Comic Projects in the Classroom

Comic Projects in the Classroom

John Baird, M.Sc.

Math Teacher

Houston, TX

Warm-Up

• Using the provided template create a comic based on the following prompt:

“What do comics mean to you?”

Introduction

• Background

• Why should we use comics?

• Comics projects in math– Setup– Basic activity types– Advice for implementation– Overcoming barriers

• Further ideas and applications

Background

2000’s

1994 2009

2009

Personal Background

• Create a Comic Project– Started in 2005 as ESL activity– Based on student interest in manga– “An interactive, open-ended, student-centered

activity using visual and textual juxtapositions (comics) to encourage synthesis.”

• Key artists:– Erin Binkley (Erin Ptah)– Kara Jay (Kittyhawk)– Angela Melzak (Kuroitenshi)

Personal Background

• Locations and groups:– ESL students in Taiwan, ROC (2005)– New Haven Children’s Library patrons (2006)– University of Pittsburgh graduate students (2007)– Elementary students in Pittsburgh’s urban areas (2008)– Adult mental health patients (2009)– 7th graders in a Harlem middle school (2009)– LaGuardia High School, a.k.a. the Fame school (2010)– Comic club at a private K-8 school in NYC (2010)– 6-12th graders in a residential treatment center (2010)– Middle school students north of Houston (2011)

Why should we use comics?

Engaging!Engaging!

Why should we use comics?

Context!Context!

Why should we use comics?

Interdisciplinary!Interdisciplinary!

Why should we use comics?

Gifted and Talented!Gifted and Talented!

Why should we use comics?

Multicultural!Multicultural!

Comic Projects for Math

• How can we integrate comics into regular math instruction?

• Two forms of use: Passive and (Inter)Active• Passive - Reading

– Ex. Guides, Logicomix, Essential Math Series

• Active – Creation– Ex. Create a Comic Project

Penny Arcade

Daisy is Dead

Comic Projects: Setup

• Template selection– Ex. Webcomics

• Characteristics:– Attributable word bubbles– Relevance (can vary)– School appropriate imagery– Ask permission of artists– Consider commissions (Ryan Estrada, Erin

Binkley, etc.)

Comic Projects: Setup

• Orientation– Warm-up– Group talk

• Basic applications:– Individual & Group use– Pre-Drawn & Blank

templates

Comedity

Girl Genius

Comics Projects: Activities

• Frayer Models– An old standby

• Visual organization through comic panels

• 5 panels, each with a specific purpose

• 4 surrounding panels that tie into the stated theme of the center

Comic Projects: Activities

• Activity type: Word Problem Generator– Independent w/ Pre-Drawn templates

• Theme: Applications of Trigonometry– Using your comic to provide context, write a

word problem in prose form– Adapt the prose word problem to fit into your

comic as a script– Leave space at the end for someone to write

the solution!

Comic Projects: Activities

• Activity type: Word Problem Adaptation– Independent w/ blank templates

• Theme: Interest Rates– Start with a word problem involving interest

rates– Portray the actions and exchanges of the word

problem in the panels of the comic– Leave space at the end for someone to write

the solution

Comic Projects: Activities

• Sample word problems:Vanida is planning to buy a boat that costs $10,876 including taxes and tags. She will pay 10% down and finance the balance at 12% APR for 48 months. Calculate her monthly payments for the boat.

Joaquin bought a wide-screen, flat-panel plasma TV for $4500. He paid $500 down and financed the balance for 36 months. His monthly payments were $127.20. Find the finance charge he paid and the APR he was charged.

A car dealer will sell you a $16,450 car for $3290 down and payments of $339.97 per month for 48 months. What is the simple interest rate?

Comic Projects: Activities

• Activity type: Round Robin– One blank template per person– Draw one panel, then pass it to your left– Continue the comic you’re given

• Theme: – Each table picks a geometric shape– Write about the shape’s properties and portray

some of the ways it’s used in the real world

Comic Projects: Results

• How might students write comics?

• Dialogue comic– Characters discussing the

topic

• Description comic– Each panel with a

definition/illustration

• Contextual comic– Adapts information to original

settingxkcd

Comic Projects: Implementation

• Groundwork– Short answer writing on concepts– “Why?” questions

• Demo– Make some of your own

• Display!

• Learning station– Bonus work for those who work ahead

Comic Projects: Barriers

• Students– “I don’t read comics.”– “Can I just get a work sheet?”

• Administrative– “You’re telling them to do comics instead!”

Comic Projects: More Ideas!

• Comics as Matrices– Strips as vectors– 2x2 and full page as arrays– Adding and subtracting

characters from comics– Ex. Garfield Minus Garfield

Comic Projects: More Ideas!

• Image Analysis– Comics as data– Discrete: panels,

bubbles, characters– Continuous: panel

size, gutter width– Low cost

Future Research

• Review and critique of existing math comics for artistic and technical merits

• Development of additional comic activities to facilitate interdisciplinary learning

• Impact of comics with special education students

Future Research

• Analyzing comic content for understanding– Connect to analysis of math journal content

• Quantitative analysis of the impact of comics in the classroom– Hoyun Cho, Teachers College (Middle School)

• Effects of age on processing comic narratives– Preliminary done in 2010 (Baird & Newborn)

Conclusions & Summary

• Comics have a variety of applications in the math classroom

• They provide an ideal medium for combining the visual, textual, and symbolic representations of math concepts in a single location

• The simple addition of a “storytelling” activity can promote synthesis – and comics are rich in storytelling power!

Exit Tickets

• Use the provided template to create a comic based on the following prompt:

“How could this workshop be better next time?”

References

• Baird, John (2009). “Picturevoice: An Art-based Health Communication Research Tool.” Presented at Society of Public Health Education 60 th Annual Meeting, Philadelphia, PA.

• Baird, John (2010). “Comicvoice: Community Education Through Sequential Art.” Presented at Pop Culture Association 2010 National Conference, St. Louis, MO.

• Baird, John (2010). “Comic Projects in the Classroom: Using Interactive Sequential Art to Enhance Education.” Presented at University of Texas Austin 2nd Annual Teach & Share, Austin, TX.

• Baird, John (2011). “Interactive Comics: Techniques to Enhance Math Education.” Presented at South-by-Southwest Interactive, Austin, TX.

• Baird, John, Dana Newborn (2011). “The Effect of Age on Comic Narrative Creation.” Paper presented at the Pop Culture Association, San Antonio, TX.

• Countryman, J. (1993). “Writing to Learn Mathematics.” Teaching K-8, 23(4), 51-53.

Contact Information

• Website:– http://go.to/ccp

• Email:– CreateAComic@Gmail.com

• Twitter & Facebook user name: – createacomic