Back to School Activities for Kids: Book Covering Party

A book covering party is a simple way to get kids excited about heading back to class. The perfect way to spruce up old textbooks, this back to school activity will make hitting the books fun and fashionable!

Book Covering Party Tips

Set up some delicious treats for the kids to nibble at while they're working as well as some basic craft supplies like covering materials, some scissors, a pencil and a ruler. Parental supervision is recommended.

How to Create A Book Cover

Fold paper in half around a closed book. Be sure to crease the paper sharply around all edges of the book.

Remove the book and trim the paper, being careful to leave a 2- to 3-inch margin around the creased rectangle. It's helpful to measure and mark the margin with a ruler and pencil prior to cutting.

Fold in the top and bottom edges of the paper along the lengthwise creae lines. Next, fold in the left and right edges of the paper following the side crease lines.

Your last step is to slide the front cover of the book into the folded paper "sleeve" along the left edge of the paper cover. Repeat this step with the back cover as well as the right side.

You can use a variety of covering materials based on whatever theme kids want to decorate their books with. Here are some examples:

Cargo pants pocket cover:
A handy way to store pens, pencils and lunch money. Cover the book you would like to redecorate, following the above directions. Next, cut a pocket off an old pair of cargo pants. Attach the pocket to the cover using double-sided tape.
Designer bag cover:
Flatten a paper bag from your child's favorite store and fold it around the book using the directions as above. Next, center the words or pictures that you'd like to feature. If you're using a plastic bag, tape folds into place.
Pen and pad cover:
A unique and handy place to record homework assignments and upcoming test dates. Begin with a covered book. In order to create the pen holder, cut a 6-inch piece of 3/4-inch-wide electrical tape. Next, stick a 1 1/4-inch piece of tape to the center of the 6-inch piece (the sticky sides should be together). Wrap the nonsticky part of the tape around your pen. Attach the inside flap of the book cover using double-sided tape or a glue stick. If the pad is too bulky, use one half or one third of the pad.
Other fun book cover ideas:
You can also use an old road map, colored paper or newspaper comics covered in clear adhesive paper to cover your books.

Source: Familyfun.com

Another great back to school activity for bookworms - or for inspiring the inner bookworm in your child - is starting a kids book club.