Comic Projects in the Classroom

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Comic Projects in the Classroom

• John Baird, M.Sc.
• Math Teacher
• Houston, TX

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Warm-Up

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

What do comics mean to you?
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Introduction

• Background
• Why should we use comics?
• Comics projects in math
• Setup
• Basic activity types
• Advice for implementation
• Overcoming barriers
• Further ideas and applications

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Background
2009
2000s
1994
2009
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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)

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Personal Background

• Locations and groups
• ESL students in Taiwan, ROC (2005)
• New Haven Childrens Library patrons (2006)
• University of Pittsburgh graduate students (2007)
• Elementary students in Pittsburghs 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)

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Why should we use comics?

• Engaging!

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Why should we use comics?

• Context!

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Why should we use comics?

• Interdisciplinary!

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Why should we use comics?

• Gifted and Talented!

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Why should we use comics?

• Multicultural!

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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

Daisy is Dead
Penny Arcade
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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.)

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Comic Projects Setup

• Orientation
• Warm-up
• Group talk
• Basic applications
• Individual Group use
• Pre-Drawn Blank templates

Girl Genius
Comedity
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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

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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!

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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

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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?
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Comic Projects Activities

• Activity type Round Robin
• One blank template per person
• Draw one panel, then pass it to your left
• Continue the comic youre given
• Theme
• Each table picks a geometric shape
• Write about the shapes properties and portray
  some of the ways its used in the real world

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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 setting

xkcd
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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

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Comic Projects Barriers

• Students
• I dont read comics.
• Can I just get a work sheet?
• Administrative
• Youre telling them to do comics instead!

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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

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Comic Projects More Ideas!

• Image Analysis
• Comics as data
• Discrete panels, bubbles, characters
• Continuous panel size, gutter width
• Low cost

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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

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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)

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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!

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Exit Tickets

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

How could this workshop be better next time?
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References

• Baird, John (2009). Picturevoice An Art-based
  Health Communication Research Tool. Presented at
  Society of Public Health Education 60th 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.

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Contact Information

• Website
• http//go.to/ccp
• Email
• CreateAComic_at_Gmail.com
• Twitter Facebook user name
• createacomic