Make an Abbreviation Book

Recognizing common abbreviations is an important component to second grade language arts. Here's a fun book-making project that will help your child learn to abbreviate and provide a great art lesson at the same time!

What You Need:

• Paper
• Oak tag
• Pencil
• Crayons or colored pencils

What You Do:

1. Go over this list of common abbreviations with your child:
   • Mister / Mr.
   • Doctor / Dr.
   • Miss / Ms.
   • Junior / Jr.
   • Senior / Sr.
   • Street / St.
   • Road / Rd.
   • (Days of the Week: Wednesday / Wed.)
2. Tell your child that the abbreviation is actually “hiding” inside the word. Have your child trace over the letters in the word that spell its abbreviation. For example, in the word Mister, she traces over the capital M and the r with a crayon. In this way, the spelling of the abbreviation will stand out visually.
3. Now, tell your child she will be making an abbreviation book. First, make the cover by folding the oak tag and in half and ask your child to decorate it. You can use your child's name, "Julie's Book of Abbreviation," for example.
4. Fold the paper in half to make the pages of your book.
5. On each page, have your child draw a picture associated with the abbreviated word and "hide" the abbreviation in the picture. For example, to illustrate the word Mister, your child could draw a picture of a man, and cleverly disguise the abbreviation "Mr." as the man’s moustache. Allow your child to do some sketches first on a scrap piece of paper if shes wants. Encourage her to be creative and have fun with this art project. When she's all done illustrating, staple the pages inside the cover.
6. Display the book in a prominent place where your child can refer to it.