Comics and How You Can Use Them in Your Classroom!

Comics have been around forever, and they've gone through many different versions throughout the years. They've also gone through periods of popularity, wariness, and outright disdain. Here's the thing though, comics, more recently known as graphic novels, can be used as a teaching resource in the classroom. 

I browsed through three different websites to create comics, and this is what I've learned. 

Make Beliefs Comix (https://makebeliefscomix.com)  

This website is free to anyone and is very easy to use. Here is a silly little comic I created about myself, using one of their ready-made prompts.

You can create a free log-in, but you don't have to in order to create a comic and share or print it. This site provides templates to get the creative juices flowing. They are very accommodating of using comics in different languages, so this can easily be used in a language class to demonstrate proficiency. In fact, you can choose from multiple different languages for the website. There are backgrounds, characters, and a myriad of other fun things to add to your comics, but there's a limit and most of them are silly, cartoonish (aimed at younger children, maybe?) and cannot be edited other than changing the scale and flipping it in different directions. This is a great starter for comics, and definitely a good choice for the younger crowd.

Pixton (https://app.pixton.com/#/)

This app is definitely one for older students. It allows you to create an account, but unfortunately, beyond a free trial, there isn't much you can do unless you pay for a membership. Luckily, membership for educators has three options and is a reasonable amount if you're truly willing to spend the money on it. Pixton software allows you to do way more editing than the one above. Of course, it's all comics, but this one has a more mature and artistic look to it, rather than cartoonish. 

Here is my Pixton comic, using another template they provided!

I have to admit it was a lot of fun creating my avatar. 

Fotojet (https://www.fotojet.com/features/misc/photo-comic.html)

Now I will admit that Fotojet was a challenge. I tried to upload my own pictures, but for some reason, although it gave an option, my pictures didn't appear. I had to use what the provided, but their free pictures were limited, and they were photos, not cartoon images. This definitely limited what kind of comic I could create. I don't think Fotojet is student and classroom friendly, although you certainly can create a free account.

I'm not particularly happy with the comic I made with Fotojet. I was limited, and there weren't any suggestions or templates that made it easier.



Using comics in the classroom is a creative way to have students produce work that allows them to be creative, and collaborate (or not), and they have to write, too! In fact, Pixton even provides templates and prompts for fiction books such as Holes and others. This can also be done as a way to introduce yourself, explain something in a creative way, or teach a lesson.