Exercise Books For Beginners

Choosing the correct for your students is essential in ensuring that they have the best tools to progress their learning. This guide explores the different variations of exercise books that are available. From multiple colours options and variety of rulings there’s something to suit all wants and needs.

Discover how choosing the right exercise book will improve your students’ learning experience.

What different types of exercise books are there?

Classic exercise books

Classic exercise books are a great cost-effective solution to aid your student’s work. The Classic range includes a wide range of sizes, page counts, rulings, and cover colours. Covers on all sizes are made from 225gsm card quality.

Key benefits:

• A4, A4+ & 9×7 available
• Wide range of colours
• Front cover overprint available

Oxford exercise books

The Oxford range features premium glossy covers and unique matt writing panel, giving a smart finish and add an extra layer of protection. The Oxford range includes an extensive range of sizes, page counts, rulings, and cover colours.

Key benefits:

• 250gsm gloss varnished covers
• 10 vibrant colours available
• Front cover overprint available

MyChoice exercise books

A fully bespoke range. Create your very own exercise book, with personalisation taken to a new level. Personalise your front cover with full colour option, including images, inside cover, page rulings, page count.

Key benefits:

• Full colour cover
• Create your own ruling and margin
• Personalised inside cover

Exercise book rulings explained

The list of exercise book rulings is extensive, offering a variety of options. For drawing or sketching, blank books without any rulings or margins are ideal. The most common are ruled, or feint ruled books, where ‘feint’ refers to lightly printed lines aiding neat writing. Classic and Oxford offer various rulings, including 15mm feint and 8mm Feint/Alternative Blank, where one page is ruled, and the opposite is blank.

Other options include dotted, squared, or graph books, perfect for subjects like Mathematics, Science, or Design & Technology. Squared books typically feature grids of 5mm, 7mm, or 10mm squares.

Handwriting rulings help students improve letter spacing and alignment. Additionally, music stave exercise books, with lines arranged in staves, are available for writing musical notes, ideal for music theory and practice.

Exercise book sizes and how they are used

A4 is the most common size for an exercise book. A great all rounder and perfect size for all aged students, from primary through to secondary. A4 also fits all standard office folders, files and filing trays, making it easy to stay organised and file books easily. A4+ is 15mm wider that A4. The added width provides additional space within the margin for annotations and extra comments.

A4+ is also useful for subjects that involve workings out, such as Mathematics, Science and Design & Technology; allowing students to structure their writing. 9×7” is more common for younger students, especially primary. Perfect for taking general notes, or being used as a personal diary, a useable size that always allows easy access.

What is GSM and is it important?

Grams per Square Metre (GSM) is the measurement of paper density, indicating the weight of the paper. Paper GSM ranges from 60 – 200. Coloured card, commonly 150 – 200gsm, is usually used for Arts & Crafts, popular for end of term activities, also creating a high-quality finish for a range of the exercise book covers.

Thicker paper can affect the way it processes through a printer, the higher the GSM the thicker the paper, so picking the correct GSM of white copier paper is important. Whereas a higher GSM for front covers of exercise books, for example the Oxford exercise book covers have a thickness of 225gsm, ensuring that the exercise books can withstand daily usage.

What exercise book colours are available?

With a vibrant range of colours to choose from, match your schools’ brand with bright colours, standing out from the crowd. From classic shades of blue, red, and green, to more vivid colours like orange, pink, and yellow. Too many options? Check out the swatches below of all cover colours. Please note that not all colours are available for every exercise book variation.

Can exercise books be customised?

Yes. You can fully personalise your exercise books, or you can simply have your logo printed on the front cover (black ink). Overprinted exercise books are available on Classic and Oxford exercise books. Looking to stand out from the crowd and show off your schools’ image? Fully personalise your exercise books with our MyChoice range. This allows you to create the perfect exercise book too suit your requirements, choosing your own ruling, cover colour, including full colour images, page count and size.