In my early years as an SLP, I stumbled upon a tutorial video for making a simple book with a single sheet of paper. I was hooked. I have used this simple method to reinforce a wide range of concepts with both my students and my own kids.
Something big coming up? Let's write a book to plan for it. Learning new spelling pattern? Let's put those words into a book. Had an awesome weekend? Let's retell it in a book.
You can find these tucked around my house and in my office. When on teletherapy, I like to have my students make these at home so they can practice concepts between sessions.
When my youngest was two and we were getting ready for a big international move, he clearly needed some kind of visual to help him through the transition. Together we made one of these books for each step along the way - I wrote the words and drew a simple picture for each step. He carried it everywhere, and it really helped us through each step.
Made with simple materials - a single sheet of paper, scissors, and tape - these can be made on the fly to reinforce any concept. They can also be taped together to make an even longer book!
Here are a few ideas for speech, language & literacy concepts that work well in this simple book format:
Speech Sounds: Select a word or two per page with the sound you are working on. Write the word and draw a simple picture.
Vocabulary
Here is an example of a book I made to reinforce multiple-meaning words. We put the word in the center fold and drew a picture representing each meaning on the two-facing pages.
Telling a sequence: With limited pages, you'll need to chunk a sequence into clear steps - this is a great language activity in itself as you plan what can go on each page. Use sequencing words such as first, next, then, finally.
Spelling rules: Use the top of each page to list a reminder for a rule/pattern and write example words on each page.
Story Grammar: help students get started on a story by focusing on 6 core elements of a story: characters, setting, conflict/initiating event, plan, feelings, resolution.
There are many tutorials online if you search "8 page mini book," and I have also created a simple reminder sheet you can download for free here.
Happy Writing!
Laurie