Interactive Science Notebooks - Traditional (Paper) Resources

General Resources

Science Notebooks K-12 - This site offers the basic information about using notebooks in the science classroom along with a wealth of resources to help you make the most of them, such as a database of student work samples and lots of tips in the Frequently Asked Questions area.

MiddleSchoolScience.com ISNs - Check out this website for samples of student worksheets that have been formatted to use with ISNs.

Interactive Notebooks - This site provides information and resources related to using interactive student notebooks in science as well as for other subjects, such as language arts, social studies, and math. 

Vocabulary Strategies - A great collection of samples that will help you find new ideas to teach and reinforce vocabulary from your lessons.

Taking the ISN Plunge - Visit this site to learn more about implementing interactive notebooks!  Lots of great tips and tricks! 

NSTA Interactive Notebook Blog - Take a few moments to check out this blog for more ideas to help you make the most of ISNs in your classroom.

Have your students use Doodle Notes (my version) for taking notes in their ISNs!   Watch my video on Educreations that was created to introduce my students to Doodle Notes!

Check out my Lessons for Learning @ Home - Activities to send home for students to complete during remote learning that work with or without Internet; many of these were created to be used with our traditional Interactive Science Notebooks, such as the choice boards.

Notebook Helpers

Worksheet Resources
Worksheet Works - One of my favorite resources for making graphic organizers, charts, and graphs.  Easy to use and free!
Teach-nology - Worksheet Generator - A collection of templates you can customize for your class activities. 
Science Graphic Organizers - A collection of organizers on a variety of science topics/concepts.
Holt Editable Graphic Organizers - Choose your template and edit as needed for your lesson/activity.
Teacher Vision - Science Organizers - Offers 10 ready-to-use organizers for science lessons

Examples from my classroom:
Invertebrate Organizer - Students use this organizer to list the importance of each type of invertebrate
SpongeBob vs. Sponges - Venn Diagram for use with a lesson on sea sponges; students compare and contrast SpongeBob with real sponges
NOTE:  SpongeBob SquarePants and all related characters are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.

Foldables
Math & Science Foldables - An assortment of foldables (and graphic organizers) for math and science.
Foldables in Science - A collection of the best resources for finding foldables for your science program.
Dinah Zike Foldables - The best spot to find examples of foldables for every subject and grade level.  Browse her site for free examples and strategies for making the most of foldables in your classroom. 

Writing Prompts
Teacher's Domain Writing Prompts - This site provides video clips and writing prompts on a variety of science concepts.
RAFT Prompt Builder - Build your own writing prompt using their easy-to-use format. 
Prompts for Journal Reflections - A list of ready-to-use prompts that can be adapted to almost any topic.
eThemes Writing & Journals - A collection of links with strategies and other resources to help your students become better writers.

My Favorite Books:
Teaching Science with Interactive Notebooks by Kellie Marcarelli
Notebook Foldables for Spirals, Binders, & Composition Books by Dinah Zike
Big Book of Science by Dinah Zike
3D Graphic Organizers by Daniel J. Barnekow

Tips & Tricks

Powerpoint - Introduction to ISNs  - This is the presentation I use at the beginning of the year to introduce ISNs to my students.

ISN Cover Pages - Science or CSI - Students cut this page down and use it as a cover for their ISN.  They are allowed to decorate it with any science-related items

Formatting Worksheets

(1) Four Corners - For regular worksheets (glued on all 4 corners or top) I set up my worksheets with a 1” margin on the left side and bottom as well as a 0.5” margin at the top and on the right side.  For existing worksheets (or ones that already fill a page), I change the copy ratio to 90% on the school copier to shrink the pages to fit on the notebook pages.          

(2) Fold-A-Flap Pages - To fit them on a notebook page, I create a “fold-a-flap” page by setting up my worksheets with a 1” margin on the left side and a 0.5” margin at the top and then cut off the bottom of the page.  Students fold the left side back to create a flap and then glue it to the correct page.  This type of format allows me to use the 2-sided worksheet plus leaves room for more items/extra space under the worksheet.  Click here for a gude to create the "Fold-A-Flap" pages in Word.

Also available ... Gluing Guidelines - I display this page on my board and use the codes to help students figure out how to glue their pages in the notebook. 

Tap & Glue caps – Love these caps for my glue bottles!  Saves on glue as well as making things a bit neater for the students as they don't have glue everywhere.  I do have to remind them not to use a lot and often say, "Dot, dot, not a lot!"

Supply Crates – I used small plastic crates from the dollar store to set up supply crates at each set of tables.  Each crate has enough space for 4 bottles of glue, a cup with 4 scissors, and a pencil box with colored pencils and pencil sharpeners.    I snapped a picture of the correct way to organize the baskets and glue a copy on the front of each crate, which helps keep them from getting too messy.

Want an easy way to fill your glue bottles?  Purchase glue by the gallon along with a pump! 

Interactive Science Notebooks Resources
Want to explore the research behind ISNs or find more information to help you make the most of them in your classroom? Check out our list of resources we used for our action research project.