Gathering Materials for Your Slam Book
Buy a notebook or journal. These don’t have to be expensive, and any notebook can work. You could buy a simple composition notebook with lined paper inside or a journal with a fancy cover. It’s up to you. The goal here is to use a book with a lot of blank pages because you will be passing it around for people to write in. How many blank pages you need depends on how many people you want to pass it to and how many questions you want to ask them.
Decorate the cover of the slam book. You’ll want to decorate the cover of your slam book so that people know what it is and it looks attractive. This is where your personal creativity starts to come in. Here are some ideas for you: Use stickers or marker to write the words “slam book” on the cover of the notebook or journal. Some people also decorate their slam books with colorful stickers, glitter glue, and even fake gemstones. Use your artistic talents! Keep the book closed by tying a ribbon or even a string of beads around the slam book.
Include a teacher, parent, or other adult. If you’re going to be passing a slam book around school, it can be a good idea to let the teacher know what you are doing. Some people pass slam books around their families too! You don’t only have to pass it around other people your age. Explain the purpose of the slam book to the adult. Let them know that the point of a slam book is to be positive and that any negative “slams” are not allowed. Ask the adults when you can circulate it. Maybe you will agree to only circulate it during recess, for example. Consider including the adult in the circulation. It might be interesting to know your teacher’s favorite band or ice cream, for example. Why not?
Getting the Slam Book Ready
Create a name page. You will want to create a few pages toward the front of your slam book where people should write their names in order. This allows you to figure out later which people gave which answers. Include a list of numbers on the page that indicate how many people you want to sign the book. Some slam books have spaces for 10 names while others have 25, and so on. If you choose 10, write the numbers 1 to 10 on the name page. It depends if you are trying to keep the slam book among a small circle of friends or a larger one. Have each of your friends pick a number and write their name next to that number. Tell your friends to use that number when answering any questions you write in the slam book.
Write a question at the top of each page. This is how a classic slam book works and starts. You should start by writing a question at the top of the first blank page inside the book after the name page. Write questions that focus on someone’s likes/dislikes or non-embarrassing facts, such as their pet’s name or their favorite ice cream flavor. Choose questions with short answers. You can also write statements that also provoke answers, such as “favorite music artist” or “last trip you took."
Try not to be mean. A slam book, in its best version, should be something you use to find out more about your friends, including their likes and dislikes. Don't allow mean comments about this person or that. That’s bullying, and bullying can cause serious damage to other people. Don’t use your slam book for rumors or negative statements about other people. When people get in trouble, it's usually because they went negative in some way. A good rule of thumb is never to write something in a slam book about another person that will upset them or that would upset you if it was written about you.
Put numbers on each of the question pages. If you do this, it will also help people understand what they are supposed to do when they turn to each page. Make sure people know they are supposed to answer the question on each page. Sometimes there is confusion with slam books, but, usually, once the first few people do it, they tell others how it’s supposed to be done and word spreads. So, if you have created, say, space for 25 names on the name page, you would create a numbered list from 1 through 25 on each question page too.
Passing the Slam Book Around
Answer your own questions first. Don’t assume everyone knows what a slam book is! You could just explain it to your friends. However, it may end up circulated pretty quickly among other people you haven’t directly explained it to. That’s why answering each question as #1 yourself provides people with an example of how it’s supposed to work. You could also create a page toward the front of the page that says something like “how this works” and then explain what each person is supposed to do. Include the instruction that when the final number on the name page list is taken, the book should be returned to you. People need to know who the slam book belongs to and where to return it or you may never see it again!
Pass the slam book to a friend. Here’s how it works. You pass the slam book to a friend, and that friend is supposed to answer the questions on each page. The friend should indicate they wrote the answers by writing #1 or #2 (if you filled out #1 already) and then their answer on each page. Or, if you have already chosen to number each answer page, they should write their answer after their number. Once your friend #1 answers the questions, they are supposed to pass the slam book to a second friend, who then answers the question on each page by writing #2 (or #3 if you were #1) and then his or her answer.
Save the slam book. It will be a lot of fun to look back at your old slam books with friends as you age. Some people feel slam books are almost like time capsules in that they capture the vibe of a certain era. You will find it interesting to look back on what you wrote years ago. For example, slam books have existed for decades, and some news sites think it’s entertaining to see what people were writing in slam books in the 1980s. It could be fun to do a new slam book every year. You could even note the year on the cover of the slam book. Let it become a ritual, and compare how people’s tastes change with new trends and as they age!
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