Funding sponsored by:
www.qad.com
Click here to view the project resources.
Project Description: Introduction- Photo Comic Writing......Pictures, or a thousand words?
Problem: Our students really need to improve their reading and writing skills. We use our 'research-based' instructional programs (hopefully with great success). However, we all sometimes suffer from the grinding effect.... our routines grind on them, and they deliver uninspired work..... maybe correct, but without their individual, even quirky, ways of looking at the world.
Enter: Comics and Photonovellas. These widely read forms of information sharing and story-telling have many applications in our classrooms. This unit will focus on one lesson set that I've found to be very motivating for the students, relatively easy to manage, and wide-open for success with diverse ages and skill levels..... from primary to college (challenge yourself to make a photo-comic!) Because of it's extraordinary ease of use, I will focus on a software program called 'Comiclife'..... and will give suggestions for how to do similar work with other easily available or free software.
How it works: The Lessons: There is nothing magical about this lesson set, but I've found that these basic steps are structured enough for students to work through to success, and also to allow the teacher to split up tasks so that limited numbers of cameras and computers can be rotated effectively.
Note- I originally did this activity to boost the use of powerful verbs.... started with a story, listed all the verbs that COULD be used... then created scenes.
Time: Up to 7 hours, spread out over as long as desired.... including afterschool, breaks, etc. Much work can certainly be homework, as long as the teams are well-organized.
#1 Picture this:
Time:1-2 periods of 40 minutes
Purpose: To 'cast the vision'= show what their finished products can be like, AND for the students to form working groups, brainstorm concepts, and get the ideas on paper.. both with words, and a few sketches.
#2 Storyboard 2:
Time: 1-2 periods of 40 minutes, with variability as different teams work through at different paces.
Purpose: To block out or 'cartoon' the scenes and progress of the short story they will be showing in photo comic form. Scratch paper is fine, but 11 X 17 with divisions makes it an official storyboard. This includes stick figure character staging, and first draft of the words that will tell the story.
#3 Lights, Camera, Action:
Time: Variable!
Purpose: This is the management part, where storyboards are approved, cameras sent out (or staging done in class). Break times, lunch, afterschool are best. Luckily, some students have digital cameras at home. They stage their (dramatic) photo scenes, and hopefully capture enough good shots the first try.
#4 Word and Thought Balloons:
Time: Again, variable. Much depends on how rigorous their preparation was on storyboard, and availability of a computer. Also, this is the creative process, where much discussion goes back and forth.... team members, & teacher! Expect at least one hour per team..... even 3 hours for ambitious or challenging projects.
Purpose: To select and layout photos, add the language of words and 'thought balloons' that make comics fun..... so that ALL the language is useful to dynamically tell the story.
#5 Presentation and Publication:
Time: 1-2 hours ideally
Purpose: To let all students enjoy each other's work. Can be used also for critical analysis, as skill building in oral presentations (either team acts out the print as students read along, or via projection on the big screen instead) or even shared with families at after school events or as take home.
Assessment: I know we all like ready made assessments.... but for this activity type I think it's most important to make assessment 'built in'. That is, depending on how you are emphasizing learning/doing elements, give the students clear 'checkpoints', so that they have self-assessed (or worked through with you) before they move on to any next steps.
Each of the first 4 lessons can be assessed that way, while #5 depends on whether you want to assess Presentation skills. Again, if it's worth assessing, then it's worth teaching first!
*There is a link to one detailed assessment rubric.*
Standards: These activities and strategies are not standard-specific..... but WILL be of use for any grade or standard!
Estimated Number of Class Periods for Students To Complete Unit: See the breakdown of periods above, but estimated at 7 periods.
Software or Materials Used:
Ideally, several still cameras, and the downloadable software "ComicLife".... inexpensive and also available for trial. With just a big more work, any good word processor with 'draw' capabilities works fine.
If by some good chance you have an LCD projector, and even better, and ELMO style document projector..... sharing works great without too much printing.
Keywords:
Photography, graphic communication, comic.
The Students: I have done this project mainly with 6-8 grade students, but also with college and adults. It is quite suitable for any age that can move a mouse and type a few words!
Overall Value: I've had some great success over the years with mixed media storytelling ranging from hand drawn comics to student videos with original soundtracks... this photo-comic activity set is meant to work in the "mama bear" area of time-materials-expertise..... hopefully 'just right'.
Students (and teachers) can manage the technical aspects quickly and well. This leave time and energy for the planning and creative aspects to be nurtured. It can certainly be very open topically, but I found best results from narrowing the challenge (example: effectively use 12 dynamic verbs in your 1-page comic story)..... and emphasizing the storyboarding elements.
In the resources links are many examples of how others are using similar strategies, including matches to adopted language arts texts.(I have the most fun using it with science and other hands-on or active instruction...... photo stories help with recall).
Subject Area: Science/Language Arts
Grade Levels: Grades 4-12
Tips for the Teacher:
1. Project_URL: http://www.sbceo.org/~kmguad/public_html/comic_intro.html
2. Check out the lessons..... all have simple embedded implementation strategies
3. Big Purposes-
To Inform: teachers can give instructions in a 'show, don't tell' format, kids can think visually, spatially, dramatically....then plan & present.
To Entertain: The entertainment value is both for the creator(fun to make), and the for the viewer of the photocomic. Imagine that students finish their units of learning not (just) with a test.... but with unique representations of what was done, learned, important. (It is very instructive to us as teachers to give students some chances to 'show what they know'..... which starts with their thinking and representation of what is important).
