Panel by Panel Lesson Plan

Understanding Comics Chapter Three “Blood in the Gutter”

Chapter Three of Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics, titled “Blood in the Gutter,” would be taught in the early stages  of the graphic novel unit, where many of the possible texts, such as Watchmen, use concepts described in McCloud’s book. This reading would follow the preceding two chapters of McCloud’s book, which give a brief history of comics and the most basic vocabulary of comics respectively, and in this class are mean to precede reading Alan Moore’s Watchmen, particularly for its complex story elements and usage of the elements of comic structure. This reading could be matched with any high school level classroom, though I am considering it here for a junior or senior class.

McCloud uses a combination of text and images to describe the way comic writers use panels and the space between panels to manipulate the reader’s perception of time and increase involvement in the comic. He describes six forms of transitions: moment-to-moment, action-to-action, subject-to-subject, scene-to-scene, aspect-to-aspect, and non-sequitur, enhancing each with multiple examples. McCloud describes breakdown in usage by different writers and countries, and the strengths of each transition. McCloud briefly touches on how comic writers invoke the senses since reader perception and interpretation of visual cues, and sometimes invisible assumptions, of representation and images that are enhanced by reader background.

This reading is suitable for all high school classes. It is useful to be taught any time students are introduced to comics in academia, but also for a quick review of comics if re-introduced to them. The text is meant as an introductory text to the material of comics, but is geared towards students and adults, so the language is approachable. McCloud makes an explanation and in a defined area near his words uses images to enhance and demonstrate what he is explaining, in many cases demonstrating the concept multiple times. Any references to comic writers are immediately reinforced with an example, removing the need for background knowledge. The text contains a few ELA concept or topic vocabulary, like genre, and many graphic novel topic vocabulary, but that is explained either in this chapter or preceding ones. Because of this, this text can be read with this chapter by itself, but it strongly benefits from reading the entire text of Understanding Comics sequentially.

Guiding Question: What is it about the structure of comics that creates a more meaningful or different experience than a traditional text?

Lesson
Day 1

Activity: Panel Guiding Questions for Reading Focus (see Lattimer 22, 31) 20-30 min

A students enter the classroom I will have a set of numbered pictures taped to the chalkboard and ask students to take a look at them as they enter. Once class begins I will ask students to look at the pictures first alone and write down thoughts on at least two sets of panels, but not limited to two, pertaining to the following questions: “What do you see in the panel set? What is happening? What does the layout of the panels tell you, and how does it affect presentation of what is happening? What do you see about the subject, mood, and tone of the image? Write any questions you have as well.”

After writing alone for a few minutes (10min), students will group up in groups of 5-6, preferably by comic choice, to discuss their observations (5-10min). Then the whole class will discuss their observations of and reactions to the comic panels (10 min). The teacher should create a chart during discussion similar to a K-W-L chart (Lattimer 30) where the students observations and questions are displayed for future class reference.

After discussion begins to end, or when the idea comes up during discussion, I will explain that each set of panels illustrates a different kind of panel transition. I will then use each panel to explain the transition briefly. This is the main focus of the McCloud chapter we will be reading today.

 

Activity: Read Aloud (Lattimer 92) 20-30min

The class will begin to read “Blood in the Gutter” (Ch 3 Understanding Comics) starting on page 60. The predominant area of focus will be pages 66-78. I will start the read aloud and include inputs about what McCloud has written. I will also encourage students to make note of questions or important parts of the text they would want to reference later, and any words that look like important vocabulary words. Students do not have to read, but I will encourage participation in this. We will continue reading through class time, covering questions as they appear while reading.

Activity: Exit Slip (Daniels 35) (5 min)

Student will write to these prompts:

1) What might you use a panel transition to illustrate? (2 examples)
2) Are there any transitions that are confusing?
3) Questions?

Collect as students leave. Instruct to write the entire time.

Day 2

Activity: Panel-by-Panel Pass Around Visualization Activity (Daniels 48) (35-40 min)

I will first go over the six transitions, what they look like, and what they do, calling on students to name each. Use exit slips from the previous day to prompt discussion, bring up important ideas, or dispel confusion or misconceptions.
I will model this activity with two or three students first. For this activity, students need to divide a supplied piece of paper into six identical squares. Students then draw a simple picture of any sort that could begin a story and draw arrows to indicate which panel leads to the next one. Students will also make a title for their mini-comic. Then each student will pass their paper to another student. That student will draw the next part of the story, using information from previous images and the title, in the next square choosing an unused transition (action-to-action, non-sequitur, etc) and write their name. This will continue until the comic is complete and all transitions have been used. Students will recollect their papers and look over their comics. Students will share effective ones and ones with transitions that are confusing. Collect to assess vocabulary understanding of the transitions.

Activity: Complete K-W-L Chart (5-10 min)

I will draw attention back to the K-W-L chart to address what the class learned in a full class discussion and fill it out in the L-column, focusing on questions from the W-column.

Activity: Exit Slip (Daniels 35) (5 min)

Pose the following prompts to be filled out in the remaining time on a sheet of paper:
1) List two things you took away from the lesson on panel transitions. (One can be a drawing of two panels with a labeled transition if preferred)
2) Any other questions?

Instruct students to write the whole time and answer as many as possible. Collect as students leave.

Vocabulary
Panel: block encapsulating an event in a comic narrative

Gutter: the area between comic panels

Closure: observing the parts but perceiving the whole

Moment-to-Moment: transition with extremely small increment of subject movement requiring no closure

Action-to-Action: transition featuring a single subject in distinct progression

Subject-to-Subject: transition between subjects in a scene or idea

Scene-to-Scene: transition transporting reader across significant distances of time and space

Aspect-to-Aspect: transition bypassing time to display different aspects of a place, idea, or mood

Non-Sequitur: transition offering no logical relationships between panels whatsoever

Panel Set

#1 (Moment-to-Moment) Calvin and Hobbes

#2 (Action to Action) Bone

 

#3 (Subject-to-Subject) Understanding Comics

#4 (Scene-to-Scene) Watchmen

#5 (Aspect-to-Aspect) The Killing Joke

#6 (Non-sequitur) Understanding Comics

 

Works Cited

Brozo, William G., and Mayville Melissa. “Reinforcing Secondary Literacy Engagement                with Graphic Novels.” The NERA Journal 48.1 (2012): 11-20. Print.

Daniels, Harvey, Steven Zemelman, and Nancy Steineke. “Content-area Writing: Every                Teacher’s Guide.” Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2007. Print.

Hassett, Dawnene D., and Melissa Schieble. “Finding Space and Time for the Visual in K-          12 Literacy Instruction.” The English Journal 97.1 (2007): 62-68. Print.

Hibbing, Anne Nielsen. “A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words: Using Visual Images to                Improve Comprehension for Middle School Struggling Readers.” The Reading                      Teacher 56.8 (2003): 758-70. Print.

Lattimer, Heather. “Reading for Learning: Using Discipline-based Texts to Build Content             Knowledge.” Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, 2010. Print.

McCloud, Scott. “Chapter 3: Blood in the Gutter.” Understanding Comics:. New York:                William Morrow, an Imprint of HarperCollins Publ., 2012. 60-93. Print.

Moje, Elizabeth Birr. “Foregrounding the Disciplines in Secondary Literacy Teaching and             Learning: A Call for Change.” Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 52.2 (2008):               96-107. Print.

Moore, Alan, and Brian Bolland. The Killing Joke. London: Titan, 2008. Print.

Moore, Alan, and Dave Gibbons. Watchmen. New York: DC Comics, 1987. Print.

Park, Jie Y. “All the ways of reading literature: Preservice teacher’s perspectives on                         disciplinary literacy.” English Education. July 2013: 361-384. Print.

Smith, Jeff. Bone: Volume 1: Out From Boneville. New York: GRAPHIX, 2005. Print.

Townsend, Dianna. “Building Academic Vocabulary in After-School Settings: Games for             Growth With Middle School English-Language Learners.” Journal of Adolescent &                Adult Literacy 53.3 (2009): 242-51. Print

Watterson, Bill. The Complete Calvin and Hobbes. Kansas City, MO: Andrews McMeel                     Pub., 2005. Print.

Watchtower: Disciplinary Texts

These texts were collected with the idea of teaching comics in an English Language Arts setting, specifically looking for texts that would aid in teaching Watchmen and The Dark
Knight Returns. The questions posed at the end are ones for students to think about either reading these texts by themselves, or in reflecting on the main text.

 

 

 

Infographics: Superhero and Villain Color Choices

Leong, Tim. “”Good Measures” and “Color Me Bad”” Super Graphic: A Visual Guide to the         Comic Book Universe. San Francisco: Chronicle, 2013. 8-11. Print.

Summary: This text includes a pair of infographics depicting character color distribution between a set of heroes and villains. It describes that primary colors are generally used for heroic characters and that secondary characters tend to be colored in secondary colors.*Click for larger view*

Complexity: On a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the easiest to read, I would rate this as a 1. This text is extremely easy to read. It tells readers what colors are primary and secondary and how they are used. Also, readers do not even need a background on the characters to understand the implications of the infographic since it already divides the two graphs into hero and villain graphs. The setup is also nicely structured, making it visually pleasing and easy to read.

Why use this?: This text is a great visual introduction for students into color usage in comics. The infographic also gives many examples and so is extremely useful in portraying this concept to students. Visual documents are easy attention grabbers and help in comprehension of a topic, especially for visual learners.

Questions: Why do you think these colors specifically were chosen to create these distinctions? Do you have a certain reaction to these colors? Can you think of exceptions?

Three Cold War Posters from the United States

Piccio, Arthur. “26 Amazing Cold War Vintage Home Front Posters!” Web log post.                    UPrinting    Blog. N.p., 11 Feb. 2011. Web. 24 July 2014.

Summary: Compilation of Cold War propaganda posters.

Complexity: On a scale of 1 to 5, I would rate these posters as somewhere between a 2 and a 3 because they are not overly difficult texts but do require some knowledge to effectively utilize them. The posters are easy to read visually and are clear with their emotions about the topic of the Cold War. The texts require either background knowledge of the Cold War or scaffolding to help eliminate uncertainties about the topic of the Cold War, communism and communists, and the Red Scare, since these posts either reference these topics or invoke ideas about these social topics.

Why use this?: The two texts I am considering most with many of these sources take place during the era of the Cold War and deal greatly with the fear and paranoia of communism in America, as well as directly referencing the conflict.These texts are visual ways to discuss the topics of this era. The visual representation ties in well with the topic of the graphic novel and so will allow students to compare the artwork of these posters with the comic and comment on similarities. Also, the content or themes in the comics mirrors some of the concepts or images on the posters and so serves as a good discussion point and connection for students. This is another situation where students can look at the usage of color.

Question: How do you feel when you look at each of these posters? What do you think is the intended effect of these posters? Are they effective?
What connections do you see between these texts and the comic?

Understanding Comics

McCloud, Scott. “Chapter 3: Blood in the Gutter.” Understanding Comics:. New York:    William Morrow, an Imprint of HarperCollins Publ., 2012. 60-93. Print.

Summary: McCloud uses a combination of text and images to describe the way comic writers use panels and the space between panels to manipulate the reader’s perception of time and increase involvement in the comic. He describes six forms of transitions: moment-to-moment, action-to-action, subject-to-subject, scene-to-scene, aspect-to-aspect, and non-sequitur, enhancing each with multiple examples. McCloud describes breakdown in usage by different writers and countries, and the strengths of each transition. McCloud also describes the way senses are used within comic texts and how a visual form attempts to translate all five senses for readers with the help of words and images combined. Even with the images, this text uses a lot of words to explain the concepts and the images are mainly examples and supplementary, making this book and chapter a text based source.

Complexity: On a scale of 1 to 5, I would rate this text at around a 2. The text is meant as an introductory text to the material of comics, but is geared towards students, most likely high school students, and adults. McCloud makes an explanation and in a defined area near his words uses images to enhance and demonstrate what he is explaining, in many cases demonstrating the concept multiple times. Any references to comic writers are immediately reinforced with an example, removing the need for background knowledge. The text contains a few ELA concept or topic vocabulary, like genre, and many graphic novel topic vocabulary, but that is explained either in this chapter or preceding ones. Because of this, this text can be read with this chapter by itself, but it strongly benefits from reading the entire text of Understanding Comics sequentially.

Why teach this?: This text is a wonderful introduction to comics, both for readers of it and writers. The comic setup to it makes the material approachable and utilizes its genre of writing to the maximum level. While the content taught could be considered textbook concepts, the delivery and writing makes it feel very much like a conversation with McCloud about the text.

Questions: Describe some different ways to demonstrate the senses in comic form.
What are some other outcomes between the panels on page 66 (shown above)?
How do you think different panel transitions could affect a scene?

Scott McCloud TED Talk (7:37-9:50)

McCloud, Scott. “Scott McCloud: The Visual Magic of Comics.” TED, Feb. 2005. Web. 22          July 2014.

Summary: Scott McCloud talks about the basic vocabulary of comics by framing it around his discovery of comics while deciding to get into the field. He describes them as a visual medium trying to provide all five senses, funneling all through vision into abstractions. He talks about the visible and invisible in comics and time as a sense.

Complexity: StoryToolz rates the transcript for the selected time at an average of 11.8. As a video, I feel that this allows for the flexibility for 11th to 12th grade students, and probably 10th as well as some of the StoryToolz raters say, to approach this part of the text. McCloud talks about some of the more basic aspects of reading and writing comic books and how they transmit information, but he goes quickly through them and only uses visuals for examples without explanation. Using the first few chapters of McCloud’s Understanding Comics book would help make this video more relevant and easy to understand for students.

Why use this?: As a video, this helps capture student attention. Also, if paired with McCloud’s text, the tie in helps put a face to the writer, even though part of the avatar in the book is meant to not completely represent him. The video helps students get more quick visuals for the examples and does dive a bit more into the concepts of the usage of sound and smell as represented in comics. It also jumps into some historical relevancy of comics by connecting comics to hieroglyphics, and so does some contextualization for students. This video is also a good companion to the Chapter 3 text from Understanding Comics.

Questions: How effectively do you think comics can convey multiple senses, or is McCloud incorrect?
Look for examples in our text and where they fit on McCloud’s continuum or triangle of the picture plane.

Vigilante News Stories (2nd Story)

Archibold, Randal C. “A Quandary for Mexico as Vigilantes Rise.” The New York Times.               The New York Times, 15 Jan. 2014. Web. 23 July 2014.

Archibold, Randal C., and Paulina Villegas. “Vigilantes, Once Welcome, Frighten Many in             Mexico.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 24 Feb. 2014. Web. 24 July               2014.

Summary: Article 1:Residents of a small Mexican town took up arms against a drug cartel that was controlling the town. When the government, who has not dealt with the cartel, tried to step in and take the civilians’ weapons, the vigilantes resisted until the government of Mexico backed off. The vigilante group has driven the cartel from their town and now protects it.

Article 2: Over a month later, citizens are now fearing that the vigilantes will become just like the gangs they drove out and begin to take advantage of the civilians that used to hail them as heroes. The vigilantes have been pushing across Mexico, driving out gangs and have an uneasy respect from the Mexican government. However, the old gang, the Knights Templar, had started out by claiming to plan to root out criminals in the region. The new vigilantes are having old gang members who surrender join, and the government is trying to integrate the vigilantes as a kind of regional defense force.The members of this rural defense force need to pass a background check, but as long as nothing too serious is there they are permitted. Citizens worry about the vigilantes and their growing power, but the vigilantes say they are there to protect their communities.

Complexity: StoryToolz ranks these texts as suitable for readers no lower than 11th grade, being an average of 11.1, with the average total being around grade 12. The texts do include some longer sentences and uses punctuation like dashes and parenthesis to lengthen these sentences. Regardless, there are some difficult words. Spanish names may be initial confusion factors. Also, “vigilante,” “cartel,” and “messianic” are difficult words for a new reader.

However, the first three paragraphs of the first story are rated by Storytoolz as readable by grades as young as 9th grade. If so, with some clever text cuts and edits, the texts could be utilized with younger high school students.

Why read this?: The texts help describe the motivations for people who decide to become vigilantes and describes the interactions they have with the government and civilians while they are still in favor. It keeps this in a real world event, which can help students relate the fictional texts to their lives.

Also, the second story shows how the change in power affects civilian reactions to the vigilante or vigilantes. This helps students again help understand the concepts the civilians express in the texts towards the Watchmen and Batman. By displaying these two texts together, students are given a narrative that mirrors those of the texts

Question: Should people be able to take up arms and defend their own cities in vigilante fashion? What are the advantages and disadvantages of vigilantism?

 

Excerpt from essay on Batman (p58-62)

Paolo, Marc Di. “Batman as Terrorist, Technocrat, and Feudal Lord.” War, Politics and     Superheroes: Ethics and Propaganda in Comics and Film. Jefferson, NC: McFarland &,,       2011. 49-69. Print.

Summary: This section of the essay discusses how Batman’s treatment of criminals, rehabilitation or arrest instead of killing, fits into the article’s argument that Batman is a reflection of the feudal lord, as well as discussing the similarities between Batman and his villains. The first part of the argument states that Batman’s need to not harm and even protect everyone, from civilians to those he must fight, puts him in the role of Bruce Wayne the prince and Batman the “dark” knight. The article then goes on to describe how Batman is given dark reflections of himself, another reason to spare criminals, in his major villains, such as more extreme vigilantes in Two-Face and Ra’s al Ghul, a counterpoint between chaos and order with The Joker, and the cultured Penguin who also desires lone feudal rule over Gotham.

Complexity: Storytoolz.com rates this at an average of 11.6 for a reading level, and I would agree that this text would mainly be meant for 12th grade students in its complete form, but could work with scaffolding and editing down for the most important points for grade 11 students. The reading is an essay and so makes some references that would require background knowledge in the essay’s original form. IT also contains some difficult terms such as feudal, indictment, and initiatives, among others, that would also require aid. However, for students, different examples could be pulled from popular media since this text can be easily edited down by the instructor to make it more accessible. The content of the text is also somewhat complicated, going into social and psychological reason for the comparison, or working with historical ideas such as feudalism. The text is a complex one that will challenge readers, but can be made accessible and less daunting to the higher level students with scaffolding for concepts and editing out the less necessary portions.

Why teach this?: This essay demonstrates first that comics are valid forms of study. The text is applicable at most portions of the reading, and so would make for a way to help students see the validity when initially posing the topic, showing the academic side rather than just a fun one. Also, the text analyzes the antagonists in relation to the protagonist, which is applicable in setting up discussion for a Batman text, any comic text, and really any text by shaping multiple ways readers can look at how the protagonist and antagonist mirror and defy each other. This sets up for some interesting discussions about character relations and the sliding scale of heroism/villainy.

Questions:

Pre-read main text: Does Bruce Wayne sparing the criminals relate more to his identification with the villains or to his driving need for order and to act as a just feudal lord over Gotham?

Post-read main text: Where did you see some of these ideas within The Dark Knight Returns?

Double Trouble: Infographic and Interactive Timeline for Batman and Comics

Because I can be very indecisive when overwhelmed by a lot of interesting ideas, I eventually began to work on both an infographic and an interactive timeline based off of one of my texts for my topic, being The Dark Knight Returns, a highly acclaimed and debatably high school-teachable comic.

Colors in Comics (Click to View)

In making the infographic, I had a much harder time coming up with an idea. In fact, my original idea was a Heroes and Villains Infographic. However, I really ended up feeling a bit “meh” about the resulting infographic. I could not use charts easily and it lacked some visual appeal for me. However, I then thought about using The Dark Knight Returns, the graphic novel I would like to consider teaching, to teach a concept within comics. It came down to either color or paneling. Color seemed to be something that could pop more on an inforgraphic. Unfortunately, the idea came to me far to late to fully get into all the topics, so I did a limited comparison of the colors of Batman and two of the antagonists, the Joker and half-protagonist Superman.

I thought about my own color choices in creating this. Early on, I went with the common rules of a few consistent colors, using colors for the text common to heroes with the primary colors. However, in the Joker section, I used secondary colors that he wears to make a disruption of the text, much like the Joker and most villains themselves would.

I used Piktochart.com to create the infographic. The templates were easy enough to use until you began to work outside the boundaries. Certain texts or images would refuse to move until re-entered. Starting a fresh block was intimidating, but freeing. Once I got the hang of using the software, I felt it was pretty easy. It is a slightly challenging tool for beginning and I wish I had had more time to spend with it.

I would recommend infographics for student use because the visual aspect allows for a lot
of customization, so even with similar templates, you will probably get different results. It also lets students focus on their interests with the topic. The outcomes always looks pretty interesting as well.

Batman and Comics Timeline (Click to View)

To create the interactive timeline, I had to look around for some history on Batman, much of which I had in notes from my previous class on graphic novels. I also included a couple of world events that influenced much of the writing within The Dark Knight Returns. I felt that the interactive timeline would be useful as a tool for a teacher in introducing a text, specifically here a series that most students only think of as a recent film series or references to a campy show. It can help you contextualize the growth of the medium and show why the text is written like it is. It is also useful for students to help them better understand the text if they make their own as they get to do the hunting. Being able to use images and video was a boon.

Though not as intense or nice looking as this!

Dipity.com was extremely easy to use. The interface was understandable and editing information was easy. I would highly recommend this platform both for creating a timeline for students and for students to use to create their own timeline.

 

 

To the Bat Cave!: What I Know and What I Want to Know

Dossiers: What I Know

Comics and graphic novels are essentially the same thing, with graphic novel being basically a name given to comics to make them more respectable and marketable to a larger audience (the “novel” part does sometimes point to it being a contained story rather than a serial, but for the most part, they are the same thing). They are an old art form, and while comic books originate from collections of newspaper comic strips, there are older woodcuts, tapestries, and wall paintings that are essentially comics, sequential stories told with the aid of pictures. They are valuable, and undervalued, literary resources. Some comics have become widely regarded as literary pieces, such as Maus and Persepolis, bringing the medium some credit. However, when people think of comics, I also know most of the population only think of bright or brooding superheroes and villains with over-the-top plots of domination. Instead, they can convey stories as real as a father’s life during war-time or a child struggling with their identity at their new school (though sometimes writers can take liberties to fully utilize what their artwork can lead to). I know some of the mechanics of writing comics, from my class. I know a little of some of the time tricks comic writers can utilize between panels to influence the story. Finally, beyond being ageless, comics are a worldwide literary form alongside poetry and prose. In many cases, comics have crossed country borders and become one of the most dramatically popular art medium from that country.

Detective Work: What I Want to Know

The history of comics and their production.
What are the elements of comics that differentiate it as a medium from other literary mediums?
Reasons comics can be just as important as prose, film, etc? Why is it not studied/respected more?
Why should students care about comics? How can I best implement them into a course?

Resources

1. Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art by Scott McCloud: A book all about the mechanics and history of comics presented IN comic form so you can learn about comics while reading a comic. Kinda.

2. Reading with Pictures: As a site dedicated to helping bring comics into schools, this is a resource databank perfect for this.

3. TED Talks: While one in particular stands out as having more to look at (again by McCloud) there are sure to be more in this area of research.

4. Comics in Education

5. Comics in Education (not a repeat) by Gene Yang: Master’s project proposal by both a comic writer AND a high school teacher.

6. Get Graphic: Yet another online resource for teachers.

Panel One: My Origin Story (Kinda)

Hello. I am Patrick Porwoll, a graduate student at UW-Milwaukee for Secondary English Education. I received my undergraduate degree in English from UW-Madison. As I was taking a Shakespeare course in my sophomore year I talked to my professor about my interest in teaching. He recommended I pursue my English undergrad and study abroad, since I wanted to visit England, and then go about being certified and getting a Master’s. During my undergraduate studies, I took a course focused on looking at graphic novels and comics. Since I had already begun thinking about teaching, I wondered how one could implement these types of texts in a middle or high school English class. I had little to no classroom application knowledge, so I ended up not pursuing further thought on it. Unfortunately, comics are generally looked down upon as a lesser genre of writing, in many cases because they have an appeal to a youthful audience. However, the genre is a powerful one and one that benefits from the incorporated artwork, comparable in ways to a readable film. The artwork is another area of complexity, where analysis of color choices and placement get added to the literacy of comic reading. Comics act as both a good starting point for readers as well as a challenge in disguise. Focus can be shifted more to the dialogue or setting easily, and comics are a generally less intimidating text. It is also a great way for students to practice creative writing, with a major focus on dialogue and other story mechanics (some comics have very simplistic artwork, but instead focus heavily on story and characterization). Comics in the classroom is not a new idea, with many sites dedicated to finding ways to adapt the medium to the classroom in ways to help build it’s reputation.