FAMILY ALBUM POP-UP BOOK MAKING @ QUEENS PUBLIC LIBRARY.8 8/30/2021


   

             QUEENS PUBLIC LIBRARY - CREATIVE AGING PROGRAM

FAMILY ALBUM POP-UP BOOK MAKING

It’s hard to believe that this is our last class! What a wonderful time we have had working with Queens Public Library in their Creative Aging program. Thank you to Madlyn Schneider, Older Adult/Homebound Coordinator and her assistants Willie and Kathy. Madlyn is an enthusiastic supporter of our work, and we are very grateful for this opportunity to reach out to a new audience.

For our final warm up we played a theater game of openings and closings. Each student thought of something that opened and closed or just opened and mimed it for the class. Madlyn, the librarian, opened a book and began to read, while Madi shared opening a bag of potato chips or a present. She also suggested opening a box of candies to the delight of us all!

Students gathered the pages of their pop-up book and decided the order. Next, they added one page at the front and another at the back. These pages could be the same color as the book or a different color. Now it was time to make the book jacket. They selected 2 pieces of the same-colored paper, which were the same size as the pages of the book. They laid them vertically and drew a line 1” from the edge of the shorter side on one piece, glued this section then carefully laid the other piece on it. This created a long piece of paper. They put glue around the edges of the top page and aligned the jacket. The spine of the cover was folded, and the jacket cover was folded over the edge of the back page. The jacket cover was trimmed to make it fit inside the page. With this extra jacket piece, students can add extra pages to their pop-up book if so desired.

We brainstormed ideas for titles and students were given time to choose something appropriate which they wrote on white paper in pencil, then outlined in black sharpie and finally erased the pencil. Decorative paper was employed as a backdrop to highlight the title and the same process was used to write their names as the author. 

As the book is quite thick, we like to add a ribbon to tie it together. This is not only practical but also adds a charming effect, finished off with a bow. To do so, students selected ribbon at least 36” in length and about 3/8” in width, though this can vary depending on taste or material used, such as substituting ribbon for twine. An awl or other sharp object was used to make a hole through the cover and first page in the middle of the cover about ½” in from the edge. About 8” of ribbon was pulled through this hole and tied off. The extra ribbon is tied twice around the book, holding everything in place, then tied off in a bow or butterfly knot. As an added extra, students can make a pocket in the back page to hold the photos they used as reference.

Some students had sent us photos of their pages and we were excited to share a PowerPoint presentation with the class. Diane, Maureen, Yun, and Ruth created lively pages visually representing their personal stories which they shared with us. We encourage everyone to continue creating and we hope they share their work with us.

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