Story Starters: A Book Making Activity

Want to spark some creativity? Give your child some pictures for a story, then let his imagination run wild! Not only is this book-making activity quick and easy fun, but it gives emerging readers insight into how a story’s illustrations provide context clues, which will help him the next time he’s looking for hints while sounding out a word… So get a stack of old magazines and get your kid ready to spin a yarn!

Materials:
5-10 pictures, cut from magazines
Markers
Construction paper
Glue

Directions:
This activity is extremely easy, but it takes about five minutes of set-up time. Gather a stack of magazines and cut 5-10 pictures out of them. These can be as simple as a dog running in water, or a boy sitting on a set of stairs. Glue each picture onto the top of its own page of construction paper and spread the pages out across a table. Then invite your child to come and take a look.

Ask your child to choose a picture, then tell you what’s happening in it. For example, if she chooses the picture of the dog running in the water, she might say, “This dog is being chased by its owner. They just came to the beach because they’re having a picnic. The dog is happy because he loves to play and get wet.” Whatever she says, write it down beneath the picture. Then if she’d like, let her choose another picture and record exactly what she says, word for word, without editing it. If you repeat this activity a few months down the road, you’ll be amazed at how much progress kindergartners typically make in a short period of time.

This is a quick and easy activity, but it teaches kids how a book’s illustrations and text are related. It also gets them working on how to tell a story and order its beginning, middle, and end… a skill that takes young kids a lot of practice! Sure, it builds reading comprehension, but more than that, it puts your child in the author’s chair, a great place to be on a rainy day, or any day!