PICNIC BOOK

Sometimes children like big books and sometimes they like little books. This book is so much easier to make when you tell the story about going on a picnic.

Make a picnic book by telling this story:

Let’s go on a picnic. First we need a picnic basket.
(Fold the paper in half.)

Next, we need hotdogs.
(Fold the paper in fourths.)

We also need hamburgers.
(Fold the paper into eighths.)

We’ll need a picnic bench to sit at.
(Open so it’s folded in half. Bring one bottom flap to the fold. Turn
over and bring the other bottom flap to the fold.)

A picnic is more fun if we share it with a friend. (Tear down middle crease
until you reach the fold.)

Now all we need is a book to write a story about our adventures on our picnic.
(Hands on top of bench, bend down, and fold around to make a book.)

  

Use for: letter books, word families
reading the room, writing the room
fact families
shape or color books
unit or theme
spelling words (picture/sentence)
friends’ names and phone numbers
opposites, story elements
original stories

Hint! Let children decorate an individual cereal box to store their picnic books.

 

Picnic Books - https://bit.ly/drJPicnicBks

Narrated version: https://bit.ly/drJPicnicNar

COLLABORATIVE BOOKS

Children will enjoy writing books individually, but they will also enjoy making collaborative books with their classmates. What a perfect way to motivate students to write and read as they learn about the parts of a book.

Hi Ho Libario (Tune: “The Farmer in the Dell”)
The author writes the book.
The author writes the book.
Hi ho librario
The author writes the book.

The illustrator draws the pictures…

The publisher makes the book…

The parts of a book...
Hi ho librario, we know the parts of a book.


Consider these components when making collaborative books with your class:

Dedication – Encourage children to “dedicate” books. Copyright Date – The date you make your book.

Publisher – Your school, city, and state.

Authors and Illustrators – Have children sign a group page as authors and illustrators of the book.

ISBN – Include an ISBN number and bar code on the back.

The End – Everybody can read this page!

Comments and Compliments – Let children have turns taking the book home for one night. Their parents can then write their “comments or compliments” about the book on that page. (You could also pass the book around to different classes in your school and they could write remarks on this page.)

*Older students could do a “Table of Contents,” “Index,” or “Glossary.”
*Place class books in your school library, public library, a hospital, etc.
*Have a “drawing” at the end of the year so each child gets to keep one of the books.

Concept Books
Reinforce concepts you are working on, such as letters, shapes, science themes, friendship, etc. to make class books.
 

                                                     
              

                                
                   (How to Be a Friend Like Rainbow Fish - Hershey's kisses wrapper)

Song Books
I also love to take songs and use them to make books with children. You can ask the children to close their eyes as they listen to the song and then make pictures in their brain. Invite them to draw their picture and then cut out words to the song and match them up with the pictures. Don't worry! It always turns out beautifully!
                                               
You can also type words to songs ahead of time and let each child choose the sentence they would like to illustrate.