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Discover the educational potential of comics in teaching literary elements, visual literacy, and writing skills. Explore the history, structure, and benefits of incorporating comics as instructional tools for engaging students in reading and writing activities.
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A Super-Villain Ate My Homework Using COMICS IN THE CLASSROOM
Nick KremerColumbia Public SchoolsUniversity of Missouri nkremer@columbia.k12.mo.us
THE LINGO: • Sequential Art Narrative: a series of pictures (with or w/o text) that tell a cohesive story • Comic Strip: ~6 or less frames, on-going series • Comic Book: ~24 pages, on-going series • Graphic Novel: Full stand-alone book/album
THE PEOPLE: • Writer – writes the script (story + dialogue) • Artist – draws/lays out the script • Letterer – adds text to the drawings • Inker – darkens the pencil drawings • Colorist – adds color to the drawings • Editor – the proofreader and business manager
THE HISTORY: • History: Cave Painting, Heiroglyphics, Stain-Glass Windows, Wood Carvings, Illustrations, Political Cartoons, etc. • 1896: Richard Outcalt: Voice Bubbles + the Funny Pages (The Yellow Kid, Krazy Kat, Pop-Eye) • 1929: Picture Adventures (Dick Tracy, Tarzan) • 1932-45: Golden Age of Superheroes (Superman, Batman, Shazam, Wonder Woman, Captain America) • 1945: Rise of the Rest: Horror, Romance, Western, Crime, “Adult Themes” • 1950s: Seduction of the Innocent + Comics Code • 1956-69: Silver Age of Superheroes (DC Revivals: Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Marvel Origins: Fantastic Four, Iron Man, Hulk, Spider-Man, X-Men, Daredevil) • 1970s: Underground Comics + Weakening of the Code, Civil Rights • 1980s: The Graphic Novel (A Contract with God, Maus, Watchmen) • 1990s: The Gimmick Age, Image Comics (Spawn), Vertigo (Sandman) • 21st Century: Corporatization and the Comic Book Renaissance
BUT REMEMBER… • Stereotypical comic books are only one genre within the large medium of Sequential Art Narratives • Texts rich in popular culture and varying formalist choices are misleadingly complex
BUT REMEMBER… • Images have to be “read” using critical literacy skills in the same manner that words do • Research shows that comics can help improve literacy with struggling readers
BUT REMEMBER… • Comics are products of their culture and reflect the social values found therein • While some comics misrepresent various demographics, others empower them
BUT REMEMBER… • Class sets, grant money, “sampling,” and scanning are cheap solutions • Comics can also be studied in single images or excerpts
BUT REMEMBER… • Contemporary curricula stress skills, not specific texts, in an era of abundant global multimedia • Comics are rich sources for literary and writing lessons
#1) Literary Elements • Comics offer short, accessible stories with lots of concrete examples of abstract literary concepts [Ex: Symbols, Point of View, Character Types, Plot Structure,…]
#2) Denotation vs. Connotation • Use comic images to practice visual literacy skills: what literally do you see, what does the image suggest, how/why does it make you feel?
#3) Deconstruction • Comics provide a visual context for discussion on how artists elicit intentional responses from readers using conventions
#4) American Mythology • American comic books reflect our own cultural values + hero myths and should be studied alongside ancient mythology
#5) Dystopian Literature • Graphic Novels are a popular medium for contemporary dystopian literature.
#6) Classic Adaptations • Comics provide visual references for classic texts (Ex: Shakespeare), aiding in student comprehension and engagement
#1) Descriptive Writing • Students can practice attempting to capture all the details of a picture in words, or having pictures drawn from their writing
#2) Storyboarding a Paper • Students can create storyboards to help organize their writing and visually chart the flow of their papers
#3) Dialogue • Students can use comic scripting as practice for incorporating dialogue into their prose writing.
#4) Hero Narratives • Comic Books provide models for students to design their own hero myths: origins, powers, battles, personal lives, etc.
#5) Sequential Art Narratives • Incorporate interdisciplinary learning into your Language Arts classroom by having students create their own comics or adapt existing literature.
Instructional Texts • Understanding Comics – Scott McCloud • Comics and Sequential Art – Will Eisner • Graphic Novels: Everything You Need to Know – Paul Gravett • Drawing Words and Writing Pictures – Jessica Abel/Matt Madden • The Comic Book in America: An Illustrated History – Mike Benton • Building Literacy Connections with Graphic Novels – Dr. James “Bucky” Carter
The Comic Book Project <www.comicbookproject.org>
The Graphic Classroom <http://graphicclassroom.blogspot.com >
National Association for Comic Book Educators <http://www.teachingcomics.org>
EN/SANE World <http://ensaneworld.blogspot.com>