{"id":67576,"date":"2014-04-08T11:30:30","date_gmt":"2014-04-08T16:30:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=67576"},"modified":"2014-04-06T18:08:14","modified_gmt":"2014-04-06T23:08:14","slug":"document-spotlight-raising-a-reader-or-how-comics-graphic-novels-can-help-your-kids-love-to-read","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=67576","title":{"rendered":"Document Spotlight: Raising a Reader! or How Comics & Graphic Novels Can Help Your Kids Love To Read!"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Mychal Ludwig, Head Editor,\u00a0INALJ New Mexico<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Document Spotlight: Raising a Reader!\u00a0or How Comics & Graphic Novels Can Help Your Kids Love To Read!<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"MychalLudwig\"<\/a>The publication, Raising a Reader! How Comics & Graphic Novels Can Help Your\u00a0Kids Love To Read<\/span>, presents the Comic Book Legal Defense Funds argument for\u00a0protecting comic books and other sequential-art fiction from censorship and legal\u00a0action by convincing educators of all stripes as well as parents that comic books\u00a0are not only fun for their children, but represent something as impactful as high\u00a0literature when it comes to raising and shaping our next generation.<\/p>\n

This \u201cDocument Spotlight\u201d consists of a photo-commentary tour of the comic book,\u00a0presenting and remarking on the CBLDF\u2019s (through author Meryl Jaffe, PhD) case\u00a0that comics and graphic novels are as important as books when creating a life long\u00a0reader and learner.<\/p>\n

\"mychall1\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Presented itself as a comic book issue, mixing playful and inviting illustrations\u00a0with sections of their textual argument, this meta-experience is meant not only to\u00a0educate adults in one way or another, but delight any children or young adults who\u00a0might thumb through its pages.<\/p>\n

Immediately, author Meryl Jaffe states that while, sure, comics are fun, this isn\u2019t\u00a0simply playtime for children, they also impart important visual and verbal literacy\u00a0skills that are crucial for critical thinking and memory. Comics are fun, and learning\u00a0can be fun. They don\u2019t have to be mutually exclusive.<\/p>\n

\"mychall2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The first main section, \u201cWhat Graphic Novels Offer Kids\u201d simply details the broad\u00a0benefits of having young people read and look at graphic fiction:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Visual Literacy
\n\u2022 Exciting experiences for all sorts of readers
\n\u2022 Graphic fiction is by its nature engaging
\n\u2022 The quality, quantity, & diversity of graphic fiction rivals standard fiction<\/p>\n

\"mychall3\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Including a bit of a how-to, this section conveys the basics of reading and looking at\u00a0comic book panels and pages:<\/p>\n

\u2022 What is a panel?
\n\u2022 Panel borders
\n\u2022 Importance of layout\/arrangement
\n\u2022 Space between panels are known as \u201cgutters\u201d
\n\u2022 Word balloons and their varied uses<\/p>\n

I would suggest reading Scott McCloud\u2019s seminal work \u201cUnderstanding Comics\u201d\u00a0for an in-depth understanding of the history of sequential art and fiction and how\u00a0to read and get meaning from comics. Similar to this document, it\u2019s presented as a\u00a0graphic novel (also known as a trade, or trade paperback)<\/p>\n

\"mychall4\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This section goes into more detail concerning the use of graphic novels in creating\u00a0dialogues between readers\/learners, and the different ways to read one, which are\u00a0largely the same as a normal book:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Solo story exploration, aka \u201calone time\u201d
\n\u2022 Use in read-alouds
\n\u2022 Use as book club selections
\n\u2022 Graphic novels paired with prose novels as a contrast and gateway to\u00a0standard fiction<\/p>\n

\"mychall5\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This section explores how graphic novels are being used in modern education, both\u00a0in a classroom, or in a library:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Graphic novels empower modern learners and relate to modern forms of\u00a0communication and visual literacy
\n\u2022 Graphic novels attract all types and levels of reader
\n\u2022 Graphic novels fit National Common Core State Standard mandates (so can\u00a0be used in formal educational contexts)
\n\u2022 Graphic novels strengthen multiple learning skills that apply in both formal\u00a0and informal settings including memory, visual sequencing, and language\u00a0among others<\/p>\n

\"mychall6\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The CBLDF column \u201cUsing Graphic Novels in Education\u201d specifically focuses on the\u00a0content of banned or challenged graphic fiction, discussing the issues surrounding\u00a0these texts and how they can be utilized in teaching\/learning. For example:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
\n\u2022 American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
\n\u2022 The Silence of Our Friends by Mark Long, Jim Demonakos, and Nate Powell<\/p>\n

\"mychall7\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Like the ALA\u2019s Freedom To Read statement, Raising a Reader!<\/span> Ends with the\u00a0statement on \u201cProtecting Kids\u2019 Right To Read!\u201d discussing how graphic novels are\u00a0as important as prose fiction, film, television, and other entertainment\/education\u00a0media.<\/p>\n

Gotta love Babymouse defending free speech.<\/p>\n

For Futher Information:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Comic Book Legal Defense Fund<\/a>
\n\u2022 Scott McCloud\u2019s Understanding Comics<\/a>
\n\u2022 ALA Freedom to Read<\/a> statement
\n\u2022 ALA Office of Intellectual Freedom<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Mychal Ludwig, Head Editor,\u00a0INALJ New Mexico Document Spotlight: Raising a Reader!\u00a0or How Comics & Graphic Novels Can Help Your Kids Love To Read! The publication, Raising a Reader! How Comics & Graphic Novels Can Help Your\u00a0Kids Love To Read, presents the Comic Book Legal Defense Funds argument for\u00a0protecting comic books and other sequential-art fiction…<\/p>\n

Read more \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":56852,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[145],"tags":[69,3592,5709,5710,6104,3635,3990,6105],"class_list":["post-67576","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-article","tag-blog","tag-comic-books","tag-graphic-novels","tag-graphic-novels-and-education","tag-inalj-new-mexico","tag-mychal-ludwig","tag-raising-a-reader"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/MychalLudwig.jpeg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1WoMK-hzW","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67576","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=67576"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67576\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/56852"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=67576"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=67576"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=67576"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}