homeschoolshare.com here. We chose the country of Holland, since that is where some of my ancestors are from. My parents both had grandparents from Holland. 

On the front cover, we found a color map of Holland/ the Netherlands, printed and cut it and placed it on a blue file folder. We also used red file folder, since those two colors are stripes in the Holland flag (along with white). 

Left folder open:
Left flap:
People- native name= Nederlanders!, population, history
Capital (Amsterdam)
Fun fact (We wrote about the Rim City)

Center:
Religion
Religions- Most common/ least common
Popular Sports
Education (School is compulsory between 5-16, etc.,)

Center flap up:
What's Cookin'? (includes my Grandma's Ollie Bollen recipe)
Fun Fact (2)
Can you believe it? (2)
Recipes (We included Jan Hagel cookies and Bankett (sp?)

Center blue folder:
Are we there yet? (map and how long would it take to get there?)
Climate
Flag Facts
Geography- Area, Lowest Point, Highest POint, Rivers
Where is the World is Holland?  (continent, color on map)
Fun Fact (The port of Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe.)

Left flap- red folder:
Weather Patterns (average temp's in different seasons)
Borders-Land- Belgium and Germany
Borders- Sea- North Sea on north and west

Left flap (blue):
Famous person (we chose Johannes/ Jan Vermeer, and have a mini-painting printed!)
Languages spoken in Holland (15!)
Do you speak my Language?

Center- red folder- flap down:
Holiday traditions (we wrote about St. Nicholas Day on Dec. 6)
Birthday traditions (My favorite part was about crown birthdays at 5, 10, 15, 21 years!)
Wedding traditions
Famous Artist (mini-book shown open--we chose Vincent Van Gogh)
What type of Government? How does it work?

Right flap: 
Animals (we wrote about popular and seen in zoos/ parks)
Explorer

Center flap up:
Traditional music/ Traditional Dancing (clogging!)
What time is it at my home?/ What time is it in Amsterdam? (clocks under flaps)

Center- red folder:
Count to ten (each number and pronunciation)
Alphabet (and how letters pronounced)
Missionary (We wrote a small bio about Corrie ten Boom.)
Major industries (windmills, cheese, delftware, tulips, etc.,)

Back cover:
The Little Hero of Holland (adapted from Etta Austin Blaisdell and Mary Frances Blaisdell)
Printed photo of windmills and tulips

You can find out more about the Netherlands/ Holland here.

We really enjoyed making this lap book about discovering more about the country of Holland (the Netherlands)! We enjoyed learning about the people, places and culture of a new country that we didn't know lots about. My daughter helped with the cutting and some of the writing. We enjoy looking at this lapbook occasionally and seeing what we made and relearning it too!



2 Timothy 1:5
I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

Exodus 20:12
“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.

Ephesians 6:2
“Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise...

Fire Safety Lapbook

Since October is Fire Safety month, I have a great lapbook which relates to that theme! 

You can find the free printables here.

My daughter and I made this lapbook several years ago, and it is one we look at every year. It includes lots of great information and things to do.

Another place to find fire safety lapbook printables can be found here.

Here are two of our favorite books related to fire safety:

My Fire Engine by Michael Rex
and If I Could Drive a Fire Truck by Tonka

On our front cover is this Fire truck coloring sheet.

On the inside left cover:
Four steps to Fire Safety
Firemen matchbook fold
Stop, Drop and Roll indexed tabs
Smoke Detectors circle fan fold
Meeting Spot Triangle petal fold
How to treat burns envelope fold

Right inside cover:
Escape route center fold
Two ways out of each room envelope
Emergency Layered book
My family's emergency plan

Left inside, close-up

Right inside, close-up

Back cover: Fireman coloring sheet

We enjoyed this lapbook and enjoyed the safety discussions which we had too. We hope and pray that our home will be safe and protected from fire, but if it does occur, that we will be better prepared.

_________________________________
Genesis 22:5-7

Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you.” ⁶ Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together. ⁷ Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” And he said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

Deuteronomy 4:24
For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

Song of Solomon 8:6
“Put me like a seal over your heart, Like a seal on your arm. For love is as strong as death, Jealousy is as severe as Sheol; Its flashes are flashes of fire, The very flame of the LORD.

First grade lapbooks

We have been using the Five In A Row (FIAR) curriculum this year with our first grader. The curriculum is a little simple, and needs something extra to fill the time each day. Lapbooks are the perfect time-filler and curriculum enchancer!  I have found a bunch of FIAR lapbooks on the website Homeschoolshare.com. They have lots of FIAR resources for each manual (there are four), and for each title that is discussed each week. I like the notebook titles, which I have printed, laminated and use on our calendar in the "Book of the Week" section. I also like the copywork which has one sentence to trace from each book. Each book also has a related lap book, which I have been printing each Friday, doing some prep work of cutting, and then working on a few mini-books each day to complete one lapbook each week!

I also like the Draw-Write-Now go-alongs, showing in the Draw-Write-Now books how to draw different people, animals and things from the books. I have ordered a few of the manuals and hope to use them more this fall!

So far the first three that we have done are:
Madeline by Ludwig Behmelmans
Lentil by Robert McCloskey
Who Owns the Sun by Stacy Chbosky

Madeline- cover
Body Organs chart
Benefits of Exercise pull-tab
And the smallest one was Madeline- size ratio booklet
Clean Hands tab book

Center of lapbook- open (I don;'t know why it is turned!)
Rhyme Time tab booklet
Tour de France- a photo tour of the main attractions in France
Remembering My Manners
How can you be Polite?
Say Hello when...
Where is the World... is France?
In an old House in Paris... twelve little girls go in pocket
Right flap-
Symmetry booklet
Flag of France
France info booklet

Back cover- illustration to color from the book

Lentil lapbook

Front cover:
Notebook title (with lemons)
Illustration copied from book

Inside center open:
Harmonica Info
She'll Be Coming Around the Mountain lyrics/song booklet
Patriotism- definition
Center:
Whole equal to... half/ quarter booklet
Ohio info page book
Small Town Life/ My map of Alto (an activity from Monday)
Right flap:
Dogs/ cats in book
Ohio direction from Colorado
Gifts and Talents mini-book

Back cover:
Where is Ohio? coloring page

Who Owns the Sun lap book

Front cover:
Three min-books with definitions for squint, windmill and wanderer
The Sun booklet
"I wonder" questions booklet

Center open:
Big Jim descriptions
New Colors included in book- mauve, chartreuse, etc.,
Where is Mississippi? info booklet
Food Groups with illustrations
Southern States
Question mark or period book/ sentences
Simple Machines booklet- illustration and definitions for lever, wedge, pulley, etc.,

Back cover:
How I can show love- My daughter wrote/ dictated:
hugs
kisses
help them up
give a band-aid
give a present or a card
make a meal or food
give candy
draw a picture

I love how each of them turned out, they are great! I love all of the learning that took place too!
--------------------------------------------

1 Kings 3:3Solomon showed his love for the LORD by walking according to the instructions given him by his father David, except that he offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places.

Psalm 17:7
Show me the wonders of your great love, you who save by your right hand those who take refuge in you from their foes.

1 John 4:9
This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

Preparing for Kit- American Girls

Last week, I posted the outline for my American Girl Rebecca, you can find it here. The other American Girl we are going to study this fall is Kit Kittredge. Each week, we discuss the book that we've read, make a craft and have a snack prepared by a volunteer mom. It is lots of fun! Some of the crafts are more challenging than others, so I may change thigs up as I see the girls' various levels and what we can handle. I already changed out the Sock Monkeys from week 5, I think they would be too hard to make in 55 minutes. We will decorate reporter notebooks instead! I am looking forward to reading the books and learning all about Kit!

Kit Kittredge from Ohio in Depression era (1934)

Book 1: Meet Kit 10/23/2012
Theme: Depression hits
Craft: Felt Sports Banner, with white felt, felt stickers to decorate; Paper Suitcase
Snack: Sponge Cake & Iced Tea

Book 2: Kit Learns a Lesson 10/30/2012
Theme: Thanksgiving
Craft: Cornucopia with torn magazine pages into mosaic
Geography Pages- Ohio;       Snack: Oatmeal with canned sliced peach

Book 3: Kit’s Surprise 11/6/2012
Theme: Christmas
Craft: Scottie Dog hair clips with black felt, bead eye, red ribbon bow; Finger knitting
Snack: Popcorn and oranges in Christmas stocking (?)

Book 4: Happy Birthday, Kit! 11/13/2012
Theme: Penny Pinching birthday party
Craft: Paper lanterns, newspaper hats, flower necklaces (yarn/tissue paper)
Snack: Mock Apple Pie, tea sandwiches, depression cake?

Book 5: Kit Saves the Day! 11/20/2012
Theme: Hobo lifestyle
Craft: “Reporter” notebooks; Decode hobo code
Snack: Hobo meal- boiled potatoes, beans, bread

Book 6: Changes for Kit 11/27/2012
Craft: Mittens with polar fleece (sew on machines)
Snack: Soup kitchen soup, homemade bread
Play checkers & dominoes?

*All of the above crafts may not be included in class time.

I also encourage my girls to go to www.Homeschoolshare.com/American_Girl_lapbook.php if they are interested in making a lapbook about the girls we study. Also, I encourage them to visit www.AmericanGirl.com, where they can play games and do various activities for fun!

I think this will be a fun semester!

Psalm 40:17
But as for me, I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; you are my God, do not delay.

Proverbs 14:31
Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.

Proverbs 22:2
Rich and poor have this in common: The LORD is the Maker of them all.

Thomas Edison lapbook

This is another lap book that my daughter and I made several years ago. We read this book, "Thomas A. Edison, Young Inventor" from the Childhood of Famous Americans series. We read the book with our "Beyond Five In A Row" curriculum. I wanted a lap book tie into what we were studying, so we used a freebie that we found here. When we used it, it was not as in depth as it is now. We used some graphics from wikipedia and enchanted learning from here and here.

This is the cover of the lap book:

-Includes two quotes which my daughter traced and copied, both from Thomas A. Edison himself.
"I never did a day's work in my life. It was all fun."
"There is no substitute for hard work."

The inside of the lap book folder includes:
Left:
-parts of a light bulb
-Thomas Edison info page (printed at 1/4 size)
-Vocabulary words
-Inventions and inventors pocket (on bottom)
Right:
-Paper dolls, mini flip book
-My Autobiography printable (from Homeschool Share)
-Map of Canada (from Homeschool Share)
-Map of U.S. (from Homeschool Share)
-Tom's Chemicals (from Homeschool Share)

Showing the maps open

Back cover:
-Thomas Edison information page, I think it was from here, but I'm not sure...
-Diagram of an ear and its parts


This was a pretty simple lap book, but we enjoyed it. There is more information to use on Homeschool Share now. I hope you enjoyed seeing our work! Let me know if you have any questions!

Nehemiah 1:11
Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man.” I was cupbearer to the king.

Job 12:11
Does not the ear test words as the tongue tastes food?

Psalm 17:6
I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.

Money Lapbook

Another lap book that we made several years ago was "All About Money". It was a great way discuss types of money and some of the history about money. I got this lap book idea from Jamin, you can see her money lap book here.

We used two folders for this lap book, one green and one cream colored. 

Here is the cover:

 We cut different denominations of bills and glued them to the cover.

On the right flap, we put two Bible verses:

Matthew 6:24

Hebrews 13:5 

(see below)

 I've searched and searched for this set of worksheets/ book and can't find it online! Here is a site that has some money worksheets you could use.

These three poems (below) we read and printed, and posted on green construction paper. They are on the left flap and right flap of the 2nd folder.

What I've Got

5 pennies make a nickel
2 nickles make a dime
2 dimes and a nickel make a quarter everytime.
4 quarters make a dollar
and that is quite a lot.
And a dollar in my pocket
Is exactly what I've got!

Piggy Bank (For this one my daughter drew a piggy bank to go with it.)
Don't Ask Dad…He never has any.
Grandma's purse has a nickel and a penny,
Mom has a 5, but the car needs gas.
Here's a dirty quarter I found in the grass!
Checked all our pockets…nothing but gum.
Piggy bank, piggy bank, here I come!

What's It Worth
Penny, penny
Easily spent,
Copper brown
And worth one cent.

Nickel, nickel
Thick and fat.
You're worth 5 cents
I know that!

Dime, dime
Little and thin,
I remember
You're worth ten.

Quarter, quarter
Big and bold,
You're worth twenty-five
I am told!

For the center of the right folder, I printed pages from here, cut the words and coins and posted them on a piece of green construction paper. We also included a few index cards folded over, with Did you know?-  facts inside them.

 For the right side of the green folder, I printed bills from here and my daughter colored them green. You might find some of the "Did you know...?" trivia at the moneyworksheets.org site too.

On the back cover, we included a copy of "Smart" by Shel Silverstein. You can find the poem online here. After we printed the poem, we discussed why the author was not smart-- and wrote out how much each total was at the end of the paragraph. We included that under the poem.

Here are the Bible verses that we included:

Matthew 6:24

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.


Hebrews 13:5

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,

“Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you.”


1 Timothy 6:10

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.


Isaiah 55:2
Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and you will delight in the richest of fare.

It was another interesting lap book, and a great one for younger ages! Let me know if you try it or have any tips for something similar!

Independence Day Lapbook {4th of July}

This is a freebie lap book that we got in 2007 from Live and Learn Press. (It is not free anymore, but you may be able to get it as a freebie if you become a member!) 

It was a great activity to do when it was hot outside and we had time to be crafty!

 We learned a lot about U.S. History and our country's independence while making this lap book!

This lap book is now called "Let Freedom Ring" and is found in the Social Studies section of the Live and Learn Website. This lap book includes 48 mini-books and enough to fill three file folders!

 Here is the front cover -- there is a different front cover now.

 Inside the left front cover:
-Vocabulary (Independence, Liberty, Freedom, Courage, Patriot, Colony, Revolution, Republic, President, Revolutionary)
-Freedom- which one we enjoy the most: The freedom of religion!
-Why did John Adams think that July 2 would be Independence Day? mini-book
-Proper Behavior during the National Anthem (when the flag is displayed) (for those in uniform)
-Congreve Rocket! mini book

Open Left front folder:
-Betsy Ross mini-book/ questions
-1776 Myths (2 match books)
-Synonyms for Freedom spinner booklet
-Our American Flag (then and now)
-How to Display the Flag
-Folding the Flag booklet and pocket- what the flag folds represent

Center folder, left flap open:
The Fourth of July is also known as: (Independence Day)
- Map the Thirteen Colonies
-Proper Behavior during the National Anthem (when the flag is not displayed)
-Five Pointed star (cut and folded inside pocket)
-Pledge of Allegiance cards inside pocket- to place in order
-National Anthem- written on mini-book inside (partially hidden)
-1776 Myths matchbook (not shown)
-Sir Francis Scott Key booklet- why the anthem was written (not shown)

Center right flap (not shown):
-Famous Speeches that quote the Declaration of Independence
-What was the Continental Congress? mini-book

Right folder, flaps closed:
-Biographies: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and 9 others
-Did You Know? - trivia questions written under four flaps inside
-When was the Liberty Bell named?
-Timeline for the Creation and Signing of the Declaration of Independence

Right folder, flaps open:
- "We hold these truths to be self-evident..." booklet- what that means to us
-Photo of Declaration signing with small copy of Declaration on the inside, folded
-Intolerable Acts (definitions on inside)
-Firecracker booklet: What two things did the Declaration of Independence do?
-1776 Myths matchbook
Far flap: -Declaration of Independence- four questions and answers folded inside
-Unalienable Rights- two questions on inside
-Charters of Freedom mini-book

Back of Right folder:
-Another name for Fireworks (pyrotechnics, or sky-rockets, or firecrackers!)
--Fireworks mini-book with questions
-Discuss serious uses of Fireworks (signals for help, used to light battlefields, etc.,)

Back cover:
-Copy of Declaration of Independence with my daughter's "signature" added! (and circled)


We hope you will take the time to discover some of our country's full history and learn more about our founding fathers! I really enjoy U.S. history, and I hope my children will too! This was an awesome lap book chock full of information, and we enjoy pulling it out to review each July!


Romans 8:20-21

"For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God."

Apples lap book

Here is another lap book that we made several years ago, but it was one of our favorites! We got this lap book as a freebie from Live and Learn Press, and it is still free-- five years later! It is slightly different from the one we have, some of the drawings and graphics, but overall it is very similar. I hope you enjoy seeing our pictures, and will go and get this great freebie for yourself!

Front cover:

We printed with apples and paint, and made an apple acrostic,

which says:

Apples are...

Amazing

Pretty

Plentiful

Lava Colered (my daughter's spelling!)

Excellent for you

Inside front left cover:

-Parts of an apple

-Things you can do with apples

Left flap open:

Did you know...? We wrote facts about apples that we found, such as...

"Did you know... that the apple blossom is the state flower of Michigan?"

Middle of left folder:

-Prediction results- how many seeds will be in my apple-

She guessed 5, and there were actually 8.

-Find the apples word search (types of apples)

-Johnny Appleseed booklet, with a mini-biography of John Chapman.

-Apple sayings- Such as an apple a day...- then we explained them in our own words.

-Varieties of Apples- Macintosh, Pippin, etc.,- She cut and colored them the actual colors.

Right flap of left folder:

-An apple tree through the seasons- We colored each one and discussed them.

Left flap of right folder:

-Apple fractions- one whole equals... two halves, etc.,

Middle of right folder:

-Mr. Applehead and faces in an index card pocket

-My Apple Seed Counting Book

-Apple Tree dot-to-dot

-An apple tree with life cycle order

Right flap of right folder:

-Apple patterns

-Apple baskets, with correct number of apples in each basket

Right flap closed:

-Our applesauce recipe, written by my daughter

-A photo of my daughter making applesauce

-Ingredients in an apple (or applesauce narration- your child can narrate how it's made!)

Back cover: Collect the apples game, rules, pieces and spinner.

We decorated the folder with apple stickers that we had, apples we colored, apple sayings, and other apples in the freebie. It was very interesting to make, and we learned quite a lot! Let me know if you try it and what you think. Thanks, Live and Learn Press for a great lap book!