Are you a kindergarten teacher looking for a way to make memories last? Memory books are a great way to capture the year and help kids remember all the fun they’ve had! Whether you’re looking to create individual memory books or class memory books, your students will love having a way to reflect on their year.
The Difference Between Individual Memory Books and Class Memory Books
Creating a class memory book together can be a great way to remember special moments and growth over the school year. But have you ever considered letting students create individual memory books? Let’s look at the difference between these two types of memory books.
Individual Memory Books
Individual memory books provide a great way for kindergarteners to reflect on their own personal growth and experiences. These books will capture the thoughts, reflections, and achievements of each individual student. Through these books, students will have the opportunity to express their individual personalities and interests.
Class Memory Books
Class memory books provide the opportunity for students to capture their collective experiences as a class. These books offer a great way to remember the unique dynamics and friendships between the class members. These books can be used to document important events and milestones during the school year.
Individual Memory Books
Individual memory books have endless possibilities, but they do take some time to create. Consider setting aside some time for students to complete these books during their writing time, as an early finishers activity, or even as morning work. Here are some ideas for creating individual memory books:
Have each student write a few sentences at the end of each month about something special that happened during that month. Consider using a template that helps show student growth throughout the year.
If you can, take pictures of students together or individually during the year. Having a handful of pictures to give each student will be a great way for students to remember their time in your classroom.
Provide prompts for students to draw or write responses to, like their favorite science experiment, classroom celebration, or book they read.
Have each student write a letter to themselves at the end of the year. This can be included in the memory book and read at the start of the next school year.
As some of these pages can be time-consuming, another fun idea is to work on the memory books throughout the year. So when you get back from your field trip, have students fill out a page about their experience. Or once you’ve learned about five important people from history, have students record interesting facts about one of them. This allows students to record memories as they happen AND it also will show their growth in skills as the year progresses.
If you’re ready to get started with individual memory books, you can pick up one for kindergarten, first grade, or second grade from my store.
Class Memory Books
Class memory books, on the other hand, are a fun way to remember the year as a group. Here are some ideas for creating class memory books:
- Set aside a few pages for “Our Favorite Memories”. Encourage students to draw pictures of the things they remember most about the school year. Consider collecting the pictures, taking a photo of them, and scaling them down so you can fit multiple pictures on one page.
- Pair up your students. One partner can write their favorite memory, while the other can illustrate the writing.
- Take pictures throughout the year and include them in the memory book. Once you’ve added them to the book, you can work together as a class to caption your pictures.
- Provide an “All About Me” page for each student. This page could include things like their photograph, a few sentences about them, and a list of their favorite things. If you do a student of the week, students can fill out this page when they are your students of the week and then you can file it away to be added to the memory book.
- Create a page for each month in the memory book. This page should include a photograph taken during that month and a few sentences about what happened during that month. You can conduct a shared writing session to work on this page together.
Creating memory books is a great way to capture the memories of the school year! Whether you’re creating individual memory books or class memory books, there are plenty of fun ideas to help you get started. Have fun creating a memorable memory book that your students will cherish!
Creation Castle
Heather is the author of Creation Castle. She has experience with general education, special education, and ESL students in kindergarten through fifth grade. She specializes in early elementary math and literacy, as well as organization.
