Cartoons and Comics

Graphic novels are becoming more and more popular. Their comic-like style appeals to readers of all ages. What a great opportunity to reach out to students and help support them in a format that they enjoy and are comfortable with! There are many ways to incorporate comics into instruction. 

Here are a few options available for creating comics:

Make Beliefs Comix

This website can be used for free (without an account) to create comics. There are also resources available for educators about how to integrate comics into classroom instruction located at https://www.makebeliefscomix.com/teachers/. Users can utilize as many as 18 (max) frames to create their comic, adding frames with a simple click of a button. There is a toolbar at the bottom of the screen where you can select characters, masks, thought bubbles, balloons and prompts, objects, background images and background colors. Users can simply double click the image and click the frame where you want the image placed. The images (once placed) can be moved within the frame. 

While I enjoyed the simplicity of creating a comic without having to worry about registering and signing in (which makes using this program with students a little easier), this program did have some limitations. There were a limited supply of background and characters to choose from. I struggled to find a background image to use to tell my story. The characters had multiple poses to choose from, offering some flexibility; however, this was again limited. The characters that I chose only had 4 poses each, which made telling my story a little difficult. Another limitation was that once the images where place, the sizing could not be adjusted. Sometimes I wanted to make my speech bubble larger, but I ended up having to delete it and replacing it with a larger bubble. It took me a little while to find out how to save my comic, but I eventually was able to download it to my computer. I also ended up creating an account so that my comic could be saved online for access to later.

Toon Doo

Toon Doo was a comic-creating online program that was super-simple to use. When users create a comic, they first get to choose a layout for their comic. Once a layout is chosen, users are taken to an editing page, where they can add characters, backgrounds, props, texts (like speech bubbles), and clipart. This option provided a greater selection of backgrounds, organized under different “topics,” such as scenery, space, abstract, fantasy, indoors, outdoors, landmarks and sports. To choose an element to add to your comic, you simply drag and drop the element into your frame.

What I loved about this program was that all the elements were editable. For example, users can shrink, enlarge, clone, flip, rotate and adjust layers, simply by clicking a button on a toolbar at the bottom of the editing screen. It took me a little while to find where to find the “save” button, but I eventually found it under the “Start Here” drop down menu. Overall, this program was very easy to use and students would easily be able to manipulate the elements to create their own comics.

Pixton

Pixton was a comic creating program that was easy to use; however, the “free” version did not have many options available. When I opened my free educator account, I was able to get 1 pack of backgrounds. This limited the types of comics that I could make. The search bar located at the top of the editing screen stated, “Search 335 backgrounds.” I decided to search “school,” to see what appeared. There were many great backgrounds available, but they were all available for purchase only. Users could purchase “content packs” to have access to additional content. For non-members, these content packs were available for $14.99 each. Once purchased, users would have access to new backgrounds, background effects, objects, characters, outfits, poses and expressions. Users can become a member for $9.99 a month and receive a monthly credit for 1 free content pack.

To create the comics, users can select backgrounds and add frames to the comic. They can then add characters, zoom, add words, faces, poses and effects. What I really liked about this program was that the facial expressions and poses could be changed depending on what you wanted your character to do. This was the most flexibility of characters that I have seen out of all the other programs. I loved that I could change the expression of my character based on what was happening in the scene. Once the character was placed on the frame (users double-click the image and it appears in the frame), it remains in one spot. I could not find a way to manipulate either the characters or the words once they were added to the scene. Luckily, it still worked out okay. When my comic was complete, I simply clicked the “Done” button which took me back to my “Comics I Have Created Page,” where it was easy to print or save. This program was a little more difficult to manipulate, even though I was much more pleased with the flexibility of the characters. I think that older students may have more success with this program, but younger students may be challenged by it.

Using Cartoons and Comics in the Classroom 

With the growing popularity of graphic novels, comics are a perfect way to connect with students and help support instruction and assessment. Comics are a wonderful platform for students to show what they have learned about a topic. A mini-professional development session could be perfect for introducing this concept to teachers.  It could be started by sharing a comic (created by the librarian) that shows the benefits in using comics in education. Ideas on how to integrate comics into instruction and assessment can be presented, as well as the different options available for students to use. Some ideas on using comics in the classroom are:

•          Digital storytelling
•          Retelling a story they read or heard
•          Brainstorming ideas about a topic
•          Creating “Complete” the story activities
•          Raising awareness of topics (racism, bullying, etc.)
•          Teaching vocabulary, grammar, communication, etc.
•          Introducing Creative Writing
•          Practicing Life Skills
•          Creating Autobiographies

Resources:

Educator Technology and Mobile Learning. (2018, January 24). Teachers Guide to the Use of Comic Strips in Class: Some Helpful Tools and Resources. Retrieved from 

https://www.educatorstechnology.com/2018/01/teachers-guide-to-use-of-comic-strips.html

MacDonald, H. (2013, May 3). How Graphic Novels Became the Hottest Section of the Library. Publishers Weekly. Retrieved from https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/libraries/article/57093-how-graphic-novels-became-the-hottest-section-in-the-library.html.

Zimmerman, B. (n.d.). 20 Ways to Use Makebeliefscomix in the Classroom. Makebeliefscomix. Retrieved from https://www.makebeliefscomix.com/26-ways-to-use-mbc-in-the-classroom/