Pathway to Progress: Empowering Educators for Today’s Classrooms

Are you interested in using and making comics in the classroom, but don’t know where to start? Based on research into children’s comics making, this workshop aimed at KS2 teachers (ages 7-11) will introduce you to creative and engaging ways of making, thinking and learning through comics. Through hands-on activities we will explore how ‘the medium we think in defines what we can see’ (Sousanis, 2015). Each part of this workshop will involve you thinking about the medium of comics through making comics. The language of comics will be explored, and we will look at how the medium of comics work. Through practical drawing activities, participants will have the chance to develop their understanding of how to simplify drawings and use symbols to communicate emotions. We will explore the panel and gutter through drawing and working collaboratively to make a comic strip. Participants will discover the power of drawing and writing for enjoyment and what is unique about comics as an art form.

Comics are a fantastic way to get young children engaged in reading and writing. Based on research into children’s comics making, this workshop aimed at KS1 teachers (ages 5-7) will introduce you to creative and engaging ways of making and learning about comics. We will look the relationship between picturebooks and comics and consider how to develop children’s visual literacy. Through practical drawing activities, participants will have the chance to develop their understanding of how to simplify drawings and use symbols to communicate emotions. Participants will learn to fold and make a ‘zine’ (small DIY booklets), and through words and pictures get a chance to create their own mini-comic, an activity they can replicate back in their own classrooms across all subject areas.

This workshop will explore how to develop a community of comics readers to support children’s engagement with reading for pleasure. Based on research into the setting up and running of a comics library, this workshop examines how comics can develop a positive reading culture in schools. We will consider some of the myths around comics and look at their potential. We will explore what comics ‘are’ and the many different types of comics that are available to readers. The language of comics will be explored, and we will look at how to ‘read’ comics. Finally the workshop will offer practical suggestions for developing your own knowledge of children’s comics and creating your own comics libraries.