Graphic Novels

I wanted to talk a little bit about graphic novels because I think they are incredible learning resources that students should be using in English Language Arts classrooms. I didn’t have the chance to read any graphic novels in elementary school nor in high school, but I really would have liked to been introduced to this genre earlier on because I enjoy it a lot. Last year, I read a graphic novel entitled Binky the Space Cat (see left) when I was putting together a bibliography of children’s book. Although this book is targeted at elementary school children, I loved it and read the rest of the books in the series. This graphic novel tells the story of Binky, who thinks he’s a space cat fighting alien invaders to protect his owners. In reality, Binky is a normal house cat, but with an overactive imagination. In order to prepare for a mission, Binky builds a rocket ship to take him to space. As he’s taking off, he realizes he left his owners behind and must abandon his mission. When I read this book, I was enthralled by the imaginative and humoristic elements, including the images that tell the story in an exciting way. This book has led me to develop a love for this genre, which I think is a great genre to explore with children, especially because it can engage those who are otherwise unmotivated to read. Schwartz (2007) highlights the benefits of graphic novels in the classroom in her article. She strongly supports the use of this genre in high school because graphic novels often touch upon socio-political issues, which are topics that students in high school should start learning about. In addition, this medium can be included in media literacy instruction because students get to experience different ways of expressing mean through print as well as images.

I would use this book during a unit on graphic novels and as a way of exploring children’s own creativity. In a resource-based unit on graphic novels, students could read several books from this genre, including Binky the Space Cat. After giving some mini lessons on the creation of graphic novels and their features, it would be interesting for students to use this book as source of inspiration to create their own graphic novel in a creative writing center. Also, students can develop an appreciation for the art of graphic novels and can learn about the integration of images and text to produce something unique. Essentially, they can view the images as an extension of the text, which Tompkins et al (2015) support. I would give children time to carefully view the pictures and to write responses to their uses, as well as the way in which the images influenced their comprehension/reading. In thinking about how I would develop a lesson around this graphic novel, I t​hink it contributes to my development in Competency 3. Even though I haven’t developed a full lesson plan for the use of this book, my ideas, I have considered some of the ELA competencies that students are required to develop and I have thought about how using graphic novels would accommodate different types of learners.

In order to extend my lesson ideas, I played around with some tools that can help students create graphic text since I was trying to find ways to incorporate technology into my instruction and to develop features of Competency 8. I discovered Toondoo and even had fun playing around with it online. I think it would be a great addition and would allow students to express their creativity. This was a new technology for me, and I feel it’s my job as an educator to seek out new and different resources to offer my students. At home, I would encourage students to play around with the Comic Book! app if they have access to iOS devices.

In my next field experiences, if I have the chance to teach an ELA class or a French class, I think it would be interesting to use graphic novels (either in English or in French) as the focus of a unit. With the permission of my cooperating teacher, I would love to explore this genre with students and receive their feedback and their appreciation for it.

Spires, A. (2009). Binky the space cat. Toronto, ON: Kids Can Press Ltd.

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