This page provides suggestions for which graphic novels and graphic adaptations to use across five genres, how I've used them in my teaching, and how one might use them in their own classroom. All texts are appropriate for both secondary and adult education teaching contexts.
DramaScaffold student learning of Shakespearean drama by using graphic adaptations of the Bard's plays. The adaptations by Classical Comics are particularly good, and available adaptations include: Macbeth, Romeo & Juliet, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and The Tempest. These adaptations are very well done, and the artwork is stellar. Classical Comics are ideal for differentiation, as there are three versions of each adaptation: a word-for-word adaptation, an abridged quick-text (only the essential dialogue), and a translated plain-text version (contemporary English). Classical Comics are great for adult education as the content is appropriate for the age of any adult learner, and the teacher can assign books to students based on their respective reading levels, all while reading the same text at the same time. Auditory learners and ESL students can also benefit from the available audio versions of the comics, and the "Interactive Motion Comic" editions are ideal to review key scenes with students on a SMART Board or projection screen. Finally, all plays include a teaching resource guide with reproducibles as well as carefully constructed activities and well-thought-out ideas for lessons and thematic units.
|
Non-FictionSee the "Resources" page for a list of historical and biographical graphic novels. The only graphic biography I've assigned is Malcolm X: A Graphic Biography, by Andrew Helfer and Randy DuBurke, and my students enjoyed it thoroughly. The students to whom I assigned the novel struggle as readers, but their high interest in learning about black history and racism gave them the proper motivation to get through it, and the photographs helped them understand the narrative, even if they had occasional trouble with the vocabulary.
|
NovelsI haven't taught Jeff Lemire's Essex County, but it should be appropriate for most Sec. 5 classes (it's been recently adapted into a CBC miniseries, which would enrich students' experience of the book). It's the kind of text I'd assign as a class novel (and not to individual students or small groups) primarily because it's a long text, but also because there's a lot to unpack in it. The book contains rich reflections on everything from youth to aging to disability to loss, and provides a wonderful snapshot of life in small town Ontario. The themes are both heavy and complex, but the language is highly accessible. The book isn't yet part of the Canadian canon, but it will be eventually.
|
PoetryThere are many graphic novel adaptations of classic works of literature, but there are nowhere near as many graphic adaptations of poetry (at least not yet). What exists, however, is quite good and totally worth checking out. Here's a selection:
|
Short FictionThere is even less graphic novel-style short fiction out there than there is poetry, but what does exist is worth considering for inclusion in your ELA classroom. My favourite collection of this form of short fiction is Flight, by Kazu Kibuishi. Kibuishi is the editor of the collection, and the contributions are all thematically linked through flight as a motif. The stories are all quite short, and represent a really excellent entry point into the graphic novel genre for students. What's more, the last contribution in the collection is reserved for Scott McCloud, who provides a wonderful meditation on the resurgence of comics at the dawn of the 21st century.
|