Preparing supplies (notebooks)

[Mgs]

I have an older guide.
It’s says I’ll need:
Vocab notebook
English notebook
Common place notebook
Dictation notebook
Sketchbook for history
Sketchbook for science.

I’m fine with buying these- but are they all needed? Seems like they wouldn’t go through the whole thing?

[StephanieU]

For vocabulary, your have a few options. You can use index cards and store then in a box alphabetically. You can use a spiral or composition book with a couple of pages per letter of the alphabet. Or you could put them in a binder, starting with a page per letter (and adding pages as needed).

For English (Rod and Staff and writing related to poetry), you can continue with spiral/composition book next year. We normally have one for writing and one for grammar. Or again, you could use a binder. Same for dictation. It takes my kids a few years to fill in a notebook for dictation...

The common place book is something they should be added to each year. We keep a slightly nicer journal for that. It is where they copy important things like quotes and verses. Normally it takes years to fill it!

For history and science, I like binders (one for each). We can use copies of the science lab sheet for one day, lined paper for five questions, and plain printer paper for most notebooking assignments. For history, we have had baseball cards holders in the front for timeline (using half index cards for each entry) and then lined paper for copywork and narrations and printer paper for drawing, mapping, etc.

[Mgs]

Thank you that’s helpful. I love composition notebooks so that makes sense they keep them for longer than a year with other guides!! I didn’t find sketchbooks on my shopping spree so maybe I’ll try binders for history/science

[Jaimejac]

I know you have an older guide, but did you buy the Student Notebooking pages? If you did, that would cover your vocabulary and history and timeline. We use a 5 subject lined notebook for math, dictation, grammar, poetry. We use an unlined sketchbook from the dollar store that for science and I print out the science sheets and she glues them in there. And my daughter also has a nicer journal for a commonplace book intended to last several years.

Blessings,
Jaime

[Mgs]

No I don’t have the preparing notebook pages- we are just going to do what the guide says.

I ended up buying a small sketchbook for history and one for science. I’m not sure how to print the science pages, but I’m thinking they can write right in the sketchbooks however they wish to- maybe comic book style or something.

I didn’t think of a nicer common place journal. That’s a good idea.

[Jaimejac]

I shouldn't have said print...I meant copied. But now in CTC my daughter has just started writing her experiment information straight into the notebook just following the template HOD uses. I like the idea of comic book- style! My kids would probably love doing that too!

Glad you found something that will work!