Writing, Scrapbooking & Summer Activities

Writing should be an integral part of our lives! Why not include it in your summer activities?

As I ponder how we will spend the upcoming summer weeks, I am reminded of the educational value of scrapbooking. Besides, I can't wait to get some scrapbooking done. I have missed doing it all last year.

In the past I have written about ideas you can use to teach your children writing and art techniques as you scrapbook. Since we enjoy scrapbooking so much, I plan to have my children make some scrapbook gifts and be ready for Christmas (wow). For many of the pages they create, they will be writing a paragraph about that page. Of course, I will use Excellence in Writing to work through the writing process by developing a brief outline, writing a rough draft and editing their paragraph for stylistic techniques and possible errors.

If your children are having a hard time deciding what to write about, then turn to any of Becky Higgin's books, by Creating Keepsakes (listed below). She will help you improve your artistic layouts, especially with Creative Sketches. Creative Sketches is filled with thumbnail sketches Becky herself uses that illustrate creative layout designs, unique enhancements, distinctive lettering and journaling ideas, and more.

Writing can take many forms throughout the summer. I love to hear what everyone is doing. Do you send out a Christmas letter updating your friends and family? Why not write your Christmas letter right now? If you finish it this summer, you might even turn it into a Thanksgiving letter (that is my goal thisyear). Let your children help you write your letter. For several years, our children are co-authors of our Christmas letter. When they were younger, they simply wrote sentences about events they enjoyed. Now, they are writing a paragraph about one of their favorite memories of the year and one of the lessons God has taught them this past year. You can use Excellence in Writing's unit on creative writing to develop a well-written paragraph.

One last idea is to have your children write down their favorite memories about the summer. In past years, I asked them several questions about the summer and holidays. Then each one wrote down their answers. I am keeping those answers in their journals. Won't it be fun to look back and see what they thought was important in 2005?

Kerry