Comics are less intimidating for unskilled readers than books. They have fewer words, the grammar and syntax are often simpler, and the pictures aid understanding. Japanese comics -- manga -- are translated into many languages, including English and Spanish, and sold by companies across the world.
They are popular among children of all ages. They cover topics including history, fantasy and contemporary life, and raise issues like bullying, friendship, and moral choices.
Children choose to read manga for fun, so teachers can use them to make lessons more effective. Here are just a few ideas.
Developing Reading and Speaking Skills
Hold a classroom poll to select the title or titles you'll work on. Ask your class to suggest favorite manga. The person -- or group -- that proposes a title makes a short classroom pitch, including what this title is about, similarly-themed shows or films the class might have seen, and why it should be chosen. Then the class votes to choose the title they want to work on. Choosing the title lets them share responsibility for the learning.
The class could read the manga aloud, either taking turns to read a section, or as if it were a play, assigning roles and mixing more and less confident readers. Most manga are split into chapters so dividing them into lesson-sized chunks is easy. You could also set the next chapter as homework and ask the class to list any unusual or previously unknown words, looking up the meaning for discussion and experiment next day.
Develop Analysis and Research Skills Using Manga Narratives
Discuss the situations and characters in the story to help your class develop skills in narrative analysis. Ask students to identify how actions change the course of the story, and their views on particular characters. Get them to discuss the moral and social implications of situations in the story. What makes characters behave as they do? What other courses might they have taken?
Use historical manga as a basis for research -- how accurately does the story reflect the other sources? Or get the class to check out Web sources and write a report on manga's history, its key figures, or how it is created.
Workshops and Activities
A workshop creates many learning opportunities. There are many skills involved in making a comic, and you can set age-appropriate tasks which will stretch the group while they have fun. Pupils can try their hand at working in groups, taking responsibility for tasks, planning and meeting deadlines, research, production, and costing.
Individual skills which are not always valued can come to the fore. The math swot becomes the person who can bring the comic in on time and on budget, and the geek with neat handwriting becomes the one who can letter the word balloons and make sure the whole page looks good.
Consult the Experts
In many countries, the Embassy of Japan is able to offer assistance with contacts, suggest websites and assist you in learning more about its country's culture and art. The Embassy's local website is an excellent starting point. The Education Forum and other educators' websites offer the opportunity to share experience and good practice in using manga in class.
Many writers offer workshops and readings to schools at moderate costs, including a growing number of manga writers and researchers. Most need to be booked in advance, and there may also be travel costs to consider, but this could be a useful resource. Sites like Britain's ContactAnAuthor and organizations like the Writers' Guild or Society of Authors can help you find a professional to work with your class.
Helen McCarthy - Helen is a writer, editor, speaker, designer and trainer. She's best known for her ground-breaking research and writing on Japanese ...
