Cartoons and Comics in the Classroom

          Creating your own comic strips and cartoons is a great way to reinforce concepts taught in the classroom.  It also give students a creative way to express their ideas and show what they know.  Here are three sites that you may want to explore for fun, easy and FREE ways to create comics for your classroom or library..

          The nice thing about Make Beliefs Comix is that you don't have to create an account, you can just jump right into creating.  It automatically starts you off with three panels, but there is an option to change to either two panels or four.  There are 13 different backgrounds to choose from, or you may select a solid color background.  There are about 50 characters available for use, and each one has 3-4 different emotions to choose from to fit a variety of situations.  You can then add word or thought bubbles, panel prompts, and a number of words and objects to enhance your comic.  Adjusting the location and size of the items is simple and after playing around with the site for just a bit, I was easily able to create this comic to go along with our upcoming book fair...

Because you do not create an account, you can not save comics in Make Beliefs Comix so make sure that you either print it, email it or save it to your computer!

          To use ToonDoo, you must first create an account, but it is quick to do and soon you will be ready to create your comic.  There are a number of layouts to choose from in different sizes, both horizontal and vertical, with 1-4 panels.  Once you select your choice, loading takes a while.  In reality it's only about a minute, but in a world where we want to click and be taken to the next step immediately it was a little frustrating.  Once the creating screen loads you will find a wide variety of different characters, backgrounds, props, text options, etc. to add to your comic.  It can be a little overwhelming at first with all the choices, but with so much to choose from you can really make a quality comic for any scenario.  With the click of a button you can change the emotion and posture of your characters, adjust the size, flip them around or rotate them to fit your needs.  I made this simple comic to show parts of the water cycle, but look forward to playing around more with this site to make a more involved comic.

          Like with ToonDoo, to utilize Pixton you must first create an account.  What I like about this site is that it gives you an option to either create a comic from a blank layout, or you can also create from a template, which is a complete comic that can be modified to fit your needs.  If you choose to start from scratch, there are many options to help you make the comic that best fits your needs.  Whether you want a comic strip, story board, mind map, time line, plot diagram, or poster, Pixton can help you create just what you need.  There is a large number of backgrounds to choose from and once you select the one you want, you are provided with an option for one, two or three characters.  Depending on the background you choose, the selection of characters you are offered is different and varies from about 6-8 characters.  You may then change the poses and the expressions of the characters to fit the scene and add your desired text.  You may also add additional panels as needed.  To make my comic in Pixton, I selected a template of an already completed comic and modified it by adding characters and speech bubbles with text. I was not able to download the comic with only the free account, but I could email it to get the link to share or save.

*After playing around and making three comics I was told that I had reached the limit of my free account.

          For a list of ways to utilize comics in your classroom, visit 25 Ways to Use MakeBeliefsComix.com in the Classroom. As far as using comics in the library or classroom, here are some ways to incorporate their use...

- Students can create storyboards for books they have read

- Students can create book promotions for books they have read

- Students can illustrate knowledge of concepts introduced

- Promote events taking place at school or in the library

- Just for fun!

          My favorite sites that I enjoyed using and plan to use with students are MakeBeliefsComix and ToonDoo.  I think if you want something quick and simple MakeBeliefsComix is the way to go.  However if you have more time and are wanting something more involved, then ToonDoo is a great choice.  I believe given time to explore and play around a bit, students will enjoy and successfully use both of these sites.

Love That Dog

by Sharon Creech

Creech, Sharon. (2001). Love that dog. New York, NY: Joanna Cotler Books.

This comes just in time for Poetry Units which are beginning this week!  Jack does not want to write poetry, that's something girls do.  He tried it and he just can't, his brain is empty.  Jack exhibits all the thoughts and feelings many students experience when the unit on poetry inevitably begins.  As his teacher continues to share a variety of poems each day, and Jack contemplates each one, we see him slowly start to come around.  With some encouragement and a bit of flattery from his teacher, he also begins to gain more confidence in himself as a poet.  Then when poet Walter Dean Myers makes an appearance at his school, we know Jack is hooked.  This novel is a quick read, written as a free verse journal, and I think students, especially males and reluctant writers, would be able to relate to the main character.  Jack doesn’t write poetry; he says that’s for girls.  He doesn’t even understand half the poems his teacher shares in class.  But through simply jotting his thoughts down on paper and some encouragement from his teacher, he comes to realize that he has more to say and share than he thought, and this poetry stuff really isn’t so bad.

Love That Dog Discussion Guide

Love That Dog Book Trailer

Sharon Creech and Her Editor Discuss the Editorial Process

My Dog is Better Than Your Dog

by Tommy Greenwald

Greenwald, T. (2015). My dog is better than your dog. New York, NY: Scholastic Press.

11-year-old Jimmy has two loves, an old crime fighting TV show and a series of novels about vampires.  With a mom who works long hours and a dad who is now obsessed with landing a job, Jimmy is beginning to feel neglected.  And now with the start of fifth grade just days away, he has a large red blotch on his face the size of Rhode Island and it just seems to be getting bigger.  When Jimmy's parents finally agree to let him get the dog that he has always wanted, he thinks his life is finally taking a turn for the better.  He selects an old mutt from the local shelter which he names Abby, and right away begins to notice some odd behaviors.  She sleeps all day long, becomes very playful and active at night, and has some incredibly BIG fangs.  Not only that, but she also seems to have a strong dislike of Jimmy's awful new babysitter, Mrs. Cragg.  When Jimmy's mom walks in just as Abby is about to attack the babysitter, it looks as if Jimmy may have to give up his new friend.  He just can't bear to lose Abby, not only because he's finally got the dog he's always wanted, but because he's pretty sure that Abby is a crime fighting vampire dog.  When Jimmy shares his suspicions with his best friend and the neighbor girl who lives across the street, they are pretty skeptical at first.  But then, after a series of neighborhood robberies, Jimmy, his friends and Abby have their own encounter with a thief and many secrets are finally exposed.  This first book in a brand new series titled Crime Biters, is both hilarious and full of mystery.  Both boys and girls in grades 3-5 would enjoy this story.

Crime Biters: My Dog is Better Than Your Dog Book Trailer

Lowriders in Space

by Cathy Camper

Camper, C. (2014). Lowriders in space. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books LLC.

Lupe Impala is a mechanic extraordinaire.  El Chavo Flapjack Octopus can polish a car and make it shine like no one else.  Elirio Malaria is the best detail artist around.  While these three friends from the barrio love working on cars more than anything, they are tired of working at the dealership for El Jefe.  Their dream is to have their own garage and a car that would go low and slow, bajito y suavecito.  When they come across a poster for the Universal Car Competition, they just know they have the skills it takes to win.  Of course that means taking their hunk of junk, which is a shell of a car, and basically reconstructing the whole thing.  The team sets out in search of parts at an old, abandoned airplane factory and discover a box of rocket parts.  Once the car is all fixed up, the friends decided to take it on a test drive.  That's when things get really outrageous.  The car not only starts right up, but blast them right into the stratosphere.  Through flames and asteroids, from moons to planets, the car takes them on a journey like no other, becoming even more incredible as it goes.  Then as the car begins to quickly approach a black hole, the team realizes they must do something to avoid being sucked in!  They arrive back on Earth just in time to make a grand entrance into the competition and WOW both the crowd and judges.  The black, red and blue ball point pen illustrations really bring this graphic novel to life, giving it lots of energy with unique style.  Camper sprinkles Spanish slang throughout the novel and includes a glossary of terms at then end, along with more information about low riders.  This 2016-2017 Texas Bluebonnet Nominee is recommended for children ages 8-12.

Activities and Resources for Lowriders in Space

Lowriders in Space Book Trailer

Interview with Cathy Camper

Maybe a Fox

by Kathi Appelt and Alison McGhee

Appelt, K. & McGhee, A. (2016). Maybe a fox. New York, NY: Antheneum Books for Young Readers.

Jules, 11 and Sylvie, 12, are not only sisters, they are best friends.  Jules loves rocks and can name just about every one she comes across, and Sylvie is not just fast, but the fastest girl in the whole school.  The girls live with their father in a wooded rural area in the state of Vermont.  Their mother passed years ago due to a heart condition, and while Sylvie has vivid memories of her that she shares with her father, Jules was very young when she died and is frustrated that she only has faint memories of her own.  The girls' father has a set of Do Not rules that he expects the girls to follow, one of which being Do Not go near "The Slip".  The Slip is an area where the nearby river plunges deep below the ground, and also happens to be the perfect place for Jules and Sylvie to throw their wish rocks.  One morning Sylvie takes off running toward The Slip never to return.  Upon searching for her sister, all that Jules finds is an exposed tree root and a gash in the snow that leads straight into the river.  As Jules and her father deal with their devastating loss, a mother fox gives birth to three kits; two males and one female.  Immediately the mother fox senses that there is something different about her daughter, Senna.  Senna is Kennen, spiritually connected to another living creature.  Senna was placed on the earth to watch over and protect Jules.  As if all this wasn't sad enough, Jules' good friend Sam is experiencing his own emotional roller coaster dealing with Sylvie's loss plus the return of his brother from Afghanistan who isn't quite the same since losing his best friend Zeke in the war.  Perhaps I'm too sensitive, but I honestly cried my way through this entire book.  Story time with the kiddos was difficult as I couldn't read through all the tears.  Overall, it was a touching story, but the material was heavy and not for the faint of heart.  School Library Journal recommends this book for students in grades 4-6.

Maybe a Fox Reading Group Guide

SLJ Interview with Kathi Appelt and Alison McGhee

Maybe a Fox Book Trailer

Love Monster

by Rachel Bright

Bright, R. (2012). Love monster. New York, NY: Farrar Straus Giroux.

Monster lives in a world of cute, fluffy things...kittens, puppies, bunnies; you know, all those adorable creatures everyone loves.  But Monster, who is slightly hairy, and just a bit googly eyed is what you could call "funny looking."  So Monster sets off determined to find someone who will love him just the way he is.  After what seems to be an endless search, and more than a couple disappointments along the way, when he has just decided to give up and head home, monster finds what he is looking for and learns that sometimes love comes along when you least expect it.  Children will no doubt be entertained by Monster's story, but also Bright's colorful illustrations set against pale backgrounds which add their own touches of humor. (Such as his "Packing List for the Big, Wide World", his list of "Places to Look," and his home amid the "Official Pile of Extreme Cuteness.")  This picture book is recommended for children ages 2-7.

Love Monster Activity Kit

TPT: Love Monster Valentine's Activities Free Digital Download

Love Monster Read Aloud

I, Fly: The Buzz About Flies and How Awesome They Are

by Bridget Heos

Heos, B. (2015). I, fly: The buzz about flies and how awesome they are. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company.

Why do students always study butterflies in school?  I mean really, what is so great about them?  Is it their wings?  Their ability to fly?  The metamorphic transformation? Well guess who else has all those things...the incredible fly, that's who!  Told from the perspective of a fully mature fly (he's 21 days old to be exact), this humorous story takes students through the entire life cycle of a fly and shares some fascinating details on not only what makes flies special, but why they are so much more awesome than those boring, annoying and clumsy butterflies.  Still unconvinced, the skeptical students have some serious questions about fly behavior, such as throwing up on food and spreading disease.  After the fly pleads his case, the class comes to the conclusion that "Flies rule!" and decide to capture him and study him after all.  Uh oh!  Upon finding himself trapped in a clean habitat with no trash or rotting food, he quickly decides he needs to hype up how disgusting flies are and begs for release.  Far from your typical, primary level reader on insects, this book is funny, while scientifically fact filled, and will captivate younger students.  Illustrator Jennifer Plecas manages to make the flies and even the maggots adorable, and a glossary and bibliography are included for further information and research.  This 2016 Texas 2x2 book is recommended for children in grades K-4.

I, Fly Book Preview

I, Fly Activities from the Author