Bible Notebook - Any creative ideas??

[Yodergoat]

This last sentence is a great idea and could be done for the Bible notebook!

... If we did do something messy, we just did it on separate paper and pasted it into her sketchbook.

My daughter enjoys markers because she has much more control as compared to crayons, and she likes how bold they are compared to colored pencils. But sometimes she will use twistable crayons for detailed work, or those twistable colored pencils which have a bolder line than regular colored pencils.

I was wondering how to handle the use of markers with the Bible notebook... and now I know that on the days she chooses markers, I will let her do it on a sperarate paper and then paste it into the notebook! Great idea!

[klewfor3]

Hello!

I am working through MFW 1st grade and have gotten to the point in our school year where my dd is doing a notebooking page every day. She has loved doing it and I have too!

Sadly...I am running out of ideas to "illustrate" each page! I have had her do the basic draw then color...and have even spiced it up and have done fun crafty techniques (paints and mixed media) quite a bit. Now, my lack of ideas has gotten so bad that today I even printed a color picture of Elijah off the internet and had her glue it at the top. I know we are even encouraged to use this as an option but I still felt like I was cheating.

Any quick and simple ideas from anyone? Dare I say...I wish they offered at least suggestions for some of the pictures. I rely on the TM A LOT!! Busy momma, not craft lover, not pinterest adept...hee, hee!

Thanks!
Kathy

[asheslawson]

I am working through MFW 1st grade and have gotten to the point in our school year where my dd is doing a notebooking page every day. She has loved doing it and I have too!

Sadly...I am running out of ideas to "illustrate" each page! I have even spiced it up and have done fun crafty techniques (paints and mixed media) quite a bit. Now, my lack of ideas has gotten so bad that today I even printed a color picture of Elijah off the internet and had her glue it at the top. I know we are even encouraged to use this as an option but I still felt like I was cheating.

Any quick and simple ideas from anyone? Dare I say...I wish they offered at least suggestions for some of the pictures. I rely on the TM A LOT!! Busy momma, not craft lover, not pinterest adept...hee, hee!

Thanks!
Kathy

I can't remember all the pages we did in 1st, but one quick easy go-to idea I like to use when coloring with crayons, markers, colored pencils, or painting starts to feel like we need a break is paper mosaic.

Easy peasy route is just give her construction paper, let her tear it in small pieces (fun), and glue onto the page. If she draws simple pics, she can fill in the details with the mosaic paper pieces.

I've also done mosaics with broken eggshells, but that is a bit more work as you need to wash the shells, and save quite a few. They are fun to break and glue, and this is especially nice to do with dyed eggshells.

[DS4home]

Here's another idea: Just draw one simple object from the lesson and glue a string of yarn around the outline of the shape. If you want to spend more time on it keep winding the yarn toward the inside and fill the shape in, gluing as you go of course. This is fun to do with a heart, star, or moon shape, nothing too complicated.

Dawn

[MelissaB]

Buttons are a fun addition, too. If she likes to dress her dolls, you can draw a simple outline of a person and let her cut and glue "clothes" for them out of felt, or even scrap material. (Kind of like paper dolls.)

Glue grass at the bottom of grass scenes; tape on a stick for Moses' rod; draw and color the entire scene, but add white paint clouds in the sky or blue paint for water for a 3-D effect (kind of ).

Enjoy 1st!

[Yodergoat]

One thing we did was to buy cheap (25 cents) illustrated Bible storybooks from the library book store, yard sales, etc. We cut out the people or items she wanted to use, then added other elements around it in different media. We used pictures from other sources too... my favorite was a photo of a real fish (it was a trout) from a magazine, swallowing down Jonah (who was a wee-tiny figure cut from a Bible storybook). She colored the backgrounds and it gave sort of a layered effect. Only Jonah's legs showed... it was funny but looked realistic at the same time.

We incorporated some 3-D items when appropriate (weed seed heads for Ruth's grain, sticks for the burning bush, etc).

We used stickers also, I distinctly remember using scores of tiny purple dot stickers for the big bunch of grapes the scouts brought back from the Promised Land.

Something we did during our Adventures year when making our history notebook was to use little "word bubble" stickers to make quotes for the characters. See photo example of this almost at bottom of this page: http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php ... son#p97753

[klewfor3]

Thank you so much for your replies! I have done the mosaic type picture but never with egg shells. Fun! Especially with Easter around the corner. The conversation bubbles sound great and I know I have seen those at the local dollar store. Also, painted clouds can do a lot for a picture.

Whew! I am off to the schoolroom to get started on our notebooking page for Elisha and Naaman.

If anyone else reads this looking for ideas, here's some that we have used:
cut up squares of sandpaper to use for bricks,
also we wove construction paper together to make a basket (baby Moses),
drew with q-tips dipped in bleach (carefully!) on colored construction paper,
and surprisingly one of my daughters favorites was to glue a large "flap" as a door out of brown construction paper and draw a family behind it (we used it for the 10 plagues notebooking page for the Passover). You can close and open the door. Hard to describe, but simple to do.

Thanks again!!

[marmaladesorrow]

Tissue paper was a huge hit at my house. Really thin and layering the colors was sort of dreamy. Cut/tear shapes and glue down with glue sticks. Fun and pretty.

[klewfor3]

What great ideas!

Not sure if I should add my question onto this thread or start a new one, but... my 1st grade son isn't loving the Bible ntbk. We started out the creation page with some fun things to glue on, stickers, but as things have gotten busy, he's just been drawing a simple picture. And lately, he's content to write the title/sentences at the bottom and move on.

Should I push the issue? I'd love for him to spend a little more time making it special, but he doesn't have any interest. Just wondered what you all thought! Any ideas to encourage him?

My oldest boy sounds just like yours...just on the 5th grade level. He has been consistent from day one of homeschooling. He is so bright and has so many talents but has not ever liked writing or drawing while my girls on the other hand...I have had to set a timer because they would spend all day writing and creating pictures on their pages!!

Keep in mind that the TM says that you don't have to complete a page everyday. Just twice a week.

If you really want a COMPLETED page (I get that way ) you might get some coloring pages preprinted or cut and glue from magazines and old books. If you do the prep work up front (I can't believe I am writing this...I hardly ever prep ahead of time) and only have him do the gluing, you will still have wonderful keepsake...and not so many headaches.

With that being said, those simple drawings of his, with his handwritten title/sentences, really ARE special. I have looked back at my sons work and even though he didn't spend a ton of time on his journaling pages...they are still his....his sweet handwriting, his wonderful pencil drawn stick people. That was my little guy's work and it is so perfect.

Sorry, I am having a sentimental morning.

[Missy OH]

Take a pic of your child dressed up as a character from the story or build the story from legos, barbies, playmobile, or whatever toys you can come up with and take a pic.

[kw4blessings]

Great ideas, thanks!

[MelissaB]

For boys ... Would this work? Maybe let them build - Build a fire pit out of sticks like Elijah did; make a road in the dirt and lay leaves and scrap pieces of material on it like when Jesus entered on a donkey; make a frog out of clay during Pharoah's plagues; - - let them use their hands to build. And take pictures. When you have time, print all of the pictures and glue them above each of the Bible verses in their Bible Notebook.

No little boys in our home. Just thinking with you...