Using Spanish lapbooks with flashcards is a fun and effective way to enhance the use of flashcards and help kids learn language concepts. Through their own creativity, kids can organize their flashcards and use them to display the concepts they are learning in a way that uniquely works for them.
In this post, homeschool co-op teacher, Nelda McAllister, shares how she had her students make Spanish lapbooks. She used them as a way for safe-keeping of the Spanish for You! flashcards and to help review and practice them. Read on to see how she did this and to get inspiration on how you can do this too! (You can view the kids showcasing their Spanish lapbooks in a short video below!)
Using Spanish Lapbooks in My Co-op Class by Nelda McAllister
Wallsburg Homeschool Co-op in Utah had the special privilege of doing Spanish for You! this semester. We studied the Spanish for You! Fiestas curriculum and my students had the opportunity to learn Spanish through some very fun games included in my teacher’s lesson plans. At the beginning of the semester, I realized there would be many Spanish flashcards that the kids would have to print and keep. (They use these throughout the program for hands-on learning activities.) I knew from the start that they would forget them at home or lose them or crumple them, so I decided to have each of them create a Spanish lapbook.
How We Made the Spanish Lapbooks
The students were very excited to make a Spanish lapbook, and it was the first time for many. We divided the lapbook into 5 sections for the 5 units of the Spanish for You! Fiestas curriculum. For each section, they pasted, taped, or stapled their flashcards and added a Spanish verb conjugation. I found some easy-to-make and free lapbook templates online which I printed. I also gave the students the option of using a verb wheel (with a brad), accordion or envelope etc. As you can see from the photos (above) or the short video we made, each lapbook was different, which was my intention. It was amazing to me how 13 students could come up with completely different lapbooks based on a handful of flashcards and a verb conjugation!
What We Did with the Spanish Lapbooks and Flashcards
Each week the students would take their lapbooks home and review their vocabulary and verb flashcards and also bring them to class to show them off. All the little pockets, spinners, or other interactive things they made in the lapbooks provided an engaging way for them to learn with their flashcards. They also did additional homework with a variety of activities I emailed them. Thanks to the Spanish For You! curriculum, all the homework they would need was laid out and included in the program. I got feedback from various parents and kids that Spanish for You! was their favorite Spanish curriculum yet. And I am grateful the kids had a final project which they can keep and review whenever they would like.
Many Thanks to Nelda and Her Students for Sharing!
Thanks so much to Nelda and her students for sending photos and making that wonderful video!! I am always so excited when I receive a note from a teacher, as I did from Nelda, telling me about something extra they are doing with Spanish for You! It warms my heart, and I enjoy being able to pass it on to all your parents and teachers for inspiration. Enjoy!