ECE Spring "Folded" Books -- What's Hatching?

SIGNS OF SPRING! SPRING ARRIVES!

Sweet signs of spring are surging out of the long, gray winter, bursting forth with new life! Look around. Search for evidence and share it! What could possibly make me, an author-illustrator of picture books, happier than seeing young children constructing their own first 'books'? Excellence in early education! Spring!

How sweet is this idea? Discuss spring. Eggs. What comes out of an egg? Fold a piece of paper into three sections. And then give your students markers, time and support and let's see what they come up with. 

There are so MANY things to LUV LUV LUV about this project: 

1. You can see from the examples that every child was given free reign to create their own 'hatchlings.'
2. It's obvious that these are children who have been supported in nurturing their expressive capability. 
3. I'm willing to bet you a doughnut that there was NO model of a teacher-created 'finished product' to use as a guideline.  
4. These children know that LOTS of things hatch from eggs: butterflies, snakes, turtles et.al.
5. I'm WILD about the diversity in the children's responses.

What is it about a simple fold (or two) in a piece of paper that SUDDENLY transforms it into a 'book'? What an incredible and empowering message to relay to children. "You are an illustrator. You're work is worthy of publication. Share your ideas in your own book!" 

Here are a just a few of the amazing responses to "What's Hatching?" 

Now take a look at the entire collection of spring-time folded-books displayed so proudly on the classroom door! Talk about decorated doors! [Must remember to add this one to my all-time #1 article here, the collection of classroom decorated doors!] 

I know that my 'author-illustrator' dreams were nurtured very early in my own development. From the time I won my kindergarten coloring contest, through my college professor's encouragement, and on to my husband making the bold decision that we could take out a loan against our house to publish my first traditional hardback book and culminating in a national prize for my most recent picture book..... I have been supported to share my ideas. The window of opportunity for planting those seeds and nurturing them, starts early. 

Kindergarten Coloring Contest Announcement + Modeling my PRIZE Outfit! 

As a self-published author/illustrator, where I am the creative team and the entire marketing team all rolled together, all quilted into one polka-dotted person, I take seriously the power of Pinterest as my new, best friend. Every time you pin from my blog you help send one new ripple out into the cyber-space, that has the power to introduce my work to a wider audience. So I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your pin, + ,  stumble, Sulia-post and  tweet. As a result of those ripples I just mailed my books out to Canada and AUSTRALIA! 

YEAH PINTEREST!!! Welcome INTERNATIONAL FRIENDS, TOO!!

The concept of 'Folded Books' is a very big deal in education. So big, that the term 'Foldables' is actually already copyrighted. I have not yet met Dinah Zike, but I stand in awe of her contribution to the teacher's toolbox. I have had the pleasure of seeing her booth at a couple of teacher conferences and I have documented and shared those images here previously. This article is currently in my Top-10 list for readership, so you know folding books, graphic organizers, foldables are the wave of the future and delight the kinesthetic-learner in each of us. So let's get started early!

Community Church Preschool, Vero Beach 

Hope that you're having an incredible blog-browsing, rejuvenating cyber-romp and I invite you to return here often as I am treated to so many brilliant ideas in my travels making school visits. BTW: I took today's photos in Vero Beach just prior to our return north. They were in one of the preschool rooms in the Community Church Preschool. I shared their amazing collections of trains in this earlier article...... coming soon will be their 'pizzas-of-delayed-gratification.' 

Humpty Dumpty Fun 

If you're having fun with eggs you'd probably appreciate clicking back to see my earlier mini-RoundUP with some Humpty Dumpty egg ideas. 

I now have 113,521 Followers

I now have 291 followers

-- Debbie -- 

Here's an entire collection of resources on 'foldables' and graphic organizers.

When you click from my blog to go shopping at Amazon, you add a little cha-ching in my retirement account. THANK YOU!