I’m a huge fan of interactive notebooks. I will say that I have my own take on them that is quite different from the norm. The cool thing is that every teacher can put their own spin on the interactive notebooks they use in their classrooms. My primary reason for using interactive notebooks in my classroom is because I don’t use a textbook. In my classroom they are used for a textbook alternative and my favorite part about it is that I’m in charge. Can you tell my enneagram is 8? Here are my super unpopular opinions about interactive notebooks. Haven’t started an interactive notebook yet? Interested? Read this post to get my starter tips.
Take Home Interactive Notebooks
There are so many teachers that hold on to the students’ interactive notebooks and store them in their classrooms. I am a firm believer that all notebooks belong to the students. I want my students to be able to reference their notes while they are working on homework or studying for a test. I think that creating an expectation where the notebook goes home and comes back to the classroom each way is a great way to build a sense of responsibility in my students. Whenever they forget the notebook at home, they just slide their notes into a folder and double up on gluing the next day. I also like that students can easily share with their parents what they are learning by bringing their notebooks home.
No Table of Contents
I give my kids a table of contents for their interactive notebooks, but it’s actually pretty bare. It simply outlines the 14 units that I teach in the order that they will go into the book. I leave a space at the end of each line for student to enter their own page numbers if they like. Spending time to outline each individual entry and give it a page number is such a time sucker. I actually number my lessons and units across everything that I do. I give a Unit.Lesson code for each lesson. When it’s time to study, I tell the kids, “you need to know everything from Unit 4 – that’s everything with a 4 in front.” They catch on pretty quickly. In my actual guided notes, I’ll make a reference to old lessons like when I teach calorimetry, I’ll put in there “go back to 7.5 for review.” This directs the students to a lesson on energy. Some years the codes change, but I’m pretty on top of the codes because I keep my own book.
No Colored Paper
Colored paper is hard to come by. I don’t bother with it for interactive notebooks. Because all of my lessons are coded (and then put into the interactive notebooks in numerical order) I don’t need to refer kids to the “blue page.” Aside from the pages themselves “looking cute” I really don’t see a need for colored paper. Something, I speak to quite a bit is that “cuteness does not equal effectiveness.” I have the kids color the edges of their pages to indicate different sections. They do this with a magic marker, in any color that they want. We color two sections: the reference tables and the glossary. I save all my colored paper for task cards and game boards that are going to be laminated. (Read more about my laminating tricks here.)
No Divider Tabs for Interactive Notebooks
I am so anti-divider tab. I honestly think it’s the most frivolous thing when it comes to interactive notebooks. If they are just made out of paper, they are going to crinkle and rip. It’s only a matter of time. If they are laminated – that to me seems like a huge waste of time. I teach approximately 80 kids each year, and I know there are teachers out there who teach over 100. When I think of time and materials for this – It’s a kids’ notebook for pete’s sake. It’s basically guaranteed to be destroyed by the end of the school year. Again, because all my lessons are coded and put it in numerical order, it’s really not too hard for kids to find the correct lesson when they need to go back. A divider tab is one fewer page of the notebook that we will get to use.
Interactive Notebook Flipbooks
Not every element needs to be a flipbook or otherwise entertaining. I am a huge proponent of the idea that learning should be fun, but that doesn’t need to come in the form of SUPER intricate flipbooks and moveable pieces. I think that these things are great to incorporate every once in a while, or when the content’s value is doubled or tripled based on this delivery. This is one of the biggest reasons that people avoid INBSs, in my opinion. They become super difficult to manage, between cutting and gluing. And the absent kids?!
Most of my INB pages are simply guided notes pages shrunk down to fit in a composition book. When the value of the content is enhanced by foldables and moving parts, I’ll use my time for it. It’s an investment at that point, not an expectation. Plus, when it happens less frequently, students see and enjoy the novelty of it.
The beauty of being a teacher (the leader of a classroom) is that you get to make the decisions. There may be “rules” for how an interactive notebook “should” work, but there is no interactive notebook police. Nobody is going to come looking for you if you choose to do it your own way. If you’ve ever been curious about interactive notebooks I really urge you to give them a try. I have a few in my TPT store if you’re interested in checking them out. Your notebooks also don’t have to be perfect! I’ve changed and improved mine each year, and nothing will ever make me go back to the old way.
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