Happy 4th of July! Free Ebook and Lapbook Ideas

Hi all!

Can you believe the 4th of July is right around the corner? Summer is flying by!

Here is a neat ebook from FAVECRAFTS . Just click on the download and you are set!

It contains over 60 pages of crafts and recipes.

My students and I had so much fun making our Whale Lapbook, that we are working on a 4th of July one.

Here are some links:

Lapbook Lessons has some great ideas

ScrapbookScrapbook WOW! I'm in scrapbook heaven! This site has tons of free printables. Perfect for scrapbooking or lapbooking!

and last but not least Homeschooloing4Free has some great links for 4th of July!

Have a safe and happy 4th of July!

Pam

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly Literacy Bag

I've been busy reopening my Ebay Shop and adding new items. I recently added There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed...Literacy Bag. These books are always a hit with children and I made story cards and props to go with 9 books. Here is a picture of my hand painted canvas bag - I wasn't sure if I would be able to paint the Old Lady, but I'm happy with how it turned out:

The literacy bag includes a CD with all of the activities. My kids love "feeding" the old lady. I made objects from each of the books to go with my Old Lady. The Old Lady is really cute and the graphic is from Original Country Clipart by Lisa. Here's a picture of my Old Lady:

Awhile back I stumbled on a great deal on Amazon. They priced some great Child's Play Storysacks at a steal. I bought 10 of them before they raised the price back to $65. I've got a few left and you can buy them for $25 in my Ebay shop if you get it with the opening bid. The set comes with a really cute stuffed old lady and bean filled objects to feed her from the Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly book - the book and everything pictured is included too! Here is a picture:

I'd love to hear your teaching ideas for the Old Lady Books - feel free to comment away!
Pam

Creating Lapbooks: Killer Whales Unit

Hi all!
I've had a great couple of weeks, getting used to the idea that I'm actually retired! I traveled for a few weeks and then I tackled my workroom and garage! I've got so much teaching material - my garage was full of boxes - that I felt I needed to get organized before I start working.

I will be listing lots of teaching materials over the next few weeks, so be sure and check out my Ebay Shop. I'm also weeding out my cookbooks, so if you like to cook I've got Southern Living and Taste of Home Annual Cookbooks up for auction.

Now to my latest find. I recently discovered Lapbooks and I absolutely love them! What a great way to teach a unit! I tutor and I'm always looking for ways to keep my students excited and happy to see me. I often tutor 2 hours at a time and I really have to keep creative to keep my 6 year old students on task.

Last week, I decided to see if a lapbook would be interesting. WOW!!!! Talk about success.
In fact, she was so excited about her Killer Whale Lapbook, that her mom scheduled extra sessions, so that we could complete it! One of our favorite activities was measuring string the length of assorted whales. We had so much fun estimating how much 80 feet looked like then actually measuring! As a added plus - I was excited and engaged and looking forward to tutoring!

There are several great websites that offer free lapbooks and some great pictures of the finished product, so that you can figure out what you're doing!

Here is a great video of a Whale Lapbook:



Here are some great links for Whale Lapbooks:
Killer Whale Lapbook by Lapbook Lessons - you have to register but it's free!
Simple Lapbooks Blog - great pictures of a completed Whale Lapbook
Dolphin Lapbook by Homeschool Share = wonderful website
Whale Lapbook by 1+1+1=1
Great list of lapbook links from 1+1+1=1

I'd love your comments. Anyone lapbook? Have pictures to share?
Enjoy your day!
Pam

On Vacation! Friday Freebie Info

School's out and I'm officially on vacation! I'm heading to the beach for a week so I'm sending my Friday Freebie out today, since I will be on the road early tomorrow. I'm hanging out with my daughter and we're going to Charleston, SC for a few days visiting family then heading to Hunting Island to camp and finally spending a few days in Beaufort, SC. I am really looking forward to spending time with my family!

I will be back June 13th and plan to jump right in creating new literacy units.

I have several in the works:

The Kissing Hand

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

Chicka 1 2 3

Back to School

Apples

Fall Fun

My next giveaway will begin when I return.

Remember, you earn entries by leaving comments.

This month's freebie is a cute butterfly puzzle matching uppercase/lowercase letters.

If you are following and do not receive my freebie, please email me at handsonlearningfun@live.com and let me know the name you are following under and I will add you to my mailing list.

Have a great day!
Pam