Lovely childcare

Handmade ideas to brighten up your preschool graduation album: fun to create, delightful to receive!

10 years as a kindergarten teacher / elementary school teacher / junior and senior high school teacher / childminderkepiko
Graduated from Kunitachi College of Music, Faculty of Music (now: Department of Music Culture and Education, Early Childhood Music Education major). In elementary school, my homeroom teacher was Jun Kusaba, a game researcher. After graduating from university, I worked as a kindergarten teacher for 10 years and as an after-school childcare instructor for 7 years, then took a position as a music teacher at an international school in Singapore. In addition to music education, I engaged in activities that introduced Japanese culture, traditional games, and recreational activities, working with many children. Later, through freelance writing, planning, and editing at Shogakukan, I met many delightful adults and experienced the joy of communicating and sharing. Drawing on the perspective cultivated in the field of education and my experience as an editor, I provide practical information with an emphasis on both input and output, mainly in areas related to music and children. My hobbies include instruments, singing, handicrafts, toys, drawing, traditional games, the outdoors, and books. My special skill is spinning-top tricks.
20 years of experience as a nursery teacher / kindergarten teacherhiyoko sensei
I’m Hiyoko-sensei, a former nursery school teacher from Hyogo Prefecture. Ever since I was five, my dream was to become a childcare worker, and before I knew it, 20 years had passed since I achieved that dream. Through singing and playing with the children, I kept working with the spirit of someone in their twenties, even as I increasingly felt my physical limits year by year (haha). From here on, I’d like to share helpful information carefully and thoughtfully, drawing on my on-site experience.

We’ve gathered wonderful ideas for parents and teachers creating handmade graduation albums.

You’ll find tips for heartfelt albums, including decorations using construction paper, ways to incorporate children’s drawings, and how to make individual pages.

We also introduce ideas you can use for albums presented to teachers, as well as decorations with origami and felt—perfect for capturing kindergarten and nursery school memories.

Try making a one-of-a-kind graduation album together with the children!

Handmade ideas to brighten up your kindergarten graduation album! A collection of fun-to-make, delightful-to-receive ideas (21–30)

Handmade with 100-yen shop materials!

[Work Video] Handmade Graduation Commemorative Album Using 100-Yen Shop Materials | How to Make a Seria Message Card File [100-Yen DIY]

Handmade with 100-yen shop materials!

Here’s an idea for a handmade file that can store message cards and regular cards.

Get a 2-ring album from a 100-yen shop.

Attach design paper to the front and back covers, and decorate the inside with paper and ribbons as well.

Since adding paper can make the album harder to fold, the key is to crease it firmly to set the shape.

Work carefully and neatly to prevent tearing or lifting.

Make cards sized to fit the binder and punch two holes in them.

Add photos full of memories and messages, and you’ll have a lovely album completed.

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

Fun in the album! A starter trick

[Handmade Album] Starting Mechanism! Square Version! Great idea for the first page! / Recommended for birthdays, anniversaries, preschool graduation, and graduation ceremonies! /

Fun in the album! A starter trick

Here’s an introduction to the “Start Card” that reveals a photo.

First, prepare a sheet of colored construction paper sized 14.5 × 10.5 cm.

Mark the center area, then make another mark 2.5 cm from that mark.

Draw a 4 cm grid both vertically and horizontally, then cut out the lines for the window frame and the lower section.

Create a sliding mechanism that fits the lower cut-out line, and attach it with double-sided tape.

Stick a photo or similar item onto the sliding mechanism, then adhere another sheet of construction paper of the same size to the back to finish.

Use this as a reference and have fun planning the layout for your preschool graduation album!

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

Handmade touches to brighten your kindergarten graduation album! Fun to make, delightful to receive — Idea Collection (31–40)

Eight clever ideas made with cutouts

Make your handmade graduation albums with cutouts even more wonderful with these 8 ideas

Eight clever ideas made with cutouts

Here are some ideas for making your album more fun and vibrant with photo cutouts.

These days, cutting out photos is easy, and simply trimming them into circles or rough shapes can dramatically change the impression.

If you keep in mind the conditions that make for good cutouts, the result will look even cleaner.

Adding a frame on the back, using circular frames, or creating a “tray” at the bottom edge gives a sense of stability.

It’s also great to cut roughly and arrange as a collage, trim off the bottom edge to neaten the look, add fluffy materials in the background, or include messages in speech bubbles.

Just incorporating these small touches will make your memories look even more striking, so give them a try!

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

Rise! Ferris wheel card

[Handmade Album] Pop-up Ferris Wheel Mechanism! Square Version! Perfect for the First Page Idea! / Recommended for Birthdays, Anniversaries, Preschool/Kindergarten Graduation, and School Graduation! /

Rise! Ferris wheel card

Here’s an idea for a “Pop-up Ferris Wheel Card”! Take a 4 cm × 7 cm piece of colored cardstock in your favorite color.

Draw a line 4 cm up from the bottom, then make marks 1.5 cm in from the left and right at the top.

Connect each mark to the bottom corners with lines and cut along those lines on both sides.

Next, cut out two circles with radii of 4 cm and 3 cm.

Glue them together like a Ferris wheel axle, then create the Ferris wheel’s gondolas in any shapes you like.

Secure the center with a hole punch and fastener or similar.

Finally, attach the Ferris wheel to the card so it pops out, and you’re done!

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

set the rig

[Finished Product] Graduation Album

set the rig

A graduation album that opens like a pop-up book and reveals three-dimensional mechanisms is something children would surely enjoy.

Looking back on memories through photos is wonderful, but adding a little extra makes the graduation album even more special.

You can include messages in the pop-up elements or have friends write notes to each other, creating new memories—highly recommended.

Please create a lovely album filled with lots of fun memories for the children.

Raise the rankinglower

Hoshino Takashi

Report a problem

Make a photo collage

[100-Yen Store DIY] Photo Collage 📸🐶

Make a photo collage

A photo collage—where you use photos, cut them out, and paste them together—turns out much cuter than simply sticking photos on a page, and it boosts the overall design, so it’s highly recommended.

Because you can paste only the parts of the photos you need, you can include more photos than if you were just pasting them as-is, which is another nice perk.

Besides photos, decorate with things like masking tape, text you’ve typed on a computer and printed out, and stylish stickers cut from wrapping paper.

Raise the rankinglower

Hirakawa Masako (Bōkarisuto: Sakata Mizumako)

Report a problem

Album card

[Handmade Albums] Easy to Make but Looks Intricate Tricks!

Album card

An album card that can hold memorable photos is also a highly recommended idea.

Since there are various shapes, start by finding one you like and use it as inspiration.

There are standard book-style albums and horizontally long albums, for example.

Options with a mechanism that lets the cover open separately, or designs featuring popular characters, are great too.

Part of the charm of this idea is the excitement of thinking, “What kind of album would make them happy?” while you plan it.

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem