How would one use Comics as a Teaching Tool?

Tarotreader3 · Post by **Tarotreader3** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 7:26 am

I've been putting too much time lately into creating little characters, and stuff like that, and while I enjoy the comic (which I'm thinking I'm actually going to stick with, because I can already envision about a years worth of stories), I've been wondering how else to use the characters, and the models and all that.

Within a year and a half I will be a high school teacher (english/drama), and I'm wondering how to use them as a teaching tool. I've got some ideas, such as making little comicy summaries of texts to get certian points across, and to throw them around on the sylabuses, but I'm wondering how else they can be used (any comic are in general, really)

Also, where do you think tehy should not be used (at what point would you say "man, that teacher's CRAZY!... lets burn his house down after class)... cause I don't want that =) I like unburnt houses.

Spriteville, USA · Post by **Spriteville, USA** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 7:37 am

I had a SS teacher who used to draw charicatures of famous people he was teaching about. They made the papers and class a lot more interesting.

I mean the biggest issue is people will react vastly differently to art as a teaching tool. More vastly than a class discussion or lecture. Some will love it if you say draw a conversation of Einstein. Others will look at it just stop thinking altogether. I'd use art as a way to liven up things like syllabuses or draw on a blackboard a charicature if you can when appropriate, but relying on it as a way to get knowledge across may be risky.

JexKerome · Post by **JexKerome** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 7:45 am

I'd ask Jack Chick about it nyo.

Beyonder_alpha · Post by **Beyonder_alpha** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 9:05 am

Print our an entire comic, roll up into a sticklike something,
hit student A till student A learns well.

McDuffies · Post by **McDuffies** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 9:11 am

http://www.reasonedcognition.com/

CJBurgandy · Post by **CJBurgandy** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 9:27 am

right now I have a small group of people helping me start my vision of educational comics on subjects people don't like talking about.... Any subject matter you want to cover, I only sugest that you put a lot of research into. Don't want to teach kids wrong info.

The Neko · Post by **The Neko** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 9:38 am

There's a comic series that uses cartoons to teach Physics. So yeah, it's been done before, and thus proven possible!

Bwerith · Post by **Bwerith** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 10:08 am

Hmmm....

I did a bunch of little doodles when I was studying for a philosophy midterm last year, just to see if I really understood the concepts.

Is this the kind of thing you were considering?

Phalanx · Post by **Phalanx** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 11:20 am

I was tempted to do comic to explain how Keenspace works for the Gear, but I can't seem to find the energy

Birdie · Post by **Birdie** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 11:42 am

Will Eisner during WWII would draw comics to teach soldiers about preventive maintenence on their weapons. I think it'd be a useful tool for teaching certain concepts, to give a good visual aid. I also had a teacher post the entire Calvin and Hobbes story about Calvin with his Bug Collection to show us how to go about collecting bugs and not waiting at the last minute to do the project.

Dutch! · Post by **Dutch!** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 12:26 pm

Well ahead of you. I've been using my characters in the classroom since late 2003.

Casper turns up regularly on the weekly homework sheets, talking to the kids and explaining what they need to do.

I used them as a tool to teach writing. Instead of written stories in paragraphs and stuff they had to show their story as a comic. I've used this for reports as well, making a comic explaining how hydro electricity is made.

Good for dialogue and explaining how to use quotation marks. Kids draw their characters and use speech bubbles. Then they go back and rewrite the speech bubbles in prose, adding the quotation marks around what's in them.

I've got two posters on my wall for the start of this year (tomorrow) that you can check out here at School Spirit if you want...the kids haven't seen them yet, but they'll probably think Mr V's gone off the rocker again.

The entire 5/6 Unit used the characters for most of the year rehearsing the School Spirit Musical, so there was a lot of reading and comprehension and drama covered using my characters. Heh...I'm even teaching Casper's little brother, Wendy's little sister, and Pandora's little brother this year...how many people can say they know their characters like that, eh?

I'm also making little activity cards when I get the chance so the kids can see what they are doing each morning.

So yeah, there's plenty of ways you can use them if you become imaginative and don't care about the kids giving you some shit from time to time.

Cortland · Post by **Cortland** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 12:34 pm

http://hownottorunacomic.keenspace.com/

McDuffies · Post by **McDuffies** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 2:16 pm

Phalanx wrote:I was tempted to do comic to explain how Keenspace works for the Gear, but I can't seem to find the energy

If you write the script, I'll do the art. I feel guilty for not hanging more on help forum anyway.

Johndisko · Post by **Johndisko** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 4:28 pm

are you kidding? i teach people things all the time in my comic

how to give directions

how to learn languages

and

how to dispose of bodies

to say the least

-jd

Leko · Post by **Leko** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 4:41 pm

Comics would be an ideal way to keep kids interested in boring things like grammar.

Well, I don't find grammar boring, but a lot of kids do. ^_^ And if you use comics, kids will think you're cool, and you'll be the most popular teacher on the campus and all the kids will hang out in your classroom before school starts and during lunch and get food all over your carpet and give you headaches and...

...Wait...

Driving Without Pants · Tue Jan 25, 2005 4:51 pm

Since you're going to be doing English/Drama, you have a whole host of opportunities for material in literature. You could do chapter summaries, lesson plans, etc. in comic form.

Bustertheclown · Post by **Bustertheclown** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 6:11 pm

Go visit the SPA. They've been trying to form a program about getting comics in the classroom for years now. If anything, I'm sure they'd enjoy the input.

On a personal note, I'll just use ye olde copy and paste function...

I swear, I have SEVERAL lesson plans aimed at teaching storytelling by using sequential art. I need to get ahold of them (they're not on my computer) and post them somewhere for all to use.

They're written in a cohesive manner, so that anyone, even those not familiar with comic art at all, can come to the lesson and teach it with little research. They also set out points on EXACTLY the type of learning being done, based upon the Essential Academic Learning Requirements for the arts, as set forth by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction for Washington State. http://www.k12.wa.us/CurriculumInstruct/default.aspx

These are practiced lesson plans, used by myself as a visiting instructor over the last two years in the public schools and after school programs of Pend Oreille County, WA.

At any rate, I'll be getting that stuff in some manner at some point soon, I hope, and I'll let all know when and where they're posted.

Tarotreader3 · Post by **Tarotreader3** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 6:39 pm

dutch: good to know other people are doing it.

BTC: thanks for the link

Tarotreader3 · Post by **Tarotreader3** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 6:41 pm

dutch: What was the school spirit musical like?

Dutch! · Post by **Dutch!** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 7:16 pm

It was bloody fantastic, but that's me. Now for you lot, it was great, considering it was put on by 80 odd 11 and 12 year olds, with main roles who had never acted before, in a town hall with a dodgy sound system.

But if you could look past that (it WAS a primary school amateur production after all), it was successful. The parents had a lot of praise for it, and appreciated the slightly older humour in there to keep them interested.

They particularly enjoyed the idea that Chastity lost her belt...

Oh...and for my work I got paid six Crownies...they went down well!

It's was great to see my characters moving about in real life. Casper even got a photo with me. How many others can say they have a photo with their own main character in real life?