Another aspect about graphic novels that I did not realize was how valuable they are in education. Just like other pieces of literature graphic novels can be used to teach literary techniques and provide meaning to readers. These novels use pictures more than words to arrive at the same or similar results. This allows children to become more engaged in a story. In my opinion young children use pictures to help them understand a story. Graphic novels make the most of this notion. However, not all graphic novels are geared toward young children. Some have more adult related themes.
Graphic novels tend to focus more on the pictures than on words. The pictures are used to convey the story. Words are only extra. A lot of the words used are to convey sound or dialogue between characters. Of course some graphic novels have more words than others, but when it comes to the ones directed toward children, there are fewer words. This shows the power for these novels to express a story.
There are a few interesting and educational websites I came across while researching graphic novels, some are more educational than others, the list includes:
Graphic novels are not something I ever had any interest in before but after learning more about them I now understand their draw and the many benefits they offer. Are you interested in reading graphic novels? Why or why not? Do yo think they can be beneficial educational tools for all ages?
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I have had the privilege of seeing firsthand the benefits of graphic novels. Before coming to Michigan State I too was under the impression that the term “graphic novel” had been contrived to simply make the word “comic” sound more sophisticated and adult. I was the first to tell you that they were childish and futile, until I really understood what they were and what they could do.
I don’t want to be too dramatic here and say that graphic novels could change the world, but I would like to say that they could impact a lot lives in a very positive way. One of my good friends is in the Teaching program here at Michigan State, and she has been shadowing at a pretty rough school for the last several months. Every time she would come home I would hear another awful story about how much these kids were struggling, sometimes it was with math or geography, but more often than not it would be at reading. I remember her saying one day,”… that it didn’t matter if they understood the map if they couldn’t read it to begin with.” That comment really hit me, they couldn’t read a map, but they could understand it. Is anyone seeing where I’m headed… that’s right GRAPIC NOVELS. She and I sorted though lists and lists of novels and decided on a few that we thought they could handle, most had a fairly equal ratio of pictures to text. And Whala! The next week she came back with some positive news, a student in her class that had never finished a book read his graphic novel cover to cover.
Now although this story may seem like a one hit wonder, it is a very obvious solution to a growing problem. There are millions of kids who struggle with reading, and a graphic novels can act as the middle step between picture books and chapter books. They may just be glorified comics to some, but I for one can see them for what they truly are and what they could truly be. Graphic novels have the potential to change reading for people who can barely read at all.
I myself have never read a graphic novel. To be honest, before reading Graphic Novels 101, I did not even understand what a graphic novel was! In relation to education, I feel that this type of literature can prove to be a useful tool in the classroom, especially for older students. For example, Maus is a graphic novel about the holocaust. I remember learning about the holocauset through a textbook in middle school, but I also remember that history was something that I struggled with. As a education major, I feel that graphic novels have educational benefits. They han help students understand more complex themes because they are presented with sequential pictures that assist the text. This enables readers to easily follow the main ideas and themes of a text which would be usefull, especially in relation to "drier" themes such as history.
I too was surprised to discover that some graphic novels are, in fact, non-fictional. Upon reading Graphic Novels 101 and our class discussion, I was intrigued to learn that there was a graphic novel based on the Holocaust. I had no idea. For this fact, I think graphic novels can be very beneficial in the classroom due to their historical significance. Furthermore, I believe that a graphic novel based on historical tragedy, such as Maus, will intrigue more older-students (probably high school students) to actually read the book rather than find a review or summary of it online, or something of that nature. I really do believe if I was given a chance to read a non-fictional graphic novel in a History, or even an English high school class, I would have read the entire book versus trying to find a short-cut or a way out of reading the book.
I also think graphic novels could be very beneficial in an elementary schoolroom. As we discussed in class, I think graphic novels would give students who are falling behind in reading a chance to catch up. Moreover, some younger children are not as interested in books like their fellow peers, but presenting them with an additional kind of literature might open their eyes a bit, and possibly could influence a love of reading and learning. Sometimes students just need a different learning realm and graphic novels can provide that in literature.
Additionally, in my little experience in reading graphic novels, I have been swayed to deem graphic novels more creatively challenging. There is more room for interpretation while reading the book. Again, as we stated in class, the books make people fill in what happens in between the pictures, in the gutters. I think graphic novels could truly make a person develop more creatively. As it is often said, adults lose their creativity; however, I think if more adults grew up reading graphic novels they might be a more creative individual. I sincerely believe graphic novels could design a more creative development in children and adults.
I, like yourself, was not into graphic novels or even knew entirely what they were about until TE348 class. I had no idea that something with minimal, and in some cases, no words could provoke such an enriching and entertaining story. My only concern with graphic novel, especially ones with zero words, would be interpreting the story itself. Depending on who was reading, or looking at, this graphic novel the story could change significantly.
I know that some graphic novels have been made into hit movies, like 300 or Watchmen, but how does one determine the correct synopsis or lines that a character might say during the times where there are no speaking parts? This is just one of those things that irritates me when any book is made into a movie, or visa-versa. The only thing is is that there is nothing more than pictures to work with when converting a graphic novel.
Although I find it irritating that the meanings of these types of stories can change, and that my vision is never anything as the movie turns out to be, I also think it is one of the most fascinating things to watch and see created.
I wish that I have had more experience with any sort of graphic novel and the power that it has for learning before someone else changes your imagination about it.
Like the previous posts I have never looked at or read a graphic novel the Yugioh books where all I could think of. When we were discussing how they can be a good teaching and learning tools in the classroom I was surprised. I never would have thought that there was a lot to learn from this particular style of writing. Like previously stated I was surprised that they could be based on serious events in history. This could be a very beneficial way to help students learn about history in an interactive way rather then reading from an old text book.
While talking about graphic novels especially the one pertaining to the Holocaust made me want to read one. This got me to questioning how many other people haven't had the opportunity to read them because the are unaware they exist. I think this as something that teachers should introduce to their students when teaching about different types of literature, especially in High School. I'm sure there are many people out there who have never even heard of graphic novels as literature. I'm interested to see how much popularity they gain in the nest few years and how school curriculum will use or incorporate them into a learning environment. As a future language arts teacher its good to be introduced and aware this different piece of literature and the potential it has.
The first graphic novel I read was actually last semester in an English class. As a class, we were assigned to read “Fun Home”. This was the last book that we were assigned and the ones previous to that were all huge, boring novels. Getting a chance to read this graphic novel was almost refreshing because of the pictures that went along with it. I personally flew through the book because of the pictures. I really believe that when you put dialogue with pictures the interpretation of the story can be so much richer.
After talking more about graphic novels in class, I am interested in reading more of them. I also believe that graphic novels would be a great mid-way point for young readers. I think that we should have more available to young children at elementary schools so that they can learn to put pictures with words. I agree with the point others have been making: graphic novels can be a great middle step between picture books and chapter books.
For the students that are struggling in reading, I really think that handing them a graphic novel might give them some confidence. With graphic novels, they can interpret the story how they want it by looking at the comic pictures and eventually start to read the words a little at a time. In conclusion, I think that schools should start collecting more graphic novels in their book collections to have available for the students.
I have never been interested in graphic novels simply because I have an extremely active imagination. For me, half the fun of reading novels was visualizing what the characters of the book look like. For example, I used to imagine what Ally and Noah looked like from "The Notebook" by Nicholas Sparks, and initially I was excited when they announced that the book would be made into a movie. Obviously the actors and actresses that they cast for the movie did not look like the people I had imagined myself and it frustrated me. Whenever I re-read books that have been made into movies, I imagine the actors and actresses instead of the people I made up in my mind. Knowing that I enjoy using my imagination, I have avoided graphic novels because they provide images of what the characters look like.
Obviously, pictures will help emerging readers to understand the story better. They may also encourage students to read more because the art is captivating. But for experienced, active readers like me, pictures may hinder a person's interaction with a novel.
Graphic novels have truly been eye opening to me as well. Graphic novels are something that I am interested in reading. I used to think that they were childish and just full of pictures for children who couldn't read as well. I was completely wrong.. graphic novels are the farthest novel from that type.
Reading a graphic novel can help you to further understand the story that is being told through pictures. It is also an educational tool which was mentioned, it would be handy for teachers to start to obtain graphic novels in their classrooms.
Any type of novel is never a bad thing but I especially like the idae of graphic novels. They can teach children visually through pictures and help them to further understand the reading by these images.
I also like you was not into graphic novels at all. I also did not know there were differences between graphic novels and comic books. I thought anything with panels of pictures with some words was a comic book which was just a place for people to get lost in. I think these books could be used sometimes in lessons but not all the time. Such as 'Maus' could be used for obvious reasons but 'Wonder Woman' on the other hand I see no significant purpose. I also believe these can be a tool to help struggling students to match pictures with words. But, also the teachers need to be careful because often times children are able to fake their way through reading for a few years in school.
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