If you were in middle school in the 80s or 90s then you probably
remember Slam Books. They
were books, usually spiral notebooks that got passed around among friends, a
way to pass notes and letters in between classes. The covers were usually decorated with
artwork and stickers. I remember looking forward to writing to my
best friend and would eagerly wait for her reply. I think some Slam Books unfortunately were
negative, they were used to gossip about other classmates, but the one I shared
with my friend was positive. We would
write about our interests, share secrets, mostly we would talk about our favorite
show…Beverly Hills 90210, and the actors we had crushes on!
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| My 90s Crush! |
My fond memory of writing and reading letters with my friend inspired me to create something I call “Friendship Notebooks” for my children. I shared the idea with them, they loved it, and so we moved forward with it. We asked another family who has children around the same age as mine if they would be interested in doing this with us, and they said yes!
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| Our Friendship Notebooks |
We purchased a couple of spiral notebooks, stapled some
construction paper to the cover, and had the children decorate it with artwork. We paired up the children, my
oldest shares a notebook with the oldest in the other family, and my younger
twins share a notebook with the youngest in the other family. It has been a fun way for my oldest to
practice her cursive writing, and for my younger ones to practice their
print. They also add artwork at the end of each
letter, a drawing or something creative.
The children practice spelling, reading, and writing through their “Friendship
Notebooks”, but even more importantly they are learning about their friends,
asking questions they may otherwise not ask in person. They are building relationships and learning
how to write letters, a bit of a lost art.
"Friendship Notebooks" are so simple and fun. Pair up with another
family that lives close by or one that you see often in order to make the
exchange easy. It’s like a pen pal but
there’s something fun about having the notebook that you pass back and forth with
friends that you get to see and connect with.
What other fun ways do you engage your children in reading and writing?
What other fun ways do you engage your children in reading and writing?
