Comics in the Classroom
By Adam Umak
"Still, by name alone, ‘comics,’ for some, implies that sequential art is childish and not to be taken seriously. The industry has changed to the point where there is a lot of sophistication in form and style. Comics are one of the most original art forms in America, but also one of the least appreciated," said Purcell.
Maybe Pampinella, Tingley, and Purcell have unfair advantages over other teachers. Maybe they know too much about comics for their own good. Maybe they are inherently biased. All three teachers have been life-long comic readers and über-fans. Pampinella is the editor-in-chief for independent publisher Evil Money Comics. Tingley can hardly contain himself when a new issue of Fables or Booster Gold is released. Purcell credits issue #44 of The Brave and the Bold with helping him learn to read as a child. Perhaps the true test of comics' educational legitimacy is when an outsider to comics and graphic novels decides to include them in class. Perhaps the best indicator of the effectiveness and staying power of using comics in schools comes from an experienced educator with no background in comics at all.
Gina Bannon was one such outsider until the summer of 2006. Bannon took a rigorous and challenging workshop from Towson University called the Maryland Writing Project’s Summer Teacher Institute. The course’s focus was to train teachers to create a classroom writing-based presentation for other education professionals. Upon completion, the course graduates its participants, labeling them teacher-consultants. Having teacher-consultant status allows STI participants to be hired professionally as presenters for professional development seminars or workshops.
Up until researching and perfecting her "Comics throughout the Curriculum" presentation, Bannon’s knowledge of comic lore extended only up to the later years of her childhood with memories of watching Challenge of the Super Friends and reading Archie Comics digests. Before the presentation was conceptually nailed down, Bannon observed the exact same behavior in her students that Pampinella, Tingley, and Purcell already knew about. When it was time for silent reading, she saw that her third-graders would attempt to outrace each other to read the class copies of Calvin and Hobbes and Captain Underpants. It became clear that her focus would narrow in the realm of comics and sequential art combined with targeted writing activities.
"I found that even my reluctant readers were reading these books. Many of my reluctant readers were also my reluctant writers. I noticed that in their writer’s notebooks they would doodle instead of writing," said Bannon. "I tried combining the two as an incentive and it worked. I found enthusiasm and excitement coming from all students."
As an elementary grade teacher, Bannon wears many hats every day of the week. She teaches the four main content areas of language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. As such, the presentation focused on integrating comics in all disciplines, not strictly language arts, the content area that has the most obvious connectivity with state and local curriculum. To offset the difficulty of lengthy word problems, students drew math problems in sequential art form, using math vocabulary terms to better grasp exactly what the question is asking and then solve the equation. For a science lesson on plants and ecosystems, students read an article called "Plant Partners." When students completed the reading, they worked with a partner on tag-team comics, creating storyboards on a graphic organizer to map out their six-panel strips. Historic and biographical content activities can use comics to cement new learning episodes. After reading nonfiction accounts of pirates, students can summarize essential information in graphic form, creating a physical representation of what they have learned.
Look up your favorite comics (Superman, Black Cat) or topic (Artist Interviews, Reviews)