Why Make Books by Edward H. Hutchins What teachers DON'T need is something else to teach. But good teachers are always looking for ways to make their lessons more effective. This is why book arts programs are so successful: They make teaching easier and more effective by reenforcing and supporting what the educator is already teaching. ~Making Books Promotes Better Retention. When students write down their lessons, they are more apt to remember them. The book project provides an effective platform to record, preserve and then share what they have learned. ~Making Books Encourages Exploration. Once students start a book, they want to complete it. The bookmaking project encourages them to go out and find more information on the subject. Once started, they want to fill their books, add details and investigate related topics. Books are the best method of storing and sharing everything that the student has learned. ~Making Books Fits Any Discipline. Whether the subject is math, science, history, art, literature, foreign languages, or social studies, a book project can be incorporated into any curricula. Best of all, books allows for the combination of many areas of study. Making a book in a social studies class also incorporates writing, communication, spatial relationships and artistic skills. ~Making Books Allows Students to Work on Their Own. While making books is a group project, each book becomes an opportunity for the individual student to branch off in their own direction. It encourages them to find their own way of recording and expressing the information they select to put into their book. Everyone in the classroom may be working on the same subject, but the result is as many different and unique books as there are students. ~Making Books Generates Excitement. Books take many shapes and come in a variety of structures that fold and unfold to reveal their contents in unexpected ways. They are a good tool for creating interest in otherwise challenging material. Because each book is an expression of the individual, it results in high personal satisfaction. ~Making Books Encourages Communication. In addition to the obvious exercise in writing and visual presentation, books promote the sharing of ideas. Exchanging books is a great way for students to share what they have learned with other students. The books quickly find their way home where they create interest and appreciation for the classroom work. Put simply, the book arts are at the intersection where writing, illustration, discovery, creativity and sharing come together to support the classroom curriculum.