If you’ve been following our blog for a while then you’ll know that there’s nothing we love more than making books. But why? Yes, we’re both partial to a bit of crafting but it’s more than that – there is pedagogical reasoning behind the making.

Firstly, there is an obvious surface value to creating beautiful books; whether using simple folds or elaborate sewn techniques. Children feel that their work is valued and it will become a beautiful, published object so they invest themselves more deeply in the writing process. It raises the overall quality of work. You can’t go to the effort of hand sewing a book, paying attention to creating a neat, sturdy cover only to write a load of random rubbish in it. No, if a child has invested time in making something that beautiful, they want their writing to reach the same standard. That’s also a good reason to begin with the making; children need to see what they’re working towards, feel the anticipation of it, in order to want to invest themselves. The process of making can also become part of the drafting process. Children talk and buzz about what they are creating and ideas start forming. They are not forced to sit and struggle for inspiration to fall in their lap; their hands are busy and so are their brains.

Sometimes when we work with groups of children we make folded books in advance for the children to use. This also holds a lot of value, as in some instances you may want the physical structure of the book to provide a structure for the writing. For example, a simple origami book made from a single sheet of paper produces a front cover, 3 double page spreads and a back cover. Voilà, there’s your story plan. No need to spend hours labouring the finer details of what a child will or won’t include in each section of their story – show them the limitations of the paper and let them work it out. The shape of the book chosen by a child allows them both creativity and constructive constraint. A ready-made book invites children in (especially the youngest children) in a way that a piece of paper or an exercise book does not. Children feel a sense of purpose and ownership over their writing – it bestows agency on them. There is nothing more satisfying than watching the care children take over their book-making and the pride in their collection of books they create.