Digital Scrapbooking 101 BLOG

PrincessCrafts Monthly Digital Scrapbook News

Posted on September 30th, 2009 by admin.
Categories: Site Information, Training.

Welcome to PrincessCrafts Digi-Scrap News.

Yes, as always, I’ve been very busy creating new digital scrapbook template downloads and scrapbook elements.  We have been the camp host at Lake Easton State Park in Washington State now all month.  The fall colors are coming out and it’s got me thinking about harvest, halloween and the upcoming holiday season. 

I’m not yet ready for the colder weather, but at the same time I’m really excited about the coming holidays and the time with family and friends.  What about you, are you ready for the colder weather?  Have you got your gift list started for the Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanza season?  I know that from personal experience that if you plan early, then there’s not the last minute rush and associated stress that comes with it.

I’ve already started on my scrapbook, memory book, vacation memory book and storybook scrapbooks that I’m giving this year. 

With that in mind, I wanted to let you know that some of the digital scrapbook templates are going to dissappear from our members areas to be replaced by new higher quality digi-scrap template downloads.

1. I’m replacing all the landscape format pages starting in October 2009.
2. Scrapbook of a Lifetime is dissappearing completely and new touch of color templates are going into the 8.5×11 and 12×12 areas.
3. Our mini-scrapbook pages are also going away and finding new ones showing up in the other members areas.
4. Last, but not least, all of our FREE scrapbook templates for the Computer Scrapbooking 101 course are being replaced with the new higher quality .png format papers.

It’s time we finish bringing all 9 of the scrapbook websites that we have into the main members areas so that things are easier to find and much less confusing to our new members. 

By the way, if you have ideas on how to better arrange the menu’s or of digital scrapbook themes that you want to see, we would love to hear from you.  After all, it’s your site and you should get a say in how it looks and works… don’t you think?

NEW FREE SCRAPBOOK CONTENT:

I’ve been busy the last couple of weeks adding more free stuff to the public sites. 

If you’ve been keeping up, you already know about the 2010 Photo Calendar template downloads at: www.FREEScrapbookTraining.com that we updated last month.

This month I’ve started adding brand new .png format scrapbook page toppers all over www.PrincessCrafts.com and www.1-computer-scrapbook.com, our main 8.5×11 & 12×12 sites.  All you need to do is to browse through the template thumbnails and you’ll find the new toppers right there on the pages.  Just click on them to download to your computer.  Compatible with both PC and Mac’s. I’m just getting started, so check back at least weekly to see all the new ones.

Note: Paid Members will find them all located in their Bonus section of their members areas in one place.  After all, Membership does have it’s privileges.

Thanks for taking the time to read all this, I really do know how valuable your time is during these busy days of the year.  Your time and your support are greatly appriciated.

Just one last note before  I let you go.  If you are looking for a really great gift for your family or friends for the holidays… you really need to check out our www.TwasTheNightScrapbook.com Twas the Night Before Christmas Story Book Scrapbook.  It’s in it’s 3rd year now and makes one of the most treasured gifts you will ever give.  Take just a couple of minutes and see for yourself… we even used it to create the video story read by our two oldest granddaughters on www.PrincessCrafts.com.  Priceless is the word that best fits this gift.

That’s all I have for you right now.  Drop me a line or a BLOG comment and let me know how you are doing from time to time. 

Until next time, Happy Scrappin’

Kathy Waddell

www.MyPrincessCrafts.com

 

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Simple Ideas to Entertain the Kids this Summer (Part 2 of 2)

Posted on June 25th, 2009 by wwaddell.
Categories: Digital Photography, Scrapbook Articles, Scrapbook Tips, Training.

2 Simple Ideas to Entertain the Kids this Summer (Part 2 of 2)

By: Wes Waddell 

We left off in part 1 with setting up the Digital Mystery Game and providing some basic ground rules and courtesies as needed.  We then sent our little spies, detectives and reporters out into their world to gather the data and photo evidence for their first story.  Now, it’s time to put on the final touches and to finish up the stories.

Playing the editor:

Your job in the game is not to criticize or take control, but to guide the children in their stories.  Yes, the younger they are the more help they’ll need; at least at first. But, you’ll also find that with just a little guidance, it won’t be long and they’ll be almost completing each story on their own.

When they first come back, have them explain a little about what they seen, what is on their notes (make sure they take notes… it’s very important later) and how the story unfolds.  Make sure that they have a beginning, a middle (the content that matches the title you first gave them) and a finish or ending.

If any of the parts are missing or it doesn’t match the story title, then your guidance as the editor is needed.  Ask them questions that lead them to the answers themselves. Ask why a photo is important or what could be added to better tell the complete story.  It’ doesn’t have to be perfect, just complete and thought out to the best of their abilities. 

If you see them begin to get frustrated, take a snack break or give them a clue that helps them out. Above all, keep it fun or it won’t last long.  You’ll also see that their stories and their capabilities will grow as they do more and more of them.  You’ll find a healthy helping of praise for what they do will go a long way in motivating them to go farther and do more.

Now, if needed, send them back out to gather the rest of the photo evidence and story notes.

The Final Story:

The fun doesn’t stop when the photos are all taken.  Now it’s time for them to draft the storybook scrapbook and show off the stories in a newsletter or website.

No, you don’t have to be a computer wiz to make this work, but if you do know how to assemble a basic web site or to create an online newsletter or blog, then you can show mom & dad or grandma and grandpa what the kids have been up to.

If you don’t know how to put the storybook scrapbooks or newsletters online, then just print the photos on card stock or photo papers and cut them out.  Then just get out the glue sticks, colored markers and stickers and let them create the stories the old fashioned way… by hand. 

We even take the digital storybook scrapbooks and print them out sometimes and then paste them to a large poster board in newspaper fashion with large photos of the kids by their stories.  Frame it in a poster frame and you have some really treasured memories to hang on the wall.

Kids and computers go well together and kids these days are using computers in school as young as 6 years old.  You can use any word processing program or digital scrapbook program to insert the photos and add the story text to.  Many of them will allow you to save the finished stories as a web page or upload to a blog. My 10 year old granddaughter is able to help her 7 year old sister to create beautiful storybook pages with Microsoft PowerPoint and Word.  I showed them how a couple of times and now I only have to help print the final stories after I review them.

That’s it, how far you take the game is up to you.  Create a whole summer storybook scrapbook or just have a few wonderful pages to frame and hang on your walls.  It’s fun, it keeps them busy and the memories they create are preserved for years to come.

It just doesn’t get any better than that!

Wes Waddell

www.PrincessCrafts.com
www.TwastheNightScrapbook.com

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2 Simple Ideas to Entertain the Kids this Summer

Posted on May 31st, 2009 by wwaddell.
Categories: Digital Photography, Scrapbook Articles, Training.

2 Simple Ideas to Entertain the Kids this Summer (Part 1 of 2)

By: Wes Waddell

 

“School’s Out for The Summer” as the classic KISS song goes.  These words begin causing stress for many a parent weeks before the actual event takes place.

 

Why?

 

Because every parent knows that within days… sometime hours, the dreaded whine begins: “Mommy, I’m bored… there’s nothing to do!”, “I don’t want to go outside, there’s no one to play with!”  The historic echo’s still ring within the walls at our house, even now after the kids are grown and on their own.

 

The good news is that I’ve found a new way to keep my grandkids entertained for not just hours, but for days and even weeks during the summer, and no, it’s not sending them to grandma and grampa’s house!  I’ve taken an old page from my grandmother’s bag of fun and turned it into a new technology children’s game.

 

We call it “The Digital Mystery”

 

Appropriate for kids ages 6 and up… especially good for “Tweens” and young “Teens.”

 

No! you can’t get it in stores…  at least not yet

 

All you need is a cheap digital camera, a small notebook with pencil and a few minutes of your time creating story lines.  I’ll explain the story lines in just a minute; first let’s talk about the equipment.

 

I said cheap digital camera for a reason.  Kids are sometimes hard on things… I know that’s nothing new to you.  But the younger they are the harder it is for them to take care of things and to keep track of them.  So, depending on age, just pick one up that you can get in almost any chain store these days. Your only requirement is that it needs to hold at least 36 to 40 images in its memory so you aren’t bothered every few minutes downloading them to a computer. Of course older kids will be able to do this themselves.

 

The notebook and pencil can be anything from pocket size to a school notebook. They’ll be using it to take small notes on what they see in each photo they take. Younger children will need more room to write and older kids will want something that can fit in their pocket or camera case. If you use a larger notebook, consider putting it in a small backpack or shoulder bag for them to carry it in… don’t forget to put their names on it!

 

Now, on to your small part in the game.

 

The object of the game is to tell a story using digital photographs and notes or comments for each picture.  Your part is to come up with a few story titles for them to start with.  Here’s a few things to consider when you start listing the mystery story titles:

 

1. The younger the child, the smaller the area they have to explore. You may want them to stay in the back yard or on your block.  If you live in an apartment complex, you may need them to stay in a play area or inside the building itself.  So, you wouldn’t want mystery titles such as “What the neighbors did today” if you want them to stay in the back yard. You might want titles such as “Bugs of the 123 Willow St. House” or “What Else Lives at 654 Bluebird Lane.” My 6 year old granddaughter loves “What My Teddy Bear Did Today.”
2. Your titles need to hint at some kind of mystery or puzzle that needs to be solved. You want the kids to have a definite purpose with the photos and story and not be able to just take random pictures of just any old thing.  You want them to think (age appropriate) and take some time… preferably a lot of it; in coming up with the final story. Tweens and Teens love to play the part of the detective or spy. Give them titles like: “What Changed in the Neighborhood Today?” or “Who Worked on Our Block?” One of my 10 year old granddaughter’s favorites is “Wildlife of Our Street.”
3. While you don’t want them peeping in windows or invading the privacy of siblings or others, you do want to nurture their natural curiosity and imaginations.  Depending on the child, you may need to set some basic ground rules and consequences for breaking the rules.  The bottom line is that you want them to have fun, but at the same time you want them to be courteous to others.

 

Getting Started:

 

It’s best if you begin planning a few days before school’s out.  Having 8 to 10 Mystery titles (per child) all ready to go before you need them will make your life much easier and ensure that they have plenty to keep them busy.

 

One quick note:  This also works really well for vacations and day trips too.

 

Here’s how we play it at our house:

 

I set up a storyboard using a piece of white poster board.  I have a column for each of the grandkids with their name at the top of the column.  Below I have rows about a ruler wide all the way down the page.  Under each name I have a story title for each child that is different and age appropriate. 

 

After every 5 stories, there’s a prize that they earn for getting to that point.  I never have more than 5 stories listed at any time for each child as I keep that part of my mystery as to what comes next and what the next prize will be.  After they finish one story, I add a new one to their column so that they always have five listed and one prize they are working towards.

 

Depending on how long they will be staying with us, I try and make the last prize a really special one that I know they will cherish.  Last summer we took them to a water park at the end of the week.  This summer, since they are a bit older… we are looking at getting them new digital cameras now that they know how to use them and take care of them.

 

Next, I’m the editor for a fictional news site.  I have final say over all completed stories (just like in the real world) and I get to send them back out to fix any parts of their story that I find missing.  This serves the purpose of both, keeping them busy longer, and at the same time teaching them to complete the whole story with quality (age appropriate again) work with complete thoughts.

 

That’s it! Off they go to start their first story and you are free to do what needs to get done around the house… even if that’s to relax or take a nap

 

In part two, we show you how to keep them busy by actually creating the story on the computer using the photos and notes they take here.

 

Until then…

Get the Greatest FREE Digital Scrapbook Gift… EVER!

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This Digital Scrapbook Site is a Treasure

Posted on May 15th, 2009 by wwaddell.
Categories: Uncategorized.

Hi, This site is a treasure. I love it.

Thanks………Debbie Knahs

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Bishop Ludden Jr Sr High School Scrapbook Project

Posted on May 1st, 2009 by admin.
Categories: Scrapbook Articles, Scrapbook Tips, Training.

Hi Kathy,

I teach at Bishop Ludden Jr Sr High School. Each “house” (homeroom) has been assigned the project of creating a “house” scrapbook. I am the technology teacher and would like to come up with a way that the students ( grades 7-12 – 400+) could create their pages online and then print them and put them in the scrapbooks. The younger students in grades 7 and 8 LOVE to play cut and paste, but my sophomores, juniors and seniors need help with ideas and creativity!

Soooooo – I am not a scrapbooker – I am a “techie” and would love to give the kids a site where they can put their own photos, scripts, etc and then we could have the pages printed. Can you solve my dilemma?

I am guessing that this might be an annual activity! We have 36 “houses” looking for project help and a budget – although slim – to work with!

Mary Lou Connors

Bishop Ludden Jr Sr High School
Syracuse NY

————————————————————————————

Hi Mary Lour,

Not a problem.  You can use our FREE Digital Scrapbooking 101 course and lessons to get the kids started.  The software, course and a good sample of templates are all included at no cost (FREE) what so ever.  Just go to:

www.ComputerScrapbookTraining.com

to sign up and set up your account for free.

If you need more ideas and samples, we provide our memberships to schools – One membership for the entire school to use.  If you are interested, just drop me another line and we can go into details on how you can make that happen.

Happy Scrappin’

Kathy Waddell

www.PrincessCrafts.com.

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