With 2nd Grade Children
This week I met 2nd grade students from a private school in Sāo Paulo. I deeply thank Juliana J. for this beautiful invitation and all the teachers who were so supportive of their students during the whole process of creating their own notebooks! It was an amazing process!
The children wanted to learn how to make professional handmade bookbinding to be able to make their own books. They wrote their own texts and in the final part of this project they will bind it and share their stories with the school community. When talking to the teachers about this project, and seeing the children's work, I select the pamphlet book as an option. I've prepared a possible version of the book and shared with the teachers, which was enthusiastically approved. Therefore, on the workshop's day I showed children how to make a smaller version of this type of binding. It was an opportunity to experiment the process and learn all the steps to make their own books.
During our workshop, children asked questions about the art of bookbinding and tried out the basic procedures to create their own notebooks. During the folding process they noticed "it's just like origami!"; While they were punching holes with the cradle they asked "what is 45 degrees?"; and, while they were sewing their books they wondered: "do we tie the needle in a knot?", "Will the thread go inside? How do you do that?!". Many of the children had already previous experience with sewing objects. At the end of this workshop, teachers and children were happy to see their colorful books ready and had the wonderful idea of using it to create a zine (a practice they had already done before).
Many topics emerged during these encounters. I would like to highlight the discussion about the time it takes to create handmade notebooks: "I wish it was really quick!", one child commented. So, we reflect on the differences and similarities between the ways of making books that inhabit the classroom and books made by hand.
I shared that I chose to learn the process of handmade bookbinding because I like the idea of slowing down, of experiencing time in a longlasting way. I also mentioned that, even so, we incorporated tools (technology) to optimize the process and guarantee better quality when making notebooks - cradle, folder, ruler, are some tools that optimize the bookbinder's daily life. By making an object more slowly, we can focus our attention on each step and really guarantee the quality of the object that is being made.
One child shared that he made a table out of "real" wood with his dad. We discussed that making things with our own hands helps us understand the process of making objects and also helps us to raise awareness about the world that surrounds us. It is a celebration of manual craftsmanship and of the importance of being whole body present in the moment.
During this process, some children checked: "Am I doing it right? Is that how you do it? They noticed some details. While punching the holes, for instance, some children said : "the hole has to be a little bigger!". After examining their own work, some decided to use the awl once more to adjust the size of their book's holes. During this process they discovered that the pressure of the awl could be neither too light nor too strong. They needed to find the just right pressure of the awl against the surface of the paper to make the perfect size hole.
While they were sewing their notebooks, they observed the path of the needle and thread and learned how to tie a knot.
The sense of community was clear. When a child finished their work we asked them to help one another. A collaborative space was created in the classroom.
There were children who realized that their notebooks were not "perfect". For instance, one child showed that the hole was not centered on the spine of the book. And another child noticed that the signature paper was slightly exceeding the cover. This child wanted to see just the black paper (cover).
Faced with these dilemmas, we talk about three aspects related to making mistakes:
Dealing with mistakes helps us continue learning. Errors are an essential part of manual work. Mistakes make us constantly look for solutions. Fenix notebooks, for example, are born from the "errors" that occur in the day-to-day life of artisanal bookbinding. Instead of wasting high quality materials, I researched the language of the materials I was using and the structure of the book. This helped me to search for appropriate solutions for each project and reinvent the books. In the case of the "out of place hole", for example, the child could add a sticker or create a drawing, and make a new hole in the spine of their notebook.
Even though we have technology and tools that help us with the making process, we always need to repeat a project. Improving a practice only happens through repetition, hands on projects and remaining present and reflective during practice is essential to continue to grow as an artist.
And, but not less important, at the end of the binding, we often trim the book using a knife and metal ruler. On this day, some children decided to trim their books with scissors. In this case, the boy could have trimmed the signature and then he would only see the black cover.
I was so grateful to be able to spend some time with the children and observe their excitement in learning the basic bookbinding procedures! And, of course, there were so many other interesting points to be discussed. Thus, I would like to end this text by highlighting some advantages of handmade bookbinding:
- Do it yourself. Learning craftsman practices and being able to perform them autonomously generates a wonderful feeling of learning the language of the objects.
- When we make books, we learn the language of materials and objects that were created by us.
- It's sustainable. We can make smart choices when purchasing or choosing the materials we will use to make our books. Natural materials are always a good choice for the environment and also getting just the necessary quantities (no excess).
- Handmade bookbinding is a process that guarantees the quality of the notebooks. Quality materials, research and a careful bookbinding process allow the production of great books!
I end this post by celebrating children’s autonomy and creativity! I hope they continue to express their creativity in the world. May they create lots of notebooks to communicate their ideas, feelings, drawings, memories and stories!
This was a very fun and inspiring experience.
References:
Literacy through the Book Arts by Paul Johnson
How to Make Books - fold, Cut & Stitch to a One-of-a-Kind Book by Esther K Smith (illustrations by Lindsay Stadig and photographys by David M. Zimmerman)
Play and the Hundred Languages - an Interview with Lella Gandini
Maker-Centered learning: Empowering Young People To Shape Their Worlds by Edward P. Clapp, Jessica Ross, Jennifer O. Ryan, Shari Tishman - Project Zero (2016)