Cartoons and Comics in the Classroom

Image created from https://www.cartoonize.net/

Graphic Novels and Comics are making a comeback, and having students create them can offer engaging ways to check for understanding.  Students can use comics to write their own ending to a whole class novel, narrate their favorite part of a novel, or even "break the ice" by making a mini-comic book to talk about their likes and dislikes. There are so many ways Comics and Graphic Novels can be beneficial to students and their learning.

For this post, I played around with a few different web apps that allowed for comics creation.  Just for fun, I used www.cartoonize.net to cartoonize a photo of my family! It was free and didn't require a login so it would be a fun warm-up in the classroom!  I also played around with Fotojet, Pixton, and MakeBeliefsComix and made an example comic from each application!

Fotojet was fun to play around with!  Like other web-based apps that I have discovered, you signup, select a template and then enter your verbiage or design.  For this particular app, I wanted to make a comic.  They did offer a few templates for free, but the majority were exclusive to members only.  I was expecting more of a "comic" feel with this application, but I actually liked that I could use real photos.  I believe students could get pretty creative with Fotojet, but it took some time to get used to, and many of the clipart, backgrounds, and fonts were only accessible with the upgrade.  This web app also requires you to download your image, or it will be lost unless you upgrade.  

Pixton was different from Fotojet in that you could make more of an animated comic strip or panel.  I could see younger students use this as well as older.  I just used the free designs and created a fun comic strip with my son.  I asked him about his favorite campground, and we clicked around together, and this created this...

As an educator, I can see so many options to utilize this tool in the library or classroom.  I especially like using Pixton to create comics that support the standards. I also like the idea of using comics to get to know the students.  One example provided by Pixton was to have the student make up one truth and one lie.  This would be such a fun and interactive way to familiarize yourself with your students. I will definitely consider using some budget money to purchase this one for the library.  You can add an unlimited number of students and really get creative in the program!

The last comic web app that I took a look at was MakeBeliefsComix.  This site has SO much potential, but it's a little busy, overwhelming, and difficult to navigate.  It is filled with resources for parents and teachers and is an excellent source for ELL students because students can create their comics in their written language.  When I first starting working with Make Beliefs Comix, my mind when straight to jokes, so that is what I created for my example. The comic was easy to create, and once complete, you simply download it! I enjoyed clicking around on the site and loved all of the different tools, writing prompts, and printables available.  

I do feel comfortable recommending all three of these comic web apps.  However, I also recommend that you play around with each for yourself because you know your students the best.  It would be so fun to incorporate comics into your lesson plans at any level.  If I had to pick one, I would go with Pixton.  It's easy to navigate, and there are so many possibilities.  It's also affordable!

Have FUN!