middle school

After delving into the Graphic Classics world with Edgar Allan Poe, we started exploring more graphic novels as a group. Next up: Rapunzel's Revenge by Dean Hale, Shannon Hale, and Nathan Hale. Students in grades 5-8 will love this spunky main character and unique take on Rapunzel.

I was surprised to discover that several of my 7th and 8th grade students were at first hesitant to read a graphic novel. It was new and different.

Do I have to put up bulletin boards?
I hate doing bulletin boards. Is that blasphemy? I'm in trouble, aren't I... But seriously, they're time consuming and I have to get creative. Ugh. The worst! Haha.

Inspired by Pinterest and the HGTV / DIY channels, I decided to recreate my boring old desk chair into something I'd be excited to sit in! My chair was ok before, but I wanted something that reflected my personality. I searched around the local fabric stores for the perfect fabric. In the end, I found it at Walmart of all places. 

Faith Erin Hicks graduated from Sheridan College's Classical Animation program and is currently a full-time freelance cartoonist. I first became familiar with her work reading the online comic Demonology 101 (1999-2004). She later collaborated on such works as Brain Camp and Friends with Boys. Her style is unique and evident in all her work.

Defining Action Research
With the annotated bibliography and literature review complete, it was time to begin my action research. For those new to research, or not familiar with the concept, action research is essentially the study of a subject (aka person) to monitor the effects of some kind of intervention. The research typically answers some kind of “yes” or “no” question, such as “Do graphic novels positively affect student comprehension when used in the classroom?” Action research quantifies the results of the study and typically includes graphs or charts.

Background to Researching Graphic Novels:
As mentioned in Becoming a Graphic Novel Expert, I recently received a grant from the Minnesota Reading Association to purchase graphic novels. To aid in deciding which graphic novels I should purchase for the middle school classroom, I used a bibliography I recieved at a graphic novels conference put on by the Arrowhead Reading Council. The librarian who had created the bibliography even included what level the graphic novel was appropriate for (i.e. young reader, middle school, high school, or mature). I felt confident in my choices before having read all of them because of this resource.

Each year brings a new group of students to my room. So, to get a feel for where they are in their writing, I like to have them write a short story. Short stories and fiction are frequently used in younger grades and they have likely had the most experience with that type of writing, so it's their chance to be creative and show off their strengths in writing.