Posted in Lapbooks
My 12 year old son has finished his lapbook on Ben Franklin. Here it is....Cover:
Inside Left:
Here he has a word search we found online (Folded in the triangle.) and a little booklet about Ben Franklins sayings. This was great because for each one he had to write his own explaination of the quote. (Which was a good handwriting excercise.) In the center I sewed in 4 ziplocs for him to insert topics he had written about. A few weeks ago we were reading The History of US book 2 in our Sonlight Curriculum and came across this:
Ben Franklin
The French had no trouble with Ben. They loved his jokes and admired his good mind. They were amazed by all the things he had done. He was a scientist,
an inventor, a writer, and a great patriotic American.
His mind never seemed to stop for rest. Daylight saving time was his idea;
and he invented bifocal glasses, the lightening rod, the one armed desk chair,
and an efficent stove. He founded the first public library, the first city hospital,
and the University of Pennsylvania. He was the most famous journalist of his time, and the first editor to use cartoons as illustrations. He made electricity into a science. And that was one part of what he did.
Benjamin Franklin helped with the ideas that made this country special,
and he got the French to help pay for the revolution that made us free.
A History of US
Making 13 Colonies 1600-1740
Joy Hakim
As soon as I read this I just knew it was crying out to be a lapbook! LOL My son was wanting to do a Lapbook on Ben Franklin, but there is SO MUCH information we didn't even know where to start! So I typed up what I had read and highlighted the words I wanted him to research. This is what he came up with.
Inventor
Ben Franklin invented many things. From things that create twice as
much heat then an open fire heat and use half the wood, to things
that protect the home from the fierce strike of lightning,
Ben Franklin made many an invention, here are just a few of
Them.
The Franklin Stove - was less of a
hazard to an all wood home
generated twice the heat of an open
fire and used half the wood.
The Lightning Rod - Protected an all
wood home from the strike of lightning.
It prevented fires and deaths by the
collapse of buildings in a lightning
storm.
Daylight Savings Time (DST) - An Idea
of how to save daylight, use less fuel,
And confuse many a person. He first
Thought of this in 1784 while in Paris.
However this idea wasn't put into use
until 1916. It was then used in a few
Countries in Europe. Two years later it
was put to use in the USA.
Bifocals - at age 80 Ben Franklin was
having trouble seeing both near and far.
He had both reading glasses and distance
glasses but found it extremely annoying
having to constantly switch between the two!
So he had the lenses cut in half and
had half of each put into one frame.
The reading glasses on bottom and
the distance glasses on top.
Ben Franklin also invented the
Swim Fins
Library Chair and Extension Arm
the Odometer
The Glass Harmonic
And much more...
First Public Library
Benjamin Franklin founded the very first Public Library. By that I mean the first
library which you could actually borrow books from. You would buy a "share"
(think library card.) as a subscription to the library. those with a share could
borrow Books. the money from the subscription library would go to buying more books. The Library company of Philadelphia still stands as a non-profit independant research library. It was founded in 1731.
First City Hospital
In 1751 Dr. Thomas Bond and Benjamin Franklin together
founded the first City hospital to care for the
sick weakly and insane that roamed the streets of
Pennsylvania. Ben and Thomas were good friends.
But they felt sorry for the sickly
and poor of Pennsylvania. Around 1950
Thomas got the idea of a hospital.
Franklin got a petition with 33 names (though not
his own.) and brought it to the Pennsylvania assembly.
They were worried that it would be too expensive.
Franklin then had one of the brainstorms he was ever so
famous for. He challenged them that if he could raise
2000 pounds from private citizens, then the assembly
would match it. they agreed, Ben's task seemed impossible.
But was it? Well, Ben didn't get 2000 pounds... He got more!
The assembly gave him 2000 pounds and on May 11, 1751 the
charter to establish the Pennsylvania Hospital was granted!
From early 1572 until 1755 the hospital was housed in
the home of the recent widow of John Kinsey.
Elizabeth Gardner a Quaker widow was appointed matron of the
hospital. In 1755 the east wing of the pine building was
opened and in 1756 in the 8th and pine streets facility
patients were started to be admitted. In 1767 the hospital was
given not just the east wing but the entire square between
Spruce and Pine and 8th and 9th streets. Thanks to
donations from Thomas and Richard Penn. More room was given
in 1796 when construction of the second wing, the west wing,
Was finished. finally in 1804 still more room was given
when the third wing, the center section was completed,
and the surgical amphitheatre opened.
To show the purpose of the hospital, the inscription
"Take care of him and I will repay thee" was chosen along
with the image of the good Samaritan, as the hospital seal.
Using Cartoons
Along from being just an inventor Ben Franklin is credited
as being the first man ever to use cartoons as illustrations.
a common narrative tool. Ben Franklin used cartoons
in some of his newspapers. For Franklin was also a journalist.
Ben Franklin wrote one of the first newspapers in the new world.
Electricity
But possibly the thing he is remembered for most is finding
the knowledge that electricity ad lightning are the same.
Some people credit him for "finding electricity" but he did
not "find" electricity, it was known of long before Franklin
and his kite. It wasn't used until long after Franklin but was
known of long before. In truth though Franklin flew his kite
in extreme secrecy. If he was seen he would be ridiculed. He
found that without a doubt, lightning and electricity were the same.
He always was fascinated by electricity though. He did discover
many other things about it, and is probably the reason that
today electricity is a science. Once he realized that
lightning was electricity he figured that it would act the same as
other electricity does which led to the invention of the lightning rod.
Got the French to help pay for the revolution that made us free
Franklin also helped to make the French fund the war.
He told them if England won then it would be far too powerful. Since the
French and English were enemies having England be this powerful would be
BAD! The French then decided that this was true, so they began sending
supplies through Spies and through Franklin.
If not for this it is doubtful whether we would have won the war,
and we would probably all be members of the great two continent
empire of England.
Helped with the ideas that made this country special
He also signed and helped write the Constitution,
and the Declaration of Independence. He told the English
that America would not pay their taxes. At first he thought
that England and America could stand together in peace, but
he eventually realized that his would be impossible with the
constant escalation of tax prices. After saying his opinions
he was alienated from many Americans, including his own son,
William, whom he had help gain the position of Royal Govenor
of New Jersey, the two held a grudge against each other, for
most of the rest of Franklin's life. He was one of the men to
write the Declaration of Independence. Along with John Adams,
Thomas Jefferson, Robert R. Livingston, and Roger Sherman, he
was considered to be one of the greatest men at the time, was
wanted to write the declaration, and was wanted to be the first
president, but he refused.
Inside Left: (The bright pink is just paper I used to cover his name for the photos.)
On the outside flaps we have 2 worksheets cut up in to strips and stapled together. The ones in the center are info about some of his inventions and then you lift the flap to see a picture of the invention.
Left Side Under Flap:
Under the flap I sewed in a pocket for more worksheets. He decorated it with a picture he colored with a Ben Franklin quote. In the top part of the flap is a picture he drew of Ben Franklin pndering the Countries Bird. Under the picture he wrote:
Ben Franklin wanted the American Bird to be, not a Eagle, but the Wild Turkey. He said the Eagle was a scavenger, and the Turkey was a truley nobel bird.
Here is a closer picture of Ben ponder the birds:
Places we found printables:
http://www.daniellesplace.com/images/birdearly.gif
http://www.daniellesplace.com/images/benpenny2pat.gif
http://www.benfranklin300.org
http://www.homeschooling.about.com
http://homeschooling.about.com/od/freeprintables/ss/franklinprint_6.htm
http://homeschooling.about.com/od/freeprintables/ss/franklinprint.htm
Whew, now that we have The 10 Commandments and Ben Franklin done we can start our thanksgiving Lapbook. I downloaded the free one from LiveandLearnpress.com but we have just been too busy to start it! So starting this week we are going to do something we have NEVER done before. We are taking a break from Sonlight until January! Over the holidays I plan on doing holiday related lapbooks, lots of crafts, lots of reading about Thanksgiving and Christmas, some Advent adventures and MORE! I am a little nervous about it, because I must admit that as long as we are plugging through our Sonlight I feel like I am doing a good job! So, wish me luck and I will let you know how we are doing as we go along.
Posted by 
Posted by 
