Standard+2.5

 Lesson Plans: Comic strip book report

After having students do an independent reading unit, it is most common for them to share what they’ve read via some sort of book report. In order to liven up the presentation as well as to integrate pop culture, having them create a comic book/comic strip representation of their choice book works nicely.

Objectives: SWBAT: 1. Summarize their choice books in a creative way. 2. Present their comics to the class. 3. Recognize multiple ways to share information. 4. Create a comic strip. 5. List characteristics of graphic novels and comic books. 6. Make connections between the importance of both traditional text and new media.

Materials: Choice books, examples of comic books/strips, computer/LCD screen

Procedures: 1. Teacher will introduce the concept of the creative book report. She will explain that there are many ways to display and explain information and that comic books are one of those ways. “How many people read comic books? Which ones? What do you like about them?” 2. Share examples of graphic novels (MAUS, The Watchmen) with the class along with comic strips cut out of the daily newspaper. What is included in each cell/page? There is a graphic/picture, text, caption bubble, etc. -What are the characteristics of a caption? What purpose do they serve? -What is a landscape? How does it pertain to the cell of a comic? What makes the landscape important? Is it important at all? Why? -What other types of props can be in a scene? Why are they important? In the case of comics, is there such a thing as too much detail? Why or why not? -What connects one scene to the next in a comic strip? How does that work?

3. Teacher will explain that students will be picking out key scenes from their novels to depict in a comic-like fashion. They will be use the Comic Creator [] to create their comic projects. 4. Teacher will use the LCD projector to show the Comic Creator for the class and give a brief tutorial. 5. Students will begin working on their comic strips. They will first be asked to sketch on paper some of their ideas. Because there is only one day set aside for the Media Center, it is a better idea if they already have a basic idea of what they want to do before getting started. Students are working independently, but also free to discuss/chat/ask questions of other students. Homework: Students should come in to class tomorrow with a basic outline of their comics.

Day 2  Materials: Choice books, Media Center computers, markers, crayons, colored pencils Procedures: 1. Students will be seated and attendance taken. 2. Students will be reminded of Media Center behavior and computer rules. 3. Any student who has had his or her computer privileges revoked must complete a 6-cell comic project on paper without the use of the program. It must still incorporate all of the same elements. 4. Student questions will be fielded at this time. 5. Class will proceed to the Media Center. 6. Once the class is settled, they should follow this process on the computer to use the Comic Creator: 1. The scene/scenes they are depicting will be used for the comic title. 2. The subtitle will always be the title of the book. 3. Author will always be the student. 4. Students can choose various frame lengths for different scenes. Some things are given more importance than others. 5. Each frame gets a significant event that happened in that scene or part of the book. 6. The text should be short and concise, but still explain the action happening in t he scene. 7. After students are finished using the Comic Creator, they can print out several copies of each strip. One copy will be for the teacher to assess and one will be for them to keep. Students can opt to print out a third just in case they make a mistake when coloring them in. 8. Students will have the rest of the period and the first 10 minutes of tomorrow’s period to color in and finish up their comics. Markers, colored pencils, and crayons can be used to finish up the projects. 9. Students will present their comics to the class tomorrow. Homework: Students can opt to take their strips home to work on them. Assessments: Students will be assessed formatively throughout the unit. Based on individual comments and questions asked, the teacher will know whether or not the student read his or her choice book. Also, students will be summatively assessed on their ability to pull out important key scenes from their choice books as well as their creation of a comic strip. Formative assessment will also be used to gauge whether or not students are making connections between the ideas of traditional literature vs. more modern graphic media.