My Latest Christmas Project

While flipping through some old magazines and idea books I saw the original concept for this project. My nephew is in kindergarten and he is totally FASCINATED with the fact that he is beginning to spell and read words. He is so excited when he learns a new word, and he even comes home every night with the view that he SHOULD have homework!

When I saw this little spelling book I new that I had to make a couple. (I won't post my nephew's, just in case someone in the family happens to be looking.) Instead, I'm posting one that I made for the son of one of my fellow workers. He is CRAZY about Handy Manny, so I created my own version of Manny's hammer for the front cover.



The outside looks really cute with the Real Red cardstock, Celebrations patterned paper, and the hammer with its googly eyes, but the REAL magic comes inside!



I used the Schoolbook Serif alphabet stamp set to stamp 3 sets of alphabet letters on 3X5 index cards. I used Real Red ink for the vowels and Basic Black for the consonants, and I laminated each card + 3 blank ones. To create words, the child just opens the book and flips the cards on the binding rings. The blank cards on each stack allow the child to start by just learning the alphabet letters, using one stack of letters and leaving the blank cards in the other stacks showing. As the child progresses, he or she can build 2 letter words and then 3 letter words.

As a teacher, I see lots of potential for this gift! I would really like to create a sample and take it to the elementary school. Some of the teachers would spend a LOT more to purchase one of these than it costs to create! I would love to do either a class where parents and teachers can create their own or possibly take orders.

What do you think? Is it something that people might like?