Lapbook style learning in high school? Absolutely!
I have two very visual boys who tend to shy away from normal question and answer, fill-in-the-blanks style learning. When we started high school science with a “real” textbook, I was hesitant about using the review questions in the way they are presented.
After a little research, I found Live and Learn Press’ Learn N’ Folder Notebook specifically designed to follow the Apologia text Exploring Creation with Biology. I downloaded the free sample which gave me a complete unit to preview. I was impressed with the way they presented the On Your Own questions, the vocabulary, and then review questions into a lapbook sort of format and decided that we would give it a try.
I will admit that I print out the pages and do all the cutting and folding for their notebooks. I happen to enjoy that sort of work so it is not a burden to me at all. In fact, some evenings my husband and I will sit and make the notebooks together as we chat and enjoy each other’s company with our hands busy folding the various parts of the book.
As a learning tool, I am very pleased with this product. Filling in the little books and folds with information makes it much more palatable for my sons as we work through the modules. They seem to retain the information better and reviewing the information is much more productive in using the Learn N’ Folder Notebook. They can also quiz themselves before a test using the notebook pages.
The Live and Learn Press Learn N’ Folder Notebooks are not cheap, the biology notebook is $30 for the ebook version, but in our family they have been worth every penny we spent. Sure, they could write out their answers on lined paper with a pencil, but using the Folder Notebooks has made the learning a little easier and definitely more fun.
I highly recommend the products from Live and Learn Press to go along with your Apologia texts. There are Folder Notebooks for the elementary level texts as well. We will be using their Chemistry Notebook next year to help us organize our study.
For more information on our biology study, please pop over to my Biology Squidoo lens for loads of ideas and suggestions.
Squidoo: Apologia Exploring Creation with Biology
Written by Barb-Harmony Art mom. She also blogs at http://harmonyartmom.blogspot.com and her business is found at http://www.harmonyfinearts.com. I would love for you to join us for the Outdoor Hour Challenges: http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com.
Jimmie says
I love how your teens make lapbooks! 🙂 These kits are just another tool in the box to add variety and keep the learning interesting.
.-= Jimmie´s last blog ..Sex Ed Book Reviews =-.
Barb-Harmony Art Mom says
I love homeschooling because we can customize our children’s learning to fit their style. I agree that these lapbook/notebook pages are another tool we can choose to help our visual-spatial learners to learn and remember more complex ideas.
They are fantastic for reviewing.
.-= Barb-Harmony Art Mom´s last blog ..Biology Notebooking Review-High School Level =-.
Darla says
Barb,
Live and Learn also has folders for the Apologia elementary series written by Jeannie Fulbright. They are just as wonderful as those for biology.
Darla
.-= Darla´s last blog ..Adventure Cooking – Hope Chest Journey Day 5 =-.