Summer Journal.

Remember I told you that I would tell you all about our Summer Project?  Are you ready?  Are you excited?  I am.  This is one of my favorite project ideas ever.  I think because it marries my love of scrapbooking and photography; with my kids adorable writing. 

Recently, I received an email from both Jex and Stella’s teachers.  They stressed the importance of writing over the summer.  I began racking my brain, thinking of ways that we could include writing in all the travels we will have this summer.  This is what I came up with:

My Summer Journal.

The journal includes:

Black photo corners

A disposable camera:  Which are very cheap by the way.  I expected them to be in the neighborhood of $8.  I purchased them for $3.50 at Walmart.  They come in packs of two.

A notebook:  I got lucky when I found these at Dollar Tree.  They were just what I was looking for. 

Except the cover left something to be desired.

So, I covered it.  I used Elmer’s spray adhesive to make it stick.  I just printed this out on my computer and attached it to cardstock and then to the cover of the notebook.

I also wasn’t very impressed with the inside of the cover.  I do however, love the lines that are perfect for Kindergarten writing, and the space at the top for the photo.

I made sure to cover the inside also.  I added the photo corners in an envelope and attached them with a clip.

Here are the instructions that I typed up and put inside the front cover of the journal.

Summer Journal

Use your disposable camera to take some photos of your favorite summer activities. After you take the picture, make sure to write about it immediately. Always include the date, and important details. Once you have used up all 27 pictures, and documented 27 stories about your summer; go get your film developed. After you pick up your pictures, use the photo corners to attach them to the top of your story page. Use as many pages as you need to tell your story. At the end of the summer you will have a neat history of your awesome summer.

Summer picture ideas:

1. Have someone take a picture of you to put on the front of your journal.

2. Take a picture of the sun setting on the first day of summer. What time did the sun go down?

3. What kind of out door games do you like to play in the summer?

4. Write a list of what you want to do this summer; include a picture of one activity.

5. Take a picture of your favorite book; tell a brief summary.

6. Pick your favorite letter in the alphabet. Take a picture of something that begins with that letter and then write as many words as you can. Only write words that begin with that letter.

7. Take a picture on vacation; write about it.

8. Take a picture of a loved one; write about them.

9. Take a picture of your favorite summer snack; write down the recipe.

10. Take a picture on a summer outing; tell about it.

11. Find some pretty flowers or interesting tree. Where did you see it? What did you like about it?

12. Find some interesting clouds. What shapes or designs do you see?

13. Take a picture of your favorite car or truck. Tell about an adventure you would have in it.

14. Walk around your neighborhood. Take a picture of an interesting house. Tell a story about what it might look like inside.

15. Take a picture of the fourth of July. Talk about your family traditions.

16. What kind of chores are you responsible for? Take a picture of it, and tell about it.

17. Take a picture of the sun setting on the last day of summer. What time did it go down?

I hope when you look back over the summer of 2011, you will find that it was memorable.

I can’t wait to get started on this. The kids are really excited to document their summer.  Let’s face it; they are really excited about the camera.

I can’t wait to see the finished product.  I love that my kids will have their very own history at the end of the summer.

Sidenote:  I have two kids that can write, and two that can’t.  The two that can’t write will practice coloring and writing letters.  We will choose letters that have something to do with the picture they took.

Oh, and because we had a birthday party  this week; we gave one as a gift too.  What a fun summer gift idea.