Bitstrips
There is growing use of graphic novels in the classroom. My collection of graphic novels in the classroom is growing, and includes such titles as The Invention Hugo Cabret, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, The Graveyard Book, The Hobbit, and El Deafo, a Newbery honor book for 2015. Some of the most recognizable changes in today's novels written for children are the addition of visual images and elaborate graphic design features in addition to written text (Serafini & Blasingame, 2012). These multimodal texts express their message through numerous systems of meaning, or modes, including visual images, typography, graphic design elements, and written text (Kress, 2010). Combining traditional print based literacy and digital communication increases student engagement in addition to helping students make sense of complex texts (Walsh, 2010). With the growing emphasis upon the use of graphic novels in the classroom, I found it fitting to allow students to create their own comic strip.
Students were most engaged when they were able to turn their stories into a comic using Bitstrips. Each morning, students would excitedly ask me when they would get to work on their comic. Students loved how they could create an avatar of themselves, and how they could use another student’s avatar in their own stories. While students were initially frustrated with the learning curve, it was not long before they were eagerly showing each other how to manipulate their characters into any imaginable position. Students were very social throughout the entire process and served as scaffolds for each other's thinking.
Figures 1, 2, and 3 illustrate Clayton's transition from the planning process to creating a story with numerous systems of meaning. The original setting from his digital drawing, the tractor pull, remains, but the new details from his digital recording have made it into these figures. Clayton enjoyed creating a background or inserting images that enhanced the telling and development of their stories.
When asked what he liked the best about writing so far this year in the interview conducted at the end of the inquiry, Clayton responded, “That we got to put our story in a comic.”
Clayton's Bitstrip shows not only his engagement with the resource, but also how it helped him plan and develop his piece of writing for google classroom.
Students were most engaged when they were able to turn their stories into a comic using Bitstrips. Each morning, students would excitedly ask me when they would get to work on their comic. Students loved how they could create an avatar of themselves, and how they could use another student’s avatar in their own stories. While students were initially frustrated with the learning curve, it was not long before they were eagerly showing each other how to manipulate their characters into any imaginable position. Students were very social throughout the entire process and served as scaffolds for each other's thinking.
Figures 1, 2, and 3 illustrate Clayton's transition from the planning process to creating a story with numerous systems of meaning. The original setting from his digital drawing, the tractor pull, remains, but the new details from his digital recording have made it into these figures. Clayton enjoyed creating a background or inserting images that enhanced the telling and development of their stories.
When asked what he liked the best about writing so far this year in the interview conducted at the end of the inquiry, Clayton responded, “That we got to put our story in a comic.”
Clayton's Bitstrip shows not only his engagement with the resource, but also how it helped him plan and develop his piece of writing for google classroom.
Figures 4, 5, and 6 illustrates Carly's use of the characters' facial expressions to further enhance the message of the story. Through her development of her comic, Carly realized something she left out of her earlier plans; Ruby is a great friend to her! This idea would become better developed in her document she created in google classroom. Carly had this to say about Bitstrips: “I like using Bitstrips because you get to make your own character and that really makes the story come to life.”
The use of Bitstrips had students engaged like I have never seen before in the classroom. They no longer dreaded writing time, instead, they eagerly anticipated it. I was asked repeatedly when they would get to continue working on the comics, and if they would get to create another one soon. This digital resource got students engaged in multiple modes of thinking by helping them plan, create, and reflect upon their story at the same time.