Help needed please with Setting Book.

[Cazz]

When my d.o. came out in November I mentioned that I was thinking of compiling a learning journey for my own daughter so that I can show it to prospective parents as an example (as you can't show them other children's lj's). I also thought it would be a nice memory book for my daughter.

She suggested I do a Setting book which could be shown to prospective parents which I thought was a nice idea. Do any of you have them and if so how do you do them?

Are they done in a scrapbook format with examples of children's work or just photo's of the children doing things and places you've been in an album?

My husband found a lovely photo album in our loft which holds 500 photos so I was going to put photo's from the time I started minding in November 2009 and keep adding to it.

I had a thought last night that if parents visit in say 3 years time are they really going to be interested in what we were doing at the end of 2009?
In which case would it be better to do a smaller book for each year.

I use folders with plastic sleeves for my learning journeys so I could use those, smaller photo albums or that large photo album I mentioned.

Please could you advise which would be best and should I just put photo's or other things in there as well?

I need to be getting on with this as she's coming out again in February and fingers crossed I'll start getting some enquiries and visits soon!

[clio0602]

I have just started doing a photo book for this year. I have bought 5 exercise books from Home Bargains think they were about £1 and am putting pogo pics and a little sentence or date at the side of it.

Ds and older mindee loves helping with it and they got to decorate the cover x

[Bridey]

I have a number of photo albums containing all the photos I have taken during my 12 years of childminding (with parent's permission). It used to be glossy prints, now I just put in pages of photos printed from my pc.

The children have access to these albums and love looking at them. Some of the children I mind have been with me for up to 8 years and they enjoy looking at pics of themselves as babies, as do their younger siblings and childminded friends. They love remembering and chatting about days out, favourite activities and models and crafts they have made. They also like seeing how my son (now 13) has changed over my many years of doing this job!

These albums are shown to parents, prospective parents and Ofsted as they reflect very well the service, outings and activities I offer and show how happy the children are in the candid shots and how they interact well together.

I don't insert artwork or make notes as the pictures talk for themselves really :)

[loocyloo]

i used to have photo albums that had only minding photos in, showing what we did, where we went etc and the children loved them! they loved them so much, that the old ones disintergrated!

so i did a whole load of photobooks on truprint. the children still love them, and looking at back at children they remember, or seeing themselves as a much younger child! ( in fact, i used mind my friends older DS, and when they came over at christmas, he was having a complete fit about my cat ... when we found the photos of him with the cat as a kitten climbing all over him ... he remembered and was so much calmer about the cat! :rolleyes: )

i think its nice, plus you can show parents examples of what you do/where you go/children are happy here!

i've just spent 4 hours on truprint (1/2 price photobooks at the moment!) doing 2010 photobook !!!! great fun, and you can add text to lots of the photos, or just have a page of text, so you write all about your setting if you wanted to.

[sarah707]

I have photo albums going back a few years but regularly take photos out of children who have left because once children leave the photos are the property of their parents.

What I ought to do is get written permission to still use the photos but I haven't got round to it yet. :rolleyes:

Hth :D

[Cazz]

I have photo albums going back a few years but regularly take photos out of children who have left because once children leave the photos are the property of their parents.

What I ought to do is get written permission to still use the photos but I haven't got round to it yet. :rolleyes:

Hth :D

Oh I'd hate to have to do that :( I want to be able to look back and remember the children that I've minded.

A childminder friend has given me a copy of a new photo permission form she's devised so I'm going to ask all my parents to sign that one and hopefully they'll agree to me keeping them in the album.