Summer’s here! That means most kids are on summer vacation, but it doesn’t mean they can’t have fun learning outside of the classroom. Use something exciting—like a family trip to Disneyland or a picnic in your neighborhood park—to create a unique learning opportunity.
Before heading out on your adventure, give your little one a disposable camera with which to document the day. Give him or her some tips about being a photographer.
• Take pictures of people: Does your daughter love Tinkerbell? Make sure she gets her picture taken with the well-known pixie. Or snap a shot of grandma chowing down on some delicious barbecue ribs. The
• Get a variety of images: Your scrapbook won’t look so great if it has a dozen pictures of the sky in it. Encourage your child to take photos throughout the day, rather than all at once.
Once you’re home and the photos are developed, it’s time to start thinking about what you want your scrapbook to look like. Don’t worry too much about buying an expensive album—a basic version will do, whether it’s an actual scrapbook or just a photo album. There are plenty of colors available from which to choose: forest green, bright pink, aquamarine, and more. Try to get one with a picture slot on the cover so you can display a photo that captures the essence of your vacation.
Lay all the pictures out in front of your children and ask them to pick their favorite or the one that reminds them most of your trip. Use construction paper, sticky letters, or even word bubbles to label the album. It could be something specific like “The Smith Family Vacation,” or something more generic like “The Best Trip Ever!”
Next, start organizing photos in similar groups to use on the individual pages. For example, if you went to Disneyland, group all of the Thunder Mountain Railroad pictures together. You can also organize the photos chronologically or by a specific theme.
It’s best to work on one page at a time so you and your child don’t get overwhelmed. Decide what kind of background the page should have and then pick out paper that matches the concept. It’s also fun to add mementos from the trip, such as tickets, programs, or even a lunch menu.
Next, decorate with “flair” items, such as stickers, sequins, die-cuts, stamps, or feathers. Just make sure the items can lie relatively flat.
You can also encourage your child to write a couple of paragraphs about the trip to include at the back of the book.
There will be a scrapbooking class at the Santa Maria Michael’s store called “Spotted Canary EK School for Success” every Thursday in July from 6 to 8 p.m. Cost is $25; materials aren’t included.
There’s also a kids’ craft camp July 9 through 13 running every afternoon from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Cost is $5 or $25 for the whole week; materials are included.
For more information about scrapbooking, visit Michaels.com or Scrapbook.com.
This article appears in Jul 5-12, 2012.