BOOK COVERS: A SCHOOL PROJECT LIKE IT OR NOT

In some schools, students are now required to make covers for their books. Students often use plastic wrap. It clings. Tape isn’t even necessary.

There are book socks that one can purchase to cover textbooks. These are made from stretchy material, and they fit most hard cover books. Book socks don’t work well on paperbacks.

When I worked in a label factory, we had huge sheets of paper with beer or ketchup labels printed on them. Those co-workers who had kids in school would would take several sheets home, cut them up and make wrappers for school books. The kids loved them, and wanted more of them for friends.

I read over a hundred books a year, but I don’t wrap my books. In fact, I unwrap some of them. If I have to carry a book around in my purse to read in restaurants, I take the sleeve off the book and tuck the sleeve in a safe place at home until I finish the book.

I like paperbacks. They take up less room on the shelf and they don’t have sleeves. I could never understand why wrapping a book up was so popular. How do you know which textbook is which if you cover the book with paper? In college I never saw a book wrapped up, and college students do make use of their books. At least they do if they want to stay in college and graduate.

I do think see-through plastic wraps are an improvement. If you have to wrap up a book, at least wrap it up in see-through plastic, so you can still see the title.

Place the book in a plastic grocery store store bag if you think it will rain.

I looked up book socks on Amazon and eBay. They are not called book socks, but book covers. I like calling them socks better. The book covers that I saw don’t come in see-through. I guess if you want see-through covers buy a box of plastic wrap, the kind used for putting leftovers away in the refrigerator.

One could get creative. Have a soccer ball or football cover for the book in a health class. A Shakespeare cover for an English class textbook.

Which ones would I buy if I bought a book sock? I wouldn’t buy one. I like to be more intimate with my books. I like them bare. After all we are having a meeting of the minds. You can’t put a sock on that.

Learning Hack of the Day: Carry Essential Books

What books are needed on a student's Kindle or bookshelf. Today it is easy to carry a dictionary, several encyclopedias, all of our textbooks and a favorite novel in our purses. With Kindle readers, we don't need to have our book bag weighed down. But the question remains what books, do we need?

That depends on your lessons. A business student needs very different books from a pre med student. Talk to teachers. Read reviews of your textbooks. What other books has the author written? What extra reading does your professor recommend?

I will make a few useful suggestions for any student.

1. Books on alternative uses for household items. These books show you how to reuse items, and problem solve.

2. Books on memory and accelerated learning. I try to cover most of the techniques here in my blog, but I might miss a few and there are hundreds of books out there on the art of memory and learning.

3. a novel. We learn from characters in books as they go about living in society and solving their problems. Novels are filled with great characters and learning experiences.

4. A book on argument fallacies. These include ad hominem, post hoc and hasty generalization. There are lots of these fallacies. As you read about them, look for examples in daily speech and news reporting.

5. A book of daily intellectual meditations. A fact a day. Sure if you are taking classes,and you already have enough to learn, but try to broaden your learning horizons with a book that gives you more. Some are in the form of fact a day calendars.Look at the daily word in dictionary.com

6. Your daily journal.

Of course, don't limit the books either in your kindle or on your book shelf. A writer friend of mine has a book on how to exit sinking ship. He says he has not had to use it for reference yet, but one never knows when one of his characters might have to exit a sinking ship. Of course, that book may not be available in Kindle yet. So we still have to keep some volumes on our shelfs.

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While the holidays are busy times, reading can give you some relaxation time.