I am a huge fan of using graphic novels in the classroom. I have seen them motivate reluctant readers and help ELL students comprehend because of all the visuals. In the past few years, the publishing of very powerful graphic novels covering some deep concepts has really advanced. There are books about tolerance, racial justice, disabilities, history and many more.
We explored several different books. Rollergirl, BabyMouse and El Deafo are some of my favorites. By the way Texas has a list of books they have cultivated for both lower grades and upper grades. Their archives go back several years:
Little Maverick Reading List for K-5
Maverick Graphic Novel list for our older kiddos
Then I asked my students to write their own stories. We analyzed the common attributes of stories written in this format-short phrases, lots of exclamation points, speech bubbles. Then they came up with a concept and braintormed some ideas. Then they made a rough draft and we edited it together. Publishing was going to be a little bit different for this activity. They wrote their story on a tri-fold board. Title and cover in the middle, story on the sides. I was so proud of their creativity and all the different ideas they came up with.
The Big Fat Cat
Annoying Pig
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