Category Archives: comics

Talking about the element of Comics

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Scott McCloud has put out a series of books (Undertstanding Comics, etc.) that have really brought a focus to the conceptual design and creation of comics and graphic novels to a new level. He fearlessly explores the literary aspects of comics and about how the combination of the visual and the word — and the ability to break down any and all walls of traditional storytelling structures.

Here is Scott, giving a great talk at the TED conference. It’s part autobiography, part comic book discussion, with more great insights.

Peace (in comics),
Kevin

The Origins of Funk (the llama)

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The last couple of episodes of my webcomic, Boolean Squared, have been all about Funk, Boolean’s new pet. He wanted a dog or a cat, but his mom got him a llama. Funk digs the music of James Brown and loves to dance. Heck, who doesn’t?

Check it out:

More of Funk will be published next week.

You can always grab the RSS for the webcomic with this link. And the home for Boolean Squared is here.

Peace (in funky comics),
Kevin

NEAToday and The Amazing Adventures of Super-Teacher

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I opened up the latest edition of NEA Today magazine to find a two-page article about the use of comics and graphic novels in the classroom. I like how, more and more, these types of articles are appearing in mainstream educational magazines. The article here is layed out as a comic strip, with the character of Super-Teacher (ie, Jeff Miller from Stevensville Middle School in Maryland) showing how comics and graphic novels may help motivate young people into more reading, and thus, sharpening their skills.

The article  by Mary Ellen Flannery cites such works as Maus by Art Spiegelman and Two-fisted Science: Stories about Scientists by Jim Ottaviani as good resources. Also, they reference a site that I had not heard of before called No Flying No Tights, which may be worth a visit (leave your flying tights at home, though).

I write reviews for The Graphic Classroom, where Chris Wilson explores and understands the appeal of comics and the power of the visual with writing to connect with students. For myself, I also try to think about how graphic novel formats might make sense for young writers, too. For some of my students, when you add an artistic element to an assignment, it opens them up to creative paths that they might not otherwise venture down.

The article in NEA is not yet available online (they seem to run a month behind) but I hope you got a copy in your mailbox, too.

Peace (in frames of learning),
Kevin

PS — speaking of comics, my latest Boolean Squared ran and it is poking fun at digital immigrants/natives. See the comic.

The Octogon of the Internet? The Rhombus of Reality?

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Each morning, my class holds a morning meeting called Circle of Power and Respect, which gives everyone a chance to weigh in with some thoughts, take part in a community activity and get the day off on the right footing. (See Responsive Classroom for more ideas on morning meetings) By now, my students are the leaders of the morning and I am just a participant.

The shape of the circle is important because it connects us all. But Boolean and Urth — in touch with their inner geekness — would rather have some other shapes for their meeting with Mr. Teach in my latest webcomic strip of Boolean Squared.

See the comic; grab the rss.

Peace (in frames),
Kevin

When Geeks Get Mad

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The latest series in my Boolean Squared comics is all about what happens when the geek kids get picked on by the school bullies. They respond in the only way they know … with technology. Come on in and see what Boolean and Urth are up to when they deal with “the bully boys” at their school.

The twice-weekly comic is found at the Springfield Republican Newspaper. But here is the RSS feed and also my own home to the Boolean Squared collection.

Peace (in kids),
Kevin

Boolean and the Star Tech Team

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The latest in my Boolean Squared comic is that Boolean has been asked to join his school’s Student Council and has launched a student-led Star Tech team that helps implement technology in his school (props to Steve, my school’s tech guru for giving me the idea).

See Boolean Squared and also, grab the RSS feed.

Peace (in little frames),
Kevin

Boolean in the WebComicCollage

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My webcomic, Boolean Squared, has been added to a new site called WebComicCollage, which is a visual indez of various webcomics. I’m pretty excited to see him there in the mix.

Remember: Boolean Squared gets posted to the newspaper site every Monday and Thursday now (see today’s comic) and then are also archived over at my Home for Boolean Squared. The RSS Feed for Boolean Squared is right here for you, if you want it.

Peace (in funnies),
Kevin