You’ve had enough of studying that history of civilization textbook after 20 pages of endless English kings and queens. You’re ready to go crazy—jump out a window, climb to the roof, or do something even crazier. How about having some fun with your textbook? Well, here are ten ways you can actually have fun with your textbooks. Warning: you may not want to follow these if you actually plan to study from your books in the future or if you campaign for textbook rights. Most of these ideas involve at least partial destruction of textbooks.
Top Ten Ways to Use (or Misuse) College Textbooks
It's ok to lighten up at college! You've got to destress and detox that weary brain somehow.
1. Hold a massive paper airplane war. You can use a nice thick textbook from a subject like history or biology. Get a bunch of friends together, rip out a bunch of pages, divide them among yourselves, and prepare for war! You could even set up barriers with items such as chairs and desks and run around to nail each other with paper airplanes. Or maybe you could have contests to see who could design the coolest airplane.
2. See how many textbooks you and your friends can stuff into a bunk (maybe you could do this at the end of the semester when everyone is ready to take out their stress on their textbooks). Stack them up sideways, flat, however you please. Keep track of how many books you have, and don’t forget to take pictures when you’re done! Of course, this activity might work even better if you stuff the book in the bunk of an unsuspecting roommate who’s gone for the day.
3. Chop up some textbooks with an ax. Have some fun swinging out your vengeance on the books you love to despise! You’ll delight to see that calculus book lying in pieces at your feet.
4. Fold the pages into various origami creations. Head over to your local library to check out a book on making unique shapes. Maybe you can proudly display a selection of paper swans decorated with the periodical table of the elements.
5. If you live near any tall buildings, climb up to the very top story, open a window, and drop the textbook out. Watch it fall to its demise on the pavement below. Of course, you should ask someone to stand beneath and clear passersby out of the way to protect them from being hit by a heavy falling book. It just wouldn’t be good to be responsible for such an accident.
6. Sign your name on the title page and auction the book on eBay as a “signed copy.” Hey, you didn’t say who signed it, right? You just might attract someone who collects signed editions of psychology books.
7. Make a boat out of your textbook. Rig up a sail with a stick as a mast and a pillowcase for the sail. Place the book into a fountain on campus and see how far it sails before sinking down to the mountain.
8. Stack up a textbook tower and see how high you can make it. Get some friends to lend their nice hardcover textbooks to see how high you can go. Start with a couple large textbooks standing on end and alternate a textbook sitting flat with textbooks on end.
9. Sift through the book and draw facial hair on all the people in the pictures. See how the presidents with no facial hair would look with goatees or long flowing beards.
10. Sit down and study your book for a change. OK, sorry … so the last option couldn’t be that boring. Start a big bonfire at the end of the semester and bring your friends. Have them each bring their most hated textbooks, rip them up bit by bit, and fuel the fire. Roast some marshmallows and cook some hot dogs.
See, school isn’t always that boring if you learn to think outside the books. Just think about all the fun you could have with your textbooks if you didn’t have your nose in them studying all the time.
If you’ve got any additions on the top ten ways to get rid of your college textbooks, we’re all ears! Please leave a comment and share your incredible wisdom with the world.
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this is absolutely hilarious! couldn’t stop laughing … keep it up – i want more and more of this!!
The paper airplain one is my favorite – I can just see it after our nursing finals are done, everyone rips up the books and bashes the prof!
I’m still laughing! How about starting a company that grinds up old college textbooks and recycles them into compressed paper board wood product. You could, in theory, build an entire dorm out of recycled textbooks! So, when you don’t want your textbook anymore, just send ‘em my way and I’ll put them to good use!
In addition to renting cheap textbooks, Chegg is committed to preserving our forests by planting a tree for every textbook rented.
Textbook rental? Isn’t that kind of risky? I don’t know how many textbooks I’ve ruined – throw them in the book bag along with a half drunk can of Coke … what a mess! And then the covers that rip off. Unless you’re trying to rent textbooks knowing that the fine print in the contract is going to make the end user end up having to buy it in the end. How about we just ditch the paper and put all our textbooks on flash drives or something similar?