Friday, July 10, 2009

Make Your Own Kids' Books

This is a simple book I made that I thought I would share with you because it has been such a hit with my kids.... an Animal Book...

Each page has a picture of an animal with matching text - "Here is a _____". The pages are A4 size and laminated so the pages are easy for little hands to turn and the pictures are big and are easily wiped clean!


Simple books with repetitive text are prefect for young children. And the animals provide a great opportunity for the kids to hear a range of different sounds as you cluck, oo-oo-oo, woof, snap (as appropriate!) on each page.

The thing I love about this idea is that it can be tailored to suit individual kids. If you know a child who loves things that move, you can make a book with cars, boats, planes, etc.

There are grand plans for lots of homemade books, such as "Our Special People', with photos of our family and friends.... Here is Nanny, etc, and books that have photos of the kids, such as "At the Park". As the kids get older, we'll make books of their drawings, and books illustrated by them. Check out some examples of books that JL from The Toby Show made here and here.

To be truthful, there are some days where this book is brought to me by a wobbling-walking child or two and I think "not again!", but I actually feel pretty pleased that they love something I made for them so much.


Here's how to make one:

I found the pictures by typing coloring page dog in Google (just change the animal name for each animal you want). There are lots of colouring pages that are free to download for personal use.

In Microsft Word, type the text at the bottom of the page and print it on 100gsm white paper (a bit heavier than normal copy paper). Then print the picture of the animal onto coloured paper. Cut the animal out and paste it onto the white paper.


Design and print a cover page. I used a piece of coloured paper and also put a piece of blank coloured paper as the back cover. Laminate the pages back to front, like this:



Once you have laminated and collated all your pages, it just needs to be bound. I did this at Officeworks for about $4.50. Wire or coil binding will keep the book together better than comb binding so it is worth the extra $$.

And that's it!
If you do make one, I'd love to hear about it.

22 comments:

Melinda @ Here We Go Loopy Lou said...

What a lovely idea, and as you say, can do so many different things. My Dad turns 60 this year, it has inspired me to do something like this for him from my boys!

Gina said...

Nikki this is really great. I even have a laminator, but I wouldn't have thought of doing anything quite so sensible with it! We have a photo album for William but the pages have been trashed, so perhaps I'll do some laminating over the weekend. Thanks for this post, I'll be passing it on to some mumsy friends.

CurlyPops said...

That's so cute - putting it on the christmas pressies list!
I even have an unused laminator in the cupboard.

Cathie said...

Excellent Nikki! Gold star for you :) That's a fantastic idea, and I love your children's names, especially the little girls!
when Amelie was little I downloaded one from the huggies website & you can add the child's name to personalise it but I love your even better.
thanks for sharing, I think we maY do one soon.

Treacle Beak said...

Your book is just gorgeous Nikki. I know the kids love it and we have many photos as proof. They're lucky to have such an imaginative and creative mumma.

Christina Lowry said...

Have I mentioned how clever you are? Super cute and lovely. How great would it be if you had books like this of your drawings from childhood? :)

Jodie said...

oooh, one with colours, one with sounds - and later one you can do numbers and the alphabet.....

You are going to be busy!

Becky said...

I love this idea, and will put my laminator to good use as soon as I have bub number two and can add both names!!

I will also bookmark this on my blog, it is too good an idea to keep to myself :)

Nikki said...

Once again, you've put so much THOUGHT into a project and made it super-special. My poor little poppit got photo albums with magazine pictures and hand-written words.... very rough and ready.

Michelle said...

oh a fantastic idea...
love that they can't tear it...
a bonus...
and wipeable a real bonus...
great idea to do one with family and friends they would love that...

Tyroga said...

Have you figured out what noise a giraffe makes?

Thea said...

You are a clever mummy and one day your darlings will appreciate how much! x

Sandrine said...

What a great idea, my girlies now could try and make their own book following your guidelines...;)

Kylie said...

Love the idea of the printed animals - I have made one with photos that I have taken at our local animal park - the kids love it too! Should blog it for you as another idea.

MooBear Designs said...

I give you 5 stars for awesomeness!! It's the simple things that make the biggest impact. I come from a child care back ground and you know what? The good old water bottle filled with glitter is still the best toy I ever made and that was 15 years ago! I have made many books like yours but they are looking worse for wear. Maybe it is time to start a new collection. You are such an inspiration of ideas...

Great Work Nikki GIrl!! Even better that you continue to read them to your children!!

xo Steph

Anonymous said...

fabulous idea the possibilities are endless aren't they. I love your little mouse too he is adorable

Jonah Lisa said...

Great idea! I so love how ideas go around the net and change and grow with each new person who does them. Thanks for the links. I've got some new blank book ideas I'm blogging on next week.

And Tyrogs--all the giraffes at our house say, "Munch, Munch." :)

Lauralee said...

Hello. Just checking out new blogs and really like yours. Feel free to come check out mine if you'd like. :D

Cath said...

When Dusty was toilet training, we made up a book that took one of her teddies through all the steps. The kids had fun setting up for the photos and it did get quite a lot of airplay. Look forward to seeing more of your publications.....

Bee said...

That's a really cute idea! Thank you for sharing :)

Maria Rose said...

That is a great idea! My cousin did something similar (though much less polished), she had pictures of family and made them into a book. They were planning to see the family on an upcoming vacation. When they finally went on vacation her son knew everybody and wasn't shy.

Anonymous said...

Thanks alot for sharing this article with us! I believe that
story books for kids cost effective and fun for kids and toddlers.