Historical Fun with the Funnies

Heather DollinsSecondary Curriculum Coordinator

Granbury ISD

Objectives• Provide research-based strategies that

will increase TAKS achievement for struggling learners, including ESL and SPED students.

• Look at examples of graphic novels and how they can help students grasp historical concepts.

• Review and create examples of hands-on strategies that help reinforce the learning of those concepts.

This presentation won’t be . . .

What do we know?

• Find the colored sticker on the front of your folder.

• Go to the corresponding blank chart paper on the walls.

• With your “team,” brainstorm everything you know about graphic novels.

What is a “Graphic Novel?”

Graphic novels “include fiction as well as nonfiction text with pictures

– ‘comics’ in book format.” (Schwarz, 2002)

Did you know?

• A graphic novel has won the Pulitzer Prize!

– 1992 – Maus: A Survivor’s Tale by Art Spiegelman

• In this story, the mice are the Jews and the cats are the Nazis. They live out the story of the author’s father as he survived Auschwitz.

Trading Cards

51 Wacky We-Search Reports: Face the Facts with Fun! by Barry Lane; Discover Writing Press, 2003.

TEKS Reference: World History 5.A,B

The student understands causes and effects of European expansion beginning in the 16th century.

Summary of Facts

51 Wacky We-Search Reports: Face the Facts with Fun! by Barry Lane; Discover Writing Press, 2003.

TEKS Reference: 5th Grade 2.A

The student is expected to identify the contributions of significant individuals during the revolutionary war, including George Washington.

The Bombing of Pearl Harbor by Elizabeth Hudson-Goff and Michael V. Uschan; World Almanac Library, 2006.

TEKS Reference: U.S. History (11th grade) 6.A, H

The student is expected to identify reasons for U.S. involvement in WWII, including the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The student is expected to identify the origins of major domestic and foreign policy issues currently facing the U.S.

The Battle of Gettysburg by Kerri O-Hern and Dale Anderson; World Almanac Library, 2006.

TEKS Reference: 8th Grade 8.B

The student is expected to explain the issues surrounding significant events of the Civil War, including the battle of Gettysburg.

Where can I get graphic novels?

• Places to contact:– World Almanac Library– Rosen Classroom Books– Capstone Press– School Specialty Publishing– Follett

References

Crawford, P. (2003). Thought Bubbles: Beyond Maus: Using Graphic Novels to Support Social Studies Standards. Knowledge Quest, 31(31).

Hibbing, A, & Rankin-Erickson, J. (2003, May). A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words: Using Visual Images to Improve Comprehension for Middle School Struggling Readers. The Reading Teacher, 758.

Lane, Barry (2003). 51 Wacky We-Search Reports: Face the Facts with Fun! Discover Writing Press.

Lavin, M.R. (1998). Comic Books and Graphic Novels for Libraries: What to Buy. Serials Review, 24(2).

Lyga, Allyson (2004). Graphic Novels in your Media Center. Libraries Unlimited.

Schwarz, G.E. (2002, November). Graphic Novels for Multiple Literacies. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 46(3).

Weiner, Stephen (2005). The 101 Best Graphic Novels. NBM Publishing, Inc.

Zike, Dinah (2001). Dinah Zike’s Foldables: 3-D, Interactive Graphic Organizers. Macmillan/Mc-Graw Hill.