I Read Comic Books discussion

Just wondering if there were any other teachers using comics to teach lessons as a resource or creation, etc?

There’s a GR friend of mine who teaches a college level class about comics.

I took a college course, and I did have a history teacher in high school have us read Maus.

As a public librarian, I am constantly pushing comics on teachers during school visits

I had an advanced French class based around comics. It was fun and I was introduced to some comics I wouldn't otherwise have seen.

But for language learning, ultimately the most important thing is conversation.

In my undergrad we had a class where we all had to make a short comic and the teacher got them printed into a book, it was fun!

In India, comics have been used in small children's education since long. Most of the time they are in the form of wall hanging calendars or posters.
I have used them myself and seen them being used often in adult education (to teach people above the age of 50 who never got the opportunity to attend schools) books.

Some time back, I came across news about an organization using comics for higher education. You can check out their link below:
https://www.worldcomicsindia.com/comi...

When I was in high school, we read Maus as part of an English class I had.

I took a comic book class in undergrad that went through most of the basics and tied into US history and anxieties (like Civil War as a commentary on the Patriot Act). It helped me read some modern classics and think more critically about comics too.

As a teacher I've taught about Jews and comic books on more than one occasion, both how they built the industry and how their comics reflect the anxiety of Jewish Americans in the 30's and beyond. (If you're interested on that, From Krakow to Krypton is the book I wish I had written. I also taught a class on women and comics and learned about some amazing women writers and artists in the 30s and 40s. Maybe I'll write that book ;)

I teach various visual arts courses. After introducing the topic of comics, I’ve found there are many excellent resources that offer valuable lessons—many of which tie directly into art history.

For example, you can see connections to Brunelleschi and linear perspective, the multi-panel narrative techniques seen in diptychs and triptychs, and the historic use of geometric shapes to construct the figure.

A few books that immediately come to mind include:

How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way by Stan Lee and John Buscema

Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud

Perspective! for Comic Book Artists by David Chelsea

These books provide a good introduction to both the technical and narrative aspects of comic art, bridging classical artistic principles with modern storytelling.

I don't teach comics, but I've used comics and adaptations in teaching literature, just as I often use cinema.

I remember bringing to class: Beowulf by Santiago García and David Rubín; Paradise Lost by Pablo Auladell; various Moby Dick, of which I have by now a rather extensive collection...

That Beowulf adaptation is really good. I love David Rubin. His Hercules books are fantastic.

At the time I actually bought the deluxe edition, which isn't even stocked anymore.

Mano wrote: "I teach various visual arts courses. After introducing the topic of comics, I’ve found there are many excellent resources that offer valuable lessons—many of which tie directly into art history.

..."

--I've read those books--or more correctly, tried to read the McCloud one. I didn't finish that one--I forget why. Another book I think that's great that does something similar to what you've described is this gaming one:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

I've tried to tell people that comics are an underrated artform and they aren't all silly nonsense, which is the perception that I think too many people have about comics. And not that I don't like the silly-nonsense comics too lol.

But I've also often said that I think most of the best drawing being done nowadays is in comics--and games too. The mad skills some people have....

when i was in colleege from 2014-2018 we used graphic novels in my eglish classes my religious studies classees used a few comic books relevant to our curriculum. it was awesome!!!!
the grapic novels were persepolis, maus and octavia butler.

Scotty wrote: "when i was in colleege from 2014-2018 we used graphic novels in my eglish classes my religious studies classees used a few comic books relevant to our curriculum. it was awesome!!!!
the grapic nove..."

--That's interesting, Scotty--I definitely think comics would be good for teaching things like Greek mythology (which I love), especially to young people. Maybe it woud be easier for them to visualize the ideas, and then they'd enjoy learning about them more.

I once had a French language class based around reading comics. The teacher wasn't a big comics reader herself, but did have some favorites that she brought in.

One of my GR friends teaches a course on "graphic novels". I think he's even a member of this group but doesn't actually post here.

Sounds like a dream job.