MyBinding Knowledge Base
How can a laminator benefit me if I home school?
You may think of a laminator as a big machine used in elementary schools or graphics shops. Or you may think of the smaller devices used to create driver’s licenses and ID badges. But a laminator can be a valuable tool to have on hand for educational purposes within your own home. Here are six reasons to have a laminator if you homeschool.
- They are safe to use. Before we get into the practical uses, it’s important to take a look at the safety features since it will likely be used around curious children. Some machines are built with technology to keep the outer surfaces at a cooler temperature to prevent burns. But the safest thing to do is get a cold laminator. Since they don’t need to heat up, cold laminators are the best way to ensure you or your child won’t incur a heat related injury during use.
- You can create teaching tools. Young children often use a workbook to learn things like numbers and letters. This often involves copying the items over and over. Instead of paying for a pricey book, make a sheet tailored to your child’s specific needs and laminate it. After they’ve traced and copied the letters, simply wipe it off and it can be reused again and again. The repetition will help to solidify the number and letter shapes in your child’s mind.
- Make your own flashcards. While one-time use flashcards are sometimes logical to make, most often they are studied over and over. Laminating protects them from tears and spills and makes them sturdy enough for use by multiple children. And you can customize the cards to represent exactly what your child is learning. Flashcards are a great tool for learning the alphabet, numbers, spelling words, basic math skills, and animals as well as more complex concepts such as DNA replication or balancing chemical equations. The visual will reinforce the verbal information you’re teaching.
- Design practice sheets. Whatever your child is learning, he will need to practice. For example, printing basic math problems on a sheet and laminating it will let him rework the equations until he’s completely learned the concept. This will work especially well not only for math but also for learning states and countries, conjugating verbs, and labeling pictures.
- It’s great for craft time. Besides all the educational uses, laminators can be used to create and preserve several crafts. Kids can design their own magnets and stickers as well as make bookmarks and placemats. Laminate any drawings or paintings they make and they’ll last for years.
- Parents will like it, too. Small laminators are surprisingly affordable. They’ll even save you money since you won’t need to invest in as much paper or supplies to get the same results. Laminate your recipe cards to shield them from spills and rips. Preserve newspaper clippings, photographs, and old documents from yellowing with age or tearing. You can also create chore charts, daily schedules, and other parenting tools.
< Over the years, a number of customers have asked me whether they can use twin loop wire with their plastic comb binding machine. These customers often don’t want to have to buy a brand new machine but like the look and feel of twin loop wire binding. However, the answer to their question isn’t as simple as it seems. You see, they actually do make twin loop wire that is designed to work with the plastic comb binding hole pattern. With that said, if you want to use these wires you are going to need a way to close the wires. What is Spiral-O Wire? Let me explain a little bit more…There is a product that we carry called Spiral-O Wire. This wire has 19 loops and is designed to work with the hole pattern from a plastic comb binding machine. Spiral-O Wire is sometimes called Wire Combs or Ibico Wire and was originally designed for use with some of the older Ibico binding machines. A number of the older Ibico plastic comb binding machines also included a twin loop wire closer on the front of them to allow users to use both plastic combs and wire. This 19 loop wire was designed for this purpose. What Equipment is Needed? As the Ibico brand has been phased out by GBC and all of the older Ibico plastic binding machines have been replaced with new models, they no longer have the twin loop wire closer on the front of them. This presents a problem in trying to use these spiral-o wires since you can’t use the wires without a way to close them. One of the only options left is to purchase a Twin Loop wire closer. However, since twin loop wire closers are not incredibly cheap this option usually only appeals to users who have larger electric plastic comb binding machines. Otherwise, it is often advisable to simply buy a low end 3:1 pitch twin loop wire binding machine (the supplies are cheaper). This being said, if you have one of the older Ibico binding machines that has a wire closer included you are in luck. The Spiral-O binding supplies that we carry will work perfectly with your machine and you will be able to use both plastic combs and wire depending on your needs. These Spiral-O binding supplies are available in Black, Silver, White, Blue and Red and in sizes up to 1″ in diameter. If you aren’t sure what type of wire binding supplies that you need to work with your machine simply give us a call. Our trained sales representatives will be glad to help you find the correct supplies for use with your machine.(Read More)
