Flip Book

What You’ll Do

1. Warm Up (Optional): Animate a Bouncing Ball
   Start simple. Try drawing a ball that moves, bounces, or rolls across the page. This will help you understand how animation works before diving into your own story.

2. Sketch Ideas
   Think of a short and simple animation idea—something playful or action-packed. Stick figures, bouncing objects, simple characters—they all work great!
   Draw a few rough sketches in your sketchbook before committing to your flip book.

3. Start at the Bottom
   Begin drawing on the last page of your notepad. Use a bold black marker so your drawing is easy to see through the next sheet. On each new page, trace and slightly change the position of your character or object to show movement.
   Tip: Movement looks faster when the changes are big, and slower when the changes are small.

4. Let the Story Flow
   Sometimes the best stories aren’t fully planned. You can let your characters move freely and see where they go. Add some surprises and make it fun!

5. Test and Adjust
   Flip through your pages quickly. Where does the movement feel smooth? Where can it be improved? You can always add or redo a page.

6. Add Color
   Once your movement is working well, color in your characters. Focus on one color at a time across all pages. Add backgrounds or props if you like.

Flip Book Vocabulary

Flip Book – A small book made of drawings that change slightly on each page. When you flip the pages quickly, the drawings appear to move.

Frame – One single drawing in a sequence. Flip books use many frames to show movement.

Animation – A series of images shown in order to create the illusion of motion. Flip books are a basic form of animation.

Movement – The way something changes position from one frame to the next. It gives life and energy to your drawings.

Tracing – Copying the shape of a previous drawing to keep movement consistent across pages.

Storyboard – A rough plan or sketch of the animation, showing the basic actions or scenes.

Want to Go Further?

Try using Flipaclip, a free animation app you can download to your phone. It lets you create digital flip books with sound, layers, and more advanced tools.

Closing Thought

Animation is a form of storytelling that mixes movement, rhythm, and emotion. It reminds us that even simple drawings can come alive with energy, humor, and heart—one frame at a time.