My husband and I attended an amazing event today – “The Artistry Behind Pop-Up Books” at R.I.T. in Rochester, NY. If you are in the area – don’t miss it. It runs through November 14.

I have always found pop-up books very appealing. One of my childhood treasures is a “Peepshow” book about Cinderella. I would eventually like to purchase more of the set. I’m sure you can imagine what turns up whenever I type the word “Peepshow” into eBay. We won’t even go there!!

My husband loves paper art of all kinds and found the show mesmerizing. I envision the beginnings of a new collection and relish the possibilities for Christmas presents etc.

Anyway – on the way home I began thinking….. Yes – pop-up books are for children. They are also for big children (like Bob and me) who collect antique toys & dolls. But they extend beyond the realm of childhood. In the exhibit there was a pop-up book covering the history of the White House. Another one brought the tragedy of Pompeii too life. 2 more delved into the field of psychology – one on phobias and the other on nightmares. There was even a book about Alfred Hitchcock’s movies.

I began to think of the possibility pop-up books represent for older students – particularly the visual learners among them. Our GatesBeatles committee is brainstorming ideas right now for project-based and/or service based learning projects. How about older students creating pop-up books as a research product? They could demonstrate their learning in any subject you can think of by creating such books. Their products could them be used to teach concepts to other visual learners. Our 9th graders have started projects about Ancient Greece right now. That would be a great base for a pop-up book. What about our students creating all sorts of interactive “museum” exhibits on various topics? The exhibits could contain displays that would touch multiple senses and multiple intelligences. Perhaps they could become traveling exhibits. I’ll bet our elementary and middle school teachers would love it if our students would create learning centers for them to use with their students.

Lots of possiblilites here.