Busy Book

Assembly Instructions

A Step-By-Step guide on how to make a busy book using our printables.

At the end of this guide, the example Activity Page & Cutout Page are available for free PDF download.

Supplies & Tools

- Color Printer (Optional – You can print at your local print shop)

- Printer Paper or Cardstock (US Letter 8.5x11 inches)

- Laminator (Optional – Highly Recommend)

- Laminating Pouches (Optional)

If you do not have a laminator...

Clear sheet protectors, self-sealing laminating pouches, or clear contact paper can work.

- Velcro Style Hook & Loop Dots (White and/or Clear) (Good Size: 1.5cm, 15mm, 5/8 inch, 0.59”)

- 3-Ring Binder (1 – 1.5 inch)

- 3-Hole Punch

- Scissors

- Plastic Zip-Top Bags (Optional)

Note:

If you do not have a laminator, I highly recommend purchasing one. There are countless things you can do with one and many personal use laminators are very affordable.

If you plan to purchase or already have a HP printer, I would highly recommend the “HP Instant Ink” plan if your printer supports it. Great for heavy color printing. Click or Copy and paste this link into your web browser to see if your printer is compatible and try it out: try.hpinstantink.com/rFjLW

Step #1 – Printing

- Print out all of the Activity Pages, Cutout Pages, and Cover Page.

Note:

All Cutout Pages are marked with scissors.

Make sure you are printing single sided on the paper (DO NOT print double sided!)

Please use “Adobe Acrobat Reader” to ensure the pages print properly. Click or Copy and Paste this link into your web browser for more info: https://get.adobe.com/reader/

Step #2 – Laminating

What you will need: 1) Laminator 2) Laminating Pouches 3) Scissors

- Place all of the printed pages into the laminating pouches making sure the paper is centered and there is a clear boarder going around each side of the paper.

- Laminate the pages.

Alternative Methods:

Clear Sheet Protectors:

- Place Activity Pages into the clear sheet protectors.

- For the Cutout Pages, clear sheet protectors will NOT work. Another method will need to be used.

Self-Sealing Laminating Pouches:

- Follow their provided instructions on how to “laminate” all of the printed pages. Essentially you would place the printed paper into the pouch, remove the backing off of the sticky piece, and fold down the sticky piece onto your printed page making sure to press out any air bubbles.

Clear Contact Paper:

- Peel off the backing of the clear contact paper and place it (sticky side down) onto the printed page making sure to press out any air bubbles. I would then recommend repeating the process and placing another piece of clear contact paper onto the back side of the printed paper to mimic the lamination process.

Step #3 – Cutout Pieces

What you will need: 1) Scissors

- Grab the Cutout Pages (marked with scissors) and cut out the pieces.

- Cutouts may have sharp edges especially around the corners. I recommend trimming the Cutout Pieces with scissors or a rounded corner punch so kids will not get hurt

Note:

Feel free to cut the pieces out however you would like. I would recommend cutting as close as possible to the images. However, some images will need a little white space especially around areas that can be super thin after cutting.

- Optional: After cutting out all of the pieces I recommend ironing them. When cutting out the pieces there can be peeling of the lamination from the paper. To fix this, and to help make the cutout pieces last even longer, ironing for just a few seconds will reheat the lamination and help it re-stick together. Make sure to iron on a heat-safe surface and use wax paper on each side of the cutout pieces. Press for about 3 - 5 seconds and then check the pieces. This should be all they need.

Step #4 – Hole Punch

What you will need: 1) 3-hole punch

- Using a 3-hole punch, punch the top of each Activity Page.

Note:

I recommend estimating or “eyeballing” where these holes should be punched. When I use the paper guide on my hole punch, the pages line up weird when placed into the binder.

If using clear sheet protectors, please skip this step as they should already have binder holes.

Step #5 – Velcro Style Hook & Loop Dots

What you will need: 1) Velcro Style Hook & Loop Dots (White and/or Clear)

Note:

There is no “correct” way on how to do this step. This is just the way I prefer. I do recommend consistency throughout the book though. For example, I suggest that all of the Cutout Pieces have the Loop (soft side) dot and that the Hook (rough side) dot be on all of the Activity Pages.

I like using a combination of White and Clear Hook & Loop Dots Depending on the Activity Page.

When using the White Velcro Style Hook & Loop Dots, ensure you do not place the dot over something that needs to be seen such as a number or face. Instead, try offsetting the dot into the white space of the page or on a part of the image that can be covered. This is where Clear Velcro Style Hook & Loop Dots can come in handy. You are still able to see the image behind the Clear dot very well.

Clear Dot

White Dot

- First, stick the Hook (rough side) dot sticky side down onto the activity page where a Cutout Piece should go (rough side should be up).

- Next, place the Loop (soft side) dot soft side down onto the just placed Hook dot (sticky side of the Loop dot should be up).

- Then, place the back of the corresponding Cutout Piece onto the sticky side of the Loop dot making sure the Cutout Piece aligns with the image on the Activity Page.

- Press firmly to make sure everything sticks together.

Hook (Rough) Dot

Loop (Soft) Dot

Cutout Piece

Diagram

Step #6 – Putting The Book Together

What you will need: 1) 3-Ring Binder

- Insert the Activity Pages into the Binder in any order you would like.

Step #7 – Storing Cut-Out Pieces

What you will need: Depending on the method 1) Velcro Style Hook & Loop Dots 2) Plastic Zip-Top Bags

There are 3 options to store the Cutout Pieces.

#1 – Simply leave the Cutout Pieces attached to the Activity Pages. When ready to use, just remove all of the pieces at once and place back onto the Activity Page as the activity is completed.

#2 – Use plastic zip-top bags to hold all of the Cutout Pieces for the Activity Page. You can either hole punch the bottom of the bag and place it in front of the Activity Page OR store all of the bags in a pencil box. If using either of these two methods, I do recommend labeling the bags.

#3 – Attach the Cutout Pieces to the back of the previous page using additional Velcro Style Hook & Loop Dots. If using the recommended Hook (rough side) dots on the Activity Pages and the Loop (soft side) dots on the Cutout Pieces, place an equal number of Hook (rough side) dots onto the back of the previous page and stick the Cutout Pieces onto these dots.

All Done!

You now have a Busy Book to keep your kid busy, interested, and occupied! Perfect to take on-the-go or to simply keep them quiet and busy wherever you are!

Free PDF Download

1 Activity Page

&

1 Cutout Page

~Click the image to download~

Sample Activity:Cut.pdf

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