Tag Archives: literacy

Comics Out Loud! – Coming April 24, 2013

Posted on by

Reading With PicturesReading With Pictures, an organization dedicated to increasing literacy through comic books and graphic novels, has announced Comics Out Loud!, an exciting event for teachers, librarians, and other educators on April 24, 2013. The idea is for teachers, librarians, and other educators to incorporate comic books into their daily activities on April 24, 2013. Reading with Pictures will be supplying electronic formats for colorful posters and curriculum friendly materials that give helpful suggestions to incorporate comics into the classroom!

Everyone who believes that comics are an amazing educational resource can participate by planning at least one activity involving comic books on Comics Out Loud! day.

For individuals interesting in getting involved with the event, you can click sign up by filling out a short participation form. Reading With Pictures will email all participants free materials in early April to help plan their events. The first ten folks to register will get a FREE copy of the Reading With Pictures Anthology!

You can also help spread the word. Tell your co-workers, fellow educators, and friends that April 24, 2013 is a day to celebrate Comics Out Loud!  Use the Twitter hashtag #ComicsOutLoud or post to Facebook that you’ll be teaching Comics Out Loud! on April 24.

Comic Book Literacy Now on DVD

Posted on by

After a successful screening run, including San Diego Comic-Con, C2E2, American Library Association National Conference and more, the educational, feature length documentary film Comic Book Literacy is now on DVD.

The film features comic book creators like Paul Dini, Ben Dunn, Scott McCloud, Terry Moore, Joe Quesada, Jim Salicrup, Gail Simone, Art Spiegelman and more as they discuss the concept of utilizing the comic book medium for educational purposes and to promote literacy.

The Comic Book Literacy Documentary is an independent feature length documentary film.  The film showcases comic books as a way to inspire a passion for reading in both children and adults.  Comics have traditionally had a bad reputation from the perspective of the general public and it is the goal of this film to shatter the negative stereotype of comics as “junk food for the brain” and to show them in a new light.

Comics are a diverse, misunderstood medium that, for too long, have been the dirty little secret of the literary world.  From the immigrant who learns English by reading Superman comics to the child who develops a love of literature from the X-Men, comics have kept America reading for decades with fantastic tales, well structured stories and amazing fantasies.

The film can be purchased online at http://comicbookliteracy.com

Around the Tubes

Posted on by

It’s Tuesday and I’ve barely covered from New York Comic Con.  You’ll start seeing my coverage of the show starting today, along with a lot of reviews I wrote on my way to and back from the show.  In the mean time, here’s the news you might have missed.

Around the Blogs:

Kotaku – So, What Makes Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 So Ultimate? – Wait for the next one which will be “super colossal”…

Kotaku – Here’s What You Need to Know About Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3’s Heroes and Heralds Mode – You also need to know you’ll lose to a 6 year old online…

Kotaku – Activision Promises Amazing Spider-Man Will Have More Web-Slinging than Its Predecessors – Isn’t this said every Spidey game?

Marketwatch – General Mills and DC Entertainment Join Forces to Promote Reading Among Children – Anything to get the kids reading….

Con Coverage:

Think Progress – New York Comic Con Report: PBS’s Great-Looking Upcoming Superhero Documentary

ICv2 – NYCC Friday Photos, Part 2

ICv2 – NYCC Friday Photos, Part 1

Comicvine – New York Comic Con 2011 Cosplay Gallery

Spandexless – NYCC Aftermath: Signal to Noise in the midst of Spandex

The Beat – NYCC drew 105,000

MTV Geek – Is The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo A Superhero? NYCC Panelists Debate

CBR – NYCC: Vertigo Envisions Its 2012 Lineup

MTV Geek – VIZ NYCC Announcements: Loveless, Voltron, Naruto, Jiu Jiu, And More!

Spandexless – Unauthorized Dispatches, New York Comic Con: First Pants, Then Shoes

CBR – NYCC: Kirkman is Skybound in New York

MTV Geek – New York Comic Con Gets Legendary With Frank Miller and More – Panel Recap

Around the Tubes Reviews:

Major Spoilers – Grimm Fairy Tales – Inferno One-Shot

Major Spoilers – Salem’s Daughter – The Haunting #2

Around the Tubes

Posted on by

I’ve really got nada right now but…. Friday is a cool interview with a comic book writer that’ll be written up after or for Saturday and at 3pm EST we’ve got some news we’ve had to sit on, so come back then….  Until then, here’s the news you might have missed.

Around the Blogs:

Kotaku – See Arkham City’s Batman Without his Mask On – The toys look pretty decent, the game looks amazing.

Death and Taxes – Batwoman Is the Black, Gay Sheep Of Batman’s Comic Family – Great interview.

Vancouver Sun – Comic books in schools lure reluctant readers – Another article about how comics are promoting literacy.

Con Coverage:

Bleeding Cool – And Finally… Going On A Date With Marvel Comics

Spandexless – SPX Pulls: Healed, George O’Connor & S. Griffin

Spandexless – SPX Talks: Alex Robinson

Comics Alliance – RedBubble’s New York Comic Con T-Shirt Design Challenge [Contest]

Fantagraphics Books – SPX 2011: Now With Even More Photos!

Spandexless – SPX Pulls: Darryl Ayo Roundup

Spandexless – SPX Talks: Aaron Diaz/Dresden Codak

MTV Geek – Diamond Select Toys Announce Exclusives for NYCC 2011!

The Beat – ICv2 Conference takes 2011 hiatus

Fantagraphics Books – Fantagraphics APE 2011 Programming Schedule

Around the Tubes Reviews:

Comicsgirl – Amulet Book Four: The Last Council

MTV Geek – Blood Blockade Battlefront, vol. 1

CBR – Daredevil #4

MTV Geek – Supergirl #1

Comics Alliance – Ultimate Comics X-Men’ #1

Entertainment Weekly – Batman #1 and other new DC Comics reviews

Bleeding Cool – Wednesday Comics Review: Batman, Wonder Woman, Legion Of Superheroes, Supergirl, Nightwing, Birds Of Prey, Captain Atom, Catwoman, Green Lantern Corps, DC Universe Presents, Blue Beetle, Red Hood And The Outlaws

President-in-Geek Obama Mentions His Love of Comics and Spider-Man on Video

Posted on by
Bookmark and Share

In preparation for the return to school, Scholastic had student journalists interview President Obama about topics like his reading habits growing up and  the 9-11 attacks.

Below is the video excerpt where he admits (though it comes of shamefully) he read comic books growing up, and his specifically Spider-Man.

[vodpod id=Video.15348196&w=425&h=350&fv=videoId%3D1124354269001%26amp%3BplayerId%3D1543302482%26amp%3BviewerSecureGatewayURL%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fconsole.brightcove.com%2Fservices%2Famfgateway%26amp%3BservicesURL%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fservices.brightcove.com%2Fservices%26amp%3BcdnURL%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fadmin.brightcove.com%26amp%3Bdomain%3Dembed%26amp%3BautoStart%3Dfalse%26amp%3B]

I think I was getting into, like The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, and stuff like that. And I confess that I did read comic books as well, like Spiderman was one of my favorites. And then I read what I was assigned at school.
….But by the time maybe I was Malia’s age, I was starting to read more serious books like, To Kill a Mockingbird, or some of the things that I see her reading now that made you think a little bit more. They weren’t just kind of adventure stories, but they were also stories that taught me about social problems and taught me about how people interact with each other, and how some people are kind and some people are cruel. And history sweeps them along, and people have a lot of challenges in their lives.

Starting at Pitcher, Stan Lee

Posted on by
Bookmark and Share

Stan LeeBefore heading a bit north for Baltimore Comic-Con this weekend, comic book legend Stan Lee will be throwing out the ceremonial first ball August 19th before the Nationals home game against the Phillies.  Talking to Comic Riffs, Lee said:

Hope I’ll be able to reach the catcher when I toss the ball. Is it okay to roll it?

But the appearance isn’t tied to the weekend’s convention, just a 45 minute drive north from Washington, DC.  Instead it’s to kick off the East coast literacy campaign for the Stan Lee Foundation.  The foundation is teaming up with local comic book shops to donate comic books to the areas kids.  The foundation’s goal is to help fight illiteracy in children, something comic books are playing a big part in more and more.

Lee sees illiterate and semi-literate children as handicapped in a world that’s ever more interconnected and one where you need every skill you can get.  Further Lee went on to say:

As one who has dealt with reading and writing all my life, I wish every young person could experience the satisfaction that comes with the ability to read, enjoy and benefit from the written word.

So, who wants to go see a comic book legend throw out a baseball?

Comic Book Classroom Literacy Program in Denver

Posted on by
Bookmark and Share

Using comic books for educational purposes seems to be gaining acceptance around the nation.  The latest program has been launched in Denver, Colorado.  Charlie LaGreca remembers learning to read through comic books and has put together a program to promote literacy and vocabulary among underserved students using comic books and graphic novels.

The Denver Post reports:

LaGreca and his team go into participating schools once a week for eight weeks teaching the basics of the craft — starting with the comic-book language like, “What is a thought balloon?” They teach story, structure, character and the natural rise and fall of plotlines — essential storytelling elements that can help students in other classes. By the end, all the kids invent their own original comic book.

LeGreca created Comic Book Classroom two years ago with Frank Romero, the former manager of retail operations for Mile High Comics; Christina Angel, who teaches a course at Metro State and Arapahoe Community College about comic books; and Illya Kowalchuk, who has a master’s degree in integrating creative arts into classrooms.

Comics Boost Literacy

Posted on by

Bookmark and Share

DiplomaWe’ve ran some previous articles, and our anecdotal evidence would suggest this, but our neighbors to the north the Canadian Council on Learning have backed up what we all know, comic books boost literacy.

The CCL’s findings suggest that comic books and graphic novels could help promote literacy in “young boys—who have traditionally lagged behind girls in reading.”

According to the Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation (OECD) comic books are the second most-popular reading material for boys, following newspapers or magazines. Additional research shows that three-quarters (75%) of elementary school-aged boys reported reading comics; compared to only half (50%) of elementary school-aged girls.

The suggests that comic books make be an effective gateway for boys to read and that they help develop visual literacy.

As well, reading comic books can help develop many of the same literacy skills as reading prose-based books such as:

  • the ability to follow a sequence of events,
  • the ability to connect narratives to the reader’s  own experiences,
  • the ability to predict what will happen next, and
  • the ability to interpret symbols.

They have also been found to be helpful when it comes to:

  • Understanding reading material before one can read,
  • Teaching aid for second language learners,
  • Teaching aid for those with learning disabilities.

You can read the full report here.

Comic Book Literacy – A Documentary

Posted on by


Coming in 2010 is a documentary about comic books and their role in promoting literacy.

The film showcases comic books as a way to inspire a passion for reading in both children and adults.  Comics have traditionally had a bad reputation from the perspective of the general public and it is the goal of this film to shatter the negative stereotype of comics as “junk food for the brain” and to show them in a new light.

Comic Book LiteracyRecently it’s becoming more and more accepted that comics aren’t just “junk food” for the brain.  Schools are turning to them to motivate students, universities and students are using them in their studies, museums are holding deep retrospectives and exhibits, and a recent study declared they may be just as good as standard reading material.

A trailer has been released which you can see at http://www.comicbookliteracy.com/trailer.html.