Mr. Popper’s Penguins free lapbook

Since I’ve been talking about lapbooking lately with some of the reviews I’ve done, I thought I would re-visit our very first lapbook that I posted about a few years ago.  I’m sharing this again here for any newbies looking for a fun and inexpensive way to start.

Big Sis and I have recently discovered lapbooking. Not a new invention in the homeschooling world by any means, but it is new to us. I’ve been reading about lapbooking, looking at lapbooks, thinking about lapbooks, but generally not doing lapbooks for the past two years. I liked the concept, but had the sneaking suspicion that it might just be busy work. Well, as it turns out, Big Sis loves it. And it’s not just busy work! For us, it has increased her already-enthusiastic desire to learn, enhanced skills like handwriting & cutting/pasting, and built a foundation for some very nice literature and unit studies in the process.

We have delved into books and a new level of reading comprehension, thanks to deeper question and answer time with the lapbooks. Big Sis craves hands-on “stuff” for learning. Lapbooks are great for this. We read a little, research a little, and lapbook a little. The only thing I have to do in advance is find the resources and print what we need. Big Sis starts everyday with, “What are we going to do today? Did you find more stuff for me?” She looks over my shoulder as I scour my lapbooking and homeschool sites for printables and ideas. (I’ll share some of my favorite links in an upcoming post.) Fun!

We began with reading Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater. Big Sis loved the book so I decided it would be a fun place to start. Homeschool Share (an awesome site for quality free resources, especially free lapbook ideas) provided the outline and printables for us to follow. Here are some pictures of her first effort:

Here you can see she labeled the parts of a penguin.

We included a food chain (science), penguin alliterations (language arts), and Mr. Popper’s infamous icebox. Big Sis added details from the story to the icebox, which covered reading comprehension, as well as fun artwork.

We used some additional resources from Usborne Books, too:

Where do penguins live and what do they eat? Find the answers, and lots more about penguins, in this delightful touchy-feely book.  Deluxe Touchy-Feely Series

What is it like to live in Antarctica? How do penguins travel quickly across the ice? Who discovered the South Pole? And why are seals so fat? In this fascinating book you’ll find the answers and lots more about life on the ice. 

Dive down deep into the amazing world of penguins to find out how they swim, feed and travel across land. Then follow a penguin chick from the very start of its life, to the time it can take care of itself.

I’ve learned some things in the process of this first lapbook. I now know how to do extensions, how to make and fold mini-books, and the importance of cardstock and/or colored folders. Our current work is already showing improvements as we learn together about the art and craft of lapbooking! I’ll post more photos in the future as we continue to learn through lapbooking.

I’d love to hear your comments and suggestions!

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Sara

Author/Speaker/Consultant at Heart and Soul Homeschooling

Sara is a homeschool mom to 3 creative girls. She holds a degree in Social Work specializing in early childhood development, which led to her interest in individualized educational options like homeschooling. She believes that learning should be a lifelong adventure, not just a checklist to get through. She is a writer, avid reader, introvert (INFJ), and dreamer of dreams.

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