notebooking – Library of Learning Resources

Notebooking is the coined term for what one can also be referred to as educational journaling or scrapbooking.

Essentially, the idea is to create a compilation of what has been learned and experienced in any number of subjects or activities and organize it in a notebook (or binder).

Notebooking is designed to capture the knowledge as well as personal reflections of what has been learned. There are two primary essentials needed in creating a notebook:

A visual component
A written component.

These two components work together to convey what a student has learned from his/her lessons. Instead of filling in worksheets or answering a list of discussion questions to test what a student has learned, you are giving students the opportunity to “show” and “tell” in a variety of ways what has been learned!

Benefits of Notebooking:

Student Centered –
– Students are more ‘in charge’ of what they add to their notebooking projects.
– Often, students are allowed to choose topics that interest them
– Learning can easily be tailored to each students learning style
Fosters investigation and organization
One of the most important skills that any student can and should learn is to be able to determine ‘where and how ‘ to find relevant information on any topic of study. This is actually more important than filling one’s head with stacks of information because no one can ever know everything. We need to be able to know where to go to find information and how to get that information.
Helps students process information in more depth
It is scientifically proven that children are better able to recall information when it has been written down. So, as students learn to investigate and organize information, they can better process the information being learned through notebooking. Why? Handwriting allows a child’s brain to receive feedback from an their motor actions which ties to motor memory. This results in different connections and results than when an individual types notes. (Read more about why to teach handwriting here.)

Basic List of Supplies to Get Started:

Paper and/or Templates
Pencil and/or Pen and Colored pencils and/or Crayons
Hole punch
Binder
Sheet protectors
Highly recommended (Pre-made Notebooking Units from My Teaching Library)

Additional Supplies Great to Have on Hand:

Colored Paper
Heavy-weight papers or card stock
Construction paper
Scissors
Chalks
Markers
Paints
Glue and/or Tape
Border Stencils
Lettering Stencils

Examples of Notebooking Pages:

These images come from My Teaching Library’s Paraguay Country Study | Notebooking Unit…

These images come from My Teaching Library’s Mink | Notebooking Pages…

These images come from My Teaching Library’s US Presidents Notebooking and Mini-Books | Volume 4…

These images come from My Teaching Library’s Harriet Tubman – U.S. History Notebooking Project…

This image come from My Teaching Library’s U.S. Elections: A Student-Centered Project-Based Unit…

These images come from My Teaching Library’s 50 U.S. States | Interactive Social Studies…

There are so many notebooking resources on My Teaching Library!

Having a pre-made notebooking unit makes it easy to implement within your lesson planning…and once your students are fully accustom at creating notebooking projects, if you don’t find something pre-made, they can easily begin to create their own!!

Finding all of the pre-made notebooking units available on My Teaching Library is easy! On the site, simply click on “Educational Resources” and then under Miscellaneous, click on “Interactive Learning”!

Also, there is one HUGE thing you should know about My Teaching Library…and that is that you can purchase every resource individually or you can become an All-Access member! All-Access members have the ability to download any and all resources that are needed for FREE as long as the membership is active!!

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Birds, Interactive notebook, notebooking, U.S. States

Illinois State Bird: The Northern Cardinal – Info and Student Project!

June 1, 2022June 1, 2022 My Teaching Library / CHSH-Teach, LLC

Illinois was the first of seven states to select the northern cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) as its State Bird. The cardinal was chosen in 1929 when Illinois schoolchildren voted for the State Bird. The other candidates were the bluebird, meadowlark, bobwhite (quail) and oriole. The cardinal is also the State Bird of Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia.

Northern Cardinal males grow vibrant crimson red feathers, while the females’ feathers take on a reddish-brown or gold hue. The males of this species of bird grow to a little larger than females, but not much. Otherwise, the two genders of the bird resemble each other physically. The female bird’s chest and upper area appear yellow and streaked with grey, but their stomach areas appear white or light grey. Typically, these birds have a black bill featuring a brown shade at the base.

From head to tail, the Northern Cardinal of Illinois measures 7.9 to 9.3 inches in length with a wingspan ranging from 9.8 to 12.2 inches. These birds don’t weigh much either, only 1.19 ounces to 2.29 ounces!

Looking for a FUN PROJECT-BASED idea for students to use to record all this information and more? My Teaching Library offers…

Illinois State Bird Project: Northern Cardinal

This project-based unit is designed to help students study and record information about Illinois’s state bird – the Northern Cardinal!

Included:
– A map page (for the state)
– Scientific classification page
– A page for students to give details about the bird’s physical description, habitat, diet, life span and reproduction
– A page where students will do additional map work to show where in the U.S. the bird lives in addition to migration information
– Coloring page
– Several pages on which students can use for expository and/or creative writing as well as sections in which students may draw.

14 pages in all and is designed for different levels / abilities.

Want to learn MORE about the Northern Cardinal? Check out the article: Let’s Study the Northern Cardinal! on My Teaching Library!

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Birds, Interactive notebook, notebooking

Let’s Study the Great Gray Owl!

May 26, 2022 My Teaching Library / CHSH-Teach, LLC

Photo by Lynda Ackert (All Rights Reserved)

This tall gray owl, patterned with brown and white mottling, streaks, and barring, sports a large facial disk and yellow eyes. As with all owls, its eyes are immobile, aimed instead by extremely flexible head movements. It lacks ear tufts, and its chin and the space between its eyes (lores) bear prominent white patches. Though taller and appearing larger than the great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) due to its fluffy plumage, it actually weighs less. Its slow, easy flight is described as heron-like.

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Strigiformes
Family:	Strigidae
Genus:	Strix
Species:	S. nebulosa

Habitat and Distribution

Most great gray owls nest in the dense northern boreal forests across North America and Eurasia. The southernmost edge of their range, however, dips down through the Cascades and Klamath Mountains of the Pacific Northwest, into the Sierra Nevada of California and includes the northern Rocky Mountains. Scarce winter food sometimes drives them even further south. They need mature forest habitat with openings that sustain their primary prey: small rodents. In the Pacific Northwest, pine, oak/madrone, Douglas-fir and other forest types bordering bogs, fields, or meadows are suitable.

Diet and Foraging

Great gray owls primarily hunt at night or at dawn and dusk, though they are capable daytime foragers. Voles (Microtus spp.) comprise almost 90% of their diet. Low vole populations, in fact, can significantly lower owl reproduction and trigger mass owl movements south (irruptions) in search of food for the winter. Equipped with powerful hearing, thanks to offset ear openings and a large facial disk, the owls hunt from low perches on the edge of openings. Like most owls, special structures on their feathers—a comb-like filter on the front of flight feathers and a velvety layer across the surface—make their flight almost soundless. They can hear small rodents deep under the snow. (Continue reading)

For Students: Great Gray Owl | Notebooking Report Pages

This Great Gray Owl resource includes ten pages perfect for any student creating a report or project on this bird! There are nine pages that can be used to record findings such as its scientific classification, range, habitat, diet and much more. The last page includes a full black and white illustration so that students can create a colorful picture of this magnificent owl.

Get this student resource on My Teaching Library!

Related resources you might like…

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Birds, notebooking, U.S. States, Unit Study

Idaho State Bird Project – Mountain Bluebird

May 17, 2022 My Teaching Library / CHSH-Teach, LLC

Studying the state of Idaho? Perhaps doing a unit on Ornithology? This project based unit is designed to help students study and record information about Idaho’s state bird – the Mountain Bluebird!

To learn more, see details below or you can preview a similar product here. This similar product preview will show you what this resource includes with the only difference being the bird will be the Idaho state bird!

What type of pages are contained in this set:
– A map page (for the state)
– Scientific classification page
– A page for students to give details about the bird’s physical description, habitat, diet, life span and reproduction
– A page where students will do additional map work to show where in the U.S. the bird lives in addition to migration information
– Coloring page
– Several pages on which students can use for expository and/or creative writing as well as sections in which students may draw.

14 pages in all and is designed for different levels / abilities.

My Teaching Library has a notebooking set for each of all 50 states. In addition, you can get all of them bundled!

State Bird Notebooking Mega BUNDLE

If you are looking for a different state bird resource, go to My Teaching Library and in the search bar type in the state you want + state bird (ex: Maryland state bird) want + state bird (ex: Maryland state bird)

Here are other bird related products you’ll love…

North American Birds of Prey Research / Report Pages
Birds if Prey Flashcards
Audubon’s Birds – Coloring Book (80 species)
U.S. State Birds Coloring Book

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Animals, notebooking, Science

Animal Study – The Mink

March 24, 2022 My Teaching Library / CHSH-Teach, LLC

Mink are dark-colored, semiaquatic, carnivorous mammals of the genera Neovison and Mustela, and part of the family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, otters and ferrets.

There are two extant (still in existence) species referred to as “mink”: the American mink and the European mink. The extinct sea mink is related to the American mink but was much larger.

Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Carnivora
Family:	Mustelidae
Subfamily:	Mustelinae
Genus:	*Neovison* and *Mustela*

Would you like your students to do a research and reporting project on this mammal? If so, My Teaching Library offers the following product that will be creative by providing them with these pages to create a report on the mink.

Mink | Notebooking Pages
This is a cross-curricular resource that will require students to research and learn about the life of a mink (science), record and write what they have learned (language arts) and complete map work (geography).

Species

European mink Mustela lutreola
American mink Neovison vison

Size

The male weighs about 1 kg (2.2 lb) and is about 62 cm (24 in) in length. Farm bred males can reach 3.2 kg (7.1 lb). The female weighs about 600 g (1.32 lb) and reaches a length of about 51 cm (20 in). The sizes above do not include the tail, which can be from 12.8 centimetres (5.0 in) to 22.8 centimetres (9.0 in).

Color

A mink’s rich glossy coat in its wild state is brown and looks silky. Farm-bred mink can vary from white to almost black, which is reflected in the British wild mink. Their pelage is deep, rich brown, with or without white spots on the underparts, and consists of a slick, dense underfur overlaid with dark, glossy, almost stiff guard hairs.

Lifespan

The maximum lifespan of a mink is usually around ten years, but rarely exceeds three years in the wild.

Want to learn even more about about the Mink? Here is student friendly article for them…

Let’s Study The Mink!

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American History, notebooking, Presidents

Abraham Lincoln | History Project

February 22, 2022February 21, 2022 My Teaching Library / CHSH-Teach, LLC

Studying the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln? Wanting your students to develop their ability to research, organize, write and create a complete project? This interactive, hands on, resource is one that can be used in Social Studies, History and Language Arts classes and is designed to be either teacher led or student centered – whichever you prefer!

This project resource can be assigned individually or to cooperative groups. You can give students as much latitude as you want – or – you can be very deliberate in what and how you assign students to use the pages.

Go to My Teaching Library’s resource:
Abraham Lincoln | History Project

Includes:

“Creating a Notebooking Project – What is Notebooking?” instructional page
List of suggested supplies
Evaluation rubric (can be used by both teacher and student peer groups!)
Teacher directed assignment page (This is designed to be used if you need to ‘guide’ the students on the journey of creating the project – includes due date section)
Cover page for student use
Table of contents pages for project
Project KWL
Vocabulary terms page (So students can record and define unfamiliar terms along their study – or – You can assign certain terms to be completed throughout the project)
Reference page (For students to record the references they used to complete the project – Includes a # blank so students can place numbers (#’s) throughout their project.)
“Using Biographical Notebooking Pages” instructional page for student reference
“Guiding Research Questions” page to instruct students on how they can and should create their own research questions along the way.
18 student publishing pages

Need students to draw from primary and secondary sources? Need students to develop research questions? Need students to analyze statements or events? Make these part of the requirements. This resource is extremely flexible and allows you to make the assignment exactly what you need!

Go to My Teaching Library’s resource:
Abraham Lincoln | History Project

Other U.S. History resources you’ll love…

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1st, 2nd Grade, American History, Kindergarten, notebooking, Presidents

US Presidents Notebooking and Mini-Books | BUNDLE

February 15, 2022February 10, 2022 My Teaching Library / CHSH-Teach, LLC

This U.S. Presidents bundled resource has been designed for early learners (Kindergarten, 1st grade and 2nd grade). Kids will begin learning U.S. History and the men who lead the country with these fun notebooking pages and mini-books!

EACH president section contains 5 student pages:

Coloring page
Color & Trace page with basic facts
Color & Write page for students to complete the name of the president, his birthday and 2 facts about him
Color & Write page for students to create a short report
Mini-Book for students to complete about the president

GO to: US Presidents Notebooking and Mini-Books | BUNDLE

Bundled in this resource:

Additional resources on the U.S. Presidents that you’ll love for older students:

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4th Grade, 5th Grade, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, Interactive notebook, notebooking, U.S. States

Studying the U.S.A?

February 8, 2022 My Teaching Library / CHSH-Teach, LLC

Are you currently teaching students about the U.S. 50 States? Are you looking to begin a social studies or geography study on the our 50 nifty states? If so, you’ll want to add this resource to your plans!

50 U.S. States | Interactive Social Studies

This is an interactive, student centered resource which will allow students to research, report and gain valuable geography and history knowledge about the great United States! Using this resources, students can produce beautiful projects about one, two, ten or all fifty states!

SEE A FLIPBOOK PREVIEW HERE

It includes:

How to use (General directions)
Teacher pages – Planning/Assignment pages, evaluation rubric, supply list
Student pages – Organizational pages (cover page, table of contents, k-w-l)
State outlines
U.S. maps (complete, regional, topographical, color and black/white, Mississippi river system
Informational resources (capitals, state birds, flowers, animals and date of statehood)
State capital bookmarks
Student project templates
– Venn Diagram
– Untitled report pages (with and without illustrations and/or maps)
– Title report pages: Symbols of the U.S.A, State Symbols, State Motto, Capitals, trees, birds, flowers, State flag and seal, , timelines

Are you an “ALL ACCESS” subscriber on My Teaching Library? If so, this product is free to you! Learn how to become an “All Access” member here!

Studying the U.S.A?

February 8, 2022 My Teaching Library / CHSH-Teach, LLC

SEE A FLIPBOOK PREVIEW HERE

It includes:

How to use (General directions)
Teacher pages – Planning/Assignment pages, evaluation rubric, supply list
Student pages – Organizational pages (cover page, table of contents, k-w-l)
State outlines
U.S. maps (complete, regional, topographical, color and black/white, Mississippi river system
Informational resources (capitals, state birds, flowers, animals and date of statehood)
State capital bookmarks
Student project templates
– Venn Diagram
– Untitled report pages (with and without illustrations and/or maps)
– Title report pages: Symbols of the U.S.A, State Symbols, State Motto, Capitals, trees, birds, flowers, State flag and seal, , timelines

Are you an “ALL ACCESS” subscriber on My Teaching Library? If so, this product is free to you! Learn how to become an “All Access” member here!

Tennessee State Bird Project – Northern Mockingbird

February 3, 2022January 27, 2022 My Teaching Library / CHSH-Teach, LLC

Studying the state of Tennessee? Perhaps doing a unit on Ornithology? This project-based unit is designed to help students study and record information about Tennessee’s state bird – the Northern Mockingbird!

14 pages in all and is designed for different levels / abilities.

My Teaching Library has a notebooking set for each of all 50 states. In addition, you can get all of them bundled!

State Bird Notebooking Mega BUNDLE

Here are other bird related products you’ll love…

North American Birds of Prey Research / Report Pages
Birds if Prey Flashcards
Audubon’s Birds – Coloring Book (80 species)
U.S. State Birds Coloring Book

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Category: notebooking