Need some time to relax and play like a kid. Try out the
MakeBeliefs Comix.com site. Create your own comic strips easily. Then imagine young children using the site to create comics, practicing their literacy and imaginative skills. In addition to writing in English, students can write in Spanish, Italian, and other languages. There's a Teacher Resource section. Check out "About the Author" to learn about the site's writer and illustrator.
Try creating a few panes in a comic strip with the options available: characters, text boxes, think bubbles, objects, sizing, moving, and backgrounds. Remember to give your strip a title and to list yourself as its author. Use the Next feature when you are ready to print, or email your creation to a reader. It takes a little trial and error to get going, but it should not take you long to create your first comic. Have some fun and a few laugh! Let us know what you think.
Need some time to relax and play like a kid. Try out the MakeBeliefs Comix.com site. Create your own comic strips easily. Then imagine young children using the site to create comics, practicing their literacy and imaginative skills. In addition to writing in English, students can write in Spanish, Italian, and other languages. There's a Teacher Resource section. Check out "About the Author" to learn about the site's writer and illustrator. 
13 comments:
This is AMAZING.... as a social studies teacher being able to analyze political cartoons, make inferences, and identify connections are apart of the social studies curriculum. While this site can be used as a way to relax and goof off it has strong instructional implications if used properly.
I can see myself creating satirical comic strips and having students analyze the meaning behind the cartoon. I can also see myself assigning projects and homework assignments using this program having students create their own satirical work. I believe it can be a healthy and fun way for students to express their understanding of the material. I have done this assignment before in the past; however, students had to draw their cartoons. Even though points were not taken off for artistic superiority, some students still felt as though their drawings were no good because they believed they could not draw. This site helps to alleviate some of those fears as students can pick from pre-created characters. The emphasis is then shifted from artistry to depth of thought.
I can really see myself utilizing this site in the classroom. Does anyone have any other ideas as to how to incorporate this comic site into their content area?
Thanks
Bryan!
Bryan, the site is not really sophisticated but it is easy to use. I will search for other comic sites, but this one is a good start. I have sent my husband several since last night, and it has been fun way to communicate. He emailed me back a comic this morning. Comics you find online as primary sources are excellent for students to analyze in social studies. I can see making a whole PhotoStory on using comics or cartoons from a specific time period. In fact, look at Caitlin's PowerPoint on forms of propaganda during WWII. If she wanted to, she could have created the display as a narrated Photo Story, or had her students use the cartoons to create a Photo Story in which they analyzed each cartoon. Comix.com is a good starting point, but I will search around to let you know if I find anything that has even more options and that is free and a site that won't get blocked in schools.
I agree with Bryan, this is a great tool to create an engaging learning activity for students and have fun at the same time. Personally, I'm planning to use this website to teach grammar and vocabulary in Spanish. In addition, students can read a comic strip from the target culture and then create their own in response to what they read.
This is a great starting off point to use in the classroom! My AP kids have to analyze visual texts/political cartoons all the time, but I can see maybe having a few more options...still this would be great in a foreign language classroom if a teacher wants students to write a short dialogue between two or more people. Is this site often blocked in schools?
I love this Comic Strip site. These paste two weeks I have been working with a fifth grade student who is struggling reader. But he loves to read comic books and has shared with me a new comic book everyday. I have found that a lot of boys who don't enjoy reading typical novels, love to read comic books. I could see this site being a great tool for these learners and the whole class. You could even have the class respond to a reading through the comic strip. They could retell, create a new ending for the story, focus in on the story's problem. There is so many ways you could incorporate this into any reading lesson. I think it would be a fun way to show what you have learned. I can't wait to incorporate it into my classroom.
I was very impressed that this site offered 7 language options! The dialogue prompts are very helpful. It does need more objects. I wanted to add a bird in the sky and they did not have birds. Bummer.
I agree with Bryan's thoughts on how this software would help alleviate students' fears of doing a good job when they question their artistic ability. It takes having to be good at drawing right out of the equation! I also agree with Kylie that this would be a great site for struggling readers to practice reading through comics created by the teacher. Cute site overall.
This is a really great site for students who have learning disabilities in the area of writing. Because the cartoon is a visual representation of a story, students have an easier time of making their stories flow sequentially.
This looks like a good way to make that one connection that you have been looking to make all year. This site is an appealing way to reach those students that are spatial learners. I would include this into any differentiation portions of my lessons because it can be used in so many different ways; independent, small or even larger groups can create comics to reflect any kind of learning. Creating as a teacher or having students use this to display content knowledge would be an excellent assessment tool. I will be looking into this site a little further.
I like Bill's idea of using it as an assessment tool. the only problem that I found was that it only gives you three frames. I'm a long winded person and would like more frames to work with and maybe more features to play around with as well. I think that this site would be optimal to use with students that easily get overwhelm when they have an endless amount of options, or maybe with students that aren't too familiar with computers. Other wise I would probably use a comic program that had more options.
With that said, does anyone know of any FREE comic programs that have more options?
This is a very nice and funny way to interact with students. I can see making comic strips using the new vocabulary, even making up jokes in the target language, a great idea for teachers of a world language
(I know I commented on this before but I must have done something wrong because it's not here!)
I think this is awesome. In my class, I always have students create a comic strip in French to use a certain verb they are learning. It's always one of their favorite projects. It would be fantastic if I could have them use this program instead! Comic strips also have a huge French cultural background associated with them - "les bandes-dessinés" are very popular in France and have been used in a variety of ways. With software like this, I could design a unit in which they make a strip but also learn about the cultural relevance of comics. Bryan has a good point that students often feel they won't do well on this project because they "can't draw." This would solve that problem and have them really focus on the text, which is mostly what they are graded on. Very cool resource!
This site is awesome! The variety of languages that students can write in would be great for our teachers of foreign language in our class! For my preschoolers, I love how it has the emotion choices, as recognizing others emotions is a major task at this age.The thought balloons also helps students to label emotions and what the characters might be thinking or feeling. This brings an entirely new feel to writing, and can make the writing experience fun and original for the students. This can be used for any age, subject, and level of computer skill, as well as any type of project. A class could even create their own comic book with each strip that relates to a similar theme or unit. Great find!!
This is so cool!!! I absolutely love this site. There are so many ways to use this in a classroom! I love interactive and visual ideas for lessons that will help students stay engaged. I am a very hands on and visual learner and always like to cater to my students by mixing up my multiple intelligences. I think this is such a great resource for any kind of teacher! These would be great to hang up around the room every new unit!
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